Matthew 7:7-8 (New International Version)

Ask, Seek, Knock

⁷“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. ⁸For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.

In part 1 of the ASK series we covered that the most important part of asking God for anything that gets answered is asking God for what He would want in our lives.  Ask and it will be given to you is the promise that is fulfilled once we meet the condition of Matthew 6:33, Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will given to you as well.

Seek and you will find

You may know that God has called you to be an entrepreneur and pray diligently for His favor and blessings but prayer alone will not make you a success.  The idea of seek in this passage is that you deeply desire something and search it out.  We must be willing and determined to seek out the knowledge necessary to become successful.

If Ask is about your heart and connection to God and His will then Seek is about preparing your mind and emotions.

You must seek out…

What you consume (thoughts, books, audio’s, etc.)

The adage “You are what you eat” is true physically, physiologically, and spiritually.  We must be very careful what we allow in our body.  Just as what we eat forms our physical body, what we read, watch, and listen to forms our thoughts and perceptions of life.

Our thought life is one of the most important parts of us.  Constantly watching the news on how bad our economy is, murder, and war is probably not the best breakfast for you.  I would suggest dieting on the Word of God.  CNN will tell you how uncertain things are right now.  You can carry that through your whole day and allow your thoughts to be shaped by their food, or you can wake up and read a verse like…

Jeremiah 29:11 (New International Version)

¹¹ For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

Somethings we consume that are detrimental for us don’t actually taste bad.  Watching excessive sports, sitcoms, or movies may be fun and very enjoyable but they are not adding anything of value into your life.  Shut off your TV and get a good book on leadership and watch your emotional love-handles turn into a six-pack.

Who you  associate with (fellowship, peer group)

1 Corinthians 15:33 (New International Version)

³³Do not be misled: “Bad company corrupts good character.”

One of the first things that fitness gurus will tell you when you want to get in the gym and back in shape after a long hiatus is to get a “gym buddy”.  The reason is so that you have someone to hold you accountable, give you encouragement, and go through the process with.  God has placed community and fellowship in our hearts.  We want to do life with others.

The company we keep is so vitally important to how we prepare our mind and emotions.  Allowing others in our lives to hold us accountable to our actions and emotions is a wise and difficult thing to do.

Be careful who you allow to speak into your life.  Find Godly entrepreneurs who understand the difficulty and challenges you face will provide you with a good balance fellowship and support.

If you’re smart you’ll find someone to hold you accountable in all the important areas of your life (your walk, your marriage, your business, etc.).

How you deal with challenges (character development)

You may be frustrated that as soon as you pray for God to promote you and bless your business that life starts to get harder.  My pastor once said “be careful what you pray for, especially for patience.”  Why is that?  Because God does not waive a magic wand and poof, you have patience.  No, God develops character in His children through life’s circumstances.  The sooner you realize that life’s difficulties are the very things that make you grow you’ll complain less about them and focus more on what you can learn.

James 1:2-4 (New International Version)

²Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, ³because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. ⁴Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

I have a few guys in my Bible study who are very strong.  These guys are huge, but they weren’t born that way.  They developed their muscle by pushing against resistance.  The more resistance they push against the stronger they get.

God uses the resistance we face in our businesses and our lives to form our spiritual muscles.  The more resistance we push against the stronger we become.  If you’re facing a lot of resistance in your life right now then praise God.  God will use these problems as the very thing to prepare you for what He has in store for your life.

Seek and you will find.  Be intentional and diligent about seeking out the things that will promote growth in your life.  Your business will not out grow you.  So as Jim Rohn says, “Work harder on yourself than you do on your business.”

About the Author: William Robbins is the founder of MLMFellowship, and the owner of iWantMoreWealth.com with his wife Bethany. Learn more about William and Bethany.

Here at MLM Fellowship we have been saddened by all the negative press network marketing gets.  Most people, Christian’s included, believe in some way or another that network marketing is a scam.  This really couldn’t be further from the truth.  Although there have been some shady companies and there are many shady network marketers out there (this will be a future post for sure!) the network marketing industry provides opportunities for the average person that are not found else where.

With that said we have put together a free report entitled “Why Network Marketing is the most Biblical Business Model Ever!”  Network marketing encourages discipline,  selflessness, and fellowship unlike any other business.  These principles are found all throughout scripture.

We created this report for you as a Christian network marketer to use as a tool to let your friends and family know that this model is very ethical and very much Biblical.

We are not portraying the Gospel to be some lavish networking opportunity.  We are suggesting that Scripture has precepts and principles that transcend into the network marketing industry.

I hope you enjoy the report!

MLM Fellowship Free Report

Thank you,

William Robbins

]]> http://mlmfellowship.com/mlm-fellowship-report/feed/ 0 http://mlmfellowship.com/mlm-fellowship-podcast-episode-4-servant-leadership/ http://mlmfellowship.com/mlm-fellowship-podcast-episode-4-servant-leadership/#comments Thu, 11 Jun 2009 23:42:37 +0000 William Robbins http://mlmfellowship.com/?p=317

In episode 4 we take a look at what Phillipians 2:3-4 tells us about being servant leaders.  In our network marketing business putting the needs and wants of our distributors first is truly the essence of servant leadership.

About the Author: William Robbins is the founder of MLMFellowship, and the owner of iWantMoreWealth.com with his wife Bethany. Learn more about William and Bethany.

Matthew 7:7-8 (New International Version)

Ask, Seek, Knock

⁷“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. ⁸For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.

This may be one of the most powerful passages for our business in all of Scripture.  With great power and authority also comes great abuse.  This might be one of the most misused Scriptures by teachers who present the Word of God as the entitlement to gain wealth and possessions.

Gut check time!  You may not be called to be an entrepreneur!  Maybe you are, but how do you know for sure?

If doors around you are always closing and people around you are speaking into your life about some area of ministry that God is calling you too and every time you read your Word your mind, thoughts and heart are gravitating toward something else than it may be time to reevaluate your calling from God.

With that said this passage presents the foundational blue print for us to evaluate God’s will for our lives.  I’ll be braking this passage up into a 3 part series.  The first part on “Ask” will address this very issue on our purpose for our business and our lives.  The second part on “Seek” will address our willingness to learn and prepare for this calling.  The third installment will cover “Knock” the physical manifestation of our lives once we know God’s calling for our lives and have dedicated ourselves as students to the area which we have been called.

Side note:  This blog series is just the foundation of a training series entitled A.S.K. which will be available in the next few months.  More information will be available as we draw closer to the launch.

Part 1: Ask

“Ask and it will be given to you”, sounds nice, huh.  When I first read this I shuttered because it sounded like an open invitation to ask for whatever I wanted.  Well it is…kinda.  As my pastor says if you see a promise, back up to see what the condition is.

Matthew 6:33 (New International Version)

³³But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

The condition for this promise of “Ask and it will be given to you” is that what we are asking for is aligned with what God wants for our lives.  If we do not seek His kingdom and His righteousness than this whole passage does not even apply to us.  We are disqualified.  We should not expect to receive whatever we ask from God.

So in order to qualify ourselves for this powerful promise from God we must start by putting Him first in our lives.  I feel this is exactly what the “Ask” is all about.

Spending time in prayer and in meditation on God’s Word is a vital key to knowing what our purpose is.  We must literally ask God to show us His will for our lives.  We must be intentional about reading God’s Word with purpose and writing down the thoughts that come to our hearts.  This is what I believe the psalmist was trying to get across when he wrote:

Psalm 37:4 (New International Version)

Delight yourself in the LORD
and he will give you the desires of your heart.

Once you have taken the time to truly ask God for your purpose this verse applies as well to provide our needs for His calling.  Where God gives vision He will also give provision.

Asking God for His guidance, strength, and wisdom should be a daily occurrence especially for a Christian entreprenuer.  Stay prayed up before meetings with associates and prospects.  Ask specifically for God’s favor during a presentation.  God comes through!  Not always as we expect or understand, but He comes through!

Recently my wife and I were having a home presentation and spent a good amount of time preparing and promoting this event.  We spent weeks inviting and following up to make sure we had a large gathering.  We prayed the night before for God’s will to be done and His favor during our event.

The very next day one by one we received calls and emails everyone who was NOT coming.  I became very frustrated and got even more so when I received a call from friend that was coming.  I had been attempting to sponsor this individuals for 3 years and now he was going to show up when I had no other people coming.  How embarrassing is this?!

He showed up with one of his friends and the three of us kinda hung out and watched the baseball game.  We chatted a little bit about biz and I showed them some things about how Bethany and I grew our business.  While in the middle of a sentence he just blurted out, “I’m ready to go.”

It moved him more to have the personal one on one approach than having a room full of prospects and distributors.  What I thought was going to be an embarrassment was the exact thing that this person needed.

I prayed for God’s favor and got two new distributors while watching the Red Sox…God comes through!

About the Author: William Robbins is the founder of MLMFellowship, and the owner of iWantMoreWealth.com with his wife Bethany. Learn more about William and Bethany.

Welcome everyone to the 3rd installment of the MLM Fellowship Podcast.

This week we will be taking a look at Matthew 7:24-27 to see what Biblical truth’s we can apply to our network marketing business.

This parable Jesus told His disciples is about building our house on the rock so that we can withstand life’s storms.  Likewise our business can resist the storms by trusting in God’s Words!

Thank you being a part of the MLM Fellowship community, God Bless!

About the Author: William Robbins is the founder of MLMFellowship, and the owner of iWantMoreWealth.com with his wife Bethany. Learn more about William and Bethany.

Matthew 25:14-18 (New International Version)

The Parable of the Talents

¹⁴“Again, it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted his property to them. ¹⁵To one he gave five talents of money, to another two talents, and to another one talent, each according to his ability. Then he went on his journey. ¹⁶The man who had received the five talents went at once and put his money to work and gained five more. ¹⁷So also, the one with the two talents gained two more. ¹⁸But the man who had received the one talent went off, dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money.

This is a very popular passage to be used in the context of business or financial stewardship.  I hope to shed some new insights and show that resources aside it is our actions that determine our life’s fortune.

Verse 14 is very clear and we need to completely understand that it is not about us.  The property (time, talents, treasure) that has been entrusted to us is not ours, it’s His.  All of our abilities and talents we were born with or developed through our lives are put there by God to do His will here on earth.  You’re not that talented, just that blessed.  Likewise any resources that you have now or acquired through business ventures are a gift.  This property has been given to us to multiply and bless others.

I believe that all of us want to be used mightily by God, but not all of us are.  This may be because we get in the way.  Instead of staying low and realizing that it’s really not you that is so special, but that God is using you in a special way. We tend to puff up and get very proud of our accomplishments.  We get a little E.G.O. Edging God Out.  Staying low and glorifying God for what He does through us is a prerequisite for being used.

If you’re not sure why you are not being blessed ask God if this could be one of the reasons.

2 Choices

#1 – Went at once

The two servants who had doubled their resources had one thing in common.  In verse 16 it states that the man went at once and put his money to work. Money could be replaced with natural talents or time.  The concept here is that he went to work immediately.  Without delay.  Like now, not later.

Side Note: When the author is aggressive about a certain topic he is likely preaching to himself!

The reason most things don’t get done is because things don’t get started.  Many people wait for the “ducks to get in a row” before we start anything significant.  There is amazing power in doing something now even if it is a small something.

A great small-something-to-do that creates action and sets up continued action is journaling.  Grab a pen and paper.  Write down where your business is today.  Write down where you want it to be 30 days from now.  Then write down the specific actions you’re going to do to achieve your goal.

Here is the secret step to this process.   Do what you wrote down!

#2 – Dug a hole in the ground

It is interesting that in both examples the Scripture tells us what they did once they received the money.  The servant with the 5 talents went at once while the servant with 1 talent just went off. When we are given the option do we go to work at once or just go off to do some work.

The difference in these two terms is in the intentionality.  As we discussed earlier about creating a plan of action and then implementing that plan is very intentional.  However, the phrase went off , dug a hole is very careless.

This servant ended up doing work but it was futile work and ultimately harder.  To be in the business of digging holes and getting no return sounds foolish but how many of us do this daily in our business.

There are two kinds of activities we engage in with our business on a daily basis.  They are IGA’s or non-IGA’s.  IGA is an acronym for income generating activities.  Some non-IGA’s we cannot avoid.  We have to do administrative work, organize, etc., but unless these activities are leading us to do things that create income they are all meaningless.

IGA’s are setting up meetings, doing presentations, and training distributors.  They almost always are directly related to communicating with other people, which is why so many of us don’t do them.  Dealing with people is difficult and stressful at times so instead we file papers, clean off the desk, or tinker with a website.  So that way we feel like we’re working, but in reality we are just digging holes.

3 things we can do right now to grow our business

1. Pray for a humble heart and ask God what He wants from you and your business.  How can you directly bless someone with the business He has entrusted to you?
2. Journal what He reveals to you.  Also journal a specific course of action for the next 30 days that will dramatically impact your business.
3. As the Nike slogan says, “Just Do It!”  Start now on IGA’s and avoid the pitfalls of useless activities.

About the Author: William Robbins is the founder of MLMFellowship, and the owner of iWantMoreWealth.com with his wife Bethany. Learn more about William and Bethany.

This is episode 2 from MLM Fellowship podcast.

In this episode we will be talking more in depth look at our most recent blog post, Apostle Paul’s 3 Step Success Pattern.

What Biblical insights we can apply from the Bible’s most prolific recruiter?  Let’s find out!

Acts 17:2-4 (NIV)

²As his custom was, Paul went into the synagogue, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures, ³explaining and proving that the Christ had to suffer and rise from the dead. “This Jesus I am proclaiming to you is the Christ,” he said. ⁴Some of the Jews were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a large number of God-fearing Greeks and not a few prominent women.

In this passage we learn a great deal about how the Apostle Paul evangelized (prospected) to the Jews and the Gentiles.  We learn that there was a 3 step plan that Paul consistently used to be an effective recruiter for the kingdom of God.

Before we get to the 3 points let’s look at the very first phrase, “as his custom was”.  Paul new that consistency was the foundation that anything good was built upon.  We must first off all commit ourselves to a life of consistency in order for us to build anything substantial in our business.  Doing something great once in a while is a waste, doing something good consistently leads to greatness.

Find a system that works.  Repeat then repeat again.

Step #1 – Strike Interest and Sort

Every networker needs to embed in their psyche that we must consistently be exposing new people to our product and opportunity.  Recycling names is a huge frustration for both you and your prospects.  People who have shown no interest for 6 months to all of a sudden become business partners is rare.  Does that mean we don’t follow up, absolutely not?  But, new names are the life blood for your business.

Paul realized this to be true.  He knew some would get it and some would not (sort).  That was out of his control, but what he could control was how many people he spoke with.  Paul concentrated on striking interest.  Besides if don’t strike interest and sort the other 2 steps don’t matter.

Step #2 – Provide information needed to make a decision

The Scriptures tells us that “he reasoned with them from the Scriptures, ³explaining and proving that the Christ had to suffer and rise from the dead.”  This indicates a few things as to providing the information necessary to allow people to make a decision.

1. Speak on their level of understanding “reasoned from the Scriptures.”
2. Expose the issues and problems – Paul was indicating that you are dead to sin
3. Prove your opportunity is the solution – Christ died in your place and then was risen…Praise God!

As a networker we can use the same formula to present the case for our business.

1. Seek first to relate and form a basis of understanding – (ask questions)
2. Expose the “rat race” or the need for financial freedom – (confirm the issues)
3. Prove that your opportunity is a solution for what is hurting them – (state the solutions)

Step #3 – Collect decisions

Acts 17:4 Some of the Jews were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a large number of God-fearing Greeks and not a few prominent women.

Some of the Jews…

This indicates that not everyone who heard the Truth that Paul was preaching accepted it and chose to follow Jesus.  Take this as a powerful lesson…really…please get this.  If Jesus didn’t get everyone you sure not going to either.

The powerful act of grace given to us by our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ has not been accepted by the world.  In fact in the world today the number of people who would “check the box” to be a Christian is only around 30%.

We really need to understand in this business that some will, some won’t, oh well!  The Apostle Paul has given us some awesome insight into promoting our opportunity.  All the tricks of prospecting, online marketing, lead gen, etc.  all still fit within the 3 Step Success Pattern.  Strike interest and sort, provide information needed to make a decision, and collect decisions.

If we take this concept and add some amazing advice from the Man Himself your success is not a matter of if, but a matter of when.

Luke 9:5-6 (NIV)

⁵If people do not welcome you, shake the dust off your feet when you leave their town, as a testimony against them.” ⁶So they set out and went from village to village, preaching the gospel and healing people everywhere.

About the Author: William Robbins is the founder of MLMFellowship, and the owner of iWantMoreWealth.com with his wife Bethany. Learn more about William and Bethany.

In the last post we discussed what is Truth.  Truth is basically God’s Word.  His principles and precepts that we are to live by.  “That we are to live by” goes a little beyond just mere comprehension.  There is a great quote I got out of John Maxwell’s book Today Matters.  His friend Dick Biggs says, “The greatest gap in life is the one between knowing and doing.”  I’m sure that quote rings a few door bells.  I know it sure rang mine.  But, thank God that we are not only left with the what to, but the how to.  This is where Wisdom comes into play.

Psalm 111:10 (New International Version)

The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom;
all who follow his precepts have good understanding.
To him belongs eternal praise.

The fear of the LORD is an interesting phrase in scripture.  The Bible word for fear isn’t exactly like our current idea of fear.  The Biblical idea of fear is the combination of two Hebrew concepts 1) to be in dread or terror of; and 2) to be in awe and hold in high esteem or reverence.  As Dr. Tony Evans stated recently at my church the fear of the LORD is taking God seriously.  If we take Him seriously then we take His Word seriously.

Wisdom is the application of Truth.  We apply God’s Truth because we believe that He is The Rock, that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him, that He is a Sun and a Shield.

James 1:22-25 (New International Version)

Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it—he will be blessed in what he does.

I truly believe that it takes radical faith to carry out the wisdom that God has called us to.  We are so busy trying to keep up that we spend little time actually slowing down and listening to God.  If you’re like me I tend to know more about what God wants for my life, family, and business than I actually do.  We all have habits, excuses, and an enemy trying to stop us from doing what we know we should do.  How do we break free and start walking in the Truth God has given us?

Practical steps to walking in wisdom:

1) Pray for wisdom

James 1:5-8 (New International Version)

If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does.

2) Read a chapter of Proverbs a day

Proverbs 1:1-6 (New International Version)

Prologue: Purpose and Theme
1 The proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel:

2 for attaining wisdom and discipline;
for understanding words of insight;

3 for acquiring a disciplined and prudent life,
doing what is right and just and fair;

4 for giving prudence to the simple,
knowledge and discretion to the young-

5 let the wise listen and add to their learning,
and let the discerning get guidance-

6 for understanding proverbs and parables,
the sayings and riddles of the wise.

3) Seek counsel of those you consider wise

Proverbs 12:15 (New International Version)

The way of a fool seems right to him,
but a wise man listens to advice.

Let’s take God seriously, His Word seriously, and believe that He will provide the wisdom to fulfill His plan and purpose in our lives.

Thank you for being a part of MLM Fellowship, God Bless!

About the Author: William Robbins is the founder of MLMFellowship, and the owner of iWantMoreWealth.com with his wife Bethany. Learn more about William and Bethany.

Proverbs 23:23 (New International Version)

Buy the truth and do not sell it;
get wisdom, discipline and understanding.

The word truth appears 214 times and the word wisdom appears 215 times in the (NIV).  These two words used so often, not only in the Bible, but also spoken in Christianese.

But what is truth?

Psalm 119:30 (New International Version)

I have chosen the way of truth;
I have set my heart on your laws.

This passage tells me that the Truth, is the Word of God.  That the Bible and it’s precepts are the Truth.  The world is full of wonderful truths.  I’ve read very secular books from Think and Grow Rich to Why We Want You To Be Rich to 7 Habits Of Highly Effective People, etc. and these books have a lot of Truth in them.  You know how I know?  Because some (not all) of the principles being shared in these books are found in the Bible.

If we’re going to run God honoring businesses we need to start putting our Bible goggles on in the morning.  If you read something that sounds good say, huh isn’t that interesting.  If you can find the scripture for it, then say Amen and own it!

Another interesting side note about Truth is that Jesus said, “I tell you the truth” 78 times!  Now was Jesus telling the disciples, “I’m not lying to you.”?  Maybe.  Or maybe He was saying to them, “Hey guys, I’m God and My word is the Living Word, the Truth!”

I believe that both statements are fully true.  Well if these statements are correct then we should be in practice to understand these Truths.

Practical applications…very practical

1-Read the Word!

Making the habit of getting in your Word is essential for continued growth.  How can we understand what God wants from us and from our business if we don’t take the time to understand His Truth.

2-Journal/Take Notes

We would not go to a training seminar and not take notes on what the speaker says.  This is the perfect Teacher we’re talking about.  Be intentional about learning God’s Word.

3-Study Group

Being in fellowship with like minded believers is crucial.  Start by finding just 2 or 3 Christ driven business professionals to connect with.  It’s not about giving each other leads, but about finding out God’s purpose for our business.  Believers who are in the business world have different challenges than non entrepreneurial believers.  Finding like minded believers creates a safe place to share challenges and to pray for each other.

The next post we will cover wisdom and how it really is different than the Truth.  Go ahead and take those steps seriously.  Try it for the next few days and then we can apply what you’ve done to the next post.

Thank you for being a part of MLM Fellowship, God Bless!

About the Author: William Robbins is the founder of MLMFellowship, and the owner of iWantMoreWealth.com with his wife Bethany. Learn more about William and Bethany.