Draw close to one of the wisest humans to walk this earth. His name is Solomon, and he authored most of the 31 chapters of the Book of Proverbs. He collected the rest from sage birds of his day. They cover leadership tenets for wise Kingdom Builders including money smarts, the rules of consequence, leadership conduct, life disciplines and enterprise laws. Expect them to inspire, sometimes even sting. But, if you study them and honestly examine yourself, you will become wiser.
Don’t be surprised when you experience the right Proverbs Card at the perfect time. We call those "Awe-some Moments."
May these 20 Proverbs Cards sharpen and refine your leadership for His Kingdom.
-Sam Frowine
KINGDOM BUILDER BOX™
Copyright 2017 by Samuel E. Frowine, III.
A publication by Sam Frowine at www.Kingdom-Builder.org.
Scripture quotations are taken from the New International Version & New Living Translation of the Bible, except otherwise noted.
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means---electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or otherwise---without written permission of Sam Frowine.
Kingdom Builder Box logo is a trademark of Sam Frowine.
Copyright 2017 by The Institute for Enterprise Builders, Davidson NC.
All rights reserved.
Kingdom Builder Logo designed by Austin Moses for application, but not limited, to the Kingdom Builder Box ™, Becoming a Kingdom Builder, Kingdom Builder Dialogue & Facilitators Guide and Proverbs Cards.
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction.
POWER
Owners and natural leaders often are blessed with keen intelligence, inspiring vision and competitive strength. These attributes attract resources—followers, money and opportunities. This is power.
Fools attribute such attractional power to themselves, but wise leaders remember the Source of their power, give thanks to the Maker of it all and ask Him for guidance and wisdom. Voltaire (and Spiderman's uncle) said, "With great power comes great responsibility."
Turn your ear to wisdom and apply your heart to understanding…
Then you will understand what is right and just and fair—every good path.
PROVERBS
2:2 & 9
DECISIONS
The liability of decision-making can unnerve and exhaust us. Ask any leader.
Want to become a more effective and more confident decision-maker? Steep yourself in Scripture, and allow the insights to percolate. God’s wisdom gives us a better lens for seeing the world, so we can make better leadership choices with fewer mistakes. Pressure lifts when we collaborate with the Holy Spirit.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.
PROVERBS 3:5-6
ARROGANCE
Every seasoned owner has stories of significant and unnecessary losses due to poor choices: too much growth too fast, wrong hires, excessive owner indulgences, misaligned acquisitions, wrong partnerships.
Arrogance is the root cause of most poor decisions. Arrogance emerges from two self-centered beliefs:
1. We know more than anyone else.
2. We want what we want when we want it.
God knows what is best for us and He reveals it to us when we seek His wisdom. Asking the right questions to the right sources is a sure-fire way of preventing mistakes.
Blessed are those who find wisdom, those who gain understanding, for she is more profitable than silver and yields better returns than gold.
...Long life is in her right hand; in her left hand
are riches and honor.
PROVERBS 3:13-14 & 16
FAVOR
Why do some people seem to have so much and others so little?
That’s a big life question.
The Proverbs teach us life virtues, which lead to smart life choices, which often bring us favor and even riches. The virtues of a good leader are: discipline, prudence, patience, integrity, confidence and optimism.
Favor comes when God’s appointed leaders subordinate their ambitions to Him, as was the case with Abraham, Joseph, David and Solomon.
Discern the favor in your life, and embrace it with humility and courage. Remember, you can't always measure riches and honor materially. And sometimes favor comes with burden.
Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.
PROVERBS 4:23
THE HEART
Our hearts—our feelings of love and desire—shape how we lead in the marketplace. Our hearts shape how we treat people, money and priorities. We need to train our hearts for the spiritual battlefield of the workplace, where currents of money, power, and possession swirl. The battle is real.
Conditioning the heart is a lifelong discipline that includes thinking, praying and spending time in the Word.
Lazy hands make for poverty, but diligent hands bring wealth.
PROVERBS 10:4
WORK ETHIC
At the core of every Kingdom Builder is an industrious nature; without it, you are not a builder. When we are given a leadership assignment, God expects us to labor. But we must learn to find a balance between working hard to drive and control results and working hard to let God bless our work.
When have you relied more on painful toil than on the Lord’s blessing of your work? Where do you need to work harder at your responsibilities? Which is your tendency: too much work or not enough?
The name of the righteous is used in blessings, but the name of the wicked will rot.
PROVERBS 10:7
LEGACY
What do you want said about you when your days on this earth end?
By your spouse?
By your children and grandchildren?
By your employees or your pastor?
By those you pass by most days?
Today, how can you better treat all those who might attend your funeral tomorrow?
The Lord detest dishonest scales, but accurate weights find favor with him.
PROVERBS 11:1
HONESTY
Fear, pride or self-pity can tempt us to behave dishonestly, but God hates cheating. He hates it when we take something that rightfully belongs to another, even if it is within the rules.
Have you ever charged for services not rendered, overcharged for time or cost, back-pedalled on a compensation agreement?
When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.
PROVERBS 11:2
PRIDE
Pride is thinking more highly of our own opinions than of God’s. Pride and stubbornness keep us from making wise decisions. In the Garden of Eden, God said, “DO NOT,” but Adam and Eve said, “We want to.” Their rebelliousness and foolishness resulted in disgrace.
Humility is realizing we are inadequate when left to our own devices. Humility leads us to the wise choice, even when it feels counterintuitive.
Sometimes the wise choice requires the simple decision between humble obedience and prideful disobedience.
One person gives freely yet gains even more; another withholds unduly but comes to poverty.
PROVERBS 11:24
GENEROSITY
The Lord loves a cheerful giver. But sometimes we get frightened that we might run out of whatever we are provoked to give. If you look back on all your joyful giving, I suspect not once did you run out. In fact, you likely discovered subsequent abundance. This is the paradox of generosity.
Dishonest money dwindles away, but whoever gathers money little by little makes it grow.
PROVERBS 13:11
EARNINGS
It seems there is never enough money, and whatever we have in our purse evaporates faster than expected. Lottery winners know exactly what we are talking about here. So do thieves and cheaters.
I tell my children, "Nothing of any lasting value comes fast." I tell my owners this too. The first rule of my SMART MONEY rules for owners: Learn to earn.
Children who inherit money without earning it often gulp it down. But growing economic wealth takes years of diligence, persistence, and vigilance. Some of us desire to learn these lessons, and others beg off. If you don’t desire to learn, you won’t. Honest money over time offers freedom of choice, and a lack of it, slavery.
Walk with the wise and become wise, for a companion of fools suffers harm.
As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.
PROVERBS 13:20 & 27:17
COMPANIONS
Our companions are those we invest time in and those we seek to emulate. The company we keep profoundly influences our words, deeds, choices and treatment of others.
Are those closest to you inspiring you to do good?
Kingdom Builders belong to communities of people that allow them to learn God’s ways.
Gentle words are a tree of life; a deceitful tongue crushes the spirit.
PROVERBS 15:4
WORDS
Our words make a difference in the lives of others. Whether that difference is life-giving or destructive is our choice and our responsibility.
James teaches that the tongue is little but mighty. It can set fires to relationships, divide people and destroy reputations in seconds. Or words can give encouragement to others, comfort someone in a time of need, promote praise and thanksgiving.
What difference do your works make? Do they inspire creativity or discourage risks? Do they spur bold action or pierce confidence?
Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisors they succeed.
PROVERBS 15:22
ADVISORS
Blind spots cause us to miscalculate situations because we don’t see or understand the whole picture. In our car, we need mirrors to inform us of our blind spots. In our business, we need trusted advisors.
Often, leaders at the top hesitate to trust the counsel of others. We wonder how anyone can understand all the nuances of our game. It takes time to establish valuable, wise advisors, but the return is exponential.
Good advice is one of the secrets of a successful Kingdom Builder.
A cheerful look brings joy to the heart; good news makes for good health.
PROVERBS 15:30
ATTITUDE
The culture of any enterprise is shaped by the attitude of the leader at the top-positive or negative, hopeful or fatalistic, gracious or selfish. Our attitude is a glimpse of our spiritual health and our life priorities.
People interpret your attitude from your non-verbal signals—you know, the way you hold your head and arms and what you express with your eyes and mouth.
People need kind words and gracious glimpses. Does your unspoken language communicate that you care?
People follow leaders who do.
Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plans will succeed.
PROVERBS 16:3
PLANS
Submitting our plans to a higher authority is an unnatural act to most owners and leaders. Taking decisive action is our forte as is owning the outcome. God's ways are different than ours. He knows of every opportunity and adversity we face. He will guide us, divinely through the Holy Spirit, as to how we are to navigate our choices. God's metrics of success are different, and His methodology is counterintuitive, but His promise is blessing beyond what we can imagine. First, though, we must let Him in.
Just as the rich rule the poor, so the borrower is servant to the lender.
PROVERBS 22:7
DEBT
“I owe. I owe. It’s off to work I go.” Have you seen this bumper sticker?
When we owe money to a person or entity, we are under obligation until our debt is fulfilled. That’s why it is called “debt burden.”
So always give careful consideration when borrowing money. Debts are less burdensome if they are associated with assets that can be liquidated to fulfill the obligation, but look out for debts that gamble on future performance, promises or dreams.
Do not be one who shakes hands in pledge or puts up security for debts; If you lack the means to pay, your very bed will be snatched from under you.
22:26-27
PLEDGES
A pledge is an intentional commitment that we are accountable to uphold. Our pledge is our bond. Keeping pledges makes or breaks reputations. Do you honor your pledges? Is your word better than a written contract? Be thoughtful about anything that would be considered a pledge. Most of us have failed to keep a pledge. The failure can cause a chink in our armor, where the Deceiver can breach our self-worth and sense of authenticity. Don’t bury such failures; pray over them. Ask for forgiveness and trust God’s process for reconciliation.
Do you see someone skilled in their work?
They will serve before kings; they will not serve before officials of low rank.
PROVERBS 22:29
SKILL
Learn how God has gifted you. What you are gifted to do is likely what you love to do. But translating your gift into a skill and a vocation requires more than affinity. Becoming proficient and accomplished requires thousands of hours of study and practice.
Your hard work will often bear unexpected fruit. God says that with accomplishment comes reputation, influence and audience, even the audience of kings.
Those who give to the poor will lack nothing, but those who close their eyes to them receive many curses.
PROVERBS 28:27
THE POOR
God tells us in Scripture that the poor will always be with us, and we are to be generous and compassionate, starting with widows and children. Wise stewards invest to multiply; this principle is just as relevant in the mission world as it is in the business world.
When you have been blessed with many resources, you have much responsibility. Kingdom Builders have enormous potential to direct resources from secular to sacred causes.
We will be measured by our generosity. Furthermore, we can never be too generous with money we have earned. Most of us think we are much more generous than we really are.
