Devotionals by Topic

Putting God First in Your Business

Many Christians have become entrepreneurs today. This is a great thing if you put God first in your business. Sure, you’re bound to come across some people who dislike you because of this choice. Nevertheless, you must remain focused on God at all times. Here’s how you can do this.

1. Start and End with Prayer 

If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. – James 1:5

Before you do anything, take it to God in prayer. Ask Him to guide you in a way that glorifies Him. Being humble enough to do this reminds you that your business isn’t yours, it belongs to God. This knowledge enables you to bring Him honor and rest in knowing that He’ll provide for all your business’ needs.

2. Give of Yourself and Your Finances 

But to do good and to communicate forget not: for with such sacrifices God is well pleased. – Hebrews 13:16

As Christians, God has called us to give of ourselves and our finances. When you step into a leadership role, you become a leader. Employees and customers will look at you to see how you put God first in your business. What do you do with your free time? Where do you spend your money? When God blesses you abundantly, make sure you give abundantly in return.

3. Remember the Great Commission

Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost – Matthew 28:19

Sometimes we think all we need to do is tell others we’re a Christian. While it’s great that you’re sharing this with those around you, it’s also important to share your faith in other ways. For instance, as a business owner you can show others you’re a Christian by how you deal with critical reviews, disagreeable people, and in how you love and serve others. Remember, God has called you to be a light in your community. This means that you need to put God first in your business so you can be a light to those around you. While things won’t be perfect all the time, God is there for us to lean on in the bad times. By choosing to put God first in your business, you’re choosing to allow Him to bless you in all that you do.

Prayer For Prosperous Business

When your business needs a boost of prosperity, ask the Lord to open your mind and heart for recognizing new opportunities. With this strong prayer, you’ll invite good spiritual energy into your business, ask for prosperity, and prepare your heart for receiving it.

“Dear Heavenly Father, in Your Name I pray. I am grateful to you for granting me the grace, wisdom, and means to run this business. I have faith in your guidance as I ask you to give me the strength to work hard and make my business prosperous and abundant. I know you will reveal new opportunities and areas for expansion and development. Bless this business, and help it grow, flourish, and create great livelihood and growth for all those involved. Amen.”

HEALTHY NUGGET WINDOW: Recipes That Benefit the Heart and the Brian

R-31 DAN SHEN YIN (SALVIA AND AMOMUM FRUIT ANGINA FORMULA)

Source: YiZong Jin Jian [ The Golden Mirror of Medicine] by Wu, Qian A.D. 1742.

Ingredients: This recipe contains 30 g salvia root, 5 g sandalwood, and 5 g amomum fruit (sha ren).

Directions: The ingredients are decocted in water for oral administration.

Divide into three doses and take daily before meals.

Actions, Indications, and Clinical Applications: Promotes blood circulation and removes blood stasis. This recipe is used to treat angina pectoris

and other cardiovascular ailments, gastritis, and epigastric and abdominal pain as a result of the stagnation of Qi and blood.

Precautions: Pregnant women should avoid this recipe.

Theme of Today: LEARNING 

“The Transformative Blessings of Education"

I am grateful to be here, for this new opportunity for our family, and to be able to speak to you this day.  I’m overwhelmed and thankful for the support we feel from all of you. I am blessed to have grown up in a family that valued education. Both of my grandmothers received informal learning. My mother is a great spiritfilled ideaological business lady and my father was an all round great idealogical business man . I graduated from Kampala International University with a Bachelor's Degree of Information Technology. As I grew up, when my parents taught me the importance of education, they never discussed it as a means to an end to enter the workforce. Rather, they always talked about the attributes and characteristics it would help develop. They taught me that education is an important part of my eternal progression.We have been taught that “the glory of God is intelligence, or, in other words, light and truth”1 and that “truth is knowledge of things as they are, and as they were, and as they are to come.”2 Further, in 3 Nephi, we read, “[W]hat manner of men [and women] ought ye to be? Verily I say unto you, even as I am.”3 God knows and understands all things. To become like Him, we must eventually know and understand all things too, and we accelerate our learning through education.Education blesses us in many important ways beyond the actual learning and understanding of a particular discipline. It is not just the acquisition of facts. It changes the way we think and experience the world.

I have just heard from Edna Mafavuke, a student in Zimbabwe. She has said that one of the reasons she’s so grateful for her BYU-Pathway education is it helped her realize the sky is the limit — that life and her Heavenly Father have a lot more in store for her than she originally thought. Education opens new perspectives and expands possibilities.

Becoming more like Christ

In addition, earning an education helps us develop Christlike attributes. Think back on your own educational experience. As you struggled through long hours of study, the pain of working to understand difficult concepts or formulating your thoughts into a coherent essay, and the stress and sometimes disappointment of the examination process, you were building and influencing who you are today.

Education helps in many ways:

• We develop patience, discipline, and the ability to sacrifice.

• We increase our ability to focus for long periods and work through exhaustion.

• We develop critical-thinking and problem-solving skills.

• We become more humble as we recognize how little we know, and, at the same time, we learn from experience that we can continually learn and grow.

• We develop the ability to pray for help and guidance.

• We increase in understanding, which leads to empathy.

• We gain confidence that we can do hard things and that we have value.

• We grow in assurance that we can have a positive influence in the world.

Biblical Strong Inspiration on keeping increased Learning:

Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you. Philippians 4:9 | NIV |

I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you. Psalm 32:8 | NIV |

Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing. 1 Thessalonians 5:11 | NIV |

My son, do not despise the Lord’s discipline, and do not resent his rebuke, because the Lord disciplines those he loves, as a father the son he delights in. Proverbs 3:11-12 | NIV |

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction. Proverbs 1:7 | NIV |

Show me your ways, Lord, teach me your paths. Psalm 25:4 | NIV |

Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. Colossians 3:16 | NIV |

Guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long. Psalm 25:5 | NIV |

Good and upright is the Lord; therefore he instructs sinners in his ways. He guides the humble in what is right and teaches them his way. Psalm 25:8-9 | NIV |

Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. Matthew 11:29-30 | NIV |

Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age. Matthew 28:19-20 | NIV |

I instruct you in the way of wisdom and lead you along straight paths. Proverbs 4:11 | NIV |

Teach me to do your will, for you are my God; may your good Spirit lead me on level ground. Psalm 143:10 | NIV |

You, however, must teach what is appropriate to sound doctrine. Titus 2:1 | NIV |

As for you, the anointing you received from him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit—just as it has taught you, remain in him. 1 John 2:27 | NIV |

Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge, but whoever hates correction is stupid. Proverbs 12:1 | NIV |

Jesus answered, “My teaching is not my own. It comes from the one who sent me.” John 7:16 | NIV |

My soul yearns for you in the night; in the morning my spirit longs for you. When your judgments come upon the earth, the people of the world learn righteousness. Isaiah 26:9 | NIV |

But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. John 14:26 | NIV |

You know that I have not hesitated to preach anything that would be helpful to you but have taught you publicly and from house to house. Acts 20:20 | NIV |

Day after day, in the temple courts and from house to house, they never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Messiah. Acts 5:42 | NIV |

Prayer to Increase My Learning

God of Refuge, please increase my knowledge as I work towards bettering myself. Bless me with wisdom, intelligence, and the ability to learn quickly. If I am unable to understand a skill within a certain subject, please encourage me to study and work until I master it. Motivate me to help myself and develop helpful habits that will contribute to my learning ability. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.

BIBLE VERSES THAT REMIND YOU TO LIVE A VIBRANT LIFE

As a Brethren in the LORD Jesus Christ, one of my goals is to ensure that every resident in our communities has what they need to enjoy life. Moving into an assisted living community isn't about winding down and stopping. It's about finding a new path for an active, vibrant lifestyle that includes what you want it to.

Whether that's games, time with friends, enjoyable meals, walks outdoors, learning new hobbies or quiet time with God, I've got you covered. In fact, I've got you covered if you want all that and more. My faith-based communities are centered on serving the needs of every resident with compassion, which is why I work hard to make it possible for you to live joyfully.

It's easy to forget sometimes that God wants us to enjoy this life. Yes, the time we spend on this earth isn't the alpha-omega of existence. Yes, there is much more waiting for those who believe in Jesus. But the Bible does tell us that we should live in contentment and vibrantly whenever possible.

Check out some verses about living your best life and some ways that the right assisted living community can help you do just that!

PSALM 37:4: THE DESIRES OF YOUR HEART

Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.

Psalm 37 begins by reminding the reader not to worry about what other people are doing or to be envious of those who aren't living according to God's will. Instead, says the Psalmist, we're to take delight in God and what he has done for us.

It's a call to individualism and relationship with God. We can't live our best lives if we're constantly worried about how other people are living theirs. We also can't live vibrantly if we're stuck in the past, dwelling on regrets or pains.

Moving into an assisted living community is a great time to let those things go and make a fresh start. You'll be surrounded by caring staff and potential new friends. Take time to delight in what is available to you and the new opportunities for enjoying life, and let God handle the rest.

MATTHEW 5:12: REJOICE AND BE GLAD

Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Life on this earth will never be perfect. This is likely something seniors have come to understand over the years. But by rejoicing daily that there is a perfect life to be had ahead, you can get through the imperfections and be glad for your life in the here-and-now.

One way residents Living can rejoice is by taking part in community worship opportunities. Our faith-based communities offer regular Bible studies, devotional times and on-site worship.

ACTS 2:46: WITH GLADNESS AND SINCERITY

Day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart.

In the NIV Bible, this verse comes under the heading "The Fellowship of Believers." It's a short section that describes the culture of the new church. They were devoted to learning about Jesus, took care of each other and enjoyed eating and meeting together to worship and fellowship.

Whether you're an introvert or extrovert—and no matter how much you enjoy your alone time—it's important to recognize that as a human being, you weren't made to go it completely alone. We're built for fellowship, especially with other believers. An assisted living community offers many options for enjoying the company of others, including the simplicity of breaking bread together in the dining areas.

JOHN 10:10: ABUNDANT LIFE

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.

Jesus is pretty clear about this. He didn't come to oppress or make life worse for anyone. He came to wash away sins and pave the way for an abundant life. Abundant here doesn't mean worldly riches; it means spiritual riches, which are more valuable and long-lasting. Many people look toward heaven for that abundant life, but the truth is that Jesus wants people to start living it now by imitating him and learning to walk in obedience to God's will.

2 TIMOTHY 1: 7: A SPIRIT OF POWER

For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.

This verse is often categorized as one for youth due to the nature of the epistle, but it's a powerful verse for people of any age. As you go through life changes and make a move into an assisted living community, remember that God did not fill you with a spirit that is fearful. The spirit in you is powerful and full of love and self-control. It's one that can power you through any upcoming challenge, whether that's physical therapy after a surgery or introducing yourself to new people in your community.

Prayer Points:

~Lord, show me how to unclench my grip on what I expect of You in this season…

~Lord, give me heavenly anticipation of how Your presence will change everything…

~Awaken me to fresh wonder of Your power and love… In Jesus Christ, Almighty Name, Amen.