JESUS WANTS YOUR.....DONKEY!

There is a quiet revolution taking place in the business world. Several months ago I read an article in a business periodical about the growing number of companies in this country that are employing Christian chaplains. I’m talking about secular businesses here. Why are they making this rather unusual move? Because the results affect their bottom line. Businesses are finding that having a chaplain available to their staff has measurable positive results; having happier workers means more work and less nonproductive down time…and that translates into more profit. Apparently the number of businesses retaining the services of chaplains is growing and shows no signs of slowing down. This is one part of the revolution.

The second part of the change going on in the business world is among those who are business owners but are already believers. A growing number of Christian business owners are dedicating their businesses to the Lord and committing to using a portion of their profits to invest back into the kingdom of God.

While the first part of the revolution is primarily taking place in the U.S., the second part is a worldwide phenomenon. Christian businessmen from all over the world are beginning to step forward in acts of dedication and are funding evangelism, humanitarian projects and church planting in their own nations and in missions worldwide. More and more businessmen are dedicating significant portions of the profits of their businesses to the Lord’s work.

Through his organization (www.aims.org), one of my long-time friends, Dr. Howard Foltz, has been involved in assisting thousands of businessmen learn how to move forward in faith. (At last count they have trained over 14,000 businessmen and women how to step out in faith.) You need to visit Howard’s Website and get a good understanding of the work his organization is doing.

Several years ago I heard the story of a very wealthy businessman here in the U.S. This brother in the Lord was one of the most successful men in his field at that time. His personal wealth was almost impossible to comprehend. He began to give rather large sums of money to the church he was attending and because the pastor did not know him personally, he arranged a time for the two of them to meet. It was the pastor’s intention to thank the man for his generosity. As the two met and got to know each other, the businessman told the pastor that he had received Christ as a teenager and soon after had felt that God was calling him into ministry. He had rebelled against that and pursued his own course for his life; he was very successful but he lived away from the Lord. Late in life he came to a time of crisis when he surrendered his life fully to the Lord. Not long after his “late in life” surrender, he felt strongly directed by the Holy Spirit to begin giving generously to the work of the Lord. The businessman said that God had said to him, “You have pursued your own course and secured your future financially, for yourself and your family. You have more than enough for yourself, so from now on I want you to give the bulk of what you earn into my kingdom!” And he was doing just that.

As Jesus was getting ready for His triumphal entry into Jerusalem, He said the following to his disciples, “Go into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Loose them and bring them to Me. And if anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord has need of them,’ and immediately he will send them” (Matthew 21:2-3). In the Bible donkeys were a symbol of commerce and were a primary means of distributing goods and services. So when Jesus asked for the use of the donkey, He was not simply borrowing the man’s bicycle, He was borrowing and using his means of making a living, his ability to engage in commerce.

When God spoke to the wealthy businessman about redistributing his earnings and sowing largely into His Kingdom, the Lord was asking him for his donkey. And this is an integral part of this quiet revolution that is affecting the presentation of the gospel worldwide. All across our world the word of the Lord is coming to businessmen and women, “I need your donkeys; turn loose of them and bring them to Me. I have need of them!”

Can you hear it? Can you hear what Jesus is saying? He wants your donkey!