Mart Green

Mart Green. In 1970 my father David Green borrowed $600 to buy a chopper and some wood to make frames. As a 9 year-old I started working so I could buy baseball cards. I can still remember I got paid 9 cents per frame to glue them together. Two years later my dad opened a 300 square foot arts and crafts store. Since then our family has not stopped opening Hobby Lobby stores.

God's love is the most generous thing that I have ever received. For God to send his Son to die for my sins is a gift that I can never repay. Not only did He send His son, but He allowed Him to stay on that cross when he could have stopped it at any time. As a father I cannot imagine how much this hurt God to watch His son be crucified. The Bible says, "For God so loved the world that he gave..." and through God's generous love I can have a personal relationship with Jesus forever.

Giving was the reason that my dad opened his own retail store. He was a preachers kid and all 5 of his siblings were either preachers or married to preachers at some point. But my dad knew he did not have the preaching gift. Instead he watched his mother be a "widow's mite" sacrificial giver and that sacrifice made such an impact on him that he wanted to build a business that could eventually give away 50% of it's profits. Now the most joyful thing our family does together is give together. We work hard and then come together to give away the profits to ministries that are making an impact on souls for eternity.

As a 16 year-old I was frustrated that my dad would not buy me a car when I knew he could afford to do so. Now as I look back, I realized that my dad was teaching me stewardship. Looking back I can remember those who bought their cars knew the hours of work it took to buy that car and took care of it in a whole different way.

Jesus tells us in Matthew 6:21, "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."  We can help lead our hearts to truly treasure Jesus by giving our money to what Jesus cares about. Generosity is a gateway to intimacy with God. It is because we believe that God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit are the ultimate treasure that we want to live a generous life. That's why our family mission statement is "Love God Intimately, Live Extravagant Generosity".

One of the most wonderful developments of my life over the past 20 years has been learning the joy of giving through our business and as a family. Had we started it when I was 25 I could have enjoyed that blessing another 10 years!

It was Feb. 7th, 1998 on a trip to Guatemala that I witnessed a man named Gaspar, whom God would use to change my life. Gaspar had been waiting and working for 40 years to see God's word translated into his language of Eastern Jacaltec. And finally, at a Bible dedication ceremony I watched as Gaspar was handed his very own copy of the Bible. He openly wept. His weeping over his Bible, convicted me. I had over 40 Bibles in my home and yet they all sat idle most of the time. So on Feb. 8th, 1998 at 2:00am in the morning, I made a vow to the Lord that I would get up first thing each morning and read His Word. Over 19 years later, I have not missed a morning and it is the most important time of my day.

When our family looks for organizations that we partner with, along with a clear mission that includes a Biblical worldview, we believe that leadership is a vital key. Personally, I am looking for leaders who have GHI (G – Generosity, H – Humility and I – Integrity). I believe these three character traits are the antidotes to the three “tricks” Satan offers, which are “Lust of the Eyes, Pride of Life and Lust of the Flesh” (1 John 2:16). If you find someone with GHI they are on their way to conquering the tricks of the devil and doing great things for the glory of God.

The Green Family mission statement is to “Love God Intimately, Live Extravagant Generosity”. My passion is “This Book is Alive” and through my work with Every Tribe Every Nation and the illumiNations initiative, we are bringing Gospel Patrons and Bible Translation ministries together to Eradicate Bible Poverty.

If I had to choose three words to be remembered by, they would be: Family, Bible, Generosity