I struggle with an identity crisis all the time. Who am I as an entrepreneur? What’s my next move, and how will others see me when I make that move? I’m constantly second-guessing my moves…in pursuit of an identity that pleases the market. We all do this. It’s in our nature. We seek to identify with people, groups, communities, brands, sports teams, etc. It gives us a sense of belonging. Since my gifting is to help people and companies find their identity, I’ve dedicated a lot of my time in thought and prayer to the subject. What I know from God is that there are two identities. 1) Our first identity that never changes is in Christ. When we accept Christ, we put on our new selves. This identity never changes. We are children of God. From this comes our primary purpose which is to spread the good news and help others receive their identity. 2) Now that we know that identity, God wants to reveal to us our second identity and second purpose. This is the one I’m heavily involved in because it has to do with connecting God’s purpose with your entrepreneurial venture. You’re constantly strengthening your primary purpose in Christ, but it never changes to anything else. Your secondary purpose is constantly changing due to your first purpose constantly growing. This means that business identity is something that needs to be constantly reevaluated and changed due to purpose changing. Is it time for your evaluation? #MarketingMyServices #DifferentiatingMyself

Some of us entrepreneurs are limiting our commitment. I love physically training at a CrossFit gym. It’s a high-intensity fitness program incorporating elements from several sports and types of exercise. It also has a mental component: commitment. See, once the clock starts, you can’t stop. It’s 20-30 minutes of non-stop action. Once the class begins, there’s no turning back! I’ve learned that developing my skill of “COMMITMENT” is paramount to my growth as a person and as an entrepreneur. The Bible has a lot of references for us as Christians when it comes to commitment to various aspects of our lives. We see a commitment to our health, our church, our employees, our neighbors, our families, and in all things we say and do (Ephesians 6:5; Hebrews 10:25; 1 Corinthians 6:19, 31). And of course, we know that the chief commissioner in our lives is God Himself (Matthew 22:37-38). The same commitment I learn in CrossFit, and we learn by committing to God Himself is the same commitment we need to attain wealth, affluence, and becoming rich. Yet, some of us entrepreneurs are limiting our commitment. We define the amount we’re willing to work or the things we’re eager to do, to be committed to success. We need to improve our commitment to our financial success before seeing any economic change in our bank accounts. The Bible says: Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established.(Proverbs 16:3) As a Godpreneur, you have committed to putting God first in your businesses. That commitment then gives us the discipline we need to invest in other areas of our lives, and God will establish those plans! Wealthy business owners have one mindset – – affluence. They have a “burn the ship” commitment to prosperity. There is no going in the other direction. There is no stopping. There’s only one way – – FORWARD! There’s a big difference between wanting to follow God, and committing to following God, right? Committed Christians do whatever it takes to follow the Lord, even to the point of letting go of friends and family that aren’t equally yoked. (Luke 14:25-27) Similarly, you must be committed to wealth by doing whatever it takes. You must be willing to bet your life on becoming prosperous. You have to be committed to working 18 hour days for the foreseeable future and accepting that you’ll be giving up some freedoms in the meantime. And similarly to how we must continue to work on our personal spiritual growth by going to Church, we must work on our own financial growth by attending seminars and reading books about investing and managing money. If you haven’t attended a Dave Ramsey “Financial Peace University” seminar, you need to do so! Every Christian business owner needs to visit one. You need to familiarize yourself with money and wealth-building strategies, and Dave Ramsey shows you how to do it, biblically. The better you know the world of money, and especially what God has to say about it, the more money you will be able to earn. Of course, we Godpreneurs know about commitment. We’ve established businesses and are entering into lucrative industries, I’d hope. Remember that God’s favor is over you (the world calls it luck), and this will always be the “X factor” on your side! And if you haven’t launched your business yet, make a plan that will begin to generate profits, and go after it! I’ve created three Steps to Launching a God-Centered Business so you can do it quickly…like NOW! If you’re not sure what industry will work best for you, start by working at any trade you’re interested in. Want to open a restaurant? Commit to working for a catering company or a franchise restaurant so you can learn from entrepreneurs who have already built something. Imagine if all of us Godpreneurs (and future business owners) all agree with ourselves to become a millionaire (or more) and fully commit ourselves to pursue the business visions God has given us. Let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. (Galatians 6:9) Godpreneur Rule: Give it all to the Lord. A Godpreneur’s commitment and diligence are richly supplied. #MakeMoreMoney

When you’re putting your business idea together, there’s an amazing excitement that happens at the beginning. You tell a couple of friends, and the next thing you know you’re starting a business with a couple of your buddies….maybe even your significant other. What did you dream that partnership would look like? What kind of people would you be to each other? Kind and gentle? Firm and fanatical? Dedicated and devoted? Committed and costs conscious? What sort of partnership workload? 50/50 all the way? Now….think about the relationship with your partners today… When our realities don’t live up to our expectations, problems begin to arise. And if you’re reading this after you made that agreement, you know exactly what I’m talking about. Business partnerships are like a marriage. No, not in the spiritual aspect – well, I won’t get into that in this blog post. But I mean that some days are better and others are worse, some days you’re richer and some days poorer, and sometimes the business is healthy and sometimes it's sick. The business and the partnership will always contain these things. No matter what circumstances, choices, shortcomings, or surprises may have landed us in the less-than-dreamy present business, we can’t look to the past to make it better. We can only commit to a better future starting now — or as married people would say “from this day forward.” If having the business partnership of your dreams were easy, you’d already have it, right? If you don’t have the strength, you’ll have to learn to rely on Christ’s strength, which is always enough. And even if you’re in a place where you feel like you’re all out of love for your business partners — you can rely on His love that never runs out. Coming to know God midway through my partnership in The Creative Complex helped me keep the organization together for a longer time period. It helped me realize this partnership was like a marriage, and I needed to be unselfish and fight for the unity and common vision of the future. I pray the same for your partnerships. If you have any questions on succeeding in business partnerships, comment or message me. #BusinessPartnerships

When God created us, entrepreneurs, He put a dream in our hearts. Most of us start our businesses off with that dream. We have some kind of dream, plan, or project that we want to do with our business life, our vision. I’ve read comments and talked to hundreds of Godpreneurs over the years, and I discovered while everybody tends to start early in business with a vision, as days and months and years go by, people give up on the dream before it’s accomplished. Most people give up on their business vision and goals because it doesn’t happen fast enough. Some of you have had your dream battered or bruised. Some of you have had your dream broken, and out of discouragement and disappointment, you have buried your entrepreneurial dreams. You’ve given up. But God doesn't want you to do that. The Bible says For still the vision awaits its appointed time; it hastens to the end—it will not lie. If it seems slow, wait for it; it will surely come; it will not delay. (Habakkuk 2:3 ESV) If God gave you that dream for your business life, it's going to happen in His timetable, not in yours. He has a will for your business life from the beginning to the end. He knows your past; He knows why you’re where you are, and he is willing to help still. He is going to pick you up right where you are, and He’ll give your company a whole new beginning. That’s what grace in business is all about! Are there second chances in business? We have a second, a third, a fourth, a fifth… I mean, praise God that we can keep on launching and relaunching! He doesn’t just cut us off because we missed it somewhere. God has a plan for your business life. That plan is fantastic, it’s perfect, and it’s perfectly suited for you! Whoever you are, wherever you are, whatever is going on in your bank account, His business plan is the best. It brings him glory and honor and is fulfilling to you and me. Now get up and go! #WheretoStartFirst #GainConfidence

It’s hard to look back over my first thirty years and find anyone teaching me solid, Biblical lessons about money. My dad did encourage me to save for a rainy day but never enforced it through consequences. We were middle-class, but constantly afraid of running out. We moved a lot; he was frequently between jobs - good-paying, executive-level ones. We were not a Christian household. Public schools taught me nothing, in the days when I would have paid attention. I took an economics class my senior year in high school … mostly because I had to. I was far too disinterested by that time and did not get along with the teacher. My first two decades in the workforce were a hodgepodge. I could interview well, and make good first impressions. After a while, however, my true colors of pride, selfishness, greed and laziness would show. In my early twenties, I hopped from one job to another. I needed a job from which I could neither get fired, nor easily resign - so I joined the US military. They had briefings and classes you could take for financial readiness. But by then, the best things they could tell me were things I already knew - “Don’t spend more than you earn.” My integration into the Kingdom of God also proved financially … mediocre. Though my wife and I married debt-free (and remain so to this day), and though we are two-time graduates of Financial Peace University … I still couldn’t manage to raise my personal income above the federal poverty level. The clock kept ticking, until shortly after reaching the age of 38, I got fired from my job selling insurance in Olympia, Washington, where we live. I made the decision - it was “now or never” to attempt something I’d always feared - becoming an entrepreneur. I went at it … and for the first 17 months, I didn’t earn anything. If it sounds painful … it was. I found myself, as late as December 2019, wondering the same things I wondered in the same end months of 2009 and 1999 … “How am I ever going to earn more than the bare minimum?” But by 2019, there was one key differential - I not only knew what Yeshua (Jesus) said about worldly wealth … I also knew what He meant. Why Money Matters to God Six years in the insurance business taught me a key lesson: Nobody wanted to talk about insurance. It forced me to learn to sell a different product - myself. I learned, experientially, that the simplest way to get someone to “buy into” doing business with me was to be generous up front. To give, without any thought of return. In my book, Influencer Networking Secrets, I call this “Be A Magnet, Not a Pusher.” It didn’t occur to me, because of Christianity’s awkward, mixed attitudes toward wealth, that Yeshua could possibly want His disciples to be wealthy. But when I looked closer, I found Him saying something that dovetailed so deeply with how I’d learned to do business, that I could no longer accept the church’s “monetary neutrality.” “I tell you,” He said in Luke 16:9, “use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.” Now why would a Great King who abhors wealth tell His subjects to busy themselves acquiring and using it, for the strict purpose of ensuring they’re welcomed into His eternal rest? Why, if He prefers His people to live in poverty and squalor, would He give such a command? Why not say, “I tell you, avoid worldly wealth at all costs. Stayest thou broke, that thou mayest feel pathetic and needy all thy days ... and then enter, exhausted and embittered, seething with resentment at My indifference to your plight, into My eternal rest”? Seriously now … our Great King sits on His throne, roaring with mocking laughter at His subjects, reveling in their shame and dependency on handouts?! Would you take more pleasure in watching your son or daughter succeed and prosper? Or is it infinitely preferable that they struggle, and live in shame? But God also knows - we will idolize our wealth, prestige and position. So He warns us in Ezekiel 14:4-5, “Whenever any of My people comes to inquire of me, and sets up an idol in their heart, I Myself will answer, in keeping with their great idolatry.” Did you catch the underlined part? It means He will answer you the same way an idol would: blank stares, silent lips, lifeless, completely impotent. This is why stewardship has such enduring legacy in Christendom; we must be unattached to wealth, if we are to wield it for the Kingdom. That’s not a “switch” you just flip … it can take many seasons to mature beyond trusting in money. How To Walk Away From The Idol of Money Because I’d learned to give generously up front, in order to build relationships with clients and referral partners, I came to understand what Yeshua meant. He was speaking of the Giver’s Gain, that timeless principle He elucidates elsewhere in Mark 4:25, that “Generosity begets generosity, but stinginess impoverishes.” So, as I reached the exciting conclusion of my “desert season” as an entrepreneur … I never stopped giving. (Equally important - I never started asking for anything in return, either.) (“Giving” here should not be interpreted strictly in terms of donating or spending money. You can be flat broke and have no treasure; you still have time and talent.) Then one day, Aaron Walker approached me about becoming a writer for his team. “You’ve introduced me to so many amazing people,” he said. “You’ve never asked me for anything in return. You need to let me do something for you.” It was a seminal moment. Only a few weeks remained before I’d agreed to give up on business and look for a job. Instead, this relationship led to my first year in business as a ghostwriter, now becoming a content agency, mentoring three young hotshot freelancers. What’s more - I discovered my view of money had changed drastically. When I received my first client payment, my old impulse kicked in … “How can I spend it on something I want?” But I remembered all the sacrifices my family made to get here, and how unhappy I’d be if I went out and bought something for its own sake. I paid my tithe, my bills and then gave the rest to my wife and children. Soon, I began to pay back all the money I’d spent from our personal fortune, in spades. In time, I found myself bankrolling growth-oriented things for the younger disciples I mentor in church. I suppose it never occurred to me: when Yeshua told us, “Store up for yourselves treasure in heaven,” I didn’t realize you could sometimes make withdrawals. Just be sure to spend them on storing up more treasures in heaven.

One of the worst feelings as an entrepreneur is to wait, especially when it comes to waiting on God. You know what I'm talking about. Some of you right now feel like you’ve been patiently waiting on God. Thousands of visits to your site, but no sales. And you’ve prayed for that one big contract that will make the last ten months of faith-filled trust all worth it. You’re wondering what's taking God so long? Am I doing something wrong? Is He even listening? Have you forgotten me, Father? Do you not care that I'm sitting here daily, seeing my savings account dwindle every week? You might be praying over a business partnership that's turned toxic. Maybe you're praying over a depression that's haunted you over this pandemic. Perhaps you're praying for a spouse to accept your entrepreneurial lifestyle finally; you simply want their love and support through the journey. You might ask God for a client to finally pay their bill, or for the bank to release your funds, or for God to bring you the right employee, and yet the more you pray, the less you see. You’re probably praying on something in your business, having faith for something, believing in something, and yet you’ve got no word from God. You've got no sign that He heard you, no indication that He’s active, no sign that He cares. All you want is some answer, any answer. "Give a sign God, give a feeling, give me anything." And yet, for some of you Godpreneurs, there´s nothing at all. What is God doing while our businesses are waiting? Why does God feel so silent? I want to remind you that just because God feels silent in the marketplace doesn’t mean He’s absent; God is working while you’re waiting and wondering. Behind the scenes, the goodness of God, the power of God, the provision of God, and the grace of God are always at work. Do you think YOU hustle hard? God's operation is 24/7/365. The one who designed you to be an entrepreneur and called you to His purpose is working in all things to bring about good. God loves you. He’s a good father. God has good plans for you. He wants to bless you. God wants to prosper you and your business. Just because you don’t see it happening doesn’t mean he’s not doing anything. What is God doing while you’re waiting? God is always working on our businesses, even while we’re waiting. All of us entrepreneurs have a thing that we are waiting for; a vision to come to pass, problems to go away, or the motivation to finally write that book. And when it’s taking longer than we thought, it’s easy to get discouraged, to become impatient, and think, "when is ever going to happen to me? When is it my turn to finally be debt-free and not have to worry so much?" I know you don't want to hear this, but someone has to say it: sometimes it's not happening because you're not prepared for what God has prepared. You’re ready for what you have in mind, but if you could see what God has in mind, you would realize you couldn’t handle it. Right now, you need more time to grow in God-centered business wisdom. You have to develop God-first business systems and processes. You have to gain godly marketplace experience. The Bible says But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing. (James 1:4 KJV) I've found the patience to be my greatest virtue as an entrepreneur. When I realized what patience produced, I began to enjoy the ‘waiting period’ Patience is like the gym; you might not see anything changing, but something is happening. Patience is working on you. Your spiritual muscles are getting stronger. You’re growing as a Godpreneur that can handle the MORE that God has planned. Patience is building you and getting you prepared so you can sustain what God has to come. Don’t discount the waiting periods along your entrepreneurial journey. Don't get discouraged because it's not happening as fast as you would like. The longer it takes, the more God has to store for your business. When it’s your time, when He knows you’re ready, the business God created you to start is going to be much bigger than you’ve imagined! #WaitingOnGod #GainConfidence

Having a vision is not as easy as everyone thinks. It’s much easier to talk about the vision of that invention coming to life, of starting that restaurant or opening your own massage practice. Anyone can TALK about their visions of owning a business, but it certainly doesn’t make them a business owner…it doesn’t bring the vision to life just by words of their mouth. That’s why there are college and university professors teaching Entrepreneurship and Business management courses, but if you put them out on the streets to start their own business, just because they mastered the books, doesn’t mean they will succeed. There is only one way to make your vision come to life: WORK. Vision without WORK is a dead vision. In the Bible, James tells us that you can know that God wants you to help the poor (faith), but if you don’t give clothing (work) to that poor guy you just met, your faith is dead. He says: “What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works?” (James 2:14) I believe that if God has planted a vision of a business in your heart, and you’re not taking the steps (work) TODAY to bring that to reality, you’re missing out on the calling of your life. Get this clear: That feeling you have right now of frustration that you haven’t started your dream business is the gap between the vision and the work you start putting in today towards that vision. Close the gap, begin to act! What actions today are demonstrating that you have faith in the vision? In what ways can you bring your work actions more in line with the belief you have in God’s entrepreneurial plan for you? #BusinessBibleStudy #FindMyCalling The Business God Created You To Start Have you ever wondered why you received the talents and gifts you have been given? We, as entrepreneurs, were born to do. Heard of the Godpreneur Academy? Grow Your Business, God’s Way! Bible-Based Video Courses for Entrepreneurs Putting God First In their Businesses Click here to create a Free Account

I’ll admit that I live with a restlessness that cripples me with fear, anxiety, and frustration. You’re not going to believe me when I tell you what’s killing me… Here we go – what’s killing me is that I feel that at times I’m not living out my purpose. I feel like there’s so much more for me to do. I wrestle with so many books I want to write and courses I want to teach that it paralyzes me. From the outside looking in, I realize that I’m accomplishing a lot, pushing God’s agenda forward, and making progress on many fronts in my business. But I’m human, and different fears loom over me still. We all have fears that hold us back from reaching our full potential. We know a lot about our businesses, we even know our mission and many of us know our purpose. We know we’re supposed to be in the will of God at all times. But knowing it and actually feeling it fully are two different things. Many of us think that if we change our business model, switch industries, jump ship to another client or close up shop and open up a new business in a different place, we’ll FEEL that purpose we’re seeking. The truth is most of us have enough opportunity right in front of us. It’s not the place that needs to change. It’s our perspective that needs adjustment. The place where God has us both right now is significant, even if you’re struggling to find clients or dealing with a terrible employee. God’s placed us here and has a very important mission for us. The Bible says: "But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you". Matthew 6:33 Maybe you’re exactly where God wants you to be, but you’re still seeking to please men or yourself. When you’re seeking to please God, all fear goes away because you’re in His will. When you seek to please others or yourself, you open the door to doubt, frustration, fear of rejection, thoughts that your business doesn’t matter, that where you’re at right now isn’t significant and that you won’t succeed. We Godpreneurs can’t let fear distract us from living a life in God’s full will. He needs us in order to impact the business world. He needs our minds and hearts in the right places: focused on the marketplace mission field He has us on right now, no matter how insignificant we may think it is. What makes you afraid of where you’re at right now? How can you be more intentional in your current situation? #EnhanceFocus

It’s 3 in the morning and you can't sleep. You toss and turn, rolling from one side to the other; nothing helps. Everyone else is sleeping, but not you. It's now 3:30 am and you're staring at the ceiling. Your anxiety has taken complete control. The clock on the wall keeps ticking; you cover your head with the pillow to not hear it. You feel like crying. You're depressed, alone, scared, and stressed. What a mess you and your business plans are in. What does all this anxiety mean to a business owner? All this trepidation, all this insecurity, all this worry, all this restlessness. What's the meaning of it all? Well, anxiety in business means simply this: YOU ARE AN ENTREPRENEUR 💪 You’re not dumb, you’re not emotionally underdeveloped, you’re not incompetent or too green to own a business, your parents didn’t fail you; it doesn’t mean you failed them, and, this is important, it does not mean you are not a Christian. Christian entrepreneurs battle anxiety. Jesus did. In the garden of Gethsemane, on the night before his crucifixion, He prayed for the cup of suffering to be taken away from Him. In fact, He prayed with such ferocity, the capillaries burst and rivulets of crimson rolled down His face. Jesus battled anxiety. He faced fears, but He fought through His fears, surrendered them to God, and fulfilled his mission. Anxiety did not win, and this is God's plan for you too! The Bible says: “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.” (Philippians 4:6) Anxiety comes with entrepreneurship but it doesn’t have to dominate your business life. God's plan for you is not an entrepreneurial journey that is drenched in anxiety. It's God's will that you and I learn to run an operation that is characterized by peace and not panic; by calmness and not chaos. Yeah but Alex, I'm drowning in my business - like I’m still showing up, but barely keeping it together. I’m making it, and I’m smiling, but nobody knows what’s really behind this smile - the things I think about some days on my way home. I just want to run away from it all. I want to suggest something to you Godpreneurs today about the storms of anxiety in your business life, and about the waves and the winds that are tossing you and your plans around. Listen, those winds will keep blowing, and the waves will break and they will crush you, no doubt about it. However, you have a choice of who accompanies you through those storms. Will you invite misery or God? Will you invite death or life? Will you invite loneliness or the God that will never leave you or forsake you? There are things happening in your business that you’re afraid of that makes no sense if you're truly inviting God to walk this entrepreneurial journey with you. There are people that are causing you to shut down. There are circumstances that are senselessly paralyzing you. However, when you put those things in the context of who the God is that is walking by your side, and what you mean to Him, you begin to train your heart to be anxious for nothing.

A friend of mine asked me the other day: “Alex, who are the top 3 companies in your field?” I was stuck. I couldn’t answer. He said that I needed to know that, follow them, and set up meetings with the owners. He said that it’s likely they will share whatever information I needed because people are inclined to share with others in their industry, especially me being a smaller company. So, I took on the challenge and the other day I met with another branding agency to see how we could do work together. It was great to learn how someone else runs his business, targets a certain clientele, and has a unique approach to the market. What was it about my instinct that was preventing me from opening up to others in my industry? Greed? Hording? Pride of knowledge? Normally, we entrepreneurs don’t meet with the competitors. We avoid their Facebook posts, secretly envious, but not wanting to get frustrated seeing their successes. But we’re all on the same team. We branding agencies all want to help the world tell their story, help people find their identity. God didn’t create us to be competitive to the point of not meeting with one another. Even the best golf players in the world play friendly matches together. One day they are friends, the next day they are competing for the same prize, but they are both better today because of the things they learned from each other yesterday. Similar to my situation was what was happening around the time of the spread of the church in Acts 11 of the Bible. We see a divide within the church of Jews versus gentiles. The Jews wanted to keep Jesus to themselves, but that’s not what God had designed it out to be. Jesus came for all to be saved, and for all to commune together to learn from one another, band together, and grow stronger. You might be in a cut-throat industry where competitors don’t meet. You might even have walls of anger towards others who have taken business from you in the past. God is calling you, today, to forgive, move on, and explore opportunities of growth together. We Godpreneurs act from a whole different set of rules than the normal marketplace functions under. We have a God that has so much business for us that it would be impossible for us to service everyone. There must be room for others because God has someone uniquely designed for competition to service. Godpreneur Rule #85: Meeting and learning from the competition is designed to make us stronger. #BibleStudy

When I first started going back to the church in 2008, my business partners and I were in the tender first years of running a Branding agency. All of us were involved in the nightclub industry, either as promoters or nightclub owners. We had known each other for years! But by 2008, I was ready to make my transition out of that lifestyle and industry. My business partners saw it immediately. I was talking, acting, and doing business differently. One time I remember putting the word “blessed”, somewhere in a mass email to our clients and receiving a lashing-out from one of my partners to “please keep religion out of the business.” That’s when the conflict started. 5 years later, this partnership was over. I was (and probably still am) hurt by the entire subject. These were my best friends. I tried my hardest to get them to visit church with me so that they see what I see. I kept telling myself ‘maybe if they knew God, we could stay together.’ I gave them a copy of Rick Warren’s Purpose Driven Life, I prayed for them continually, I even straightened up some of my anger problems in hopes they would see a changed man and be compelled to know that Christ is real. I’m still praying for them. I love them, I still talk to them once in a while, I accept them for who they are, they are still my brothers, but we’re different now. Becoming a Godpreneur will not come easy in our lives, especially if you’re doing the massive switch that I did – from rockstar South Beach nightclub promoter. We run a huge risk of being ridiculed by new words we’ll use and of alienating clients, vendors, employees, and partners that don’t agree with our ‘born again’ status. But God has so much more in store for us than we could ever imagine if we…take a risk for Christ…like He did for us. In Acts 21, 22, and 23, we meet a Paul that knows he’s at the end of his life. He knows that his time of death by persecution is coming. And you know what? He accepts it with no hesitation, counting it all as gain (Philippians 3:8). Paul’s boldness, against the wishes of his best friends, is a great example of the risks you and I should be taking as Godpreneurs. You will risk ridicule for dropping whatever business you had going on because you feel God calling you to start a different business, one that brings you purpose and meaning. Whatever that business is, you won’t feel alive until you do it. You will risk conflict for separating yourself from business partners, employees, contractors, and vendors that no longer line up with your ethics and morals. You will risk losing clients (and thus money), that no longer serve the target market you are trying to reach. You will have tribulations, but don’t fear, for Jesus has overcome the world and God has your back! (John 16:33). We have a new identity. We have a new purpose. We were born into a royal family, destined to do amazing things. Godpreneurs are the top of the ladder, the trendsetters, the oldest profession in the Bible, and the largest contributors financially to the growth of the church around the world. Godpreneur Rule #1: Godpreneurs go out and tell the world, risking it all for Christ, unashamed and purpose driven with a God-given identity. #FindMyCalling #BusinessBibleStudy

While finishing dinner at Olive Garden with my wife, it came time to pay the check. Our server comes back with the bill and a handful of Andes mint chocolates, my wife’s favorite! Normally you’re only supposed to get two, one for each person. My server J.P. brought us like 8 little magical delights of delicious, minty goodness. My wife asked her: “wow, so many??” To which J.P responded, “I like to give more.” She probably broke the company policy of giving one candy per person, but her giving nature got the best of her and she was compelled to give more. I haven’t forgotten about that experience at Olive Garden. I haven’t forgotten about J.P.’s generosity. As entrepreneurs, sometimes we’ve been conditioned to only give clients what they paid for and not a drop more. We’re trained to watch the bottom line, not let customers ‘take advantage’ of us, and keep costs low and profits high. But if we’re smart about things, being generous can create a sticky moment for our brand. Like the fact that I can’t forget my Olive Garden experience, we should look to create unforgettable generous moments in our businesses. The Bible says: One person gives freely, yet gains even more; another withholds unduly, but comes to poverty.  A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed.  People curse the one who hoards grain, but they pray Godʼs blessing on the one who is willing to sell. Proverbs 11:24‭-‬26 NIV If you are not generous by nature, ask God to change your heart and add members to your team who are strong where you are weak. Then empower them to be generous on your behalf. Effective entrepreneurs strive to be generous with others. We understand the boomerang effect of generosity—it always comes back to us. Godpreneur Rule: Work to develop a generous heart in your business and in doing so, give to yourself. #SharpenLeadership

My pride and selfishness get me in a lot of trouble, especially when it comes to waiting on God in my business. As time passes by, still not having achieved the successes I desire, my pride creeps in to whisper lies in my ear like “you deserve so much more than this, you should have more fame and fortune by now, what are you waiting for?” And I know I’m not alone. In fact, because of my line of work, I’ve spoken with so many Christian entrepreneurs who share similar and sometimes deeper strongholds than I’ve personally ever felt. We entrepreneurs suffer from: The desire of being praised The desire of being honored The desire of being preferred The desire of being consulted The desire of being approved The desire for comfort and ease The fear of being humiliated The fear of being criticized The fear of being passed over The fear of being forgotten The fear of being lonely The fear of being hurt The fear of suffering It’s our pride, coupled with one or more of these thoughts that hold us Godpreneurs back from doing the very things that God wants us to do WHILE we wait, so that later on, we can be lifted higher. The Bible says In the same way, you who are younger, submit yourselves to your elders. All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, “God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.” Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. 1 Peter 5:5‭-‬7 NIV The Bible reminds us, entrepreneurs, to humble ourselves because God wants to lift us up in due time. In God’s economy, one must proceed the other. Jesus is God’s own son, yet He arrived as a humble servant. For Godpreneurs like me and you, humility is not thinking you and your business are less, it is never forgetting the fact that it is Jesus who made you and your ventures MORE. So, how do you become more like Jesus in the marketplace? How do you develop a spirit of humility during your waiting season? For me, I became more humble as I developed my habit of reading the Bible every morning. This habit began to form a relationship between me and Jesus. That relationship opened up my ears to the holy spirit’s small voice and opened the eyes of my soul to see God for who He really wanted me to see Him as. As I drew closer to God, the desires and fears I shared earlier began to transform as I let God take control of them. I began to take a more humble approach to prospects, clients, vendors, contractors, employees, and the marketplace as a whole. That my employees are loved more than me That others are chosen before me That my team may be praised and I unnoticed That my heart be like Jesus That I am strengthened by the spirit That I am taught Jesus’s ways For God to help me put my self-importance aside To learn the kind of cooperation with others in a way it shows Christ’s light Any Godpreneur who walks intimately with Him will not think more highly of himself or his business than he should. To assume Jesus’s ability to wait, while still showing gentleness and grace, all we need to do is be in a relationship with him day in and day out. To be humble in business doesn’t mean we have to be weak. God has given us all we need to live confidently as inheritors of His riches. The proud businessman will never truly lift up God’s name in praise. Yet He raises the humble Godpreneur to new heights. #SharpenLeadership

I picked up an amazing tool from a Tony Robbins course that I use weekly. It’s called an “emotional flood.” Essentially, I close my eyes and imagine all the amazing things that have happened to me. It lasts for 5 minutes. Through an audio recording, Tony helps me jog my memory for all the awesome things. Essentially, you shut out the negative and ‘flood’ your mind with awesome thoughts. When our waiting feels like a ton of uncertainty in our business, without answers – much like Noah’s waiting, there is a danger of losing faith that God is listening. If we have these long spans of time in our businesses, it tempts us to question the faithfulness and character of God. We look around our business and there’s no sign that He is answering our prayer. We wonder will he ever come through for us. In these critical moments in our entrepreneurial career, we need a strategy to win while waiting through the seeming absence of God. The Bible says in Roman 5:3 "Paul clings to the only One who can help him. He resolves to believe He will bring to fruition that which he awaits. Then he does something most of us don’t. In the middle of his waiting, Paul chooses to rejoice. Before it is his turn, prior to seeing any evidence that God will answer his petitions, Paul chooses to praise God…anyway". Paul clings to the only One who can help him. He resolves to believe He will bring to fruition that which he awaits. Then he does something most of us don’t. In the middle of his waiting, Paul chooses to rejoice. Before it is his turn, prior to seeing any evidence that God will answer his petitions, Paul chooses to praise God…anyway. Are you suffering waiting in your business? This is the time for an EMOTIONAL FLOOD. Turn on some worship music, flood your heart with praise. Look back at everything He’s done for you as an Entrepreneur, and rejoice and be glad…even while you wait. Maybe your circumstances in business appear to be upside down, but God is always right-side up! Worship and praise Him in the waiting. Wonder in Him while you’re wondering and wandering. Today, don’t ask for much, just praise Him. Get your heart and mind back into the place of faith and expectancy. Let God calm your business anxieties. The flood of emotions will drown out the negative feelings. Your praises will lift you out and up to the throne. Before it is your turn to succeed in business – before anything you have asked comes to fruition, praise and rejoice Him! That’s how you re-center and refocus your mind on the challenges of TODAY. When we can’t see through the waiting; when the big break doesn’t come in; and our competition pummels us with hate until we find ourselves in a desperate place—praise and rejoice anyway! No one or nothing compares to God. He is the last one standing with us in our businesses. He’s always there. So as we wait, we praise Him for that. If He makes our business wait, there is a divine purpose in it. I pray Godpreneurs don’t miss the opportunity to wait with purpose, to wait well! #GainConfidence #BusinessBibleStudy

Being in the marketing world, there are so many services I could offer. Between search engine marketing and content creation, to social media advertising and sales funnel development, the field is wide open with opportunities. Sometimes I get tempted to stray away from what I know and dabble in areas I’m not familiar with. Not for fun, but because an opportunity came around to make some money doing it, I might as well give it a shot. I’m all about challenging myself in new areas, but I’ve learned that veering from what I know usually lands me in trouble, frustration and bitter struggles with clients, vendors, and contractors. Why? Because I’m departing from what I know. If I would have said “no” to the client asking me for additional marketing services outside of my expertise, it would have allowed the space for a perfect client to come in for me to service. But because I’m over there distracted with this new offering, I’m not over here ready and able to serve this perfect prospect. We don’t like to wait. Especially in the face of money being thrown at us. We’re not confident when the next check will come in, so we try new things. We don’t have faith that, ultimately, God beings us perfect clients if we trust and wait. As entrepreneurs, because we really don’t know how God’s going to bring our prayers to life, our thoughts become vulnerable to enemy attack. Many in the Bible fell victim to distractions and taking matters into their own hands. Abraham tried to bypass the wait time by having a child with his maid (Genesis 16:1-4). King David, King Jeroboam, and much more also had their fits with waiting. Listen, waiting for God isn’t easy. When the bank account is low, bills are due, and employees need to get paid, this is the perfect environment for taking matters into our own hands rather than lifting it all up and surrendering it to God. Times of uncertainty in our business is exactly when we much keep our eyes on Christ no matter what. It’s here where everything we learn in the Bible and at church comes into reality. It’s during the turbulent twists and turns of business that we need to FOCUS ON WHAT WE KNOW. God is powerful. God is just. God is good. The Bible says "Which is why I suffer as I do. But I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that he is able to guard until that day what has been entrusted to me." 2 Timothy 1:12 ESV You don’t know how things will turn out in your business, but you know in whom you believe. You can trust that He has a purpose for your businesses. You can be certain that your God is not a quitter. He’ll finish what he started in your business. He is faithful. We don’t need to look far for the evidence. We’ve had waiting periods before, and God had brought us through them. When we’re waiting for something big to happen, Godpreneurs turn right around and look backward for a time. We should remember the miracles, the uphill battles we overcame and the strength it built in us. If He has been faithful for all of my entrepreneurial careers, and many generations of business owners in my family before me, won’t He certainly remain constant now? It is this knowledge that enables us Godpreneurs to get up and move forward in our businesses while we wait. #BusinessBibleStudy #EnhanceFocus How Godpreneurs Wait Instead of reading the blog posts, take the video course!  I personally teach you the method.  You get: Workbook 6-Video Teachings Access to dozens of courses in the Godpreneur Academy! Heard of the Godpreneur Academy? Grow Your Business, God’s Way! Bible-Based Video Courses for Entrepreneurs Putting God First In their Businesses Click here to create a Free Account*