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On those days when you don’t know what to say.

Listen.

On those days when you don’t know how to pray.

Listen.

On those days when all seems like it’s gone astray.

Listen.

On those days when your heart feels betrayed.

Listen.

On those days…

Listen.

God is speaking.

“Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness. Incline your ear, and come unto me: hear, and your soul shall live” (Isaiah 55:2–3 KJV)

“I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye.” (Psalm 32:8 KJV)

In my Creator’s Highway program, a deep dive course designed to unlock and exercise your faith-driven creativity, I introduce a framework I call the ‘5 Smooth Stones’.

These stones slay giants.

Giants like procrastination, perfectionism, insecurity, a sense of inadequacy or fear of failure.

Two of those Goliath smashing principles are Education and Application.

Both are essential to your creative and spiritual growth, but if I were to lean toward one it would have to be application.

Because it’s not what we know that matters, it’s what we do with what we know that makes the difference.

Application transforms mere knowledge into actions that unlock the potential for transformation.

As James so eloquently stated, “Be a doer of the Word” for in doing so we recognise and remember our true identity!

Read James chapter 1 for a feast of Holy Ghost insight.

Education is just as important, because knowledge is the raw material that later becomes wisdom and skill.

So, in this showdown between Education and Application there is no winner, both are required to grow in your creative and spiritual life, but they must always be a tag team.

Education tags application who does what is taught, taking it as far as it will go, then swings back round to find out and be informed and educated in the next steps.

This, friend, is the process that will keep you moving forward on what I call the Creator’s Highway. Learn and then lean in to apply what you now know.

Here’s a Holy Ghost directive for you:

“Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.” (Philippians 2:12–13 KJV)

Work out what God is working in.

In the doing, you’ll discover your true calling.

In any equation, you must make sure you have all the factors before you land an answer.

In my creative life, some factors either compete or complement one another.

Factors also change with the seasons of life.

Two factors that will play out are COMPETENCE and CAPACITY.

As a younger man, I was far less competent. But my energy levels and ambition were high. This affected the balance of my creative approach and output. What I lacked in wisdom, I made up for in zeal.

Now, as I approach my 54th birthday, my competence in my chosen creative disciplines is higher but my capacity (by that I mean energy level) is diminished.

I have to choose my battles more carefully.

Instead of doing everything and being everywhere, I have to choose where and how I show up. Wisdom shapes my decisions because I simply do not have the same battery life I once enjoyed.

As I go forward, I’m finding a more focussed approach, careful alignment of my heart with what I put my hand to, and a thankful acceptance that I have limitations, actually improves my output.

Instead of shooting in every direction I take aim and choose my targets with far more precision. Whereas I was once a shoot-first-aim-after action taker, I am now more considerate of my energy levels and where I pour my attention.

As with most things, I wish I could go back and inform my younger self.

• Consider where you focus your energy carefully.
• Focus on those projects and outcomes that align directly with your spirit.
• Don’t let vanity inform your actions.
• Provide genuine value and let money chase you; don’t chase money.
• Find your people and serve them well.
• Wear blinkers and don’t compare your journey with others.
• Do something every day that will bring value to someone else.
• Don’t be afraid to charge where it is appropriate.
• Conserve your energy for things that really matter.
• Don’t bleed your attention on things in which you have no agency.

The list goes on.

What would you tell your younger self?

I’d spent weeks preparing the material for my newest course. Six modules, multiple bonuses, exceptional content. Following a previous homerun, I was stoked with anticipation of another fat payday and a deluge of new customers.

Affiliates were lined up, and the sun was shining. Happy days.

Hours later, I’d sold one copy.

One!

And guess who bought it?

It was my test purchase to check if the buy button was working.

I was too proud to refund myself, which would have been the crowing humiliation!

That day, I could have quit.

Or the time my Bible School website was hacked and suddenly became a portal for Bollywood movies and Viagra. That was a disappointing day.

How about accidentally checking the wrong button inside my WordPress site, which sat for years on page one of Google for the search term “Jesus Christ” only to be left wondering why it fell from the rankings like a hot stone. As I discovered later, the button I checked said, “Hide this site from search engines” and it did exactly what it says on the tin.

I never recovered that coveted ranking.

I have paid my “dumb tax dues” more times than I care to mention.

But, and this is important…

I didn’t stop.

I’ve published many books that have sold fewer copies than I have fingers.

I’ve ransacked relationships because I was too darn insecure.

I’ve poured multiple thousands of dollars into projects that were ill-conceived and ill-fitting.

I’ve made silly decisions that have damaged my reputation. I still carry the consequences.

I struggle with envy and the feeling that I’m missing something. “What’s wrong with me?” is a mantra I’ve repeated over and over.

Even though I know better, I fall into the comparison trap.

I get tired. I feel weary some days.

I ask “Why?” “Why not?” “Why me?” or “Why not me?” way too often.

But, and this is important…

I refuse to stop, even when I don’t like myself.

Because even if I am faithless, He remains faithful.

“If we are faithless, he remains faithful — for he cannot deny himself.” (2 Timothy 2:13 ESV)

In other words, if I screw up, He’s there to catch me.

If disappointment drives me down, He’s there to lift me up.

Even when I wanted to throw in the towel, He didn’t stop.

Even when, like Gideon, I implored Him that I was the least among the least of worthless beasts, He never once agreed.

I’m glad he didn’t leave me cowering in the winepress.

He never gives up!

He never backs off.

“And I am convinced and sure of this very thing, that He Who began a good work in you will continue until the day of Jesus Christ [right up to the time of His return], developing [that good work] and perfecting and bringing it to full completion in you.” (Philippians 1:6 AMP)

JESUS is the King of my heart.

What a faithful God we serve.

My failures pale in the light of His enduring love.

There is strength, always and every day, in His presence.

No failure too big. No screw up beyond redemption. No disappointment large enough to smother His love.

Yes, dear friend, don’t give up.

God goes before you, He has your back, and you are hemmed in on every side by His goodness.

There’s a tendency among humans to complicate things that are designed to be simple.

Prayer is a perfect example.

Instead of a joyful, faith-filled conversation – one where both parties are speaking and listening – some have turned the closet into a circus of rituals and routines that leave God standing outside the door.

He doesn’t need you to perform spiritual gymnastics to court His favour.

He just needs you to turn up.

No facade, no fawning, no fear – just good plain faith that He is who He says He is, and that He’ll do what He says He’ll do.

“But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” (Hebrews 11:6 KJV)

Not a hundred hail marys, a panful of penance, or a charismatic rain dance in sight.

Just “believe that He is”.

And a good dose of expectation.

God loves His kids and holds nothing back from those who seek Him.