Ryan Marks
I was on www.familyeconomics.com this last month and found a link to Elance. After looking into it, I found out that this is a huge freelancing hub
which has connected freelancers with over a billion dollars of work. I signed
up for free (my profile) and began giving some proposals on
ghostwriting, editing, and publishing/formatting Kindle and Createspace books
for people.
Now, what I like
about Elance is twofold. #1 it is a way that
families can apply Biblical economics. What I mean by that is the root word for
economy means family economy or household
economy. When you look in the Bible families typically worked together.
Isaac worked for Abraham, Joseph and his brothers for Jacob, David for Jesse, Jesus
for Joseph, etc… The growing family economics conferences are encouraging people to get back
to this model. Especially since #2 businesses are increasingly decentralizing
and Obamacare mandates that charge some $20,000 in penalties to large
businesses per employee, yet exempt small businesses with fewer than 50
employees. This is mostly due to insurance under Obamacare, but those who
implement Biblical medical sharing like Samaritan Ministries are exempted from the mandates.
My heart is for
helping Americans seek the Lord. The problems we are facing in this nation are
huge. The national debt that was about $5,000 per tax payer in the early 2000s
is now upwards of $200,000. Welfare is growing. Persecution of those who stand
for their faith is increasing. But God is working! God has kept homeschooling legal even though homeschoolers only make up about 1% of the
population. God has created an exemption
for those who get back to following His Word though medical sharing ministries.
God has also created a blessing in taxation and regulation for those who build
family enterprises and economies. For a complete explanation of a vision of
getting back to seeking the Lord in all areas of life see Hope For When the Storm Hits.
I especially am
burdened for young men (especially future pastors) who will be seeking to
provide for their families and serve God in the future. I encourage all of them
to start a business and begin developing multiple streams of income as Ecclesiastes teaches. I am not
proclaiming a prosperity teaching nor am I saying that is a sin to work for a
corporation. But a return to God’s Word and wise preparation for what is coming
in this country is a must. Elance is just one way to get back to that.
Be a freelancer or independent contractor for others as decentralization is
happening. Build other streams of income too. Reduce your spending by looking
for deals, eliminating areas of monetary waste, and turn what you already have
into more.
Here are a few ways
you could start. Get cash back on the things you
already buy with Ebates. Earn gift cards by just using Bing
as your search engine with Bing Rewards. Sell your junk on Ebay and Amazon—I’ve sold close to three hundred
items that way in a couple of years, it is possible and there is a market out
there that is thriving. Work part time. If you’re gonna go to college,
seriously consider doing some distance learning and testing out for some of
your degree—it literally saved me $10,000s of dollars—with CollegePlus (http:// www.collegeplus.org/tf/884337) and their partnering colleges and
universities when I earned my BA in Communications in about 2 years (no summers
off though J). Recycle your metals, electronics, plastics, paper and
cardboard for cash (a young man could easily start a business by collecting
other’s recyclables on a weekly or biweekly basis). I hope I’ve whetted your
appetite with the vision, a vision of getting back to family economies, decentralization and serving God. These things tend to produce
desirable lasting results that programs and large corporations just continue to
fail in like molding character, humility, creative resourcefulness, close
relationships, and focus on Almighty God.
Now I want to be very
clear, I am not advocating quitting a paying job prematurely because you want
to have a family economy/your own business. Take time to transition, save some
funds, and get a few income streams going. I know several who are trying to do
this now because they one day want to be doing something other than what they
are currently working in. But it all starts by seeking the Lord.
--This article contains several hyperlinks which provide
referral fees to the author if individuals sign up (we’re just being
transparent that this is one of our income streams)
