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Courtesy of Faithwalk Photography |
Sixteen year
old Lydia has been thinking about how to use her extra time building
a cottage industry. She has several options. One is an offer to work
with her aunt, who is a full-time house cleaner. Another is tutoring
the children of a family from church in piano or finally launch
her dream of running “Lydia's Flower Basket”. But Lydia feels frozen. How in the world does she know which opportunity is right? What
if she makes the wrong choice?
Have you ever been there?
Having a Goliath list of ideas but not knowing which one to pursue? I
have. So how do we decide? I don't have the perfect answer (no one
does, though I still find myself looking :)) but over the years I've
learned it's helpful to take my prospective ideas and filter them
through six life circles: God, Worldview, Relationships, Time, Health
and Money.* Let's look first at the most important three.
God
It should go without
saying, but our first response must be seeking God about any and
every entrepreneurial idea. If we have been born again, then we are
servants of Christ. Servants exist to do the will of their master. So
the first question we must ask is is this something my Master wants
me to do? It's a familiar verse, but Proverbs 3:6 is very clear that
when we acknowledge the Lord in all our ways He takes personal
responsibility to direct us.
Worldview
Worldview is how we
view God and Man in the context of daily life. As Believers, the
Bible is THE filter through which we process life, which is why it's so
important we know what it says. Not every
entrepreneurial enterprise fits a biblical worldview; those that
don't should be rejected. Let's put it this way: if your ideas were
people would they be judged as hot, cold or lukewarm in their conformance to the Bible?
Relationships
The work we do has an incredible influence on our relationships with family, friends,
neighbors and fellow believers. Does your idea give freedom for you to be the daughter, wife or mother God has called you to be? Will it
require long hours of working alone? Does it help or hinder your
involvement with family and other believers?
Another way relationships
help us weigh ideas is by providing counsel. When I left my work as a
land title searcher, God worked through conversations with my parents
and close friends to lead me. Of course we have to take the ultimate
responsibility for what we decide to do, but a wise man seeks out
counsel ( Proverbs 12:15). Take time to ask those who know and love
you what they think about your ideas.
Next week, we'll peek at
time, health and money but from what we've just covered, do any of your ideas stand out as "the one"? How do they look now viewing them through
the eyes of Jesus, the Bible and your most precious relationships?
*Blogger Jonathan Milligan is the first person I ever heard point out six major life areas, only his list was spirituality, identity,
relationships, time management, health and wealth. While I did not
agree with all parts of his article and have used no quotes from it,
I did find it very helpful in seeing how these areas affect everyone and
want to credit him as the one who identified them.
I greatly enjoyed reading this, Kenz! So very true! I especially appreciated the question, "Does it help or hinder your involvement with family and other believers?" This is so important to consider!! Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteThanks for your encouragement, Amanda! The article was a good reminder for me. :)
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