By Muriithi Wanjau
Every Kingdom Business has four distinctive Quadruple Bottom Line features of Purpose, People, Profit and Planet that sets them apart in the market.
In this article, we explore the third distinctive feature of Kingdom businesses which is Planet.
Every Christian is mandated to properly steward and manage the planet. However, many of us have left the work of caring for the environment to NGOs and environmentalist gurus like the Late Dr. Wangari Maathai. This is tragic as believers are the best poised for environmental activism and responsibility. We are the ones who understand the mandate from God to steward His planet.
Genesis 1:28, “God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”
Your God-given purpose will ALWAYS require you to leave the world a better place. This applies to you both personally and as a Kingdom entrepreneur. It is part of what it means to be blessed and to be a blessing. However as seen from the rampant mismanagement of our natural resources such as rivers, dams, forests and even air, not many have lived up to this standard.
Entrepreneurs are unashamedly engaging in ungodly business principles and practices, which are destroying the earth. This cannot be your story as a Kingdom business person or professional. You must honour God and cater to the environment. Here are a few ways how:
Become Aware of the environmental issues around you. Don’t ignore the problems in your environment- engage them. Seek to understand what it means to be a steward of the planet, and explore the vast ways through which you can fulfil this role.
Say ‘No’ to Shortcuts. Choose to only do business in a way that safeguards the environment. Don’t use harmful methods or techniques, even if they save you time and/or money. Furthermore, investigate the source of your supplies and products. Never release a product you can’t defend, even if it would mean checking the quality of the sugar you would use in a cake business.
Reduce your Wastes. Position yourself as an environment friendly business by reducing your waste. Examples of how you can do this include printing on both sides of paper, recycling water, using LED bulbs and replacing paper cups with mugs and glasses.
Beautify your Environment. God is a God of beauty. This should be reflected in the nature around you. So look after your grounds and invest in making them beautiful.
I believe that as Christians we must have a sense of responsibility for the earth because we understand who we are and whose we are. Let us be found to be more responsible of our environment than those around us. Let’s take up our roles as stewards and transform our planet.
REMINDERS:
- God gave us ruler-ship not ownership of the planet.
- Broken business practices contribute to the destruction of our planet.
- Choose to only do business in a way that safeguards the environment.
- Your business must honour God by employing principles that protect the environment.
- Position yourself as an environment friendly business by reducing your waste.
- It is your mandate as a Christian to care for the environment. Stop waiting for the NGOs.
- Your God-given purpose as an entrepreneur will ALWAYS require you to leave the world a better place.
- As a Kingdom entrepreneur don’t ignore problems in your environment- engage them.