As believing business owners, we can be confident in starting over because of the promises in God’s Words. During part of the cancer treatment and recovery, Scott was not able to work. He mentioned he had to start over. I told him that he doesn’t have to start from scratch because he has experience.
Scott started a consulting business in 2011. It wasn’t easy. He used the word ‘pivot’ when he switched from consulting to coaching and then back to consulting again. He called it ‘rebranding’ when he changed the name of his business. To me, it all sounded like another way to say ‘start over’. So when he said he had to start over, it sounded like he was defeated.
Months after the cancer surgery, he started working on the website to help others with what he learned going through the medical system and recovering from the treatments. This wasn’t bringing in any income and the medical bills were piling up, so he was getting anxious about our finances. It seemed like he stopped working for years, but it was only a handful of months.
When Scott talked about updating his resume, God provided clients that had problems Scott could help solve. Two were previous clients from a side business he had before coaching. Another came from a referral which introduced him to someone who had similar clients but wanted to work less, so would send clients to Scott.
It was good to see Scott busy helping clients again. It was as if a burden was taken off of him so he could walk with his head up high. We were thankful to have income coming in, but our expenses were still greater than the money coming in. This is where faith and trust in God comes in.
Before cancer, Scott would rely on the talents and gifts that God gave him to bring money in. He would stress when our cash flow wasn’t right. There were months when every client was late with their payments. I trusted God would help us just when we needed it. Scott thought that was an excuse for not having to do anything and God does everything. I say that it’s a partnership with us working alongside God, but in reality, I was hoping God does all the work. I wasn’t doing much in my network marketing business, so in 2022, the last person on my team left and every customer not blood related switched to another provider.
We both needed to start over, but not from scratch. Scott had experience, and I still had customers. Even though we had fallen, we will get back up again. We know God is good because of all that He has done for us in the past. We commit everything to Him, though we sometimes try to take control back from Him. We know the Scriptures say He will help us. So we give all our worries and cares to God because He cares for us and He will instruct us and teach us in the way we should go.
Whether you call it “starting over”, “pivoting”, or “restructuring” (like Scot is calling it now), the goal is to get into action to move forward to be in a better place. 2024 is a new year to practice doing business God’s way. We look forward to seeing what God will do.
Prayer
Dear God in heaven,
Thank you for being good to us. We don’t deserve your mercy and grace to start over. Help us to seek Your will and show us the path to take. We want to glorify you in all that we do in our business.
In Your Son’s precious name, Amen
Verses
Nahum 1:7
Proverbs 3:5,6; 24:16
Psalm 32:8; 37:4,5
Peter 5:7
Song
“Into Faith I Go” by Pat Barett
Call to action
If you have already prayed, read the verses, and listened to the suggested song, then think of what you are grateful for in your business, think of what could be better, and one action you could do to make your business better.