James 4:11-17
Today’s topics: Judging, boasting, “profiteering” (v. 13, “…spend a year…trade…profit…”)… Judging and boasting are fairly clear to us, I think. But this “profiteering” item made me wonder what James meant by that. I think it’s more than simply being an entrepreneur. I think it’s going off on our own, making our own plans, seeking an advantageous situation in “this world” (possibly at the expense of others?), and not seeking the Holy Spirit as to where we should go or what we should do. We admire the entrepreneurial spirit here in the USA and, fundamentally, it’s what leads our economy. But there are right and wrong ways to be entrepreneurial. Taking advantage of others’ misfortunes is wrong. But serving society as one moves forward is quite another. I have three cases in mind – Todd, our daughter Rachel, and our son-in-law Junior.
Todd has his own financial services business. He’s had this business all along, but only as an aside; he was working full time for the state until the change in governors left him without a job. So now his business is full time self-employment. I expect Todd to be market-oriented in how he charges for his services, but I also know that he will be fair and that he will work hard for his clients to do the best he can for them. He has already sent a note to everyone that we have listed in our church directory advising them of tax implications of this current Covid-19 situation. He is performing a service that people need; he is an entrepreneur, but not a profiteer!
Rachel owns her own flower shop – now six years successful. She loves what she does and her clients love her work. Much of her revenue comes from weddings, and she is always concerned to offer brides (and their mothers!) the most beauty and the best value that she can find for them. She also has funerals and again is concerned to suggest the proper arrangement in keeping with the somber tone for some or the resurrection theme for others. She also gets orders for flower arrangements for birthdays, anniversaries, and general occasions, again offering her clients the most beauty for the best value. Finally, she has hired a part-time worker, Grace who will be full-time in a few weeks when Rachel delivers our first granddaughter. And with this Covid-19 situation, Rachel is committed to keeping Grace employed so she does not lose her only income. Again, like Todd, Rachel is performing a service that people need; she is an entrepreneur, but not a profiteer!
Finally, Junior wants to start his own business. He currently has a full-time position, but truthfully at a lower wage than his abilities warrant. Junior is a repair person – he repairs appliances, computers, cell phones, televisions, flat screens, whatever. In our throw-away society, many (most?) of us simply buy new equipment when our old stuff fails. However, not everyone can afford this throw-away lifestyle; repairs are cheaper than new equipment and this is the client body that Junior hopes to serve. He will profit, but not excessively so. A large part of his motivation to own his own business is to let our daughter, Nancy, quit her high-stress job and become a stay-at-home mom. So he is now self-employed, part-time, and waiting for a time, like Todd, when he can afford to go out on his own.
Most of us are not profiteers – but there’s more than just our finances. We might be profiteers in some other sense – maybe working on our own efforts and not giving the Lord our most beautiful selves to HIS service and not trusting Him for the value that only He can give. If we’re to profit from knowing our Lord, let’s trust Him to invest us in His most profitable venture and serve Him to the best of the abilities that He has given us. His resources, His grace, His working through us…! GLORY!
Slava Bohu!