We could all agree that peace is incompatible with rushing things, right? Last few months, I’ve been robbed of my peace. Probably the last few YEARS. I’m always playing catch up, late for appointments, or overdue on what’s due on my end. Truth is, if I took an interior inventory, I don’t feel a deep peace of God in my soul. I don’t sense a grounded, present sense of calm. Instead, it’s a constant war. And yet: I continue to cram more and more into my already overfull life, forcing me to speed up to a frenetic pace, and I rarely slow down long enough to experience God’s peace. Of course, not all busyness is bad. I love being busy writing my blog posts, taking my son for a run so my wife can get a break, launching someone’s brand, and going to CrossFit. These don’t feel like I’m wasting my precious time. My problem isn’t having a lot to do, it’s having TOO MUCH to do! The only way to cram it all in is to kick into hurry gear, and as a tragic result, slip out of love, joy, and peace. And I have too much to do because I’m in a hurry to become someone… Instead of having the peace of knowing, I AM someone. Look, I’m the first to criticize “slow.” Heck, I have a brand called Launch in 2 Days! 😂 My brand’s message is clear: slow is bad, fast is good. But even with Launch in 2 Days, clients call me to launch their businesses, and I have to SLOW them down to stop, create a plan, build a strategy, and THEN prepare ourselves for a launch. A proper, peaceful launch can only happen in 2 days because we slowed down long enough to lay out a plan. The bible says "Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him." (Colossians 3:15‭-‬17 NIV) In God’s contrarian way of doing business different than the world, the Christian entrepreneur’s value system is turned upside down: hurry is of the devil because his only goal is to rob us of our shalom – our peace with God slow is of Jesus, because Jesus is what love, joy, and peace look like in flesh and blood. What about you? Do you have a spirit of peace right now or anxiety? I don’t think I’m alone. For that next idea you have, simply do nothing. Just be. Stand in silent love before God. Try to sit long enough for the peace of God’s Spirit to well up inside of you for as long as you can, and thank him for it. And when you’re ready to launch your brand PEACEFULLY, follow the Launch in 2 Days system. Slow down to let the Spirit plan and lead you to efficiently and effectively launch your calling. Learn more about the Launch system here. #TimeManagement

My wife and I ran into big problems in our marriage because I worked so darn much.  Day and night, 25 hours a day, 8 days a week (that’s right, I worked so much I created days that didn’t exist). I think it’s a combination of 1) knowing there’s still a lot to be done to grow the business and putting in more time will get it done, 2) workaholics syndrome I inherited from mom, 3) wanting to prove my worth to my father by how much I work, 4) if I was broke, at least I was working and that felt good, and 5) sometimes I just wanted to escape home life and working is a safe refuge. All of these above excuses are lies that the enemy has lead me to believe.  Each statement above can be a whole chapter in a book. Working hard isn’t the problem.  Not resting is the issue. We entrepreneurs do have a lot of work, we do have great responsibilities, we do not follow the normal 9-5 schedule, but we’re also smarter than the average Joe and need to understand the tricks of the super successful who seem to be able to manufacture time at will. How can we beat the system and create more time?  The answer is a contradiction of the mind:  find a day of rest. In Mark 2:25-28 "Jesus said, “Really? Haven’t you ever read what David did when he was hungry, along with those who were with him? How he entered the sanctuary and ate fresh bread off the altar, with the Chief Priest Abiathar right there watching—holy bread that no one but priests were allowed to eat—and handed it out to his companions?” Then Jesus said, “The Sabbath was made to serve us; we weren’t made to serve the Sabbath. The Son of Man is no lackey to the Sabbath. He’s in charge!” I used to cringe when I heard the pastors preach about taking a full day of rest.  I imagined me sitting on a couch doing nothing for 24 hours and freaking out as if in an insane asylum. Worst is that I thought I was being a “bad Christian” for not taking a day off.  So then I would force myself to not work just to honor the day as if to say “ok God, I did it, are you proud of me?…”  See how even on the Sabbath I was still working for someone’s approval? The Sabbath isn’t an item on the Christian checklist of things that make God like you more.  The Sabbath is a day where you rest to RECHARGE, REBOOT, REJUVENATE, and RELAX. Imagine you’re working out at the gym.  Don’t you ‘rest’ between sets of exercises?  This time of rest actually strengthens you and you do even better the next set!  That’s how taking a day of rest works. We entrepreneurs need to be very conscious about taking this full day of rest so that our ideas for the following week ahead of us are at 100% and we’re full of the energy we need to tackle the challenges and excitement of owning a business. Your Entrepreneur Compass, Alex Miranda Do you think you’ll be bored on your rest day?  Here are  5 Things Successful Entrepreneurs Do on the Weekends. Comment below with some ideas on things you do on your rest day. #TimeManagement #WorkLifeBalance

I used to think I had to do everything myself.  After all, I started the company!  I’m in charge of finances, sales, marketing and operations.  And within each, I have hats within hats to wear.  It’s all my responsibility and I need to make sure I can do it all in the 18 hours I’m awake in the day. But 18 hours isn’t enough, so I put things off for the next day….and the next…and the next.  When I come to realize it, my email box is full of 3,000 unread emails and my to-do list has stretched to page 3 on a legal pad. Sometimes I dream of taking a trip to a cabin in North Carolina for 1 month, locking myself in a room, and doing everything I can to catch up. 24 hours just isn’t enough in a day to do it all.  Yup, that’s the truth. So how do we accomplish everything we need to do to run a successful business?!  How will we bring our dreams of growth and expansion to life if all we have is 24 hours in a day? One thing I’ve learned in growing in my relationship with God is that He will accomplish through you what he needs to accomplish in the time available.  Imagine checking in with your CEO (God) in the morning and asking for the critical tasks of the day.  He would know exactly what you need to do, after all, he came up with the 24-hour day! In the book of Job, God challenges Job’s frustrations and says something that I always remember when I’m frustrated at God’s design of the world. Job 38:4 “Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation? Tell me, if you understand." And in Job 38:12 “Have you ever given orders to the morning, or shown the dawn its place," Whenever you catch yourself complaining that there aren’t enough hours in the day, remember the power of the two verses above.  It should give you the right perspective on how to see the day of work laid out before you:  God’s perspective. If we were very honest with ourselves, the reality is that God’s 24-hour design is perfect, but we are the ones that get distracted, do unnecessary work, and are inefficient. As Godpreneurs, God’s our CEO and he knows what he’s doing. We can wish for more time, but we’re not going to get it. We can’t make our days longer. What you can do is see your work from God’s perspective and leave the rest in His hands. If everything in our businesses depended on us, no amount of hours would ever, ever be enough. #SharpenLeadership #TimeManagement

One of my greatest struggles as an entrepreneur was creating the habit of getting up early every morning to spend time in meditation and prayer.  Even though every success seminar and autobiography of the rich and famous Business gurus said that I must create this habit, I struggled. Could be that I went to sleep too late.  Could be that I’m not a morning person.  Could be that I worked so much into the early morning hours that I couldn’t get up.  Could be that I would wake up, check my emails and see there was a fire I needed to put out.  Could be that there was so much to do that day that I didn’t have time. Could be that I was just too darn busy. And if I could be honest with you, I feel very guilty about being so busy.  My marriage has suffered greatly from it. We entrepreneurs have a lot going on in our minds and lives.  Responsibility to pay bills, spend time with family, eat right, exercise, make sales, do marketing, bake cookies, hold the baby, watch CNBC, go on date nights, etc. etc. The problem isn’t the fact that I have a lot going on.  Heck, that’s awesome!  We should celebrate the fact that life is shaking and baking!  Don’t be ashamed that you’re a work of art when it comes to efficiency and productivity. God has shown us what the real problem is. Remember the story of Martha and Mary when pays a visit.  Martha is busy cleaning.  Mary is eager to learn from Jesus. Martha’s an amazing worker.  But Mary made Jesus a priority.  The cleaning up could wait. Jesus says in Luke 10:42 "But few things are needed—or indeed only one.  Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.” The truth is that hard work is one of your God-given functions and gifts in being a Godpreneur. You use the intellect and circumstances God has provided you with to lead your business. A bunch of Bible verses praise having a strong work ethic. Work or ambition in and of itself isn’t the problem.  In Part 1 I reveal that the first way to solve Busyness is finding purpose, aligning your heart and motivation. Today we encounter that another major issue are our priorities. If our purpose is to serve God with our businesses but also make time with him our #1 priority, we’re on the right track.  Imagine if we all developed the habit of waking up early and being still in God’s presence. Our CEO wants to meet with us daily.  Let’s make showing up to this meeting our priority. #TimeManagement #SharpenLeadership

Even though we know as Christian entrepreneurs that we need to study God’s Word regularly, we often think about the most efficient way to structure this daily routine, especially with how busy our businesses keep us. When I was first getting into the habit of reading my Bible daily, I couldn't find the motivation. It felt obligated and a little fake. I knew it was good for me. I knew I needed to do it. But I just couldn't get the routine to stick. All of us Christian entrepreneurs trying to run businesses God's way desire to know God's word. And we know from biblical instruction and from our pastors and spiritual leaders that we should be reading the Bible regularly. However, it's not enough to only rely on the Sunday sermon or occasional Bible study. Us business owners are bombarded DAILY with issues that we need to be prepared for. For that reason, we need to be getting the Word of God inside of us not only on Sundays but throughout the week. In fact, it should be part of a successful entrepreneur's daily morning routine. I'm called "Daily Godpreneur" because my mission is to inspire God first business owners to put God first in morning routine and watch how God transforms everything else for His glory. I call this my daily morning huddle with God. Business teams have daily huddles for productivity. Sales teams meet daily with their manager to get motivated. Project teams get together briefly every morning to uncover anything that might be holding a project back and to move forward with a solution. CEOs have morning checkups with their executive team. If this is how business operates already, then why would our morning time with God be any different? The Bible says Your word is a lamp to guide my feet and a light for my path. (Psalms 119:105 NLT) I want to share my "daily devotional" routine so you can learn how I spend my time praying and studying the Word of God, and how it applies to my business. NOTE: Although the Bible tells us the basics of what we need to do daily as part of our Christian devotion, it gives us freedom as to how to do it. I'm going to show you my particular way because it works for me. You can follow it or be inspired by it and create your own. The Basic Structure of Daily Bible Study Routine The basics of your daily time with God will include Prayer on what to read Reading about what feels right Meditating on that thought And for EXTRA CREDIT, Journaling privately Sharing thoughts publicly There are no rules on how exactly you read God's Word, but there are indications that it should be done DAILY. The Bible says "This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success." (Joshua 1:8 ESV) Notice that the Bible doesn't list EXACTLY how you need to do this. There are no terms of when, where, and how much has to be read. That's up to you. What's important for you to understand is that if you want your ways to be prosperous and business to be successful, then the most important thing is to just do it. If you're just staying out on developing a DAILY routine, then start with a practical activity that I also do daily. Time and Place: Pick one place in the house you always do your studying, and pick a window of time that this activity falls into. Create a pattern in your mind: wake up, brush teeth, make coffee, listen to 3 worship songs, sit down and open Bible. Embrace technology - I do everything from my phone, not a physical Bible. It works better for me. Set reminders - if you commit to a block of time, why not add it to your Google calendar. Don't compare - Don't worry about measuring yourself against anyone else, especially me. I'm a writer and teacher. Your pastor has to do this as his job. Don't beat yourself up because you're not putting in the work like they do. I pray you'll consider my examples and that will encourage you to develop a daily Bible reading habit. Stop feeling guilty that your devotional life doesn't look like others. They're on a different journey. We should start wherever we can start. It could be 1 minute per day, it could be 1 hour per day. More important than the the "how" is that our minds begin to develop the DAILY habit of depending on the Word to guide our business days. Imagine if all of us Godpreneurs did whatever we could to establish a pattern of regularly reading the Word of God. How different would the marketplace be? That's the motivating thought in my heart for continuing Daily Godpreneur. #ChristianBloggers #TimeManagement

When I gave my life to Christ in 2008, my heart began to change, and so did my heart for business. I started to feel an obligation towards helping entrepreneurs with more than just their logo and website. I saw so many pay me money to then find out 6 months later that the business didn’t work. My heart changed from seeking their money to seeking their Godpreneur purpose with them. I implemented a policy that everyone now has to have a strategy session with me where I get to discover their passions and help guide them towards starting the right business, the right way. As entrepreneurs, our hearts are always somewhere. And more times than not, its either on money (like it was for me at the beginning) or on the customer.  Sounds nice to have a heart for the customer, right. Easier said than done. And it takes a transformation of heart. When I accepted Christ into my life midway through my business, I was allowing the holy spirit to begin to change my heart.  It’s not to say that I don’t fall into the money trap time and again, but I do it much less often now because I’ve developed a heart towards helping entrepreneurs, something that I feel God has purposed for me to do. This speaks to our relationship with our employees, too. We should be concentrating our efforts towards a change of heart, rather than just trying to modify their behavior. When your employee asks why you have a certain rule for your business that other businesses don’t have, you should be willing to explain it in a way that demonstrates the way your heart for God directs your behavior. It is easy to say, “Because I said so!” but that doesn’t engage your employee’s heart, it just asks for a certain behavior. Godpreneur Rule #78: Godpreneurs seek to change their heart, knowing that the behaviour change will follow. #DifferentiatingMyself #BuildMyPersonalBrand #RaisingCapital

My church does a fundraising campaign every year that goes towards the construction of our new building. I’ve seen the architectural renderings. It’s going to be an incredible place to worship. I’ve seen my church grow since our days of meeting at the movie theater. I’ve taken part in several of these “building campaigns,” and it’s been a blessing to see each one take the church to a new level. The way I see it is that it’s not that God needs my money. He’s got plenty of it to go around. What God is looking for is my stewardship and my heart to be aligned with His. I don’t feel obligated to give an offering to my church. Instead, I feel blessed that I’ve been given the opportunity to participate in an organization that’s making a tremendous impact for the kingdom in my community. But we sometimes don’t see it the way I’m explaining. Some of us are giving out of ritual or obligation. We put very little thought into the fact that God is using the money we make in our businesses to let us steward it towards amazing kingdom work. But remember that God doesn’t need a small portion of our money. It’s His money in the first place. The bible says, The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it. (1 Corinthians 10:26) Technically, your money and business are His, so we can’t give God anything. Not a tenth, not half, not 90%. It’s all His. What’s not all His, yet, is your heart. That’s the battle between good and evil going on. And the enemy will use the money to win your heart. He’ll make you think it’s your money, and that the church owes you some kind of “thank you” for your generosity. God’s not appreciative of the money we give; He’s moved when our hearts are surrendered to Him. That’s the parable of the widow giving pennies at the offering. Jesus said she gave more because she gave from her heart. (Mark 12:41-44) Godpreneurs are excited about being allowed to participate in kingdom expansion! Owning a God-Centered business is an incredible opportunity, and a gift from Him, for us to make profits so that we can be involved in something that matters beyond the material, beyond the financial, beyond our businesses! Imagine if we all thought this way? I pray for each Godpreneur’s heart to be aligned with a proper heart of Godly stewardship and that the Lord bless your business profits tremendously so you can be a part of kingdom work. Godpreneur Rule:  The Lord blesses a Godpreneur’s business profits tremendously so we can be a part of Kingdom work. Father, everything in my business is Yours, including me. Thank You for the privilege of Godpreneurship so that I can be a part of distributing Your resources for Your glory. Amen. Journal this: 1. How can I make my perspective on the money and material goods my business produces, a Godly one? 2. Do I put too much value into “business stuff” and “keeping up” with what others are doing around me? 3. Is God getting my leftovers or my heart? #BusinessBibleStudy #RaisingCapital #IncreaseEnergy 5 Lies of Money and Business Instead of reading the blog posts, take the video course!  I personally teach you the method.  You get: Workbook 5-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

For many years as an entrepreneur I didn’t make any money.  I struggled month to month, paycheck to paycheck.  I paid my bills, and that was about it. But one bill was never a question to pay: my life insurance. I have a son and college debt.  Imagine if God called me tomorrow and I didn’t leave anything for him, for my parents to pay my debts and some for my church.  Irresponsible, right? Proverbs 13:22 says “A good man leaves an inheritance for his children’s children” Entrepreneurs, if you haven’t already, you should give serious thought to getting your financial records in order for the time when you die (10 out of 10 people die one day), so that your estate can be passed on to your heirs in an orderly way and so that you can give a gift to church church (or favorite charity) one last time. It costs me $30/month for this service. Personally, I use Primerica to handle this for me.  Great organization, amazing people of God behind it, I highly recommend them. Godpreneur Rule #254:  Godpreneurs leave their children and church something besides debts. #DebtFreedom

You’re at your lowest low. The business is in debt.  You don’t know how to pay the employees and they are about to walk out.  Your vendors won’t stop calling for payments past due.  You’re on a 3-day eviction notice from your apartment. Post to Instagram You can’t think straight because of all of the anxiety and stress. You’re on the edge of the cliff. You’re all alone. I’ve been here before, and its not a good feeling. About to commit entrepreneurial suicide (i.e. go and get a JOB and become a laborer….the horror!) But I knew there was only ONE way out of this. You don’t realize God is all you need, until God is all you have. So here is the solution:  Read Psalms 91 entirely…over and over… I want you to realize that in Psalms 91 was written to assure believers that those who trust in God can expect security. Entrepreneurs, isn’t that what we want?  Security!! Read Psalms 91….write it out….read it for 7 days straight. Psalms 91 You who sit down in the High God’s presence, spend the night in Shaddai’s shadow, Say this: “God, you’re my refuge. I trust in you and I’m safe!” That’s right—he rescues you from hidden traps, shields you from deadly hazards. His huge outstretched arms protect you— under them you’re perfectly safe; his arms fend off all harm. Fear nothing—not wild wolves in the night, not flying arrows in the day, Not disease that prowls through the darkness, not disaster that erupts at high noon. Even though others succumb all around, drop like flies right and left, no harm will even graze you. You’ll stand untouched, watch it all from a distance, watch the wicked turn into corpses. Yes, because God’s your refuge, the High God your very own home, Evil can’t get close to you, harm can’t get through the door. He ordered his angels to guard you wherever you go. If you stumble, they’ll catch you; their job is to keep you from falling. You’ll walk unharmed among lions and snakes, and kick young lions and serpents from the path. 14-16 “If you’ll hold on to me for dear life,” says God, “I’ll get you out of any trouble. I’ll give you the best of care if you’ll only get to know and trust me. Call me and I’ll answer, be at your side in bad times; I’ll rescue you, then throw you a party. I’ll give you a long life, give you a long drink of salvation!” If you’re an entrepreneur 3 feet from the edge, I would pick up the entire book of Psalms from the beginning and start a reading plan every morning through it. #BusinessBibleStudy #DebtFreedom

I graduated from Cornell University in 2003 with over $100,000 in debt.  Here I was, 21 years old, carrying around that kind of weight. From the moment I graduated, I was always stressed out about this debt. How was I going to get ahead with a $750+ monthly payment? I got a job. But the job wasn’t paying enough. So I started throwing parties on the side. Since I was making money promoting, I quit my other job to do that full-time. But that soon wasn’t paying enough, so I started a web & graphic design agency with a couple of my friends. This same trend continued for over 10 years. Although I kept the agency for over a decade, I kept on pursuing new entrepreneurial ventures and working hard because…well…I had $100K to pay off after all. I didn’t want to be addicted to working and starting businesses.  It came at our the stress that debt caused. I figured I needed to work harder and do more so I could free myself from the shackles of bondage. But it didn’t work.  In fact, I got into MORE debt. We entrepreneurs have various “stressors” in our lives that lead us to the work addiction. For me, it was this looming debt and need to prove to my parents that I could pay it off myself. Now we’re getting deeper…. In order to understand our addictions, we entrepreneurs need to go deeper below the surface to understand WHY we’re even addicted to working. Work addiction isn’t shallow. It’s developed over time, over many layers.  And if we’re pursing or worshiping it more than God, we have a problem. Entrepreneurs face many opportunities for stress: bad partnerships, unstable client relationships, thoughts of scarcity, feelings of inferiority, keeping up with the Jones’s, social media envy, and coveting other people’s businesses, just to name a few that I’ve been through myself.  Essentially, anything that takes us out of our comfort zone. What happens when these “stressors” persist over time? They become deeper, and we become confused and think we have no purpose or identity….and we even question our faith in God. How do we get out of this mess we’re in? The bible says “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 11 28-30 NIV You are a Godpreneur. You are made in God’s image. Because of this, you must deal with whatever stresses you in the way that God, your designer and CEO, has made you to, rather than allowing your stresses to lead you to addictions. God has built you in a way such that your ultimate happiness and relief can only be found in Him. All other solutions are temporary, and in many cases you will be worse off than when we started (like me…I got into more debt). If we pursue temporary solutions rather than taking our stresses to God, we will develop work idols and addictions. Ultimately, God has provided the best solution to our pain—the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Godpreneur Rule #92:  Godpreneurs are too blessed to be stressed. #DifferentiatingMyself #DebtFreedom #SharpenLeadership

There’s a used car dealership I pass by on my way to the gym that has a big sign outside that reads “No Credit, No Problem.” While I can’t knock them for their efforts in advertising and drawing clients in, it still pains me to see the sign and know that people are falling for it every day. No credit?! Then that means the person shouldn’t be buying a car in the first place. It means they need to try to find another means of transportation while they fix their financial situation. This same situation also happens to us business owners when we get the credit card promotions in the mail or as we’re checking out online. Everywhere, the enemy is trying to enslave us. As business owners, we can experience such a tremendous amount of financial release from God, but God’s only going to release it into the hands of people that can manage it…and manage it well! We entrepreneurs need to have the highest financial IQ of all people working on earth. God has entrusted us to come up with businesses so that we can hire more people and manage more of God’s money. But how is God supposed to give us more money if we can’t handle it? If we put things on credit cards, what does that tell God about the way we are managing our business? The bible says: "The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is slave to the lender." (Proverbs 22:7 NIV) As Godpreneurs, the chains were broken, and you are to live freely in the marketplace. Unfortunately, it’s likely you are a slave right now. You and me both. I tore up my credit cards. I don’t buy anything anymore unless I have money to pay for it in my checking account. Listen, I too want the nice computer, the latest phone, and the nice car to show up to meetings. But I’m not here to impress anyone except God. And God is looking at the way I handle my money and making decisions on whether he’s going to give me more…or the other guy. Godpreneur Rule: Money will go to the Godpreneur that manages it the best. #BusinessBibleStudy #ArticulatingMyIdeas #ShareYourTestimony #DebtFreedom Attracting Money In Your Business, God's Way Educate yourself and prepare your business to steward the financial blessings God has in store for you. 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

By asking ourselves what we could have done differently, we uncover new, better systems, processes, products, and services to better serve our clients, so it doesn’t happen again. And most important of them both: to not fall into a culture of “victim mentality.” My company is 100% responsible for any complaint. We take 100% responsibility for anything that happens. We never blame our clients. And this has helped me create amazing services for my customers. The author of Secrets of the Millionaire Mind feels the same way about money as I do about customer service. If we want to be successful in our finances, we must realize that we are in 100% control of our financial life. While it’s easy to blame the economy, the government, our parents, the market trends, and our best friend's neighbor dog for a reason we’re still broke, rich people don’t think this way. When we play the victim of our circumstances (which financially poor people tend to do), we tend to gamble (literally play the lotto) in hopes of getting lucky because some outside force is “holding us down.”  Rich people tend to not gamble, they have control of their finances and appropriate the money according to their plans. But God says we are VICTORS, not victims. And rich people act like VICTORS, and don’t wait for things to fall into their laps but move forward on the battlefield in a complete mindset of victory…that God already won the battle and it’s ours for the taking! The bible says I am victorious: "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. (Philippians 4:13)" Listen, you and I are powerless without God to meet our own needs and bring true justice to our financial situations. You must see yourself as God sees you—not as a victim, but through the help of God, as an overcomer—and be thankful to God, and be willing to obey Him in your finances moving forward. God’s plan for you is that they have a victorious life even under difficult financial circumstances. Instead of seeing business life as oppressed, emotionally broken, and victimized, we are VICTORIOUS because we have the armor of God and are strengthened by Christ. As a Godpreneur, you’re a child of God, so you can’t put yourself in the role of the victim and blame anyone (clients, employees, the IRS) for your economic situation.  You are the one who decides the success of your finances, and you make the decision to use God’s strength (already given to you) to change your situation. Like I do with customer service if you catch yourself blaming anyone or anything for your financial distress, always remember that you are responsible and try to search within to see where you failed.  You might have hired an employee prematurely, without the proper interview or training. You might have failed to put a budget together for that project that you’re over hours on, and now you’re trying to blame the client or team for the bad performance. To break this ‘business blame game’ and stop thinking like a victim, we ‘Godpreneurs’ must make a list of the things that went bad financially in our business and pray and ask for wisdom on how WE were responsible, and what WE can do differently. We can partner with God to have the holy spirit speak into us about this.  We can take a day of fasting if we need to. We must start doing what we can do for ourselves to take personal responsibility for our financial situation, set healthy boundaries in our spending, and trust God to make us adequate for every task of handling finances in our business and personal accounting. Godpreneur Rule:  Rather than complaining about our business finances, we focus on points where we can make changes and do something for your prosperity. #BusinessBibleStudy #MakeMoreMoney #DebtFreedom #RaisingCapital Secrets of the Millionaire Mind A Christian entrepreneur’s book summary of the New York Times best-seller Secrets of the Millionaire Mind. 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 like to listen. I have learned a great deal from listening carefully. In fact, it’s my job to listen. As a Brand Strategist, I have to listen to what the entrepreneur is asking for in the company they want to brand or rebrand. I listen to what they want on their website, the logo they envision, and the overall business direction they want to go in. I then have to wait and also listen to the little spirit within that will inspire me to guide the entrepreneur towards their born-to-do identity, the business they were perfectly made for. The key here is to listen twice before speaking once. Listen to the client, then listen to the spirit. It’s a mistake for me to jump the gun and speak too quickly. The Bible says: Spouting off before listening to the facts is both shameful and foolish. The human spirit can endure a sick body, but who can bear a crushed spirit? Intelligent people are always ready to learn. Their ears are open for knowledge. (Proverbs 18:13‭-‬15 NLT) Being a good listener leads me to the opportunity to say something that may powerfully affect the entrepreneur's entire business direction, and thus their life. When I’m listening intently and I let the spirit lead my strategy sessions, my clients sit there and drink up every word I’m saying. Such a great feeling to be used by God to pour into my clients! And what a great moment to thus minister to my clients. This is when they are vulnerable because they are hungry for guidance. They are about to make one of the biggest decisions of their life, and here I am given the ability to consult them in any direction. I’m constantly driving home the fact that we only should be doing the business that God designed specifically for us. Christian or not, my clients melt and I’m able to minister because it has to do with their future investment. My clients think they have all the answers. Not all, but most. So most don’t ask for guidance. I have to package the guidance up as business consulting. They’ll buy consulting and planning, they won’t buy advice on what they were born to do. Sell the sizzle, feed them the steak. And because I’m a Holy Spirit driven Godpreneur who is a good listener, my client’s hearts change and they become like a sponge ready to soak up any advice that might bring more meaning (and profits and success) to their business. I can look back now comfortably at my clients and see that most too have become good listeners. They become a good listener to the life-giving words of God, given through me. That’s what happens when two spirits speak to each other. Godpreneur Rule: Learn to listen to your clients and the spirit and discover your ministry opportunity to your client’s heart. #SharpenLeadership

Check out Google Primer. It has marketing lessons you can take wherever and whenever you have 5 minutes free. http://g.co/primer I always encourage my entrepreneurs to find and stay in monthly marketing courses and mastermind groups.  This is a great supplement to those. Let me know about your experience. #MarketingMyServices

Every Wednesday I meet with my accounting and finance department to go over numbers. They hold me accountable to my goals. Every week there is a number to meet, a quota in sales to hit, so that we can keep track with our goals. I’m given two numbers:  a minimum number we need to hit to pay bills and a number that helps us accomplish our goals. The problem is that sometimes I look at that minimum number and say “God, if you’ll just help me hit my minimums so I can pay everyone off.  Even if I don’t get paid, Lord, pay everyone else.” I used to ask God to just help me pay the bills this month, and nothing more. We all have this survival mentality in us. “Lord, if you’ll just let me survive this month…..this season…this trial….” But here is what I know:  our God wants us to ASK BIG! When we pray and release our faith — when we ask God to work in our lives — our asking opens the door for His great work in our lives. But, we have to ask. If we can take the limits off of what God can do in our businesses, we can experience the abundance he has promised us! In the bible, Jabez prayed a bold prayer to God in 1 Chronicles 4:10. Despite his upbringing and surroundings, he dared to ask God for His blessing. “Oh, that You would bless me indeed.” After I learned this, I went to my daily prayer sheet and I started a new section call ASK BIG.  In this section I’ve written things like My whole family will follow the Lord God make me famous in my field, use my influence to help those that can’t afford it, so I can make a big difference in this world, not for my glory, but for yours Every person in this world to hear your message of identity Are you asking big prayers in your business, or are you letting your market circumstances, situations in the past, or how impossible it looks to meet that quota keep you from big prayers? Godpreneurs, don’t let a lack of asking keep you from God’s best in your life any longer. If we all would let this message inspire us to ask big,  we can walk in the fullness that God has for us and become everything God has created us to be! Listen to Joel Osteen’s full message:  Ask Big – http://pca.st/A3dz #WhatBusinessIShouldStart #IncreaseEnergy