EP 113: God’s Blueprint for Building a Business

Speaker A: Did you know your business can honor God while transforming lives around the world? Welcome to the IBOM Biblical Entrepreneurship show, the weekly podcast that inspires and equips Christian entrepreneurs to build sustainable businesses that glorify God and uplift impoverished communities. At ibom, our mission is built on the three fish metaphor. Give a fish. We provide startup loans to launch businesses. Teach to fish. We offer entrepreneur training for lasting growth. Equipped for disciples. We empower discipleship to multiply impact. Join iBum's founder Steve Adams as he shares powerful solo episodes and expert interviews filled with mentorship insights and real life stories of how biblical entrepreneurship is advancing the Great Commission. Subscribe now and get ready to be inspired, equipped and empowered to make an eternal impact.

Speaker B: Okay, well welcome everybody to the Kingdom Impact Summit where faith giving becomes an eternal impact. This is hosted by uh, I'm Tom Carter, your host. Uh, this is part of International Business as mission. And what we're honored to do uh, for the summit really is interview um, leaders throughout the country with their own ministries and what they have done to really have an impact for the kingdom and how they've done that, uh, as an entrepreneur, uh, in the business setting and it's my distinct honor to introduce uh, you today to Riley Meek. Uh, he's a, a entrepreneur, uh, with great success, uh, best selling author, speaker, uh, around the country, written several best selling books and uh, really excited for him to share his heart and what he's done in his m ministries, uh, in the business world and really instead of me trying to uh, pick and choose the great things he's done. Riley, thanks for being here and tell us a little bit about yourself, uh, your entrepreneur background and your ministry.

Speaker C: Yeah, thanks Tom. Honored, honored to be here. So I really appreciate that. Um, yeah, our ministry is called the King's Council and um, we, our heart is essentially to disciple entrepreneurs, um, mainly m birthed out of, you know, the fact that I didn't, I didn't have a lot of discipleship growing up. I jokingly say I gave my life to entrepreneurship at the age of 15, um, and then to Christ at the age of 16. Um, but, and I had you know, an amazing few years of really loving Jesus, um, looking to him as savior of my life. Um, but it's only been about six years now when I really, really truly understood what it meant for him to be Lord of my life. And I think that's what a lot of Christians, um, today, at least here in America, um, in my opinion at least is that everybody wants him as Savior but so few Want him as lor a package deal. And so, um, it, it really came, you know, in 2019, I was at kind of the, um, I would say the pinnacle financially of, of all of our companies. Um, because I, I had this view of what I thought success was, um, which was really, you know, I wanted to do what I want, when I want, where I want, with who I want, how I want type of thing, right? And I was like, man, you gotta make a lot of money to do that. And so that, that I, that was my pursuit. And, and in 2019, I'd really, you know, I felt like I had achieved a lot of that, but I was, I was spiritually bankrupt. Um, I never felt more unfulfilled in my entire life. Um, I heard this a lot, was like, man, it must be nice. Um, but little did you know anybody really know, I was just like a train wreck inside. Um, and I was just like, man, is this really what life is about? And, and I'm saying all of that because, you know, during those years of, you know, pursuing business and, and, and making money and you know, starting multiple different companies, it was always kind of the, the thrill of the hunt for me. And, and I surrounded myself with just, you know, not great people. Um, and I found myself being more influenced on than being the influencer. Um, and that's where I say I didn't have a lot of discipleship. It's nobody's fault but my own, um, as far as like seeking that out. And you know, I think one of the things that I struggled with really was could I be successful, you know, quote unquote successful and still be a good Christian? Um, and I didn't really realize this at the time, but I, I'd really developed, I think was just a mindset that I, that wasn't possible because, you know, I grew up in a small community in South Dakota. And you know, every self professed Christian there was, they were broke, they were broken, they were defeated. And that just was. Was kind of my view at an early age of, well, in order to be a good Christian, that's what I have to be. And so as I knew, I had felt like God had given me this ability to go create wealth, right, to go do those things. Um, but I struggled with my identity in that and like, could. Am I really loving God and pursuing God, um, in stewarding that gift appropriately. And so, you know, one of the things that I did, first time in a long time, this had again been like the fall of 2019, is I just started to Cry out to God again. I was like, man, is this really what, what life is about? Um, and could I be successful? And so that, that's the first word I looked up, like in the Bible. I'm like, is it even in there? Right? Does he even want us to be successful? And um, it brought me to Joshua 1:8, which simply said, hey, meditate on this book of the law. Do not, um, do not let it depart from your lips so that you may do what it says. Then you will be prosperous and successful. And I thought, man, I could do that. Like, let's, let's, let's give this thing a try. And as I started to continue just to really dive into the word of God and read it for myself, um, and not just read it, but actually study it. I think the Bible is meant to be studied, not just read. And um, I started to seek out more mentors and other gentlemen that, that really could speak life into me. And, and um, the thing, one thing that I found though, was that a lot of the, the Christian organizations, at least around me, were uh, they were older men. Um, and nothing wrong with that, but like, I wanted to run, man. Like I, like I wanted to, you know, I would have been 35 at the time, 34 at the time. And it's like, man, I, I, I don't want to get up at 4am and have coffee and talk about things. I want to do things, um, and build business and, and um, and also, you know, through that process, I, I started to raise my hand like, hey, does anybody else have this desire that it's God's that give giving us this ability? And I found out there were a lot. And so that was really kind of the, the birthing of the King's Council didn't call it at the time. It was mainly, uh, I did like an online challenge to, to see if they were, you know, believers that, that wanted to do business together. And, and um, that's what we've done. We've had, you know, over a thousand people that have come through our programs and um, uh, on really about, you know, discipling entrepreneurs but doing it from a, a biblical framework, right? A worldview. And I, I believe the Bible has given us everything. It's like our handbook for life, uh, if we, if we look to it for that. And um, and that's what we do. We, we coach, we, we train, um, and you know, everything that we do though is rooted within the, in the word of God. Um, a lot of solopreneurs, um, people just Starting out, um, because I think culture and society has done a great job at teaching entrepreneurship out of us. And so. And I believe, you know, I believe everybody's an entrepreneur. That's how we're created in the image of God. Um, but society, culture, has kind of taught it out of us on, um, you know, how to pursue those things from, again, a biblical standpoint with the right motives and intents. Um, and that's really what we facilitate, I would say, within our organization here called the King's Council.

Speaker B: Well, it really sounds like, um, once you kind of dove into Joshua and really, uh, study the Bible, it sounds, just listening to you, that really opened up your heart to be receptive to other ideas and to be true to the word and what you wanted to do and surrounding, uh, yourself with other believers and having the impact of the Gospel on those folks. And, uh, during that journey, uh, what kind of transformation did you see in the people that you experienced, your interaction with, uh, because of the, the model that you shared? Are there a couple examples when you created King's Council, uh, of an impact on people or organizations?

Speaker C: Yeah, I think it is. I think a lot of it is. Again, I don't want to say give permission because that's kind of what I felt like I needed. Um, was this struggle, this mindset that I think, I mean, I believe the, the. The enemy cannot block your blessing, but he can infiltrate your mind and cause you to block it yourself. Right? And this is what he did from the beginning, uh, with Adam and Eve in the garden. He's, you know, it just instilled a little bit of doubt in there. It's like, did God really say that you shouldn't eat from that tree? You know, and, and then she ran with it. And I think we, as, um, as Christians, we grab a hold of those, those seeds of doubt and, and we start to run with it, ultimately, you know, suppressing us. If I want to say that of, of just like, that's. That's not what God has for us, right?

Speaker A: He. He.

Speaker C: We know the enemy comes to steal, to kill and destroy, but Christ came to give us life and life abundantly. Right, and what does that mean? It's, it doesn't mean that, in my opinion at least, that every Christian should be, you know, rich and loaded with money. But this abundant life is like, how do I live this thing? Um, ultimately on purpose. Uh, and, and with the right intentions. Right? And, and, you know, in, in coming back to just like, what. What I really came to the conclusion of is like, man, If I'm going to build a business, right? If I want to build a successful business or build a uh, you know, a uh, an incredible life, why wouldn't I follow the original template or what I call the blueprint that God's given us in Genesis 1? Ah. And so I, I still so hard. I wrote a whole book on this, um, on you know, this, the seven days of, of creation and what God did during those times. And, and when I really dove into it, man, it was almost like a business plan, right? Of, of when you know, when God said let there be light. Um, and, and he, he created then the atmosphere and, and then he separated the, you know, or peeled back the waters to create dry land. Like as I look at all this, we created a framework that, that we, we just call. It's, it's God's framework on, on how to build anything. Whether it's an incredible relationship or um, certainly a successful business. And, and we, we walked all of our, our um, members of the King's council through this and I think it's, it's just been really transformational for them because sometimes we, because uh, when I found myself I always, I had an idea and I'd like just ran with it and I think a lot of entrepreneurs do that and it's like, you know, woo. And then all of a sudden it was like it's not sustainable, right? Or we're working our bones, uh, our butts off. So it's like there's no time for my, my family, right? And, and you know, things that I think what we're called to lead first, right. Obviously our relationship with the Lord leading our household first in business. I uh, believe it, it is a third tier thing. But it doesn't mean that we're not supposed to still operate in excellence in it, right. And, and so how do we, how do we do that? Um, and I really believe it's, it's just following this blueprint or framework, um, that God's given us through Genesis and obviously throughout the entire Bible. Um, but it's, it's nice to have those frameworks and, and when we walk people through that, I think the understanding of like what is this, this God given vision that I have? Um, and, and I'll walk you through it real quick. Uh, day one we call vision. God said let there be light. Right? Light. Though when most of us think of that, they think of the sun, right? And the sun wasn't in the moon, weren't created until day four. So what was God really doing at that time it's like, I believe he really had an incredible vision. And God being, you know, all knowing, he already knew that we were going to fall in the garden, yet he still followed through with it, he still pursued it. And so why did he do that? And I think he had a vision so powerful that it gave any sort of pain purpose. And I think in our businesses we're all, we're going to experience pain. Uh, it's, it's a part of entrepreneurship, right? So, but the question is like, is it uh, are you willing to endure that pain to ultimately fulfill that God given purpose or vision that you have? Um, day two, we call the atmosphere. This is where God created the firmament. Um, so this is like, you know what, who you're surrounding yourself with, the books you're reading, the podcast you're listening to, groups like yours, who you're, you know, a part of. Um, day three is structure. Where God peeled back the, the uh, waters created dry land and vegetation, which ultimately I believe is structure. Right. In your business. So it's like a, not necessarily a business plan, but more of like your, your sops. Right? Like what are my, what do I have to do on a, on a daily basis? In day four, which God created the, the sun, the moon, places stars in the sky, created essentially what we know as time. We. I call that order, which is the implementation of the structure. Right. And day, um, four, then, excuse me, is um, he created the birds of the air, the fish of the sea. And my thought for that was like, why in the world did he create that? Them first versus all the other animals and, and um, and then ultimately us as humans. And it's fascinating as I really, you know, meditate on this, I realized, you know, the birds of the air would certainly eat the vegetation, um, and would have to defecate, which would drop into the, the ocean and create coral, um, also provide food for the fish that the birds could eat. And it was like this. There's this cyclical thing of, of life, right, that actually has to take place. One thing was supporting the other. Um, and then this is how we really create momentum in our businesses. Um, leading to day six, which is where he created the other animals in us and then gave us this, this final uh, charge or the original commandment to be fruitful, right to multiply, dominion. Um, and, and how do we do that? And even in our business, how do we scale this thing? Like how do we go from being uh, you know, once maybe one location or you know, if you're online Maybe selling one product to multiple products in, in ultimately worldwide. Because you know, that was God's intent, right? Is to have dominion. And dominion isn't meaning in it like a domineering, like I'm going to crush my competition. But it's more of a, um, bringing kingdom culture into everything that we actually do. Uh, and then day seven is obviously, you know, not forgetting the Sabbath in that God created that for man. Um, and the importance of that to appropriately run your businesses long term. Right. Avoiding burnout things of those lines. So you know, when we walk people through that, it is kind of an eye opener for them and it's almost can be used as like a uh, an X ray where they could just place it over exactly what they're currently doing and then seeing where they might be falling short. And it's as simple as, as going to the previous day of like if, if, you know, if, if I'm not having momentum in my business, are we actually taking care of the order? Like are things getting done? And if, and if we're busy but we're not productive, do we know what needs to get done? Do we have, do we have the structure in, in place? Right. And if that's not have, do we have the right counsel, do we have the right team members, the employees? Um, right. Mentorship in that. And if that's not uh, then most everything always boils back to this vision of like okay, what, what is this God given vision that we have here? Am I just in business to make money? Maybe, but how are you also? What's the, what the bigger purpose or intention of that? Um, and it's kind of a full, full picture look at your business simply by following um, God's original blueprint.

Speaker B: Well that's amazing. And uh, with King's Council, can you think of maybe one example that comes to mind quickly? Uh, you poured in to someone, uh, with a business on how to uh, you know, run this business with purpose, the impact it had on themselves as a business owner, maybe their employees, their customers, uh, that you saw, you know, transformational change in them that not only helped them but enhanced their efforts for the kingdom.

Speaker C: Yeah, I mean m. Many of them, a lot of people come to us with even just a, an idea, um, but they're not sure how to implement it. Right. And so I can think of one. Um, I actually just messaged him right before we, we hopped on here. Um, you know, he started from, from nothing, not being in business. And, and uh, last year I know they, they surpassed about just a little Over a half a million dollars in revenue, um, is his second year in business. And so um, and he's a, it's him and his wife, uh, just running a company on their own, um, but able to actually you know give and, and you know be generous um, to, to fund the ministries and you know the missionaries that they're, they're wanting to like that's their, their heart's desire in that. Um, and so yeah, a lot of examples of that but um, too many to actually run through. But that's one that you know just recently I just spoke with him today.

Speaker B: Well I can see why you're a well sought after speaker. I mean I'm fired up just talking with you. Um, but as people watch this and listen this, learn more about your ministry can help folks and they're maybe they're working somewhere or maybe they're considering starting uh, their own business and they want to be purpose, purposeful and uh, stay true to God's uh, teachings. Do you have two or three tips for people to keep in mind, uh, uh, as business owners or potentially going into business of how to keep the balance, uh, their eye on Christ, uh, and uh, do meaningful work in their job that you kind of use with folks?

Speaker C: Yeah, absolutely. I would say, um, Scripture tells us that anything done not in faith is sin. Uh, and a lot of times people don't make decisions or fail to take action for fear of the what ifs. Right. And in the reality what we oftentimes view as risk simply means we just lack faith in that. Right. Obviously get counsel, get wisdom. We know that that is a biblical concept for us to make sure that we're not something completely off the rails. Um, but oftentimes though we're sitting on this fence of indecision, of like should I make this decision within the company, should I do this? You know, the, the direction that we're heading and so we, we fail to take action and, and we sit on this fence and, and you know my full hearted belief is that the enemy owns the fence. Right. And, and if, even if we take the wrong action in God's sovereignty, I know um, that it, it he's going to work it out for the good. Right? And, and sometimes we forget that.

Speaker B: Right.

Speaker C: And, and it's the fear that prevents us from taking action. And even if I did take the wrong action, heck at least I learned quicker so I can jump on the other side of the fence and take the correct action. Right. I um, really believe God blesses our, our footprints, not our butt prints. Uh, and, and so failure to take action is, is I think one of the, the, the biggest struggles or that I see in a lot of Christian entrepreneurs. And it's, it's that fear, right? And, and so knowing that, man, everything that I do, it should be in faith, right? If, if I'm not doing it, if I'm, if I'm waiting for constant clarity, this has actually revolutionized my life, um, because I would always pray for God, give me clarity on this, right? And a lot of us as, as we're seeking, like, uh, how do I make decisions? I just want constant clarity. And the reality is, if I have full clarity, am I really. Does it involve faith at all?

Speaker A: Right?

Speaker C: If I already know the outcome if I do this, it doesn't involve faith at all, right? So my prayer has, has switched from God, give me clarity to give me faith. Give me faith for some. One of these directions of, of that I'm, I should take, right? And, and revelation, uh, tells us that God closes doors that cannot be opened. And he opens doors that cannot be closed. And our job is to walk in faith, right? And, and, and if we start to continue to take those actions, I, I really believe that He. He is going to. You know, many are the, um, uh, what, what is the proverb? Um, many are the something in a man's heart, but it's the Lord's will that prevails. Ah. And it's like ultimately his will will prevail if we're seeking him first, number one, first and foremost, right? Knowing everything else is going to be taken care of. If I'm seeking the kingdom, Jesus's rule and reign, that's what the kingdom is in our individual lives. Um, knowing that everything else is going to be taken care of. For me, and as a Christian entrepreneur, um, I think that's the biggest thing is that be willing to take faith, right? Not necessarily risks, but, but take faith. We may view them as risks, but is it actually the faith, um, that. That we're taking? And so I think that that's primarily, you know, what most entrepreneurs need to hear.

Speaker B: Man, that's a great word. Because we're all going to make mistakes. And my, uh, pastor for 20 years, one of my closest friends, uh, said something that I've stolen from him for over a decade. He says, I reserve the right to get smarter. And yes, staying in the lines of, uh, God's teaching, you know, I am gonna make mistakes, I'm gonna make them tomorrow, but, you know, I reserve the right get smarter. Uh, you know, I I want to be, uh, prudent with our time, but I, I can't let you go. Before you tell me a little bit about your book with just the most, I love the title, Intentional Purpose. Tell me about. This is one of the books you've written. But tell me just a little bit about that book.

Speaker C: And it's actually Intentional Influence. Um, is that book, um, that's really based upon, you know, it's a sales driven book. Um, first off, I think we are all in sales, um, no matter if you're in it or uh, you know, a janitor. Right. Like I'm, I'm selling my wife every day on why she shouldn't leave me. Tom. Right. So it's like, it's. I think it's a, um, a great skill set for us to learn not to be manipulative. Absolutely not. But to be influential. Right. And to have an intention with every conversation that we have. Um, and, and for the good. Right. And so we teach people these strategies, what we'll call them on, on how to be intentionally influential in those decisions. Um, and, and, and a lot of it has to be backed with the conviction of, of your product or your service and, and what you're actually offering. Um, and, and knowing that it, you really believe it is the best option for them, um, then you should be fully convicted, uh, that, you know, I'm not selling but I'm serving in this matter. Um, and so it's a mindset shift, um, and that then led into the Kingdom Entrepreneur series. It's a three part series of books that I had written. Um, well, the third book here is to be released in the next couple months, um, solely on money and finances. Um, and so yeah, that's Intentional Influence is a good one, believe me. But the Kingdom Entrepreneur, uh, is the three part series that I'm, that's been written here over the last few years. Just, just learning, um, and applying a lot of the things that I, I've just taken directly from scripture.

Speaker B: Great man. I appreciate that. Uh, I'm so pumped up. Listen to you. I gonna check out your three book series. But tell me, uh, people listening to this and listening to you in your heart, they're gonna want to know more about you. What's the best way for people to find you? Uh, your website or they can learn about your books, your, your speaking. Um, King's, uh, council. Tell me, tell people how they can find you.

Speaker C: Yeah, the best place is probably join kingscouncil.com um, and you can just sign up, get your email in there and you'll get access to a lot of free resources that we provide. Um, uh, the books I, we give away free. Um, courses. Uh, we give away free uh, and just. It's, it's. They're just great tools and I want to uh, freely. I've received so freely we want to give. Right. And, and, but I realize there is a downside to that because a lot of people, if they get something free, they don't value it. Um, but so I'm saying this even to all the audience, like if you're going to do this, take action on it. Right. Actually, you know, go through the process here, um, and just join our community. You'll be updated on different events that we get together in the, in the future. Every Wednesday morning we do Bible study kingscouncilbiblestudy.com where we hop on, live on Zoom and, and we have people all over the country that join us for that. So um, we'd love to meet everybody and all over the world. Excuse me, that, that join us for that. So. Kingscouncilbiblestudy.com Riley, I'm so grateful for your

Speaker B: time and sharing your story uh, with us and um, the tens of thousands of people are going to look at this so I appreciate that people, uh, check out King's Council. I'm grateful for your time, I'm grateful for what you do. The King and I hope this is inspirational for others to um, line, uh, the gospel teaching and the blueprint you so well said, uh, for their business and their mission. So thanks again.

Speaker C: Thank you Tom, I appreciate it.

Speaker B: All right, thanks, bye.

Speaker A: Thank you for listening to the International Business as Mission podcast. A space where we explore how to build businesses rooted in biblical principles that create global impact. But we're not just here to talk about. We're taking action to spread entrepreneurship to poverty stricken communities around the world. Our mission is to be the catalyst that empowers people to build sustainable livelihoods and break the cycle of poverty. We follow the three fish principle. 1. Give a fish providing startup loans to empower entrepreneurs. 2. Teach to fish offering entrepreneurial training for sustainable business practices. And three. Equipped for disciple making. Building a community that supports spiritual growth alongside business success. This is life changing work. But we can't do it alone. We need passionate impact partners like you to join us on this mission by becoming a donor. Your generous gift will directly fund the establishment of new businesses that provide dignified work and hope. Just imagine, your donation could help a single mother in rural areas, Africa start a small farming venture that allows her to feed her children and send them to school. Or a young man in Southeast Asia to launch a small business breaking the chains of generational poverty. This is the power of entrepreneurship as a force for good. Will you join us in unleashing it? Go to ibum.org now to start impacting lives through the transformative power of business as mission. Together we can create a world of flourishing.