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13th
June, 2007
DAVID
ADAMS
The end of June is looming and, while for many of
us that may mean a few hours spent digging out those elusive
receipts for the taxman, for those in business it symbolises
an important marker - the end of one financial year and the
start of another.
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SUPPORTING
EACH OTHER: Part of the aim of the National Business
Day of Prayer is to encourage Christians in business
to get together to pray and share their experiences.
PICTURE: Brian S (www.sxc.hu)
“Someone
needs to be able to get beside these people to be
able to support them because the relationship between
business people and the local church is not always
the greatest,” says Wesley Leake.
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This
year, Brisbane-based organisation Business Blessings are hoping
to mark this year’s transition from one financial year
to the next with a national day of prayer for business people.
Founder Wesley Leake says the fact that 1st July falls on
a Sunday this year was a significant factor in the decision
to call for a day of prayer for business.
“It’s unusual for that to happen - I looked back
and it’s been six years since that happened and it will
be another 11 years before that happens (again),” he
says.
“So it’s kind of like ‘OK God, this year,
the first day of the new financial year is on the Lord’s
Day - why don’t we dedicate these businesses to God'?”
As well as praying for business people in their local congregations,
Leake sees the day as a time to reach out to business people
in the surrounding community.
“Some people may not want to hear a presentation of
the Gospel but they will accept prayer...” he says.
“So it’s actually a thing that we can break down
barriers with.”
Leake says that while some churches may just spend five minutes
praying for business people, others might like to set aside
a specific prayer meeting to do so, hand out copies of the
Business Bible - which contains a New Testament, Psalms and
Proverbs containing testimonies of Australian Christian business
people, or host a movie night featuring the film Flywheel,
which tells the story of a fictional American businessman
and his struggles.
He’s also encouraging business people to establish prayer
and accountability groups where people in business can support
each other.
“What I’m finding is that there’s not too
many opportunities for business guys to get together and discuss,
with people who understand, issues that they have...”
he says.
Leake hopes the day of prayer for business people will become
an annual event.
“We just thought we’d stick it out this year and
see how it goes and then if we could turn this into an annual
event that would be great.”
Business Blessings, which is described as a “Christian
marketplace ministry”, was founded early last year with
the object of supporting small to medium-sized businesses
primarily by providing intercessors to pray for businesses
and those within them. They also provide a range of consulting
services to businesses.
Leake is an accountant by background who has mainly worked
for non-profit organisations and established Crown Financial
Ministries which aims to teach people how to manage their
money from a Biblical perspective.
He founded Business Blessings after feeling God was leading
him to support business people in a more direct way.
"Most
business people would have more clients than what
a local church would," says Leake.
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“Someone
needs to be able to get beside these people to be able to
support them because the relationship between business people
and the local church is not always the greatest,” he
says.
Leake says that not only does the “nature of who you
have to be as a business person - very focused, very goal
orientated” create a divide, the church’s attitude
toward money at times - that it’s a “dirty, greedy
thing” - can also led to churches viewing business people
as no more than “cash cows” to bring in money
which can be sanctified.
“Whereas really, how the church should be looking at
it is (that) these guys are ministers in their own right,”
he says. “Most business people would have more clients
than what a local church would. They have more contact with
the community along that line.
“(So) OK, let’s turn this around. Let’s
equip these guys to be a minister in their marketplace; to
treat their business like it’s their pastorate, if you
like. Yes, they’re selling goods and services and doing
that but it’s a key thing for building relationships
with the community.
“Let’s get these business guys trained, let’s
get them supported and let’s release the power of God
through their business and we can see amazing things happen.”
~ www.businessblessings.com.au
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