How to Have a Fruitful Business – Part 2

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. – Gal 5:22-23 NIV

Last week we talked about the first part of this verse and how in order to have a fruitful business you need to have a fruit filled business! If you missed out you can catch up here.

Now we’ll cover the remaining fruits

Patience – Of all the fruits of the spirit this one is most likely the hardest for anyone. Mistakes and accidents can and will happen. Do you respond patiently and in love to a client who calls you up to chew you out? What about when an employee or co-worker bungles something up and forces you to do extra work that you didn’t have time for? Patience is an absolutely invaluable fruit to have!!!

Goodness – When I looked up the definition of goodness I came up with this list “excellence; virtue; kindness; benevolence…goodness of character, of disposition, of conduct, etc.” I think goodness could also be thought of as all the rest of the list rolled into one.

Faithfulness – If you ask most people what characteristics they’re looking for in any type of a relationship one of the main words that is bound to come up is faithfulness. Clients, co-workers, and employees should never have to worry about you betraying them or their trust. In order to maintain your integrity you must remain faithful!

Gentleness – Not only should we be good and patient, we should also be gentle. We need to know how to handle things delicately and with a soft touch. This could make or break a deal or a relationship.

Self Control – In this period of out of control bimbos on reality TV shows we get daily examples of what self control is NOT. As Christian women we should use these to see exactly what not to be. Screaming, being pushy and demanding, and throwing fits is a great way to destroy your reputation and your business! A way in which many of us might not think of is having self control when it comes to priorities and work. Work is important but when you’re blessed to do it at home it can creep in and push out many other important things. Do you have the self control to stop working and take time for your children, your spouse, your daily Bible reading? What about the self control to not sit and burn hours by getting sucked into social networking (preaching to myself here too!) If not you need to learn and pray for that kind of self control!

I hope that you will take the time to memorize this verse and work each of these into your life day by day. You, your business, and your family will all be so much the better for it!

Written By Nicole Elliott: Nicole is the administative assistant for CMB Resource and Mommy Bag Marketing, Inc. She also owns www.artisticalbumsbynicole.com She is filling in as the guest columnist for Faith & Business 101 in the month of August while MariLee is on vacation.