How to make good business

Our scriptures teach from varied verses from the Old and New Testament how to behave in various conditions of life. We will look at some verses which guide us on how we can make good business as Christian business men and women. We shall learn that our scriptures instruct us:

• Not to neither oppress nor rob anyone in order to be rich
• Not to despise the complaints of those who are under or serving us but to pay their due wages in due time
• To be honest and show justice
• To be generous and be able to lend to others
• To be hard working and to avoid fraud
• To be good stewards of the riches God has given us

Our scriptures say you should not oppress your neighbour, nor rob him. Many people who call themselves business men have as duty to rob and they call that business. Wives, if your husband says he is a business man and you do not know what kind of business he is doing, please be wise. It holds true to men who do not know what kind of business their wives are doing. Our days, when you ask a man what are you doing now? He’ll say I’m doing business; what I see I do and if I do not see I hang on. That is a very empty answer that is suspicious; please let’s go into God’s word before making any decision in our life. If you are doing business and it happens that you hire a man for a duty; the Bible says pay off the person when the service is rendered and let it not remain with you all night until morning. Leviticus 19:13 “Thou shalt not oppress thy neighbour, nor rob him: the wages of a hired servant shall not abide with thee all night until the morning.” There is a phenomenon here in Cameroon and elsewhere in the world that business men hire servants and are not willing to pay them. The Bible says you should not stay even a night when the service is rendered. This does not only apply to business men, it also applies to families who hire house-helps or baby-sitters. When their services are rendered, please pay their money whether it is for a monthly payment or yearly reward. The Lord of Host says, He will judge those who do not fear God; the sorcerers, the adulterers, those who swear falsely, those who oppress the wage earner in his wages, those who oppress the widow and the orphan and those who turn aside the stranger from his right. Malachi 3:5 “And I will come near to you to judgment; and I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, and against the adulterers, and against the false swearers, and against those that oppress the hireling in his wages, the widow, and the fatherless, and that turn aside the sojourner [from his right], and fear not me, saith Jehovah of hosts.” So if we oppress then we do not fear the Lord and we shall have the consequences of our acts. Proverbs 22:16 says those who oppress the poor shall come to poverty. Likewise those who give to the rich for unworthy purposes say corruption shall also come to poverty. In other words the corrupt and the corrupted shall come to want “He that oppresseth the poor to increase his [gain], [And] he that giveth to the rich, [shall come] only to want.” Some people mistake this text to mean that if you give to the rich you will become poor. No! This text can only mean one thing and that if the rich oppress the poor to increase their riches or that if you give to the rich to increases your riches, then you will become poor. You cannot give to the rich when you are poor except for corruption and this is what the scripture is guarding us against.

Our scriptures also teach us not to despise the complaints of our servants, because God will call us to give an account Job 31:13’14 “If I have despised the cause of my man-servant or of my maid-servant, When they contended with me; What then shall I do when God riseth up? And when he visiteth, what shall I answer him?” God created us all; the rich and the poor, we all came out from the same womb fashioned by God, why should we be happy when others are in pain? So if we have the opportunity to have the needy around us, lets help them with what we have. Scriptures tell us that we all have the same master whether slave or master on earth and so we are accountable to our unique master who is God. We therefore have to treat even our slaves with justice and fairness. Colossians 4:1 “Masters, render unto your servants that which is just and equal; knowing that ye also have a Master in heaven.” Ephesians 6:9 “And, ye masters, do the same things unto them, and forbear threatening: knowing that he who is both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no respect of persons with him.” So the scripture is telling us in Ephesians that There is no partiality with God; this is what it means in the phrase “there is no respect of persons with him”. If you mount your riches on the sweats of your servants, then know that your riches are corrupted and the scriptures say misery is coming your way because the cries of the servants who served you without you paying their due has reached the ears of the Almighty, James 5:4 “Behold, the hire of the labourers who mowed your fields, which is of you kept back by fraud, crieth out: and the cries of them that reaped have entered into the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth” The Bible says we should not muzzle the ox when he is treading out the grain. Why? Because the ox needs to eat too as he is treading the grain. So the labourer is worthy of his pay; he should not work without pay. He too needs to eat and feed his own home before working for you. 1 Timothy 5:18 “For the scripture saith, Thou shalt not muzzle the ox when he treadeth out the corn. And, The laborer is worthy of his hire.”

In your business, you have to be honest and show a sense of integrity. If you are selling a bucket of rice or maize for 5000 francs, do not cheat your customer. You should not hide bad quality goods at the bottom with good ones above for the customer. You should not beat up the bottom of your measuring tin for the purpose of cheating the customers. You have to treat everybody in the same way with no bias and your days may be prolonged in what the Lord has given you. You should not fake your measuring equipment whether it be the balance, tape, etc for the Bible says your life will be shorten on earth if you do these sinful acts Deuteronomy 25:13-15 “Thou shalt not have in thy bag diverse weights, a great and a small. Thou shalt not have in thy house diverse measures, a great and a small. A perfect and just weight shalt thou have; a perfect and just measure shalt thou have: that thy days may be long in the land which Jehovah thy God giveth thee.” If your neighbour gives you a service for payment, you must pay for what you have received. That is rendering justice. For example, if you are renting a house for your business, you must pay for the rents. If a neighbour is supply you water or electricity, you must pay for your consumption because that is the neighbours wage for the service offered. The scriptures say woe to him, wretchedness or misery to him who builds his house or business without righteousness or without justice. That is the curse to he who wants to have services, who wants to build his empire at the expense of others. Jeremiah 22:13 “Woe unto him that buildeth his house by unrighteousness, and his chambers by injustice; that useth his neighbour’s service without wages, and giveth him not his hire;” Proverbs 16:8 says it is better to have little with righteousness than to have much revenue without justice “Better is a little, with righteousness, Than great revenues with injustice.” The Bible also tells us that God has pleasure in justice, He is delighted when we render justice and that injustice is an abomination to the Lord Proverbs 11:1 “A false balance is an abomination to Jehovah; But a just weight is his delight.”

Our scriptures say it is well with the man who is generous and who lends and who conducts his affairs with justice. We need to give not only to people who can give us back but most importantly to those who cannot give back for our reward is in heaven. Then we should be able to lend to those who have temporal needs. These are people who may want to solve instant problems and who intend to pay back as they stand on their feet. Then we are called to exercise justice we should not show injustice in what ever business we are doing and if we do these things, the Bible says it is well with us Psalm 112:5 “Well is it with the man that dealeth graciously and lendeth; He shall maintain his cause in judgment.”

Scriptures teaches us to be hard working in our businesses. If we are hard working our wealth gained through our labour will increase where as wealth gained through fraud will not last. It is short lived and this is one of the reasons we find people today who just sprang up with wealth and suddenly they lose it. Proverbd 13:11 “Wealth gotten by vanity shall be diminished; But he that gathereth by labour shall have increase.” What the scripture mean here by wealth gathered by vanity is that wealth gathered by fraud; fast money as the youths of today say. The Bible says it will diminish but when you labour for what you want, it increases. In proverbs 10:4 the Bible says he who is hard working will be rich while a lazy man will be poor. So we are encouraged to be hard working in our business and in what ever we are doing while at the same time trusting God to do His part. Probverbs 10:4 “He becometh poor that worketh with a slack hand; But the hand of the diligent maketh rich.” What most youths today want is to get on the internet and fraud, cheat people of their belonging and they say they are rich; NO that will diminish. Some want to be rich but they are not ready to make a step, they move from one church to the other, from one pastor to the other, and from one prophet to another searching for blessings. I tell you today that God can bless you but if you are not serious in your life you will never express the blessings of God in your life. You will always be a crying man or woman. You need to pray as if without praying nothing can happen in your life and work hard as if without working hard nothing can happen in your life. The scriptures tell us to be hard working not lazy man. The greatest men in the Bible who were blessed with riches were very hard working men of God. When we are lazy we have nothing but our soul is always wanting while the hard working man has a fulfilled soul Proverbs 13:4 “The soul of the sluggard desireth, and hath nothing; But the soul of the diligent shall be made fat.”

We are encouraged to be contented with what God has given us so that we do not get anxious about wealth. Some one will ask me how it is possible to be satisfied and doing business at the same time. Being satisfied dos not mean you are saturated, it just man that you are happy with what you have and you are not looking for more at all cost. It also mean that if there are not changes in your current level, you will not be worried. What causes many heart attacks these days is because many people are never ready to accept the worse states in life, so when it comes they just break down. If we are satisfied in what God has given us charge over, then we will be faithful with it and we will manage it in a God fearing way. When we manage our wealth as good stewards then God can give us greater things for which we are called to be righteous with. Luke 16:10 “He that is faithful in a very little is faithful also in much: and he that is unrighteous in a very little is unrighteous also in much.” Some Christians thing God wants us to be righteous in some domains and not in all. In some issues they are very strong about righteousness but when it concerns business or money many Christians become lukewarm about their faith. If we think that those things are small then the scriptures is telling us today that we have to be righteous in them so that we can be righteous in bigger things.

Patience and materialism

We need to stay focus on God and not materialism. So we need to act like we can live without things if need be. Don't make it your idol or do not act as if your life depends on it and you can really do without. Too often we impatiently seek our own way without any clear direction from God, sometimes even borrowing money to do His work. We forget that God says He will not frustrate His work for the lack of money ( Luke 22:35; “And he said unto them, When I sent you forth without purse, and wallet, and shoes, lacked ye anything? And they said, Nothing”). There is nothing wrong with asking God's direction, but it is wrong to go our own way without waiting for God's answer.

In order for us to recognize God's directives, it may be necessary first to understand God's view of money and how He uses it to enhance our relationship with Him. Money is neither good nor bad; it is merely a medium of exchange but the misuse and abuse of money causes problems. All we have is God’s and so it is God’s money. We are entrusted with money to do with it as God wills. With every transaction we make, we should be asking the question of whether or not the purchase is glorifying God. God uses money for our own good in strengthening our trust in Him. If we’ll trust God and accept our position as stewards and managers of His possessions, He will always bless us showing us that He is in control; Matthew 6:32’33 “For after all these things do the Gentiles seek; for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye first his kingdom, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” Our lives revolve around making, spending, saving and using money; so if God can trust us with money then He can trust us with greater responsibilities and His true riches as we read in Luke 16:11 “If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true [riches]?” Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much as seen in verse 10 of the same chapter. Therefore, no matter what our financial circumstances, we can use money in a way that reflects God’s wisdom.

If we trust God He will show His love for us by giving us among others things money; Matthew 7:11 “If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father who is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?” Not only is God concerned about the material well-being of Christians, he’s deeply and profoundly concerned for the material well-being of the whole world. God created a material world. He created man as a material creature with profound material needs. All we would have to do is go to the Sermon on the Mount to see Jesus’ great expression of compassion for those who are in material want. There’s a tremendous emphasis of concern in the New Testament that we as Christians have a profound care for those who are hungry, poor, naked, and homeless. That concern indicates a concern for the material welfare of people. The New Testament has a lot to say about wealth and poverty and the various causes and circumstances involving those conditions.

There are frightening warnings to the rich, for example, particularly those who would put their confidence in their wealth rather than in the benevolent concern of God. In this regard Jesus says, “Take no thought for tomorrow, what you should eat, what you should drink, what you should put on; but rather, consider the lilies of the field that they neither toil nor spin. Solomon in all his glory is not arrayed like one of these.” He is saying that we can become so preoccupied with the accumulation of wealth that we miss the kingdom of God; we have a concern for the material things to the neglect of the spiritual things. Because we see the world preoccupied with material things and woefully neglecting the spiritual, we may be inclined to become extremists in the opposite direction and say, “All that God cares about are spiritual things.” Again, a balanced view of Scripture will prevent us from coming to that conclusion, because there is nothing wrong with a concern for material welfare. In other words, God cares for people, and people are material creatures who require material things in order to survive. If God cares for people, obviously he cares for their material well-being. Health and healing from sickness are material matters, and so God’s concern for our health is a concern for our material wellbeing. We just have to be patient and wait for God’s time for God’s time is the best time.

Many Christians today lack patience so much so that we sort to get rich as fast as we can without waiting for God’s approval. When we taste little riches we abandon God, we forget that God wants us to help the poor and store our riches in heaven. Just as the rich man who obeyed the law but could not respond to Christ’s call to sell his possession and give to the poor, we are not ready to respond to God’s call. We want to select the commands which we want to respect; we are selective in God’s word instead of accepting all. We accept obnly those that are easy or convenient for us. The rich man could not sell his possessions to give to the poor hence he did not follow Christ (Mark 10:21).

We need to be ready to accept our conditions whether we are poor or not after all our Lord said sacred are the poor for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. We have to learn to persevere in our conditions and hold fast to God’s word because we have God’s promise and he never fails; Luke 6:20,21,24 “And he lifted up his eyes on his disciples, and said, Blessed [are] ye poor: for yours is the kingdom of God. Blessed [are] ye that hunger now: for ye shall be filled. Blessed [are] ye that weep now: for ye shall laugh. … But woe unto you that are rich! for ye have received your consolation. ” Following Christ entails renunciation of what we have whether it be riches, material possessions even ourselves; that is the sacrifice and it is it that shows great change in our life. We need to learn to live without those things in order to be Christians in all seasons (Luke 14:33, 18:25). We can only learn to live without these things if we understand that our life does not consist in possessions as our Lord teaches in Luke 12:15 “And he said unto them, Take heed, and keep yourselves from all covetousness: for a man`s life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.” We need to learn that when we are entrusted with riches, it is because God wants us to do more in that direction and store in heaven by helping others on earth; Luke 12:33 “Sell that which ye have, and give alms; make for yourselves purses which wax not old, a treasure in the heavens that faileth not, where no thief draweth near, neither moth destroyeth.” We should have compassion on others; do to others what we will expect others to do to us. When we show compassion, and give to the needy, we are in another way showing the transformation that has happened in our lives. We need to be saved from the hands of materialism into a life of generosity and restore lives Luke 18:8,9 “And Zacchaeus stood, and said unto the Lord, Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor; and if I have wrongfully exacted aught of any man, I restore fourfold. And Jesus said unto him, To-day is salvation come to this house, forasmuch as he also is a son of Abraham.” It is by being generous that we gain more. We need to invest in God’s vine yard rather than storing it up; rather we shall loose allif we do not invest it as stewards. The Poor widow in Luke 21:1 did not hesitate to say let me keep this for my food because I will have nothing for today. She gave all that she had because of her faith in God; and truly she did her saving in heaven and she will have her reward.

Our Lord himself is an example of the kind of life we need to live. He was patient and did not hurry for any material wealth; after all these things belong to Him but He taught us to leave as if we have no home on earth but in God’s kingdom (Luke 9:58). If we spend our time working for money and storing up for ourselves for the ‘rainy days’ as we usually say, while keeping God to the background, then we will lose both our life and the material. Who knows when He will die or the length of his life on earth? Luke 12:20’21 should inspire us; just as God said to the man who built big barns to store his possessions that he is a fool, we have to be wise and use our possessions as good stewards. We need to give up all that we have in order to have the kingdom of God. God’s purpose in our life is for us to glorify Him and for us to spend eternity with Him. God’s kingdom is our treasure and we should do all we can to have our crown in the Kingdom of heaven (Matthew 13:44). So we have to seek the kingdom of God and His righteousness as first priorities in our life, all other things will be added to us (Matthew 6:33).

Spirituality and Materialism

Is it possible to be very wealthy and at the same time being spiritually a good Christian? YES! Can a Christian be spiritually good and loving materialism? NO! Materialism stems from greed and anxiety to have material possessions at the expense of spiritual values; so if you love money or being wealthy at all cost there is no way you can perfectly do the work of the Christian. Where the Bible will tell you to give to the poor or the sick (ie people who cannot refund), you will chose to lend the money to a business man for more profit. You will be laying up your treasures on earth where you see with your eyes rather than laying up your treasures in heaven where it will be secure and for eternity. So being wealthy is not what matters here but what matters is what you do with your wealth Matt. 6:19-24; ”Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon the earth, where moth and rust consume, and where thieves break through and steal: but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth consume, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: for where thy treasure is, there will thy heart be also. The lamp of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light. But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is the darkness! No man can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.”

There is nothing wrong with having material possessions but everything is wrong when our heart if focused on wealth rather than on God. The passage above was spoken by our Lord Jesus Christ and He has made a distinction between having things and placing an undue importance upon them; when He says do not lay up treasures. We need to work because it is part of our curse (Gen 3:17-19), but the goal of our lives is not to get rich, but to be obedient to God and His commands. Christ in the passage above says it is more important to lay up our treasures in heaven than upon the earth. How can we then lay our treasures in heaven?

The mark of a Christian is that his eyes are on heaven and he measures all his behavior by what effect it will have on heaven. There is something about God and money that makes them tend to mastery. Either you are mastered by money and therefore ignore God or make Him a bellhop for your business, or you are mastered by God and make money a servant of the kingdom. But if either tries to master you while you are mastered by the other you will hate and despise it. This is why Jesus said it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. So you can only lay up your treasures in heaven if God is your master and your earthly wealth is a servant of the kingdom of God. How? You use your wealth to serve in God’s kingdom rather than piling up for yourself on earth. In Luke 12:33 Jesus tells us how to lay treasures in heaven by giving to the poor rather than accumulating for ourselves “Sell that which ye have, and give alms; make for yourselves purses which wax not old, a treasure in the heavens that faileth not, where no thief draweth near, neither moth destroyeth.” Jesus also tells us to give to those who cannot repay us because our reward is in heaven. In other words, when you give freely and generously because you trust Jesus to take care of you, you are laying up treasures in heaven. You will be rewarded at the resurrection of the just; Luke 14:13-14 “But when thou makest a feast, bid the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind: and thou shalt be blessed; because they have not [wherewith] to recompense thee: for thou shalt be recompensed in the resurrection of the just.”

• I want you to realize that God is not condemning us for being wealthy or rich. The question is, “Are you serving those things and committing idolatry by having them be your god?” Money is not bad; it is the love of money that is the root of evil. “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil: which some reaching after have been led astray from the faith, and have pierced themselves through with many sorrows.” (1Timothy 6:10). “Charge them that are rich in this present world, that they be not highminded, nor have their hope set on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy; that they do good, that they be rich in good works, that they be ready to distribute, willing to communicate; laying up in store for themselves a good foundation against the time to come, that they may lay hold on the life which is [life] indeed” (1 Timothy 6:17-19).
• The temptation to lay up treasures is a real temptation that we all face from youth to adulthood. Most of the time we wonder that if I could get more money I will buy a house, buy a car, get a Prado or a RAV4, a golden chain, etc. Then we wonder how people will look at us or what people will say about us when they see us with those things. That is the temptation. This temptation is real, and we need to put on the whole armour of God to combat it. Our enemy wants nothing more than to distract us with these temporal pleasures and things of this world so that we do not have an intimate relationship with our Father.
• Where is your treasure? I don’t know where your heart is or what your heart is longing for or serving. Only two people know that, you and God. I know that if you are serving yourself by storing up wealth or popularity or whatever it may be, that will come to an end. It is only temporary. But if you are serving God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength, you will not be disappointed. There is an inheritance waiting for you when you go to be with the Lord.

Abraham was a very rich man, but he trusted God first and likewise Solomon did not ask for riches from God but he asked for wisdom to know how to go in and out before the people of Israel. God not only gave him wisdom, He gave him great riches and promised to give him long life if Solomon was obedient ;I Kings 3:11-14 (And God said unto him, Because thou hast asked this thing, and hast not asked for thyself long life, neither hast asked riches for thyself, nor hast asked the life of thine enemies, but hast asked for thyself understanding to discern justice; behold, I have done according to thy word: lo, I have given thee a wise and an understanding heart; so that there hath been none like thee before thee, neither after thee shall any arise like unto thee. And I have also given thee that which thou hast not asked, both riches and honor, so that there shall not be any among the kings like unto thee, all thy days. And if thou wilt walk in my ways, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as thy father David did walk, then I will lengthen thy days.)

God wants us to pay attention to the responsibilities of provision, but it should not be at the detriment of God’s glory. He is passionate about our well being (Prov 27:23). In 1 Timothy 5:8 the scriptures tell us that if we do not provide for those who depend on us, then we have denied the Christian faith and we are worse than the infidel. A person who cannot take care of the material needs of his family cannot take care of their spiritual needs. We should not put these things in the first place but God should be in the first place in our life. Riches will come and go but wisdom will stay and only wise people understand the things of God; Prov 23:4,5 “Weary not thyself to be rich; Cease from thine own wisdom. Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is not? For [riches] certainly make themselves wings, Like an eagle that flieth toward heaven.” It is important to notice that our minds control our heart. Our heart does not control our mind. If we place undue importance upon material possessions, our mind will turn our heart away from Christ and heavenly values. Our possessions will control us instead of us controlling our possessions.

Why should we be worried about material wealth when our God says He will provide for us as wee need? Our life is more than making a living and supplying for our families. Many people are very honest in trying to supply for their families, but they are missing the point that they ought to show their families true values. The true values is Jesus Christ and His ability to take care of your families in all situations. Jesus Christ tells us that we should not be worried, or be overly concerned or anxious about material possessions. Matt.6:25 “Therefore I say unto you, be not anxious for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than the food, and the body than the raiment?” We just need to trust in God and He will provide for us more than the flowers in the field, more than the birds in the sky. We can only trust Him by first serving Him before we try to cloth ourselves. It is very important to look for a church in a given city before looking for a job in that city. That is a mark of faith and God will always supply your needs if you will put Him first. The best heritage or insurance we can leave to our children after death is a Godly heritage not material things because material heritage will not last but spiritual inheritance will last a lifetime, and be passed down to the next generation; Proverbs 27:23,24 “Be thou diligent to know the state of thy flocks, [And] look well to thy herds: For riches are not for ever: And doth the crown endure unto all generations?” Eccl.2:18,19 “And I hated all my labour wherein I laboured under the sun, seeing that I must leave it unto the man that shall be after me. And who knoweth whether he will be a wise man or a fool? yet will he have rule over all my labour wherein I have laboured, and wherein I have showed myself wise under the sun. This also is vanity.”

The scriptures therefore teaches us not to be anxious or worried about material things; Matthew 6: 31-34 – “Be not therefore anxious, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? For after all these things do the Gentiles seek; for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye first his kingdom, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Be not therefore anxious for the morrow: for the morrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.” The person who says they are trusting Christ for their material needs, and not working, are not trusting Christ for their material things. Whenever a person trusts Christ, they will always be active. If we don't trust Christ to supply our material needs, we are acting like lost people. How can we expect Christ to supply material things when we haven't trusted Him with spiritual things?

Many saved people believe they must supply their material things, and then try to supply spiritual things. No. You have to first finish with the spiritual things before looking for the material things for Christ says we should seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all the material things will be added unto you.

A young friend and an old classmate of my wife whom I do not know physically wrote to my wife in 2010 that she should assist him with money to open a business which he gave a business plan and the budget; though he never told her what he had for the start before requesting help. In his letter he said if he can establish this business then he will be able to serve God. This young man with more than a decade of absence has never communicated with my wife; and the first letter she receives is a business plan and request for help in order to serve God. This is what many youths today have in their minds. They think others serve God because they are financially up and for them one cannot serve God in poverty. If you cannot serve God in your poverty or with the little you have, then when you will be given more, you cannot serve God. Below is an extract from his letter:

“Dear Madam,

Calvary greetings from … It has been long since you left me in form 4. At present I am a casual office help at … I studied accounting with the association of chartered certified accountant (ACCA). The job satisfaction is not there simply because I went off course. I wish to go back to school not to continue ACCA but to do what my heart was and is after-Nursing. My joy shall be complete when I shall find myself in a theatre room.

At moment I do not have enough money to sponsor myself. I want to set up businesses that will enable me meet my needs. Your contribution to the success of these businesses will be highly appreciated-even a piece of advice. I need your help in my tent making in order to serve our Heavenly Father better. As you lie down at night I pray for more than sleep. I pray for rest. Rest in Him and arise refresh for I need you. Your prayers, your support and your love are important to me. So I pray may your strength match the length of your days. Thank you for your consideration.

Attached: Business Plan” No comment about his prayers or the businesses.

God says we should seek spiritual things first, and then seek material things. It is very important to understand that Christ already knows that we have need of certain material possessions. He wants us to trust Him to supply them for us. He says all these things shall be added unto you. He is not saying that all these things maybe added unto you. We ought to live one day at a time, don't try to worry about all your life today. Even in our Lord’s Prayer; Christ taught us to ask for the daily bread and not tomorrow’s bread, neither does the prayer asks for the stale bread we had to eat yesterday. The only possible bread we can eat is the bread of today. It is not wrong to plan, but it is wrong to plan without Christ. Just live one day at a time, trusting Christ each day.