Note: This is Part 2 to a two-part series. To read the prophetic word in Part 1, click here.
Have you ever wondered what it’s going to take for you to experience the transfer of wealth that the Bible predicts?
Sometimes, huge concepts like the wealth transfer seem like distant, pie-in-the-sky concepts … especially when we have not experienced them yet.
Proverbs 13:22 says, “A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children, and the wealth of the sinner is laid up for the just.”
We believe God and desire the prosperity He promises. So, we pray and pray for the fulfillment of His Word, but we often don’t know what else to do to see the things we are praying for manifest. However, anytime we dissect a historical occurrence of a phenomenon such as a transfer of wealth, we find patterns we can replicate in order to see that phenomenon happen in our own lives.
Recently, the Lord showed me three key ingredients of the wealth transfer that we can each replicate in our own lives in order to see that wealth transfer come to pass.
What are these patterns?
1. Do business in a frontier.
Have you ever wondered how the great moneyed families of the Gilded Age (circa 1870s-1900) were able to accumulate their legendary wealth? The primary reason is because each of them chose to do business in a frontier:
- Andrew Carnegie was the first to harness the power of steel in construction.
- The Vanderbilts were railroad magnates.
- The Rockefellers “dabbled” in oil.
- The King and Wetmore families engaged in the China trade.
- The Fair family made their fortune in a silver strike at the Comstock silver lode in Nevada.
These families each tapped into their own frontier. And when they did, they found new and inventive ways to solve problems and serve people. They found frontiers where there was little to no competition. In doing so, they discovered that new ideas could turn into profit overnight. Therefore, they were able to turn enormous profits quickly.
2. Hard work is required.
A person’s work ethic usually falls into one of three categories. Either:
- They work hard for others and for themselves, or
- They work hard for others, but not for themselves or
- They value fun more than they value hard work.
Though we don’t always view it this way, work is a gift from God. He loves to see us work at what He has called us to do; and we are commanded to work “as for the Lord and not for men” (Col. 3:23b). Therefore, when He does something, it is usually going require us to participate with diligence and faithfulness.
No matter which category your current work ethic fits into, be aware that hard work will be required if you desire to see the transfer of wealth. It will take work to:
- form a business (whether for-profit or nonprofit) which can receive, hold and disburse the wealth God wants to send you;
- identify and implement new ideas;
- build relationships with the people you serve; and
- continue to maintain a healthy spiritual life, personal life and family life.
The good news is that once you get your business established and profitable, it takes less work to make a profit on an ongoing basis than it did at the beginning. The hardest work is at the very beginning.
I believe the third component of the great transfer of wealth is:
3. To get started, you have to take a risk.
Andrew Carnegie took a tremendous risk by arranging for the first steel bridge to be built. The bridge almost bankrupted him, and he had no way of knowing that people would use such an innovative structure even after it was built. However, he believed steel was the substance of the future, and he wanted to prove it and serve people at the same time.
The China trade merchants also took a huge risk every time they sent a ship to the Orient. Not only were they unsure that their goods would sell, but they also had to deal with the risk of potentially losing a ship due to weather, fire, or mutiny.
Likewise, the silver-mining kings had to deal with the risks of cave-ins, theft, empty mines, wild animals, lack of medical care and many other uncertainties that went along with living in the undeveloped American Western frontier.
Nevertheless, they took calculated risks because they believed.
In each case, they saw the potential in their respective frontiers. They believed in their product or service, and they believed they would receive the results they dreamed of if they would just push into their vision.
If we are going to experience the transfer of wealth in the body of Christ, we must get back to the basic ingredients required for such a transfer: doing business in a frontier; working hard; and taking calculated risks.
What frontier is available to you today?
The American West is already developed; railroads have been built; oil and gas are readily available around the world. So what frontiers are left? I’ll name one: E-commerce.
We believe the biggest frontier available to us today—the single greatest vehicle God has ordained for the transfer of wealth—is e-commerce. We believe that the internet was invented for such a time as this—specifically to bless the body of Christ and allow God’s people to gain wealth. Here’s why:
- It’s available to nearly everyone.
- Startup costs for most types of internet business are low, very low or free.
- It provides an unlimited customer base. Through the internet, one entrepreneur can do business with people in every corner of the globe.
- An internet site or store is open for business 24/7, whether you’re sitting in front of your computer or not. (Remember the Prov. 31 woman, whose lamp goes not out by night?)
- It allows for passive income, such as income through product sales and advertising revenue.
- There is a niche for everyone, from preachers to sellers of shoes to travel guides. Every person can have his or her own brand; it’s completely unnecessary to work for anyone else.
We believe internet business is the vehicle God has ordained to bring the church the great transfer of wealth.
It is a frontier available to all. It allows you to become the head and not the tail; above only and not beneath (Deut. 28). It allows you to maintain your unique identity and function exactly in your own calling and gifting. It allows people to bring you income continually (Isa. 60:11). And the potential for profit based on creative solutions, excellent service, and innovative ideas surpasses what was available at any other time in history.
God has called us to be the head, and not the tail; to lend to many nations but never borrow. Internet business provides every believer with a reasonable avenue by which to arrive at that level of prosperity.
Jesus also said to occupy until He comes. “Occupy” means to “do business” until He comes. The only way to obey His command, as well as to receive the wealth He has promised, is to do business.
I would also encourage you to reconsider the traditional notion that doing business for someone else is anyone’s ideal solution.
Yes, we have to work for others (“have a job”) and support our families if we aren’t yet in a position to stop doing so. However, even if you are tied to a job working for someone else right now, I strongly encourage you to start a side business if you want to participate in the great transfer of wealth. And ideally, such a business should be a business of your own—not buying into someone else’s great idea or multi-level marketing plan.
Why does this matter? Because it’s all about lining up with God’s Word. God’s Word states:
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That you are to be the head, and not the tail (Deut. 28). How can you do that if you’re laboring for someone else’s dream?
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God’s Word also says that “virtue” requires us to take raw goods and manufacture resellable materials (Prov. 31) to bring income into our households.
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His Word even says we should lend money at interest (Matt. 25:14-30).
We love to spiritualize all these teachings, but the fact of the matter is that each passage very clearly discusses how we should handle money and how God expects us to do business.
Therefore, I encourage you to prayerfully consider:
- Starting a business that allows you to use your gifts, your talents, your story and your personality to serve others as only you can.
- Starting a business that will bring you into your dream of serving for the greater good, and will bring you all the profits—both to enjoy and to disburse into gospel work.
- And, because of the frontier factor, we strongly encourage you to pray about making your “side hustle” an internet business.
For some, this concept is daunting. Have you ever thought, “I could never start a business!” or “I don’t even know what I would do”?
If so, consider the gifts and talents God gave you. You may not even be aware of all your gifts, but your gifts are the key to your breakthrough. So how can you tap into them?
We’ve all heard the phrase, “Desperate times require desperate measures.” It’s true that, when we are desperately hungry for a breakthrough, we press in to see behind the veil.
Several years ago, Karen and her husband returned from the mission field after seven years overseas. Although they were in their 30s, they were just starting out financially. They had no car, no savings, no house, and no furniture—and they had a one-year old child! They were in dire straits, but God never forgets our work or service. “God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them” (Hebrews 6:10).
During that season of lack, Karen and her family pressed into God. As they prayed and worked to build a foundation for their growing family, God showed them a plan to change a job skill into a business. With that one change, Karen began doing the same work she had been doing—but under the umbrella of her own business, and for higher wages. God gave her a “witty invention” that made her the head, and not the tail—above only, and not beneath. Within a short while, her income actually tripled.
Did Karen take a risk? Yes. Was there a payoff? Absolutely.
I have had to take risks in my own business/ministry as well. At the beginning of my career, I worked nearly 15 years in a professional career path for a Fortune 500 company. However, in 2012, I felt led to begin an online ministry. I stepped out in faith, working long, hard hours while maintaining my corporate job as well. In 2016, the Lord presented us with an opportunity for me to reduce my corporate hours to part-time so I could build our ministry even more. It felt like a big risk, but we took it the risk anyway. When we did, Father came up under us and blessed our labor. Less than a year later, I was able to walk away from my corporate job and go into full-time ministry. Another risk? Absolutely … but it has been a blessing and a dream come true.
For Karen and me, these blessings started out with seeking God from a place of desperation. They can and do require hard work, but they were “God ideas.” Karen’s blessing was in her business/tripled income, and my blessing was the opportunity to do what I love full-time. In both our situations, Father God showed us His strategies and helped us as we stepped in faith into a new frontier.
There are divinely-inspired ideas and hidden wealth in secret places for all who will seek God (Isa. 45:2-3). Frontiers, risk, hard work and starting a side business are all practical things, but that doesn’t make these things unspiritual.
God’s Word is full of practical instruction. To receive any of His promises, we must have faith, revelation and obedience to the conditions. The condition we have to meet in order to participate in the transfer of wealth is that we “occupy” (do business) until Jesus comes. The practical instructions that accompany this command are:
- that our lamp should not go out by night (Prov. 31),
- that we should not have to borrow in order to start a business (Deut. 28),
- that we have to have a startup–a basket in which to form your bread (Deut. 28), and
- that we can have a business based on our gifts, talents and calling.
What are you doing today that will open the door for this transfer of wealth?
If nothing, then it’s time to evaluate how you can begin. If you are already participating, then press on with the leading of the Holy Spirit until the Lord brings you the results for which you have asked Him. Let Him build the house, yes; “except the Lord build the house, those who build labor in vain” (Ps. 127:1a). But building anything requires your work and participation.
From this day forward, how will you participate in His plan to bring you great wealth through business today?
What was the last idea you had that would have blessed your life and brought you financial increase—but you failed to act on it? It’s time to go back and get that idea out. Dust it off and give it a try. Put your toes in and see if the river parts.
What do you have to lose? {eoa}
Jamie Rohrbaugh is an author, speaker, and presence-seeker whose heart is for the local church. Called to intercession and prophetic ministry, she holds a master’s in biblical studies from Berea Seminary and is a member of the Redbud Writers Guild. Jamie serves as a domestic missionary in Chattanooga, Tennessee. For more information go to: fromhispresence.com
Karen Hardin is a literary agent and published author. She has been in the Christian publishing industry for 25 years and has had the privilege of working on numerous projects for some of the most-recognized names in the industry. Her work has appeared in USA Today, World Net Daily, Outlook, Crosswalk.com, Charisma, Elijah List and so on.
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