Business was growing and I was increasing my staff. The Internet services were expanding and we had begun website development and graphic design. It seemed we could do nothing wrong.
Taking Mondays out to read God’s Word, pray for my business, staff, suppliers, clients and to strategise had become a key strategy to my business growth. The Bible was the best book that I found that explained how to do business God’s way. He taught me so much during those times.
It was my habit to read Proverbs daily at that time. It was the 27th of the month and I was reading a Chapter a day…27th day, 27th chapter. I read this:
Be sure you know the condition of your flocks, give careful attention to your herds; for riches do not endure forever, and a crown is not secure for all generations.
Proverbs 27:23,24
At that moment God spoke to me. Not in an audible voice but through these words. I was taken by them. There was a quickening to my spirit. I was ‘aware’ that these two verses were extremely important to me, right there, right then. It was immediate and I knew that it was talking about my business…there was a sense of urgency.
The flocks were my clients… I needed to pay particular attention to them this day…there was an urgency and a strong sense of warning.
I went into my office and pulled up my A-Z client list and began to phone each one, starting with the A’s. Within a couple phone calls I had discovered that there was a brutal predatory attack on my client list… the timeframe of offers made to my clients exposed that the poacher was using my A-Z Client List!
Immediately I jumped to the D’s and found I had jumped ahead of the predator. Explaining to my clients that there was an active attack on my client base, I was able to secure the remaining clients. I returned to the A-D’s and methodically rewarded those who stayed with me and won back as many as I could of those who were enticed away.
Having secured the “flock”, my investigations revealed who the perpetrators were.
The businessman was a non-christian man that I had helped to improve his business and to promote him. That is why he knew so much about my own business. I called him into my office and confronted him. He was jealous of my business growth and had decided he wanted to expand his business into web development and Internet hosting, exactly the same as me. He figured that it was easier to undercut my pricing and to steal my client base!
He was non-repentant and happy to brag how he had secured the A-Z list and that “it was just business”.
He had ‘bribed’ a newly hired staff member with a better job offer. After a short discussion on integrity, I fired the staff member… he went to work that day for that businessman and lasted only 3 weeks before he was fired again due to lack of work. Within 8 months the businessman was totally out of business. What goes around, comes around.
At the end of the day, I am so thankful for the intervention by God. He does love each one of us personally and truly desires the very best for each one of us.
Reading God’s Word, the Holy Bible, on a daily basis helps us live life in far greater ways than we could ever think or imagine – it is alive and relevant to our lives. More importantly, it helps us understand God’s character, His counsel and His wisdom. It draws us intimately closer to our Maker.
Unlocking The Holy Bible reveals 5 more important Keys to life, here.