‘This is a trustworthy saying: “If someone aspires to be a church leader, he desires an honorable position.” So a church leader must be a man whose life is above reproach. He must be faithful to his wife. He must exercise self-control, live wisely, and have a good reputation. He must enjoy having guests in his home, and he must be able to teach. He must not be a heavy drinker or be violent. He must be gentle, not quarrelsome, and not love money. He must manage his own family well, having children who respect and obey him. ‘ 1 Timothy 3:1-4(NLT)
‘For if a man cannot manage his own household, how can he take care of God’s church?’ 1 Timothy 3:5(NLT)
‘He looked around at them one by one and then said to the man, “Hold out your hand.” So the man held out his hand, and it was restored! ‘ Luke 6:10(NLT)
In 1 Timothy 3:1-4, a bishop is defined as an overseer of God’s works, and this same definition applies to a Christian entrepreneur – he or she is an overseer of God’s works in business. If God has given you the vision to start a business, the business you start is a result of His work, and you are the overseer or CEO.
Therefore, the qualifications to become a bishop are the same qualifications to become a business owner, and from the list of qualifications, one stands out – “you need to rule your own house well.” For a married entrepreneur, this means that your marriage needs to be successful in order to qualify.
Why? Because the principles that you need to run a successful business God’s way are first learned and mastered by creating a successful marriage. Your spouse is your first customer, and the techniques you learn to make them happy are then applied on a larger scale in business where you have many more customers you are trying to make happy through your products or services.
This is why in 1 Timothy 3:5, Paul tells Timothy: “If a man know not how to rule his own house, how shall he take care of the house of God?” This is not because marriage is more important, but because ministry or a Godly business is a larger representation of your marriage.
Remember Luke 16:10: “he that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much.” Your marriage is the least, not in importance but in scale, and your own business is the much.
The training ground for a success business starts with a successful marriage. When we violate this principle, we are disqualifying ourselves from a success business God’s way.
Over the next few days as you read this devotional and the associated scriptures, don’t get in condemnation but instead allow Holy Spirit to speak to you about restoration and change in your marriage.
from Revive Your Marriage For Business Success