David Lee Martin

You are in the business of becoming. God is making the man or woman you are called to be. From that foundation, your business will be built.

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Passion is a phrase that’s banded around in entrepreneurial circles a lot, and I can totally understand why. Because I’m a passionate person. I’m sure you are, too. Being in this creative space is one that is often passion driven. We are people who feel and we feel deeply and we hear phrases often discover your passion.

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Follow your passion. Live your passion. Profit from your passion. Build a business around your passion. And I’ve spoken these cute sounding phrases myself many times, and in their context, sometimes they can make a great deal of sense, but I think they’ve become a kind of banner in the online world, and it can be applied in a much.

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Sometimes they’re applied so broadly that they actually lose their sense of reason that they lose their grip on reality. I was having a conversation recently with someone that I admire very greatly, a guy called Dave Chessen. He runs a blog called Kindlepreneur cheque it out. He’s also hugely successful software creator. And in our conversation he mentioned how much he hates these enticing expressions where we’re told that we should just build and live and profit from our passion.

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And in it he reminded me because I was asking him about his entrepreneurial journey. It’s a key thing, isn’t it really that we want to really live from who we are? But we also need to actually pay our bills and what greater way, as we’ve heard so many times, then if we do and we can make our living doing something we love, we’ll never work another day in our life. That’s what we’re told, what a wonderful aspiration to have. But the entrepreneurial journey is often quite different from the pictures on the cereal packets and the sales pages.

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Let’s face it, this is more a mountain climb than a lays on the beach. And Dave, in speaking of passion driven business, he reminded me that the word passion comes from the root word, the Latin word Patty, which means suffering or enduring in our passion, comes from the late Latin passion, which means suffering and enduring from the past participle stem of the Latin Patty, which means to endure, to undergo, to experience that which must be endured. When Mel Gibson titled his blockbuster movie The Passion of the Christ, he titled it for a reason.

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He didn’t call it the excitement of the Christ or the obsessive hobby of the Christ, or things that Christ really likes to do. Just because you’re passionate about something doesn’t necessarily guarantee success.

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Many years ago, I was prophesied over there was this, like, the only way I can describe it is like this wild grandma would come and preach at our Church sometimes, and she was, like, really sharply prophetic and had experienced things in the spirit that would make your mind boggle. Literally. She told us stories of laying hands on people who were blind, but not just blind in the usual sense of the word blind because they had no physical eyeballs in their head, and she laid hands on their eyes and God created eyeballs in their skull there.

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And then. So this is the kind of girl that I’m talking about, and she prophesied over me.

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This was many years ago and said, Zeal is great, but Zeal is not a good master. And I’ve learned that over the years I’m a very zealous man, often, much to my regret, when I’ve allowed passion to take the reins instead of wisdom, and I’m not saying one or the other. I’m saying both. And but if anyone is going to sit in the driving seat, let it be wisdom. Just because you’re passionate about something doesn’t necessarily guarantee success.

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Just because you’re zealous and hardworking and committed doesn’t guarantee that you’re going to see the fruits that you desire. Yeah, we hear it talked about a lot as if just following your passion is going to deliver the goods into your lap. Now, I don’t want to discourage you in any way from pursuing your passion in inverted commerce, but I’ve been thinking around the whole subject of being a faithful preener, being a faith based Minister in the marketplace, if you like. And by Minister, I don’t necessarily mean preacher.

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Okay.

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I mean, in any realm of business where you are out there, you are serving the King. It doesn’t matter if you create widgets, if you write recipe books or if you stand in a digital pool pit preaching to the masses, everything that we do is submitted and sanctified unto their King unto the Christ that we serve.

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By kind of online Ministry. I’m talking in the broadest Kingdom sense. I would encourage you to explore that. I would encourage you to believe for that. But also in thinking about encouraging.

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I think one of the failings, sometimes that we fall into is that we highlight all of the benefits that don’t really prepare people for the journey that they’re going to endure. The same is true sometimes a Christian kind of gospel that we like to emphasise the good bits, but we tend to back off when it comes to like, well, yeah, you’re going to have to lay down your life. You’re going to have to die to yourself.

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If you want to experience resurrection, you’re probably going to have to go through a crucifixion first. By the way, we’re going to bury you in baptism just to make sure that you never come back alive.

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And of course, the perspective is everything. But let’s go into whatever endeavour we are seeking to experience with our eyes open. Experience shows us really. Another turn of phrase that’s often heard is, if I can do this, anyone can do it. Often the marketers will put that out there, speaking from their gilded golden eight figure business laptop or whatever else it may be.

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And I’m speaking a little kind of tongue in cheek here. So do bear with me. I’m not in any way kind of criticising pointing fingers, et cetera. I’m just highlighting a little bit of a kind of gap that sometimes people are surprised when they come to it. I remember when I came to Church, I got born again in quite a kind of remarkable manner and came to Church.

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And I just thought, Man, everyone in Church is going to be just like Jesus. What a shock. When I discovered that most of the people in Church were very much like me, full of flaws, turn to phrase, if I can do this, anyone can do it. And on a purely practical level, this may be true. Absolutely.

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We can press the same sequence of buttons, but experience shows us where one speaker marketer coach fill in the blank, might run a certain promotion, set up a particular sales funnel, or run a webinar series with startling results. Another person can then jump in and turn all those same handles, press all those same buttons, even say the same words, but with decidedly different outcomes. What gives a man? It’s not just what the man makes or the woman makes. It’s not just what the man makes that makes the difference.

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It’s actually the making of the man. Just because Elon Musk and I’m picking up Elon’s name because my kids were talking about it, and they’re fairly impressed with him sending spaceships into orbit and building all of these radical new cars and et cetera, et cetera. But just because Elon Musk and blast a rocket into space doesn’t mean that I can. He may say, Well, if I can do it, you can do it. I’m not suggesting that Elon Musk would say that, but it’s no different than when we come to whatever field of endeavour we want to engage in.

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And we hear those words. Just because Pedro Adeo he’s a tremendously successful and very genuine Christian marketer. But just because he can rack up eight fat figures from online challenges that he runs doesn’t mean that I will see the same results. I don’t have the same experience, abilities, connections, confidence, revelation. There are a host of factors I could excuse myself with, and I’m not trying to diminish myself in that comparison.

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In fact, comparison is probably the worst thing you can possibly do. If you’re looking to actually make a difference and make a dent in the universe, the real determiner is simply this. I’m not Elon Musk. I’m not Pedro Adejo. I’m David Lee Martin.

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That’s who I am, and God did not make me to be a carbon copy. He made me me. And you you. There’s a great verse in Ephesians Two, chapter ten, for we are his workmanship created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God has before ordained that we should walk in them. His plans are no less impressive for you than for anyone else.

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They are plans to prosper you to give you a vibrant hope and a fruitful future. But it’s going to be a future and a hope in keeping with your personality within the boundaries and scope of what he has prepared and planned and promised for you that will bring you the greatest and deepest satisfaction and joy. And that is really essentially why we should work on ourselves, growing ourself, encouraging ourselves, emboldening, educating and edifying ourselves, respect yourself and do all you can to develop and use your gifts.

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Staring out of the window, observing what everyone else is doing is really not going to get you where you want to be, turn and look in the mirror and learn to appreciate what you see there. Understand that you’re shaped by God for a purpose bigger than you can presently embody and seek to become the man or woman that he needs you to be in order to fulfil the perfect plan for your life and make the things that He’s called you to make.

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As I’ve said. And as I’ve titled this episode, it’s not what the man makes. It’s the making of the man that makes the difference. The Scripture does, of course, say God is no respecter of persons, but this is spoken with reference to His righteousness and invitation into His Kingdom. It doesn’t mean that what He’s done for one, he’ll do for another.

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That’s like a bit of a prickly statement for some. But God’s plan for your life is just as real and true as it is for anyone else. But it is not identical thinking. That just because God acts and works a certain way in someone else’s life, like demands that he should work that way in your life is really a recipe for trouble. It’s going to cause you a lot of frustration.

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You are uniquely his. You are His son. You are his daughter, and by God’s Grace he has got something so special for your life. And it’s not the same as for whatever name you want to fill in the blank. Israel were God’s chosen people throughout our very faith is built upon the covenants that God made with that people.

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And through miraculous intervention, they were freed from slavery. God patiently provided for and protected them through 40 long years in the wilderness. He brought them gloriously into their promised land and shaped them by the covenants he made with them for centuries to become the perfect people in which and through which the Messiah would be birthed. No other nation was shaped to carry that responsibility. These people, Israel, as we know, were shaped as much by suffering as my Covenant and care and the same, I believe, is true for you and me.

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Again, not a popular idea or message, but our experience tends to verify its veracity. God shapes the person that we are oftentimes through the things that we suffer. Even the Scriptures say that Jesus learned obedience through the things that he suffered. Passion in the truest sense of the word, the things that we are willing to endure, the things that we are willing to suffer for the things that we are willing to lay down our life for and pay our price to become. Those are the things that mould our character and move us to act despite the challenges that we face along the way here.

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In speaking of faithful entrepreneurship, we need to understand we need to heed the warning that entrepreneurial endeavours are not all glitter and glory. There are many nights of tears before joy breaks out in the morning sometimes. And why do I say this? Because I really don’t want you stepping into the arena with rose tinted spectacles, expecting your journey to be one without pain, to be one that is not full of questions or self doubt or fear or fumbling or failure. All of these things will rack up.

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They come really as a guaranteed part of the package. And forgive me again if even mentioning such things is like vinegar in your eyes, I’m just wanting to be honest here. God shapes our character through many experiences and not all of them are ones that we would necessarily invite. Business is life. It takes heart.

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It’s not just inch deep desire, kind of passion that will successfully build a lasting, sustainable business.

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The rewards are worth the risk, but you really need to know who you are and be ready for God to build resilience into your spirit. If you’re going to step into building a business around your personality and your passions, it’s going to take more than just a fancy website and a little charisma to do so. Now, being prepared to suffer for the things that we make to go through some gruelling examinations of your own limitations and mindsets to stare failure in the face as well as eagerly embracing success and accord.

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Just because someone has done something successfully doesn’t necessarily mean that you can too, because each person who has done something has a history. They’ve been formed by their experiences.

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Their mindsets have been shaped sometimes over many years. Their beliefs have been forged in many a fire. So don’t take this as a discouragement. I’m not saying that you can’t accomplish what you set your heart to. I’m merely pointing out that character is what undergirds our endeavours.

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The building work often takes place inwardly as we step into our destiny. Don’t wait until you feel ready before you step out. Don’t wait until you think you’ve got it all sussed before you take a chance. It’s as we begin to move and step into that creative destiny. Believe God for the things that we believe he has placed within our hearts, that we change, that we learn that we grow, that we go through some of these growing pains that we’re talking about.

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It really is a journey we discover in the doing, and some of those discoveries are not going to be comfortable. So I guess be prepared to suffer along the way, knowing that God will reward the diligent hand faith has to be coupled with patience in order to possess the promise. I’m learning this one hands on right now be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience, inherit the promises. And the root word of the page has that word patience. Absolutely.

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You guessed it the same Latin word for suffering. Patty the King James is not joking when it describes the fruit of patience with a much less kind of glamorous word. Longsuffering the decision to be an entrepreneur may usher you quickly and seamlessly into a life of untold riches. I mean, wow. If every sales page delivered on just 5% of what they promised would all be rolling in the Island Sands sipping Pina colada.

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Nothing is impossible. I believe in the miraculous. But please don’t be disappointed if your dream of financial freedom and far reaching free doesn’t happen overnight. The making of a man or a woman by the hand of God is not just a quick spin of the wheel. Allow patients were told to have a perfect work that you may be perfect, an entire wanting nothing.

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Be assured. I’m going to read from the amplified James one, three and four. Be assured and understand that the trial and proving of your faith bring out endurance insteadfastness and patience. But let endurance instead. Fastness and patience have full play and do a thorough work so that you may be people perfectly and fully developed with no defects lacking in nothing.

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If these words that we’ve considered today are not what you want to hear or you choke on the idea of suffering as part of the parcel of entrepreneurship, you’re best off just kind of leaving now. It’s going to save you a lot of pain and disillusionment down the line because that’s part of our experience of becoming who we are. We learn not only what we are good at and what we can do and what we do bring to the table. All of those things are amazing and I speak of them so often, but in the process we also learn what we can’t, what doesn’t work, the things that we do from a wrong heart or a wrong motivation.

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Sometimes when we’re doing them, we don’t realise it until after the affair.

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And then suddenly we realise man, I don’t even want to be doing this. Why did I even begin?

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It is an exciting journey, but not one without challenge.

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Millions of people are hopping from one shiny object to the next, spending decades of their life shovelling money on course, after course, product after product after promise, and really walking around the same wilderness mountains again and again in the vain hope that there’s an easy painless pathway to prosperity.

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I can only speak like from the very, very, very tiny circle of my experience. And so there may be lots of people who disagree with me in this. And that’s fine. I’m here to learn and grow as well. But what I’ve seen when people are looking to build a business, particularly a kind of brand business around their own particular area of passionate expertise and personality is that it is a challenging journey to take.

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It touches on things so deeply inside of us. It’s so entwined with who we are as a person, not just what we do, that it takes us deeper than just producing a widget and selling like as many widgets as we can now, we’re really putting ourselves on the table for other people to criticise.

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Of course, these things are possible without pain, I guess.

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But from my experience and the experience of many of the people that I’m walking alongside, it’s not without sleepless nights. It’s not without some hard yards figuring out what works and what doesn’t. The rewards are certainly worth fighting for. But those rewards are not just monetary. And again, I think that’s another trap that’s easy to fall into.

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The real reward is that in the process of making we are made, we become the people that God needs us to be in order to fulfil the great purpose he has placed us on the planet. For you are essentially in the business of becoming God is making the man or woman that you are called to be. And from that Foundation, I believe that you will build a phenomenal and far reaching and impactful business. Well, thanks for listening. Hopefully, it’s been an encouragement to you today.

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If you want to connect any further, you can do so through my website at davidleemartin.Com. Have a great day.

Original is overrated!

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I was thinking back to one of the first coaching courses that I kind of enrolled on, and there was a lot of talk at the time about being a thought leader. And I just was thinking around that again today because it’s come up in a few different conversations. And at the time, Like, back in the day, there when I was on this particular course, I was certainly kind of very keen to be a thought leader in inverted marks, in quotation marks, just just thinking like that. That was something that I needed to aspire to.

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But can we really become Lee by just a matter of our will, a thought leader?

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And so the question that I asked myself over the past couple of days, actually, I’ve just been ruminating on whether I’m a thought leader or a thoughtful follower, and which of those two actually is probably maybe the better and less stressful I used to be enamoured by the idea of been a thought leader on this pioneering trailblazer, carving the way to new fields of revelation, bringing waves of thankful followers with me. But today, really, I find a great deal more contentment instead in being a thoughtful follower.

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And by that, I just want to explain kind of what I mean by that. Really, you know, most of the words I was thinking about, you know, I do a daily podcast. I write a daily blog, I write numerous different books and engage with several different communities.

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And to the best of my ability, try and bring value to those communities. But in thinking around this, I got to know most of the words that I speak of, the words that I write. I’ve always been inspired or prompted generally by something that I’ve previously seen or read or heard that they are observations on something that I’ve witnessed, not one original, uninitiated thought. Yeah, even the ones that seem to spring from some kind of unadulterated genius, generally the fruit of a conversation with God in prayer.

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Sometimes I’ll sit down and begin praying and journaling, and things will kind of spill onto the page or pop out of my mouth in that dialogue that even make my ears prick up and listen, you know, but, you know, and when I talk about conversation with God in prayer, I’m not talking about the heavens opening up and Angels delivering a world changing message type prayer.

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Just simple dialogue with God from my heart. Now where I give myself the rare privilege of shutting myself up for five minutes to let someone far more intelligent than me do the talking. And the purpose of sharing this with you today is more to slap an objection to the ground that many would be creative entrepreneurs pull out of there. Why not? Or why I can’t bag, you know, originality is an issue for some people are rather unoriginality.

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Sometimes we’ll come into the marketplace and we think we are all the best ideas, not already taken. And the simple answer is a resounding yes and a very certain. Now, even in the 9th century BC, we find Solomon pointing out this high tech 21st century truth. That which has been is what will be. That which is done is what will be done.

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And there is nothing new under the sun. Ecclesiastes one verse nine. You know, the reality is really humanity is wrestling with the same fundamental problems that they always have, seeking security, seeking significant and looking for a sense of purpose on the planet. You know, the means of answering those questions may have evolved and more over the centuries, but the itch that they scratch has never changed. As men and women of faith in the marketplace, we’re not looking for new or never before seen, problems to solve were simply coming with new eyes, informed by our history experience and learning to offer our own unique take on the answers we believe will help fellow travellers.

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That’s where that’s where the uniqueness comes into play. You are the magic ingredient that turns a plain old information pie into a deliciously original meal. You thoughtfully follow the desires that God is placed in your heart. Let your history inform your present. What are the threads that Lee through the fabric of your journey so far?

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What are the things that others come to you for advice and help on what others incessant promptings to move in a particular direction? Telling you, I’ve said this many times, but mine is an almost obsessive fascination with words not in a scholarly way, but in a very common, very ordinary. I love to dig into a subject and scratch below the surface way, a curious way that doesn’t want to just accept what’s already been said about a subject. But find out what my heart says about it. Now, the fact that you there will only ever be one of you in all of history and eternity takes care of this originality problem.

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You do not need to get caught up in trying desperately to be original because you are one there’s. Why you are one of a kind, you know, for sure, there’s gonna be a host of other folks doing similar things to the ones that you propose to do. And that is absolutely fine. Now, the fact that it’s you picking up that diamond and turning it in your hand is always gonna shine a new light on whatever facet of a subject you are tackling and bringing to the attention of other people.

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You know, while the billionaires Jose for their market share in the above the atmosphere right now, most folks would be more than happy to just figure out how to live their feet on the ground existence a great deal better, and we can help them with that.

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We can help them both with their spirituality, and we can help them with their practicality, the practical things that we have been equipped to do that wins that we have made along the way that we can with others and help to equip others through. You know, whether it’s wealth, health, relationships or spirituality, they’ll never be a day when answers and leaders are not sort by the masses, you know, and you can be a leader in any one of those multifaceted spaces bringing great value to the table.

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You know, I really thank God that I don’t have to build a spaceship to discover myself or my destiny. And that extra to rest your life has already landed on the planet in a stable in Bethlehem just a little over 2000 years ago. And that man guarantees your success and he is shaping you for glory.

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You know he is. He is here right now by his spirit to help you step into your purpose on Earth and possibly down the line. If you become a billionaire and want to step into that ring, you know, maybe even conquer above the clouds as well. But let’s allow faith, not FOMO, not the fear of missing out to guide as step. And even if your ideas seem very ordinary and unoriginal, and even if your intellectual merchandise seems somewhat unremarkable compared to the other stallholders in Vanity Fair, do not fear.

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Keep carving your way to your core and you’ll discover that you are indeed a one of a kind original and then seek to just share sincerely, wholeheartedly and without such harsh self criticism. And you’ll be surprised how many seemingly never before seen or heard ideas spring from your heart. Well, thanks for listening. Hopefully, it’s been an encouragement to you today. If you want to connect any further, you can do say through my website at DavidLeMartin.com.

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Have a great day.

My passion and diamond subject is prayer and Christian Creativity, what’s yours?

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I try and make something every day and my main clay that I mold things from his words. Yours may be something different, but I found that having a daily discipline, I don’t even know discipline is the right word, but just building in a creative habit where I exercise and draw from that inner creative well is something that I just. It’s actually life giving, life affirming. And if I can unplug and remove myself from the desire for outcomes, if I can uncouple myself from outcomes, it frees me up to be far more free in my creativity.

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I’m not thinking if I write this book, will it sell and make money?

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If I create this blog article that I find worthy of expression that I feel carries some value for someone somewhere, but it may not make money. It may not have a thousand people coming or a million people reading it. It may not win any prizes for grammar and literature. Is that any reason not to do it? Of course not.

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We are creative beings, and our very essence demands that we make things that we share our value and our worth with others. However, that manifest itself. One of the things that I do each day, as some of, you know, is a blog and then create this podcast. But I was thinking today about a common fear that many creatives face and that’s that their well will somehow run dry. What happens when you run out of something worth saying?

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You know, the terror of empty pipes has been immortalised with the attribution writers block and doubtless. There’s also song block, brush block, product block, video block. Whatever your means of expression, whatever platform you choose to build your creative Kingdom on. Yet there’s a fear that, well, what happens if I run out? What happens if I find myself with nothing else to bring to the table?

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It’s a common fear that is one that, honestly, I choose not to buy into. Because see, I believe that there is a perpetual well of inspiration that flows from our inner man and that it just needs to be tapped and called upon to produce. You know, some days you’re going to produce more and better than others, but it will produce nevertheless, and not everything that we create, not everything we write, not every song we pen, not every video we create. Or again, whatever your means of expression is, they are not all necessarily to be made public, but we need to keep the water flowing.

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We need to allow our inner man to find expression in some way.

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And, you know, I don’t believe really, that it’s a lack of inspiration. I don’t believe that it’s a lack of something worth saying or singing that stops us. I really believe that the hair and slime that clogs the pipes is actually perfectionism. We want every work that our hands creates to be some magnificent opus, and that’s a sticking point because whether we like it or not. Some days are simply more open to the flow than others I wanted to call is actually I’ve called.

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This particular episode is cover your diamond subject and your creative well will never run dry. But I could equally have called it today. I have nothing to say. And in thinking about what to share here, I thought about starting with the creative encouragement to you with today, I have nothing to say. And like, honestly, some of you may have just breathed a sigh of relief.

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I can swallow that. But who am I to lie, even if I have nothing to say? I’ve said something worthy of exploration. So what do I mean by that? You know, sometimes you may want to dig in to the subject of not having any subject to share on or looking somehow to discover a deeper layer below the ones that you’ve already dug into.

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Really, I want to encourage you. You will never run dry. It’s not a crime to say the same thing again in a different way.

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There’s no shame in pulling an old word from the archives and sending it out for another spin. You know, call on your pet subjects the core messages that you carry and reiterate them for the, umpteenth time, because there are always going to be new eyes and ears that will be experiencing what you have to say for the first time. I’m sure as believers, you’ve often sat down and you’ve read the scriptures like maybe hundreds of times certain scriptures. You may have heard sermons on red in the scriptures pulled out of your promise box, you know, read the devotional on watch the TV, preacher talk about whatever else it may be.

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And then suddenly, one day that same scripture leaps off the page and comes alive to you.

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Well, I believe it’s the same with the subjects that God has put on your heart. You know, we often and most of us have just a few subjects that we tend to set on. And because every subject has many, many facets, you know, you don’t have to create something brand new. Every time you sit down to create you just turn that value diamond in your hand and highlight another facet of the beauty and Grace that relates to your subject of choice. You know what’s your diamond subject.

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I speak right and teach Christian prayer and creativity. And on the creativity side, I largely focus on digital delivery of your message and your value to the marketplace. You know, I bring prayer and productivity under one roof and honestly could talk the legs off a horse if I’m let loose on either of those subjects. You know, some may say I just harp on about it, and so be it. That’s my song.

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That’s what I play. That’s the instrument that God has placed in my heart. What’s yours, you know, to encourage others to recognise and realise their value in tangible ways that can impact lives and generate income is a message that I believe people need to hear. And again, I’m going to ask you, what’s your song? What’s your message?

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You know, if it’s heartfelt and sincere, it’s not just going to be a one time article nested on your somewhere. It’s going to be a diamond subject that fascinates your curiosity, much like a real diamond mine, and it inwardly calls to be communicated time and time again. You don’t just look at one facet. You can turn that diamond subject in your hand, and you can bring many, many beautiful new takes on the same subject matter, you know, and you’ll find your diamond subject will crop up in almost all of your communications in one way or another.

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There’s going to be a sparkle or a shadow of that subject in pretty much everything you create.

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You know, the gospel, the gospel, Jesus dying for being born of a verging, dying for our sins, going to the grave, being raised from the dead and soon to return is obviously the core message for every Christian. It’s the gold and thread that runs through all that we say and do. But there are many facets to Christ’s wisdom and many facets that God causes people to share with the world. It’s not just that one story, and not all of those subjects relate to heaven. They’re not all ethereal in nature.

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You know, God wants us to end well, absolutely. I mean, that’s the key thing, isn’t it? Like, get saved. You’ve never accepted Jesus as your saviour. Like, don’t wait until tomorrow.

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Right now, just press stop on this and get your heart right with Him today. Of course, God wants us to end well. But the journey to that end needs to also be taken in fellowship with the Creator on the Bible and the Holy Spirit Himself who wrote it and now lives with you and in you has so much to say about life, finances, diet, rest, wellness, anger, love, relationships, hope, faith, the word that we speak. Thoughts, business, ecology, creativity, parenting, cosmology. You name it.

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It’s in there. He doesn’t just that the Bible opens us up and God’s creative nature within us is meant to bring salt and light to a multitude of people and a multitude in a multitude of different places and in different ways. You name it. There’s a Facet of wise Council that can be shaped into a viable and worthy business and deliver present value to the marketplace in keeping with your Christian values and your passion for Christ. And that doesn’t just mean preaching sermons.

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It can be any number of wonderful, healthy, wholesome pursuits that just bring value and enjoyment to other people’s lives. You know, my passion and my diamond subject is Christian creativity. What’s yours now? Jump over to the blog at Davidleemartin.Com. Just click on this article.

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Discover your diamond subject. Yeah, and let me know in the comments there. I’d love to hear what it is that God has placed in your heart and the ideas and the subjects that burn in your bones. What’s your mission here and how can I help you to fulfil it? Hey, God.

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Bless you. Hope this has been a helpful episode and I will look forward to speaking with you tomorrow. Well, thanks for listening. Hopefully, it’s been an encouragement to you today. If you want to connect any further, you can do so through my website at Davidleemartin.Com.

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Have a great day.

In a hyper-active world how do we live like Christ? Is Jesus wearing Nike trainers and sprinting around the globe desperately building His brand, fearful that some other pretender will take His market share?

I think not.

The pace of grace is not breakneck. The only neck spoken of in relation to the way of Jesus is the one on which He longs to place an easy yoke.

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In our hyperactive world. How are we to live like Christ? I don’t really picture Jesus where in Nike trainers sprinting around the globe, desperately building his brand, a fearful that some of the pretender will take his market share. I really don’t think that that’s happening. Now, when I look in the Scriptures, I Lee that the pace of Grace is not break neck speed, and that the only next spoken of in relation to the way of Jesus is the one that he wants to place on our ex.

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An easy yoke. Take my yoke upon you, he said, and learn from me, for I am Lee and lowly in heart and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. I know certainly that I’ve so often fall into the trap of chasing after my ambitions, trying to become and trying to be someone or something that I think I don’t know what it is that keeps urging us and driving us to forget who we are and where we are and be present in the moment now.

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Vena Chuck ianism, if that’s such a thing, you know, may urge you to be everywhere all the time and become everything to everyone, all power to him and his disciples.

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But it’s really not for me, you know, Musk is that’s the latest thing may conquer the known universe, but I’m sure if I were to follow his way, I’d probably lose my own soul in the process. And I’m not saying that Gary Vaynerchuk or Elon Musk or whatever other names you want to drop here are wrong. They’re doing what they’re called to do and all power to them. It’s just knowing what’s wrong for you. Yeah, it’s knowing what’s right for you, what sits with you and what you can do and the pace you can live that gives you life.

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And in some ways I sometimes think that peaceful obscurity would be a much more life affirming option for someone of my my leaning, you know, and by that I don’t mean skulking in insecure shadows and never speaking up. It simply means focusing on what really matters, regardless of the noisy world outside my window or the screaming from the various screen Lee that I look at now, by nature, I’m an action taker and so passive resignation really, honestly is not a way of peace, you know, any more than rabid aspiration is it’s just that our actions must be tempered by truth and aligned with our values.

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Now, I spent a lot of my time encouraging Christians to stand up, stand out, and share their worth and message with the world. And I believe that that’s a worthy message to bring. You know, we as creative Christians are not consigned to the pews ad infinitum Till comes back.

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We all carry a message. We all have a calling. We all have something precious and worthy and valuable to bring to the world and God has seen fit to plant us in a generation where the means to do that are very much, quite literally, at our fingertips. The problem arises, I think when ambition steps in and begins to set the scoreboard, I’ve noticed like, it doesn’t really take a great deal of discernment to Lee this. But once we step into the online space, I really the watch words are more, bigger, faster, richer.

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And many of these metrics, I think, are very, very skilfully designed with cynical delight, aimed to enhance our sense of inadequacy. Because in a world in that world, more is never enough. Fast is too slow by far. And Rich really is a slippery scale. You never really reach the summit.

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But the truth is, the actual reality is that you are enough right now. Jesus didn’t die for you, for who you might become. One day he died and delighted to do so for the scruffy unfinished product that you already are. He wants to walk with you today, not just when you shape up, not just when everything is in place right now. You know, I think the devil always wants our eye on tomorrow.

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And tomorrow is always this tantalisingly out of reach. Tomorrow filled with all the things that we think we want a need. And then when we arrive and we hold those things in our hand, the goal posts inevitably move. I’ve seen it a thousand times in my life and decided it’s really time to sack my ambitions and follow the call of Christ more closely. I think my ambition will be to walk in his way of unhurried peace.

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And I really do wonder. And I wonder with kind of hopeful expectation where that path will lead me. Well, thanks for listening. Hopefully, it’s been an encouragement to you today. If you want to connect any further, you can do so through my website at Davidleemartin.com. Have a great day.

Creating something from nothing is the speciality of our Creator. He speaks and things spring into existence. The same can be said of His people. Made in His image we are uniquely endowed with the gift of endless possibility!

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The life of faith is not necessarily one that is consigned to sit behind the walls of the Church. The exercise of faith really spills or should be spilling into every arena of our lives. And the principles of faith can be applied in so many ways and play out in like a variety of manners out there in the real world, whether that is within the Church or whether that’s within business, family, marriage, faith has a place to play. We are actually called to live by faith, to walk by faith.

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And without faith, it’s impossible to please God.

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Whatever you are up to, because faith is the very heartbeat of the Kingdom. And how the Kingdom works and creating something from nothing is the speciality of a creator. And very much that’s how faith works. He speaks and things spring into existence. And the same can be said of us.

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His people. Romans 4:17 talks about how God calls those things which be not as though they were made in his image. We are endowed with that same gift of endless possibility. You know, the power to take what is currently and presently invisible. To take just a thought and form it into something tangible is just one of the fingerprints of divinity that is displayed so majestically through humanity.

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I mean, in case you hadn’t noticed, human beings for all of their failings are amazing. And you and I are part of that company. We don’t even need to be believers to see that DNA, that creative DNA that the Father put within humanity at work, outside there, out in the world. But how much more so should we be seeing in once we reconnect with the source and the action of faith reaches into future hopes and dreams and tugs them into the present, it takes this invisible substance called faith and sculpts it into reality on the genius of God at work within us gives evidence to the things that were previously unseen.

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Hebrews chapter Eleven would probably be considered the classic chapter on faith in the work of faith and how faith works.

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And it begins with this powerful statement. Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. And in the realm of business, this verse would really in the realm of business. This activity of taking something hoped for something in and giving evidence to it. Bringing the unseen into the scene realm is really known as entrepreneurship.

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Christian artist and entrepreneur Matt Tomy points this out. You knows a creative coach. He works a lot with artists and other creative men and women, encouraging them to turn their art into a substantial Kingdom based businesses. And he says this, he says, truth be told, only about 1% of people are really called to vocational Ministry within the local Church. The rest of us are called to be in the marketplace, releasing the light and life of the Kingdom every day through our unique creative expression.

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So whether that’s the business of art, family, or finance, you have the divine opportunity to align yourself today with the purposes of the Kingdom. See God moving through you like never before, and watch as the abundance of our Father overtakes you. Now, another Christian entrepreneur, Michael Homes, digs below the surface of the word entrepreneur, and he says the word entrepreneur is from the old French word entreprendre, which is probably said completely wrong. My bad, which means to undertake entrepreneur, is also derived from two other Latin words entre, meaning to swim out and prone to grasp or grab hold of.

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So as entrepreneurs we undertake, we swim out to the unknown to grab hold of unseen opportunities.

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Maybe you’re still standing on the banks right now, ready to dive. Perhaps you’re already out there in the deep waters. Either way, the call to entrepreneurship, I believe, is a high and a Holy one. Deuteronomy 8:18, speaks of how God gives his people the power to get wealth. And, you know, this verse is also qualified by a statement of intent and God’s intention in prospering his people is that he might establish his Covenant from generation to generation.

00:05:28.160]
Kingdom business and creativity are far more than just money making schemes. Although we must not be fearful of making money, we must not be fearful of wealth creation. It is essential. It is the life blood of any successful business, but there’s a bigger picture at work as well. There’s a bigger purpose at work.

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And, you know, Kingdom businesses are often God’s means of establishing his Covenant promises here on Earth. It seems that our Father honestly believes that money in the right hands is a good thing. And here right there in Deuteronomy 18, he says, Man, remember where this comes from when I give it to you, but I am going to give your hand the power to get well. The amplified Bible unpacks the nature of faith a little further in its expansion of the original languages in Hebrews Eleven. Yet it’s packed with nutrition for aspiring entrepreneurs.

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This Hebrews Eleven chapter, and in the Amplified we read that faith perceives as real fact what is not yet revealed to the senses. And so the faithful preneur sees something is absolutely real, perceives genuine value before the fact the value we bring to the marketplace exists way before it hits the virtual shelves. It exists within our heart. Furthermore, the amplified in Hebrews 11:3 says, by faith, we understand that the worlds were framed, fashioned, put in order, and equipped for their intended purpose by the word of God.

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So that what we Lee was not made of things which are visible.

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Now God may frame worlds and galaxies and universes. Our face framing exists on a somewhat less epic level, potentially, but it’s nevertheless still very, very remarkable. We frame products, publication services, ideas, ideologies, revolutionary platforms, endlessly creative inventions, and faith gives definition to these ideas and brings them into focus. That’s really what a frame does. It gives definition to a picture, and when we come, we can have hopes and dreams in our heart.

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But faith actually gives boundaries and definition to those hopes so we can put our hand to work, to see them come to pass. Faith is like the hand that takes the raw material and shapes it into value that previously did not even exist. It resides in the heart and X, and its exercise produces seemingly from nothing, you know, but it’s not really nothing. Faith is a substance were told. Look around you.

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Everything that you see was once no more than an idea, a vision living hidden in someone’s heart. And the entrepreneurial call is one that calls us to venture beyond the world of just hopeful ideas and take some risks, you know, not risks as in gambling. But faithfilled endeavours designed to give definition to the dreams we carry and that we believe will benefit other people. Now, does that guarantee were always going to succeed? I mean, honestly, I wish I could say yes, but even in the tumbling forward, at times, we are growing and learning toward our ultimate winds.

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You have hopes that you carry. Maybe it’s a book that you’re pregnant with. Maybe a new business aimed to aid aid people in their finances. It could be a screenplay or an online service for struggling families. It could be a revolutionary educational toy, a painting or a poem.

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Whatever the scope, the substance of these ideas will come into view when we exercise our faith to make them real in a skin and heart in the game moves a man from merely existing into the joy of fulfilment and flourishing in their chosen field of favour. And faith not only provides the substance for these enterprises and these adventures, it also provides a shield. Were told to carry the shield of faith. Now the reason we need to carry a shield of faith is this is it’s not for the faint hearted.

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Let’s face it, you know, but that shield will protect your heart against whatever resistance you face.

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Once you’ve chosen to step out and take this entrepreneurial journey, you know, the life of faithful preneurship is not weak or easy. Yeah, it’s one that requires full focus in one direction over a period of time and set back your face. Setbacks and bumps in the road. Sometimes even mountains will present themselves mocking your audacious presumption. Failed ventures may even be the very stones that pave your way to ultimate success.

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But do you? One beloved God is faithful and I like Abraham, be fully persuaded that what God has promised. He is also able to perform in our generation carrying Kingdom purpose. We are encouraged to imitate those who, through faith and patience, inherited the promises. Hebrews six verse twelve.

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You carry promises, hopes, dreams and entrepreneurial desires in your heart and faith, playing a key role in your enterprise, closely coupled with its power. Twin patience will take you over. Yeah, success most often takes time. Entrepreneurial success is carried on honest shoulders of character. Stalwart character character is often built through adversity.

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And so this is why I think in the when we begin to move into these realms, patients is so essential. Taken together your ability to envision value and then patiently make it tangible will be life changing. And I just encourage you to allow the Holy Ghost to continue to lead you today toward your God given entrepreneurial goals. Well, thanks for listening. Hopefully, it’s been an encouragement to you today.

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If you want to connect any further, you can do so through my website. DavidLeeMartin.com have a great day.