Christian Bible Colleges

Christian Leadership in Business is a rarity these days. Graduates of Christian Colleges & Bible Colleges seem content to humbly, and quietly put their faith in the background in their secular careers.

However there are some exceptions. Some amazing exceptions of exemplary leadership in business from outstanding Christian Business Leaders who have created a legacy for themselves and the gospel and how it can be lived out in the business world.

We could all learn a few things from these 7 inspirational Christian Business Leaders.

1. Truett Cathy

Truett Cathy is one of the most inspirational business leaders. Hes the founder of Chick-Fil-A.
Above and beyond everything his decision to close his restaurants on Sunday is a huge display of faith, and a testament to his beliefs.

It’s also an amazing witness…

“Truett Cathy is a member of the First Baptist Church in Jonesboro, Georgia, and also has taught Sunday School there for over 50 years. He has testified that the Bible is his guide-book for life.As an extension of his convictions, all of the company’s locations, whether company-owned or franchised, are closed on Sundays — a rare policy within the food-service industry — to allow its employees to attend church and spend time with their families. This is a policy that began when Cathy was working 6 days a week, multiple shifts. He decided to close on Sundays to relax and recharge,as well as honor God. The policy remains intact today as the restaurants are closed on Sunday.

He is also a philanthropist, having given to numerous charitable causes, many with evangelical ties. Cathy is closely involved with the sponsorship of the college football bowl game now known as the Chick-fil-A Bowl, but from 1997-2005 known as the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl, and prior to that simply as the Peach Bowl. On October 28, 2006, Cathy received the last vehicle off the assembly line of the automaker Ford’s Atlanta plant, in recognition of a 60-year relationship between Cathy and the Ford plant. The plant, located near Cathy’s original Dwarf Grill (now Dwarf House), opened its doors one year after the restaurant opened, and Truett regularly served during all three shifts at the plant. Cathy has extensively donated to Berry College in Rome, Georgia, building the WinShape program there and awarding numerous scholarships each year.”

2. Zig Ziglar

Zig Ziglar makes this list because he influenced me a lot when I was younger. Alienated by Christianity, and yet caught somewhere between belief systems I found his message comforting and inspiring. He’s always been consistent with his message and his life.

His life story has been a huge influence on so many business leaders all around the world and his message has remained the same pretty much since day one.

Work hard. Trust in God. And give thanks in all things.

A simple message that more business leaders should embrace.

“Zig Ziglar was born in Coffee County, Alabama, to parents John Silas Ziglar and Viola Ziglar. He was the tenth of 12 children. In 1931, when Ziglar was five years old, his father took a management position at a Mississippi farm, and his family moved to Yazoo City, Mississippi, where he spent most of his early childhood.

In 1932, his father died of a stroke, and his younger sister died two days later.
Ziglar served in the Navy during World War II (circa 1943 to 1945). He was in the Navy V-12 Navy College Training Program, attending the University of South Carolina.

In 1944 he met his wife, Jean, in Jackson, Mississippi; he was 17 and she was 16. They married in late 1946.Ziglar later worked as a salesman in a succession of companies. In 1968 he became a vice president and training director for the Automotive Performance company, moving to Dallas, Texas.
In 1970, Ziglar went into the business of motivational speaking full-time, with an emphasis on Christian values. Until then, he had called himself by his given name, Hilary, but now started using his nickname, Zig, instead. As of 2010, Ziglar still travels around taking part in motivational seminars, despite a fall down a flight of stairs in 2007 that left him with short-term memory problems.”

3. Joni Erickson Tada

I remember reading Joni Erickson Tada’s book as a child. I was shocked. She managed to overcome everything in spite of being paralyzed she kept her faith. And went on to be a successful inspirational speaker, business owner, and leader in her community.

Truly someone who should inspire any business owner to overcome any obstacle with faith no matter what happens in life.

“As a teenager,Joni Erickson Tada enjoyed riding horses, hiking, tennis, and swimming. On July 30, 1967, she dove into Chesapeake Bay after misjudging the shallowness of the water. She suffered a fracture between the fourth and fifth cervical levels and became a quadriplegic, paralyzed from the shoulders down.

During her two years of rehabilitation, according to her autobiography, she experienced anger, depression, suicidal thoughts, and religious doubts. However, Tada learned to paint with a brush between her teeth, and began selling her artwork. To date, she has written over forty books, recorded several musical albums, starred in an autobiographical movie of her life, and is an advocate for disabled people.”

4. Lip-bu Tan

Lip-bu Tan essentially got venture capital off the ground in Asia. But more importantly he has personally helped make an impact in the lives of thousands of children in Asia, and here in the United States.

He’s never once used his wealth in ways that weren’t beneficial. He’s been blessed and he has used that blessing to bring great joy to other people’s lives. Truly this is example of what more Christian Business Leaders lives should look like. And how we should manage our time, and finances.

“Lip-bu Tan like many successful venture capitalists, Lip-Bu Tan is an immigrant— born in Malaysia, the youngest of five children, son of a schoolteacher mom and newspaper editor dad, raised with a very strong emphasis on education. To this day, the joke in the family is that even with a master’s in nuclear engineering from MIT at the age of 19, Li-Bu is the failure… or at least underachiever in the family. All his siblings have PhD’s including a Rhodes Scholar brother who is a leading heart specialist in Britain and a sister who teaches at Harvard and is fluent in 15 languages.

Lip-Bu Tan is personally involved in 16 community organizations, including the International Justice Mission, a Christian organization which rescues victims overseas, many of them children, from prostitution, bonded slavery and illegal detention. Lip-Bu describes these victims has having no one to turn to, no means of escape. But through the International Justice Mission, 7000 children have been rescued.

He is also a major donor of Harbor House Ministries, which provides opportunities for low-income people in Oakland through programs for after-school, youth leadership, job skills, emergency food and clothing and education. While Lip-Bu enjoys taking his two sons on recreational outings like skiing and baseball games, he’s also been known to take his children to Harbor House to expose them to an understanding of a less fortunate world and to plant in them the seeds of community involvement.”

5. Garry Tan

Christians are a rarity in Silicon Valley where work becomes priority over anything else. Garry is an exception. He is a very private person who lives his faith out in his life through a hard work ethic, and generosity in his community. His career path in venture capital also is something that shows he’s not just about accumulating wealth but about giving it back to the community that helped him get where he is today.

“Garry Tan is a Co-Founder of Posterous, Inc. Mr. Tan is a Venture Partner at Y Combinator. Mr. Tan helped create the financial analysis platform at Palantir Technologies and served as a Program Manager at Microsoft for Windows Mobile. He serves as a Member of the Advisory Board of Comprehend Systems, Inc. He is an Interaction Designer and a Software Engineer. Mr. Tan graduated from Stanford in Computer Systems Engineering in 2003. Garry is one of the most influential Christians in Silicon Valley.”

6. John Eldredge
John Eldredge is an author, a counselor, and teacher. He is also part of the leadership of Ransomed Heart, a ministry devoted to helping people discover the heart of God, recover their own heart in his love, and learn to live in his Kingdom. John grew up in the suburbs of Los Angeles (which he hated), and spent his boyhood summers on his grandfather’s cattle ranch in eastern Oregon (which he loved). John met his wife Stasi in high school (in drama class). But their romance did not begin until they each came to faith in Christ, after high school. John earned his undergraduate degree in Theater at Cal Poly, and directed a theater company in Los Angeles for several years before moving to Colorado with Focus on the Family, where he taught at the Focus on the Family Institute. John’s books have inspired so many business leaders Christian and secular which is why he’s earned his spot on this list.

7. Dave Thomas
R. David “Dave” Thomas was an American fast-food tycoon and philanthropist. Thomas was the founder and chief executive officer of Wendy’s, a fast-food restaurant chain specializing in hamburgers. He is also known for appearing in more than 800 commercial advertisements for the chain from 1989 to 2002, more than any other company founder in television history.