One of the common assumptions in today’s culture is that human beings can live bifurcated lives. That is, a person can be a great worker, but yet live a private life of sin. It is believed that a person can compartmentalize life so that dysfunctionality in private life does not impair work.

This belief is inconsistent with the testimony of Scripture; note for example, the teaching by the apostle Paul regarding the qualifications for church leadership. He said that a person’s ability to manage his family is a key qualification for managing communities of Christians (aka, local churches). In other words, whatever one does at home will be a harbinger of what one will do in other contexts.

If healthy family leadership is a predicate to church leadership, perhaps it is a predicate to business leadership and even political leadership as well.

Arguably, the basic building block of any society is the family. This implies that healthy families produce healthy societies. Indeed God’s design for His universe seems to be that the skill and ability to lead a family wisely correlate to the skill and ability needed to lead wisely in the church, workplace, and public policy.

Wise leaders recognize that people are integrated beings—reality is not bifurcated. Therefore whatever a person does in one area of life, that person does in every area of life. Wise leaders look for ways to help people live well in their families and recognize that personal sin patterns will manifest in all areas of life.

One prominent business leader understands that people are integrated beings. Based on this belief, he will summarily fire anyone who commits adultery. His reasoning is simple: if you will betray your wife, you will betray the company.

Another well-known company recognizes that healthy workers must have healthy personal and family lives. To encourage this, the company built a private retreat to host marriage and family enrichment training for both their workers and franchisees. In one recent year, the company reported investing more than one million dollars in family enrichment events.

If the God of the Bible created the universe, then His principles are the only ones that will lead to lasting success. Therefore, if God says that wise family management is the key to management in other areas, should we think differently?

Here is your business tip. Create an organizational culture that faithfully supports and invests in the families of workers and associates. Be diligent to hire workers with biblically healthy families or those whom you can train to practice a biblical view of family. Recognize that any worker who does not personally practice biblical values and principles in his or her family life will be unable to work at full potential and therefore, in some way, will be a detriment to the organization. Some examples of common practices today that are not aligned with a biblical worldview of family are adultery, abortion, homosexuality, and cohabitation. Also, be very careful with divorced people. As a maxim, divorce is inconsistent with a biblical worldview except for specific situations outlined in Scripture.