Wealth and worship are inseparable

• Dr. Myles Munroe was born in a poor family and would sleep on the floor with cockroaches and rats. However, he has defied the odds and now runs a multi-million business empire.
  

By Taddeo Bwambale

Dr. Myles Munroe is an internationally renowned evangelist who preaches that wealth and worship cannot be separated. He believes that a good Christian must make money to give to the Lord.

You may not agree with him on the relationship between worship and money, but it is hard to ignore his advice on how to create wealth and change the world.

During his three-day visit to Uganda, hundreds of people were stunned by his personal story of transformation from poverty to wealth, which made his advice more believable.

Born in one of the poorest suburbs in the Bahamas, Munroe rose to prominence as a preacher, motivational speaker, consultant and leadership mentor with a multi-million business empire.

“I was born poor, sleeping on the  floor with cockroaches and rats. Today, I own my own jet. Everything I have is paid for. I am debt free; I open new businesses every year and mentor many people,” he said during the Business Forum organised by the Uganda Jubilee Network at Serena Hotel last Wednesday.

In his lecture titled: ‘Business Leadership in the 21st Century’, Munroe said setting principles is the fi rst step towards achieving  success for any budding entrepreneur. “I will never be poor again because I have learnt the principles of business,” he asserts.

From his experience, principles matter even more than technical know-how. “I can say without a doubt that what I have accomplished is based on principles passed on to me by my parents. You should never build your life on facts or techniques because these often become obsolete,” he cautions.

According to Munroe, the success of any business today will depend on its response to changes brought about by globalisation, communication, cultural diversity, technology and partnerships.

“For you to survive today, you must accept the reality of partnerships. If someone emerges as my competition today, I am not supposed to kill them, but marry them,” he states.

“Do not curse a crisis; use it. Every business is a solution to a crisis. Develop the capacity to solve a problem and you will become a  successful entrepreneur,” he says.

On unemployment, Munroe strongly discourages the reliance on Government for jobs, describing it as ‘lazy thinking.’ “There is no such thing as unemployment in the world. What you call unemployment is what I call lazy thinking,” he says.

“The work of government is not to create jobs, but to create an environment for people to develop their own work,” he asserts.

Munroe discourages employed  professionals against relying solely on their jobs for income, urging them to instead create wealth using their unique talents. He also challenges aspiring entrepreneurs to develop and refi ne their expertise in a talent, idea, service or body of knowledge.

“When you refine your gift in an area, you become valuable; people seek you out and pay you,” he says. But Munroe also places emphasis  on social stability and political  transformation as one of the keys to successful business.

“If Uganda wants to grow as a strong and sustainable economy, you must make sure there is political stability and social peace at all costs,” he says. He notes that even the leastendowed individuals, businesses or nations can get out of adversity by identifying and exploiting their unique advantage.

He explains that his country, the Bahamas, with no known mineral reserves, still attracts over six million tourists per year, making it one of the best tourist destinations in the world.

“We have no gold, copper, uranium. All we have is water and sand.  Our greatest available resource is our intellectual ability,” he boasts.

According to Munroe, a globalised market affects businesses in terms of competition and speed. He, however, argues that this also presents opportunities for a wider market and lower tariffs. On managing crisis, Munroe advises businesses to consider every challenge as an opportunity for innovation.

In a rather candid tone, Munroe emphasises that the Church and wealth creation should not be separated. “Poor people cannot tithe. Build the people and they will build the ministry,” he states, adding that clerics must build ‘a church of business people and lead by example.’

10 MUNROE’S PRINCIPLES TO SUCCESS
 

• Understand crisis and use it to solve a problem. Every business is a response to a problem.
• Initiate something; do not wait for things to be done.
• Identify and refine your talent, skill, idea, service or knowledge to create wealth.
• Whatever makes you angry, you must solve it.
• Poverty is not the lack of money, but the lack of ideas.
• God does not give cash, but ideas on how to create wealth.
• Be in control of your mind, thoughts, perception and mentality to respond to change.
• Be keen and take advantage of changes brought about by technology and globalisation.
• Leave your legacy, but in the people you train, not in products or buildings.
• Every human being was born with a treasure. Your greatest secret to success lies in discovering your treasure

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