So I told you a few weeks ago that I felt God leading me to start a business, Bezi's Creations. Crazy, right? The goal is to raise money for our adoption and things are coming together. I can see the ball start to move. Word is getting out and I've landed several encouraging orders. Now, I'm a CPA by trade and I love the accounting of small businesses (weird, I know) so I was determined to do the business side right. At least until I started investigating...sales tax at 9%, business licenses, fees for a business checking account, and on and on. I'm just a little guy and these start up expenses were really discouraging. Then I started making excuses..."If I'm discreet, I'm not likely to get a sales tax audit. My proceeds are going toward a great cause. Surely I can get away without having a business license." I mean, the City of Mobile business license is $130 alone. That's a huge investment at this level. Ok, so as I'm writing this out it's becoming obvious how embarrassing this is to admit. Just know that I'm being transparent here.
Anyway, I was taking Haley to gymnastics a few weeks ago and noticed a sign on a local bank advertising "Free Business Checking." Ok, that sounds promising, I thought. Considering every other bank I looked at had some kind of monthly fee tied to it, just for the privilege of having a business account open. I opted to pursue this one. Besides I couldn't justify using a "personal" checking account for my business...felt deceitful. (Funny to be worried about that after my previous confessions.) So I went to open my free account the next week while Haley was in gymnastics, only to have the process halted with the question, "Do you have a business license?" Ugh. They wouldn't open the account without a business license, so I started stewing over it. As I drove back home I was truly on the fence. I called my mom and Toby desperate for one of them to push me one way or the other. On the one hand, I really felt like I should do this right, but on my frugal hand $130 just seemed like a huge investment. Of course, neither my mom nor Toby answered their phones. I was left to take my question to Jesus. Funny, that's what I should have done in the first place, but I had already decided that I didn't like the answer I knew He'd give me. All afternoon I'd been hearing "do it right, do it right" in my spirit. It was like a broken record and I was running from it. When faced with nobody else to talk to about it, and started whining, "But God, after the business stuff and the start up product it will be like $500 to even get it off the ground!!! That's $500 we could put straight toward the adoption!" Immediately, as clear as if Jesus were sitting in my passenger seat I heard, "Do you trust me to multiply that?" Long sigh....Ok, I guess I will. I steered my car toward City Hall.
About this time, my mom called me back. She's also a CPA and has a niche in helping small businesses. Her words were further confirmation, "Yeah, you probably should do it right. It's hard, but this is why so many small businesses don't make it. There's just so much investment on the front end." I made it to downtown and made about two or three laps around before finding a parking spot. I had made up my mind, I was going to do this RIGHT all the way around. As I was circling downtown a church tour bus pulled out in front of me. On it's rear in huge writing was further confirmation, "'But all things must be done properly and in an orderly manner.' 1 Corinthians 14:40" Ha! I couldn't help but laugh. Ok, God. I get it. I'm going to do it right. I later looked up that verse in another translation where "properly" was translated as "honestly"...figures.
So I load up Jake in the stroller and arm myself with snacks, the iPod, and entertainment for Haley and head into the government building. As we walked inside Toby returned my call. He had run an errand during his lunch break and had a few minutes to spare in the car on the way back to work. Having not been privy to my previous hour's thoughts, he launched into a list of pros and cons and questions regarding the business checking account and the business license. I couldn't get a word in, so I listened as the kids and I circled the giant lobby. Suddenly, Toby stopped mid-sentence. "Carey, this bus just pulled out in front of me! You're not going to believe what it says on the back! 'But all things must be done properly and in an orderly manner.' 1 Corinthians 14:40". I was floored!!! "Oh, my Jesus! Toby, I just saw that same bus, not 15 minutes ago!!" I don't know how much more BILLBOARD you can get in instructions from God.
The scripture I've been soaking in lately is, "Your ears will hear a word behind you, 'This is the way, walk in it.' whenever you turn to the right or to the left." Isaiah 30:21. I don't think I can deny that in this case, I've been given my marching orders. So, I paid my $130 for my city business license, finished opening my checking account, obtained my county license and paid my first round of sales tax. All that's left is state sales tax and I'm working on that. I WILL do this right and will trust His leading. How can I dare ask Him to bless my time and my efforts if I'm going to cheat on step 1 of starting a business? Ridiculous!
Wouldn't you know that a week to the day when this snowball started I got a big order. An order for triplets! An order to more than recoup my business license expense. Ha! I will trust, I will walk and I will tell of His faithfulness!
I would love for you to stop by my FaceBook page and see what I have available. Also, if you'd be so kind as to pass the word along and share this page with your friends, that'd be great, too. Thanks for your help!
www.facebook.com/beziscreations
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