Hobby Lobby: Keeping firm in your Faith even in your Business.
Back in 2014, In response to the Affordable Care Act contraception mandate, which stated that businesses needed to provide health insurance that covered various contraceptives, Hobby Lobby, decided to make a stand for their beliefs. They decided to challenge the law’s standards, which contrasted with their religious beliefs, as Christians. However, the owners of Hobby Lobby knew that there were significant risks involved. In addition to the monetary cost of pursuing the case, they would be mocked and ridiculed by many people, and if they lost, there would have been even more problems. Fortunately, with the Religious Freedom Restoration Act on hand, they were able to argue that the mandate was violating their religious freedoms, and achieve a 5-4 vote in the U.S Supreme Court. This was a very decisive court case which protects Christian businesses from being forced into wickedness. Because of the commitment of the owners of Hobby Lobby to their faith, many Christians were able to run their business without needing to worry about being forced to support abortions in this way. Through this, Hobby Lobby shows us that just because you run a business “IN the world”, doesn’t mean that you can’t avoid becoming “OF the world”. Running a Christian business among so many non-Christians can be difficult, and their will be sacrifices. Nonetheless, we are called to be set apart and to not follow the culture, if it contradicts scripture, no matter what the consequences might be. It is stories like these that should inspire us, as fellow Christians entering the world, to maintain our faith in what is right, especially those seeking to open their own businesses. From their example we can learn what it really means to run a Christian company, specifically, being set apart as an example to Christians and non-Christians alike, and trusting that God will provide for you when you obey his word.
Hobby Lobby is such a cool example of a business that is not inherently a “Christian business”, as it is just a regular craft store, and yet they choose to publicly be known as a Christian business nonetheless. We know this can be a risky endeavor, and yet they exemplified how being bold like this pays off, and has earned them the respect from so many. I love how you said the thing about “in the world” versus “of the world”; that is a very important distinction, and i love how this company works so hard to maintain these values. Great work on this post!
This is a very moving post, and does a great job of representing the situation with Hobby Lobby. This is a great example as you mentioned of being in the world but not of it, showing that as Christians we can run a business without conforming to what the world says a business needs to be. I also like that you mentioned how going against what the law says is usually considered against Christian beliefs, but how there can be exceptions when the law violates our faith.