Ministry of Business and Markets of the Kingdom

What is a Kingdom Business?

First, I like to say that there is a distinction between a Christian business and a Kingdom business. What is that distinction?

To begin with, any Christian can be in business and many times that is what it is, a Christian in business. Most entrepreneurs start businesses in order to generate long-term profit and wealth for themselves, including Christians.

There is nothing wrong with this point of view on the surface. However, this type of view can give us tunnel vision for our business. It can also carry the potential dangers of feeding our own greedy nature and causing us to lose perspective if our business truly belongs to God.

As born again followers and servants of our King Jesus, we don’t just run a business like any other organization. In other words, the company we own and manage is not solely ours. Everything we have actually belongs to our King and we are merely stewards here to promote his Kingdom.

Simply put, a Kingdom Business is any entity whose primary objective is to use the profits from doing business in the marketplace to promote the Kingdom of Jesus Christ.

What is a Market Ministry?

Now that we have a better understanding of what a Kingdom Business is, I would like to address what a Market Ministry is.

Simply put, Marketplace Ministry is God’s strategic plan to reach our world for Jesus through our work or business. The ministry takes place outside the four walls of our church. We spend countless hours a week in the workplace, and how we spend our time should matter.

Many of us Christians often feel cut off from the true reality of Sunday worship compared to the daily grind of our regular work week. We have difficulties when it comes to the integration of our faith and the world of business.

Christians, like everyone else, spend most of their time in the market. Our market spans the home, business, and community. It is basically wherever we interact with others.

God wants to use Christians as a living testimony to reach those who are lost and don’t know him. We are God’s people whom He chooses to use as instruments of change in a fallen and corrupt world.

Why create an email list?

Some Christians are reluctant to build an email list due to the fact that it can seem very pushy and self-promotional. It feels a lot more like marketing and a lot less like a ministry.

The biggest and worst mistake you can make with your online business, Christian or not, is not building an email list. Perhaps you’ve heard the term “The money is in the list” before? This is true even if it is a non-profit service. By the way, the purpose of any business is to make a profit.

Well let me back up a bit. It’s not so much “The money is in the list,” but as a Christian building a Kingdom business and taking his ministry to market, his email list is the best way to connect with his audience. Also, an email list will be his most valuable asset, since it is the only thing that really belongs to him, even if he has nothing to sell, it will allow him to communicate directly with his subscribers.

It is not a system that belongs to the owners, like all social media platforms. For example, if you created a group of followers on Facebook or Twitter but never captured their email, how would you communicate with your audience if the platform forbids it or the platform no longer exists?

When to build an email list and who should be on your list?

When? – An old Chinese proverb says: “The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now.”

Who? – Most people or “your tribe” so to speak, don’t give out their email address to just anyone, so if someone gets on your list, they’ve actually shown they know, like, and trust them as well on you to some degree and those are the ones you want on your list.

Building an authentic email list will require you to recognize the needs of your target audience and simply fulfill that need. These are the people you are building your email list for.

How to build an email list

To begin the list building process, you’ll need to create an account with a list management service, such as Aweber, GetResponse, or Mailchimp.

Alternatively, you can opt for a self-hosted autoresponder if you’re more tech-savvy. I recommend Aweber because I find it easier to use in my opinion.

The most basic way to entice someone to fill out a subscriber form so they can get on your email list is to create an “Opt-in Freebie”. The subscription gift can be almost anything you want, such as an eBook, free report, checklist, how-to guide, etc. just so there’s some perceived value there.

You would present your subscription freebie in the form of a web page or popup box. This is your ethical snippet, so to speak, in exchange for a person’s name and email address. Once the subscriber is on your list, you deliver what you promised.

We do this by setting up an automatic response. This can easily be done through their list management service. Remember to keep your follow-up messages or newsletter relevant to your offer and mission.

Your next step is to secure your own professional autoresponder account, so you can start building an email list for your Kingdom Business & Market Ministry.