In most cases there was no connection. These people were "Christian businessmen" in the same unrelated way they might also be guitarists or baseball card collectors who happen to run businesses.
But I did get a few interesting replies (mostly from one couple) All have application to running a congregation.
- Make time and place to restfully enjoy being in alignment with God's plans. From an eternal perspective our primary job description is "worshipper". God values and rewards this. God never said he values or rewards maximizing efficiency.
- When pushed, do not always pushing back. Sometimes submit and forgive.
- Have rooms with purposes used by workers with a generic role. (When possible avoid having generic rooms used by workers with special, organized, or bureaucratic roles.)
- Make sure a room (or person) is for prophecy, and another for intercession. The former helps the leadership listen in prayer to adjust the business's mission (goals) as needed. The latter listens and agrees in prayer to help the business's vision (strategies) be realized and adjusted.
- Do not separate prayer and news, or prayer and announcements.
- Ask for reports of joys and challenges.
- The primary role of "elders" is teaching. So the best person at a role should not be in charge of doing that job. Let the second-best person at the role do the job so the person who is best at it has time to train others.
- You are faithfully stewarding money if you (a) earn more than you spend, (b) avoid waste and know the difference between needs and wants, and (c) use money in a way that honors the person who gave it to you (whether a person or God). Aside from these principles avoid worrying about money; if you say it is all God's money then let him worry about it.
