Business as Ministry
Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as
working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you
will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is
the Lord Christ you are serving. -- Colossians 3:23-24
The Bible is very clear that the purpose for our work life
is to reflect Christ in and through our lives. It is an
attitude that says our work is to have an overriding
"ministry" objective to it. Our work is our worship to God.
These two words even originate from the same Hebrew word,
avodah.
Robert Laidlaw was born in Scotland in 1885, but grew up in
New Zealand. Born to Christian parents, he committed his
life fully to the Lord when he was 17. Laidlaw began working
in a hardware merchant company as a traveling sales
representative when he was 19. Later he had the idea for a
mail-order catalogue business that sold everything
imaginable including underwear, groceries, cosmetics, and
farm equipment, all at bargain-basement prices. His concept
proved successful and his business later merged with the
Farmer's Union Trading Company. He became general manager
and held that position for 50 years.
But this is not the most significant thing that can be said
about Robert Laidlaw. He understood that his work life was a
tool to affect others for Jesus Christ. He began giving ten
percent of his income early in his business life. Later,
however, he entered this into his journal: "September 1919,
age twenty-five. I have decided to change my earlier
graduated scale, and start now giving half (fifty percent)
of all my earnings." This he continued for the next 60
years. [John Woodbridge, ed., More Than Conquerors (Chicago,
Illinois: Moody Press, 1992), 351.
The result of that commitment was countless numbers affected
for Jesus Christ through the resources he gave to mission
groups and other worthy Christian causes. He was personally
involved in ministry. He wrote a small book that gave a
thoughtful answer to basic questions about life and faith.
It was titled The Reason. Many hundreds of thousands came to
faith in Christ because of this 46-page booklet. He publicly
spoke to many of his faith in Christ and became very
involved in the Soldier's and Airmen's Association when
World War II broke out. Robert Laidlaw understood what it
meant to view business with an overriding ministry
objective.
Does the Lord have complete control of your life? If so, you
will be able to see your business life as an extension of
His life in you. Let the Lord live in and through your
business life today.
Excerpted with permission from the book TGIF Today God Is First, by Os Hillman, copyright 2000, Destiny Image Publishers, Reprinted by permission. For free daily email subscription to TGIF Today God Is First marketplace meditations, visit www.marketplaceleaders.org (Os Hillman)