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Ten Spiritual Lessons I’ve Learned from Running a Small Business

By Anita Mathias

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The Church That Had Too Much


1)  Everything starts with a good idea. And good ideas can be birthed in periods of intensive prayer. 

2) There is no area of our lives which God cannot invade.

Interestingly, it was a bit of a cognitive shift for me to realize that God cares about the business I run–about something so mundane as money–and about how I run it because he cares about me. 
                                           
3 Good ideas are not born in a vacuum. They rise out of the ashes of other things you have tried, and at which you might have failed. 


It’s rare that people stumble upon the right thing immediately–the right genre to write in, the right business, even the perfect arrangement of plants in a garden. (Most good gardeners will move a plant 3 or 4 times until they find the right place for it, and most beautiful gardens are the third or fourth ones the owners have planted.)

And so my current business, publishing, was the second I started. The first, selling antiquarian books was interesting but very time-consuming and rather exhausting. 

I started crying out to the Lord in my exhaustion (in the words of Psalm 107) to help me find a business which could let me put my kids through private school while still leaving time and energy to write. And in a flash of insight, using little pieces of information, knowledge and experience I had subconsciously stored, the idea and business plan for our current publishing business–which is not particularly time-consuming or exhausting–came to me. 

4 Beware of Greed


 If a business is more or less successful, then, you will  make money–more or less.

All addictions are born and grow in the mind. And so you must try very hard not to get addicted to watching or obsessing over the trajectory of sales, spreadsheets and bank balances.

Because while money is an excellent servant (Somerset Maugham likens it to a sixth sense without which one cannot properly appreciate the other five!!) it is an insatiable master. As it says in Ecclesiastes, he who loves money will never have money enough. 

5 The Pricking of Griefs

Working to keep oneself and one’s family afloat at a standard of living best suited for one’s calling and vocation is one thing.
A business will not be devoid of hassle, no more than any other vocation on earth. In the world you will have trouble, as Jesus forewarned his disciples in his last conversation with them. 

However, with a certain detachment, one can conduct it in peace, because one lives in Christ–at a very good address indeed. Definitely, on the right side of the tracks!
  
There is a fine line between working at a steady, rhythmic measured pace to achieve an interesting, comfortable standard of living, and overworking for the greed of money.
Proverbs again has something to say about this, “Do not wear yourself out to become rich. Have the wisdom to show restraint.” (Proverbs 23:4)

When one overworks–works at the expense of rest, relationships, physical health– driven by greed, one opens oneself up to being  pricked by many griefs, because greed is an irrational emotion, and those avaricious for money will never have enough.

So while hassles are an inevitable part of work and life, overworking leads to an accumulation of trouble and hassle, to a piercing with many griefs. 

It is very important to set time limits for how much you will work to prevent the scourge and exhaustion of overwork.

6 It’s just money. 

That’s a really useful mantra. 

You, being human, will make errors, which will lead to financial loss, sometimes trivial, sometimes rather serious. 

Few businesses can be conducted single-handedly. Most businesses are like a chain, a complex interlocking of many human units. We have had nine of our friends working with us at various times, and are reliant on printers, distributors, shippers. Lots of people.

People who, being human, might well, on occasion, make errors, mess up. Money has been and may well again be lost, through other people’s errors, as well as my own.

And then, there is no point stewing about it. No point fretting. It’s just money.


Do not fret; it only leads to evil. Psalm 37:8

If however, a work relationship causes consistent stewing, stress, and aggro, and things cannot be resolved,  it’s perhaps time to sever the work relationship and move on. 

7 Never let money steal your peace. It’s just money

Never get emotionally involved in a transaction to do with money, when, as is inevitable in  business, you run up against other people’s greed or dishonesty or aggressiveness. In business as in life, you will run up against people who should really be emailing their therapist, not you.

It’s just money, an inert substance, which can be earned again, or can be given to you again by your heavenly Father.

One’s peace, and mental, emotional and physical health, and relationships and happiness–these on the other hand are precious–priceless!!-– and cannot be as easily recaptured if frivolously squandered by stewing about money. 

Think rationally in business conflicts to do with money. What is the outcome you want to achieve? Work towards that, realizing that it may well not be achieved. Either way, be at peace.

I think the non-violence Jesus recommended in the Sermon on the Mount is a risky but sensible business practice. It is better to lose small amounts of money than waste time and peace contending with an aggressive person. 

8 Optimism is a lucrative mental and business habit.

While there is some truth to that old statement in the Desiderata, “Exercise caution in your business affairs, for the world is full of trickery,”–and one learns the truth of this the hard way–optimism is a great business principle. 

Our family business is a publishing company. Though we now have a decent list, we, of course, started with 1 book, then 5, then a dozen… And we used to pack and ship these ourselves, until we grew big enough to use distribution networks, and third party sellers.

So one drops an expensive book into the post with no proof that you have done so, totally reliant on the honesty of people, knowing you will have to replace it if they claim they haven’t received it.

When we first started, it cost £0.75 to get proof of posting, and the time/petrol to the PO. We got proof of posting for a while, then stopped and decided to see if it was cheaper to trust God and people. It was. Just a handful of books each year “did not arrive,” and replacing these or refunding was cheaper than getting proof of posting for everything.

Book buyers, on the whole, are honest, and discovering this was pleasant. 

Optimism and trust are good business strategies.

Fear and suspicion on the other hand, are costly emotions–costly in terms of time, peace and mental health–AND financially costly!!

9 Enough

It is vital to learn the meaning of this word.

New technologies, the internet, social media are turning the traditional assumptions of business upside down.

There is a lot of money to be made.

But I don’t need to make all of it. Certainly not now.

Enough.

“To the one who pleases him, God gives wisdom and knowledge and joy, but to the sinner, He gives the task of gathering and heaping, only to give to the one to pleases the Lord.” Ecclesiastes 2:26

God save us from the task of gathering and heaping.

The one who has learnt the meaning of enough can work at a business at a measured pace, consistent with physical, emotional, spiritual and relational health.

10 The Lord is my Pacesetter.

I am naturally a A type personality, and it would come naturally to me to run ahead of the Lord and exhaust myself. To run a business on my own ideas and enthusiasms, and those of my co-workers.

The Lord is a gentle shepherd who goes before us, who walks with us. I remember a sermon which said that a hallmark of Satan is that he drives, that drivenness is used by the evil one to drive one over a Gadarene cliff. 

It’s important for me to check-in with Christ, and to run through my ideas with him. What he invariably tells me is to slow down! (Why? Perhaps he has other good plans for me up his sleeve!)

And I do.

Because what I want more than anything is for his blessing to be on my business.

 The blessing of the LORD brings wealth, and he adds no 


trouble to it. Proverbs 10:22

  

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Comments

  1. Anita Mathias says

    June 1, 2011 at 9:01 pm

    Thanks Jen, just learning on the job. Will mail DVD to you next week, am in Wales at the moment.
    Thanks Nancy!

  2. Nancy Wallace says

    June 1, 2011 at 4:50 pm

    I've never run my own business but my husband has and these spiritual lessons seem well-worth pondering. Thank you.

  3. Jennifer in OR says

    June 1, 2011 at 4:57 am

    Wow–as a small business owner myself, this list is RIGHT ON! Excellent thoughts on ideas, money, work, time… I have much to learn. 😉

  4. Anita Mathias says

    May 31, 2011 at 5:03 pm

    Thank you, Shae. I am sure you have many of your own to add!

  5. Anonymous says

    May 31, 2011 at 4:56 pm

    Wonderful insights. Thanks!
    – Shae

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anita.mathias

Writer, Blogger, Reader, Mum. Christian. Instaing Oxford, travel, gardens and healthy meals. Oxford English alum. Writing memoir. Lives in Oxford, UK

Images from walks around Oxford. #beauty #oxford # Images from walks around Oxford. #beauty #oxford #walking #tranquility #naturephotography #nature
So we had a lovely holiday in the Southwest. And h So we had a lovely holiday in the Southwest. And here we are at one of the world’s most famous and easily recognisable sites.
#stonehenge #travel #england #prehistoric England #family #druids
And I’ve blogged https://anitamathias.com/2020/09/13/on-not-wasting-a-desert-experience/
So, after Paul the Apostle's lightning bolt encounter with the Risen Christ on the road to Damascus, he went into the desert, he tells us...
And there, he received revelation, visions, and had divine encounters. The same Judean desert, where Jesus fasted for forty days before starting his active ministry. Where Moses encountered God. Where David turned from a shepherd to a leader and a King, and more, a man after God’s own heart.  Where Elijah in the throes of a nervous breakdown hears God in a gentle whisper. 
England, where I live, like most of the world is going through a desert experience of continuing partial lockdowns. Covid-19 spreads through human contact and social life, and so we must refrain from those great pleasures. We are invited to the desert, a harsh place where pruning can occur, and spiritual fruitfulness.
A plague like this has not been known for a hundred years... John Piper, after his cancer diagnosis, exhorted people, “Don’t Waste Your Cancer”—since this was the experience God permitted you to have, and He can bring gold from it. Pandemics and plagues are permitted (though not willed or desired) by a Sovereign God, and he can bring life-change out of them. 
Let us not waste this unwanted, unchosen pandemic, this opportunity for silence, solitude and reflection. Let’s not squander on endless Zoom calls—or on the internet, which, if not used wisely, will only raise anxiety levels. Let’s instead accept the invitation to increased silence and reflection
Let's use the extra free time that many of us have long coveted and which has now been given us by Covid-19 restrictions to seek the face of God. To seek revelation. To pray. 
And to work on those projects of our hearts which have been smothered by noise, busyness, and the tumult of people and parties. To nurture the fragile dreams still alive in our hearts. The long-deferred duty or vocation
So, we are about eight weeks into lockdown, and I So, we are about eight weeks into lockdown, and I have totally sunk into the rhythm of it, and have got quiet, very quiet, the quietest spell of time I have had as an adult.
I like it. I will find going back to the sometimes frenetic merry-go-round of my old life rather hard. Well, I doubt I will go back to it. I will prune some activities, and generally live more intentionally and mindfully.
I have started blocking internet of my phone and laptop for longer periods of time, and that has brought a lot of internal quiet and peace.
Some of the things I have enjoyed during lockdown have been my daily long walks, and gardening. Well, and reading and working on a longer piece of work.
Here are some images from my walks.
And if you missed it, a blog about maintaining peace in the middle of the storm of a global pandemic
https://anitamathias.com/2020/05/04/a-mind-of-life-and-peace/  #walking #contemplating #beauty #oxford #pandemic
A few walks in Oxford in the time of quarantine. A few walks in Oxford in the time of quarantine.  We can maintain a mind of life and peace during this period of lockdown by being mindful of our minds, and regulating them through meditation; being mindful of our bodies and keeping them happy by exercise and yoga; and being mindful of our emotions in this uncertain time, and trusting God who remains in charge. A new blog on maintaining a mind of life and peace during lockdown https://anitamathias.com/2020/05/04/a-mind-of-life-and-peace/
In the days when one could still travel, i.e. Janu In the days when one could still travel, i.e. January 2020, which seems like another life, all four of us spent 10 days in Malta. I unplugged, and logged off social media, so here are some belated iphone photos of a day in Valetta.
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#valleta #valletamalta #travel #travelgram #uncagedbird
Images from some recent walks in Oxford. I am copi Images from some recent walks in Oxford.
I am coping with lockdown by really, really enjoying my daily 4 mile walk. By savouring the peace of wild things. By trusting that God will bring good out of this. With a bit of yoga, and weights. And by working a fair amount in my garden. And reading.
How are you doing?
#oxford #oxfordinlockdown #lockdown #walk #lockdownwalks #peace #beauty #happiness #joy #thepeaceofwildthings
Images of walks in Oxford in this time of social d Images of walks in Oxford in this time of social distancing. The first two are my own garden.  And I’ve https://anitamathias.com/2020/03/28/silver-and-gold-linings-in-the-storm-clouds-of-coronavirus/ #corona #socialdistancing #silverlinings #silence #solitude #peace
Trust: A Message of Christmas He came to earth in Trust: A Message of Christmas  He came to earth in a  splash of energy
And gentleness and humility.
That homeless baby in the barn
Would be the lynchpin on which history would ever after turn
Who would have thought it?
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Look, I’ve designed a journal. It’s an omnibus Look, I’ve designed a journal. It’s an omnibus Gratitude journal, habit tracker, food and exercise journal, bullet journal, with time sheets, goal sheets and a Planner. Everything you’d like to track.  Here’s a post about it with ISBNs https://anitamathias.com/2019/12/23/life-changing-journalling/. Check it out. I hope you and your kids like it!
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