Here’s the Biblical way to build family wealth

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The Bible illustrates the importance of leaving a legacy for the next generation and your future family lineage, especially in the Old Testament with stories in the Bible of great men of God.

In Genesis 12:2, God made a covenant with Abraham that through him and his offspring, Isaac and Jacob will come out a great nation which became Israel.

Throughout the scriptures emphasis on how setting a trail for your offspring is honorable, for example from humble beginnings, David rose up and became King of Israel and transformed its formidable force. King David gave birth to Solomon and groomed him in the position to take over the mighty nation by embedding him with invaluable life lessons and success principles, 1 Chronicles 28:9 “And you, my son Solomon, acknowledge the God of your father, and serve him with wholehearted devotion and with a willing mind, for the LORD searches every heart and understands every desire and every thought. If you seek him, he will be found by you; but if you forsake him, he will reject you forever.”

The instilled lessons Solomon received from his God-fearing and war strategist father, which created a path for King Solomon to rule Israel at the tender age of 30, as well as become the wisest and richest ruler in his day.

As Christians we must learn to adopt this legacy type of thinking, where we don’t think about laboring for ourselves, but the generations to come, in Proverbs 13:22 it says “A good person leaves an inheritance for their children’s children, but a sinner’s wealth is stored up for the righteous.”

Setting long-term goals can be highly rewarding and bring out the best in you, knowing that you have a note-worthy assignment to fulfill will give you the drive to wake up in the morning with enough vigor to realize your ambitions. Whereas maintaining a self-indulged mentality will hinder you from tapping into your full inner potential, Proverbs 29:18, “Where there is no vision, the people perish.”

Besides the scripture giving insights on the importance of planting ones seeds for his/her offspring, it teaches the importance of stewardship, in fact the first commandment Adam received from God in (Genesis 2:15) was to cultivate the ground. This shows us that God wants us to preserve the resources he’s blessed us with.

When creating a project or business that you plan on passing on to your next of kin, it’s essential that we also pass on virtues and principles to maintain it; many successful billionaires in the past have failed to attach the moral teachings of sustaining, that’s why its common to read headline stories of heiress’ being destroyed (drugs, alcohol, depression) by the controlling of new found wealth and power, Psalms 49:20 says, “people who have wealth but lack understanding are like the beasts that perish.”

As Christians we are instructed to look after the poor and impact humanity (Proverbs 19:17), no wonder, we must break out of the mold  of “ how can I solely feed myself?” to using our innate abilities create an abundance of resources to be a blessing to society, this leads me on to the importance of giving back.

The story in the New Testament which shows great philanthropic endeavors is in the Book of John 4: 4 where Jesus meets the Samaritan woman in the plot of ground Jacob had given to his son Joseph, where Jesus asked her for water in Jacobs well. I love this passage, because the Samaritan woman that met Jesus was benefiting from the well Jacob built 12 generations before her time.

How much more productive would we be if we cultivate such an advanced mindset, where we question ourselves and ask ourselves sincerely how can what I’m doing positively affect someone decades away from now?

How much more effective can we be in our businesses if we ask empowering questions such as how can I grow my business to employ 1000 staff members?

Having this expansive mind will cause us to become more bold, impactful and audacious in our actions. There are no excuses why it can’t be done, if you doubt meditate on the following scriptures:

• Deuteronomy 8:18 – But remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your ancestors, as it is today.

• 2 Corinthians 5:7 – For we walk by faith, not by sight.

• Ephesians 3:20 – Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us.

Throughout the book of Proverbs we are instructed to seek wisdom, Proverbs 13:12, “Walk with the wise and become wise, for a companion of fools suffers harm.” Also in Ecclesiastes 1:9 it says “What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.”

The revelation I received from reading this passage is that as believers we should diligently seek knowledge, including learning from other peoples experiences, especially those who we aspire to reach the same level as.

Make it a habit to learn from those who’ve gone ahead of you, most importantly, those who’ve succeed in wealth, built a successful family and impacted society, one example is self-made billionaire David Green.

The devoted Christian, David Green and his wife Barbara started Hobby Lobby with a $600 bank loan turning it into a billion Dollar Company; now one of his sons Mart Green is a missionary and gives a large portion of profits to propagate the gospel all over the world including giving a $70 million donation gift towipe out Oral Roberts University debt.

Another example of building generational wealth is Sam Walton who founded Wal-Mart whilst regularly being a Church Sunday school leader, when he passed away his business reached annual sales of $50 billion and employed 380,000 people, but now in 2015 its revenue reached $485.651 billion, this shows you that it takes a generation to leave a real impact.

So starting from, you let us be encouraged to leave a lasting legacy for generations to come. To make it clearer, for example, if Mr. A starts life from level 0, he should set a goal of passing the baton to his child MR/MS B to level 10, the next generations duty is to cultivate their inheritance to set a higher platform for their offspring and so, it’s this mindset which allowed families from the Rothschild and Rockefellers to maintain a level of economical power in the world, through preserving and passing on wealth.

Top tips to build generational wealth and a legacy starting from you:

1. Create a clear vision for your business, and the impact you want it to have.

• Habakkuk 2:2 – Then the LORD replied: “Write down the revelation and make it plain on tablets so that a herald may run with it.”

2. Pray to God daily and ask him to give you insight on how to succeed.

• James 1:5 – If any of you lack wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.

• Proverbs 16:3 – Commit to the LORD whatever you do, and he will establish your plans.

3. Be confident that you can create a profitable and lasting business

Deuteronomy 8:18 – But remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your ancestors, as it is today.

4. Ignore the naysayers or those who discourage you.

• Psalm 146:3 – Do not put your trust in princes, in human beings, who cannot save.

5. Never give up, never

Ecclesiastes 11:6 – Sow your seed in the morning, and at evening let your hands not be idle, for you do not know which will succeed, whether this or that, or whether both will do equally well.

6. Fall in love with hard work

• Proverbs 10:4 – “Lazy hands make for poverty, but diligent hands bring wealth.”

• Proverbs 23:33-34 – A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest and poverty will come on you like a thief and scarcity like an armed man.

7. Treat the luxury of relaxation as a distraction and a hindrance to reaching your goals

• Proverbs 21:17– “Whoever loves pleasure will become poor; whoever loves wine and olive oil will never be rich.”

8. Teach your children from early key success principles.

• Proverbs 22: 6– Train up a child in the way he should go and when he is old he will not depart from it.

9. Provide for your family

• 1 Timothy 5:8 – “Anyone who does not provide for their relatives, and especially for their own household, has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.

10. Teach your children prudence.

• Warren Buffett arguably one of the best investors, in his biography on the history channel credits a gift from finances started from his parents who made him and his sibling discuss about money, political issues around the table from childhood.

• Proverbs 14:15- “The simple believe anything, but the prudent give thought to their steps.

11. Encouraging your kids is not enough investing in their future.

• 1 John 3:18 – Dear children, let us not love with words or speech, but with actions and in truth.

• How the scripture relates in business, if you have a child with an idea which needs funding to invest in their business, don’t just give words of encouragement but put your money where your mouth is and invest in them. If you have not got the means perhaps you can help them with your time.

12. Let leaving a legacy be a key motivator for you.

Proverbs 13: 22 – A good person leaves an inheritance for their children’s children, but a sinner’s wealth is stored up for the righteous