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All of Christian life on planet earth is a pilgrimage.

Picking up again on Isaac’s journey in Genesis 26, and how it might provide insights for our own entrepreneurial pathway, we’re told that he first heard God speak. In fact, we’re told that God appeared to Isaac.

I suspect that the temptation to “go down to Egypt” was so real to Isaac that God decided to intervene before the patriarch derailed Heaven’s plan for his future prosperity.

“And the LORD appeared unto him, and said, Go not down into Egypt; dwell in the land which I shall tell thee of: Sojourn in this land, and I will be with thee, and will bless thee” (Genesis 26:2–3 KJV)

Several points strike me regarding my own walk of faith in the realm of business and creative contribution…

God said…

God is ready and waiting to speak into the problems we face. Isaac was up against a famine in the land. Prospects looked bleak, and hopelessness had taken hold of many. The world’s ways were calling him to divert and go down…

Hearing God’s voice kept Isaac on track.

We too need to keep our ear tuned to the voice of our King.

Go not down to Egypt…

The seeming rewards of Egypt can be very enticing when the faithful pathways appear challenging. Compromise and marriage to the ways of the world can creep into our thinking and blur our convictions if we are not careful.

Business in God’s Kingdom as His representatives is different from that of the world. The end may be the same in some respects. Profit and growth may be the goal of both worldly-wise man and the faithful-preneur alike, but the avenue to that end will often look very different.

So many sincere saints have overcome the test of adversity with flying colours, only to fall at the test of prosperity, utterly tripped by its glamour.

Just because others do it this way or that way, and just because they get enviable results at times, does not indicate that their means of getting there are acceptable or advisable for God’s pilgrim partners.

Psalm 73 is so telling. Asaph is confused and conflicted by the apparent streamlined success of the ungodly, and his own experience of resistance and contention as he sought to make his way through a hostile world.

But then we read, “Until I went into the sanctuary of God; then understood I their end.” (Psalm 73:17 KJV)

In the sanctuary the perspective changes, sometimes radically. Those things that appear precious, and the measures we rule our lives by, change.

With eternity in view the rewards we seek are no longer temporal trinkets and accolades, and all that we do and create work toward a more fitting and fulfilling end.

Dwell in the land I shall tell thee of…

The land had been given only in Word. Isaac was a nomad, driven into territory occupied by others who did not share His conviction in the one true God.

Essentially God told Isaac to find his rest in faith. Faith in the word and promise of God. Faith in the words God had spoken to Him. Faith in the faithfulness of the One who spoke them.

In the face of circumstances that looked decidedly contrary Isaac was called to see with the eyes of his spirit and dwell in God’s goodness, expressed and internalised through His promises.

God is indeed faithful, and He has words for you to walk in too. His words will be the place of your dwelling. They will carry and protect you through life and carry you to eternal abodes. They work now and forever, for that is their nature.

The promises of the world will pass with its end. The word of God abides forever, and we are called to abide in the Word, and the specific personal words God speaks to us in the sanctuary.

Sojourn…

The root of the word “sojourn” means “to live among people who are not blood relatives” (Harold G. Stigers, TWOT).

With regard to your entrepreneurial journey, you are a sojourner. Whereas many place their confidence and stake their future on temporal success, the faithful-preneur always knows that in this world they are a spiritual tent dweller, merely passing through.

Men may build their cities and empires, but we look for a city whose builder and maker is God. Our foundations and our confidence is not in the markets or even measured by our income, it’s founded in God whether facing famine or plenty.

“For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God.” (Hebrews 11:10 KJV)

This world and its ways are no longer our native land or tongue. The Blood of God has purchased us and brought us fully into His family. The old has gone, the new has come, and that old selfish empire builder was summarily nailed to the tree together with the Saviour.

Certainly, our pilgrimage into the world of entrepreneurship can be a blessed and prosperous one, but our foundation remains in another realm, something we must never forget.

The Bible speaks of the manna-years and the lessons they teach, the most important being to not conclude in your heart, when prosperity arrives, that “my power and the might of mine hand hath gotten me this wealth.” (Deuteronomy 8:17 KJV)

We are stewards, not owners. Sojourners, not settlers.

Business and blessing are means to establish God’s covenant, not just our comfort.

“…remember the LORD thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish his covenant” (Deuteronomy 8:18 KJV)

And I will be with thee, and will bless thee

Blessing comes from His presence.

Prosperity of soul comes from proximity to the King.

Being with God and His being with us is the fundamental blessing from which all others flow.

At every stage of the journey from the first penny to growing great, God’s presence is the one essential.

If we’re ever faced with a stark choice between the world and His Word, His Word must always be the treasure that we choose.

Entrepreneurial and creative life comes with challenges. They change from season to season, and every level has its own devils. Some taunt us to give up, others push us to work harder, want more, and never rest content.

As Jesus said, the road leading to life, real life here and in eternity, is narrow. Staying true to your faithful convictions in all seasons is the challenge every faithful-preneur will face.

The wilderness and famine years

So much of the fanfare around entrepreneurship highlights the glamour and the gold waiting just around the corner. The perpetual carrot chasers run from one opportunity to the next seeking the lushest land. Like Abraham’s nephew, Lot, they ‘pitch their tent toward Sodom’ because that’s where the rewards look most likely.

It’s a telling and frightful story how Lot’s lot in life played out.

Genesis 26 – An Entrepreneurial Journey

Isaac, the son of promise, chose a different path. Following his father’s tent-dwelling pilgrimage.

He stumbles into Genesis chapter 26 – and things look bleak!

Is this not often the case when we begin our dream of creative contribution and financial freedom?

Far from fame and fortune, the land of famine is marked by an abundance of ideas, balanced by an equal absence of an audience or the means with which to reach them.

The chapter begins with the unmistakable words…

“There was a famine in the land.”

No amount of Strong-arming will change the reality – the Hebrew means precisely what it says just as much as the English.

Here’s the man of God, Papa’s chosen, and we find him in the land of famine.

The Lean Land of Learning

It is also a land of learning. Learning to trust God. Learning to speak up when no one’s listening. Putting yourself out in the open while all the world is turning away and heading to Egypt.

Maybe even a time when it seems ridiculous for you to think you can be, do, and make more through your God-given gifts and talents.

The famined land is a hard training ground, but often a key starting point for so many successful creatives. In the land of famine the world shouts seductively with its come-hither call to compromise your convictions and settle for less than the best you know God has prepared for you.

That’s no criticism. The temptation is very real.

Hear or Hustle?

As a Christian creative with a message burning in your bosom do you lay your call aside and just look for a quick buck? A swift way to cash-in on your creativity?

The answer is clear in the next verse of Genesis 26:

“Then the LORD appeared to him and said: “Do not go down to Egypt; live in the land of which I shall tell you.” (Genesis 26:2 NKJV)

Hearing, not hustling.

Leaning your ear close to the heart of God and receiving His direction pointing to your land of promise.

With regard to business, for me, it came several years ago when He told me words were my way forward. Despite having several plates spinning, with variable success, the direction God gave required not just heading in the direction He pointed out, it also meant walking away from those things that did not faithfully fuel that vision.

The temptation to hold on to a number of activities that provided dollars in the coffer, and pounds in the bank, was one I think many people face.

Faith is often just as much about what we let go of, as it is about what we take hold of.

I was challenged to close several doors trusting that the writing and publishing door would open wider as I leaned into it.

Like Isaac, I was faced with a choice.

Do I continue to play in Egypt’s playground and spin busy plates, or do I trust God and believe that He can use my creative seeds to bring a harvest even when the ground looks hard and unyielding.

Here’s the rub…

Creative life takes courage.

The Treasure You Are Seeking

Sometimes outside circumstances look contrary to the vision we carry in our hearts.

Egypt will always peal with voices calling you in every direction other than the one Papa has shown you. Offers and opportunities to bypass the pain of obedience will sing loudly and keep you woefully-hopefully treading in the wrong direction making limited progress.

But the foundation of your entrepreneurial endeavors is not the same as the world. In the world’s ways the end, meaning money, will always justify the means.

In God’s economy, the real riches are found in relation to the One who has promised to give your hand the power to get wealth. Deuteronomy chapter 8 is instructive reading for anyone seeking to bring value to the table, and receive wealth in return.

The key that opens the door is proximity to the God in whom all good things reside, and from whom all good proceeds.

Hearing God’s voice is the treasure you are seeking.

“There is gold, and a multitude of rubies: but the lips of knowledge are a precious jewel.” (Proverbs 20:15 KJV)

What can be more precious than the lips of God speaking wisdom to the heart?

No treasure on earth can compare.

The first lesson in faithful-preneurship…

Hear God!

Until we get that one down we’ll always be running to Egypt.

Only God can satisfy your hunger, even (and especially) in a land of famine.

Too often in business and creative endeavors, we think money, audience, reputation, success in the marketplace, subscribers, connections, or whatsoever-whoso-ever else, will satisfy our craving. But these are just an answer with a small ‘a’. They can come and they can go.

The sanctuary that will truly satisfy in the long-term, the harbor for your heart, is found in hearing God speak. That alone is the one essential. The answer with a capital ‘A’.

A life of hearing obedience is one that will weather every storm and overcome every obstacle successfully. In times of abundance and times of abasement, you’ll know the security that eludes the lovers of Egypt.

You’ll know that in the proving of your character your future prosperity is being incubated.

“Who fed thee in the wilderness with manna, which thy fathers knew not, that he might humble thee, and that he might prove thee, to do thee good at thy latter end;” (Deuteronomy 8:16 KJV)

When we learn to lean in and hear God’s direction, even a land of famine can look like a field ready for sowing!

It’s April first. Some call it April fool’s day.

I’m reminded of the Scripture:

“The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God.” (Psalm 53:1 KJV)

Or the indictment, “Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools” (Romans 1:22 KJV), speaking of those whose “expert” wisdom betrays their feeble understanding of reality.

And such clownish cleverness begins with the most slippery fool of all. His nature and methods have never changed and always begin with the same whispered words…

“Did God really say?” (Genesis 3:1 NLT)

And of course, he doesn’t barge in to obliterate truth at the outset, merely smudge the edges. Only later does he outright contradict. You will not surely die he later asserts, knowing full will you will.

“Did God really say that the world was created in six literal days?”

“Did God really say there is only one way to Heaven?”

“Did God really say the flood covered the whole world in catastrophic judgement?”

“Did God really say do not add or take away from the words of this book?”

“Did God really say if I or even an angel from Heaven preach any other gospel let him be cursed?”

“Did God really say you are personally accountable and will be answerable to Him alone for every action you take and word you speak?”

Or creative adaptations of age old doubt bombs…

“Where is the promise of his coming, nothing has changed for centuries?”

“How can a loving God send people to an eternal hell?”

“You’re a good person, God will not judge you.”

“How can you be so proud as to say that yours is the only way to God.”

“All religions are the same.”

“Truth? What is truth?”

“There is no God!”

There will come a day when the father of fools will go screaming with his followers to a fiery eternal day that will never end.

Don’t be fooled.

The Bible is the true and trustworthy Word of God – 66 books, 39 in the Old Testament, 27 in the New. One book, by many writers, with One supernatural Author. All additions, adaptions and addendums are false.

Jesus is real, the one and only begotten Son of Eternal God – the Saviour of mankind. The unique and only way to God. There is no other name under Heaven by which a man can be saved.

Born of a virgin, slain for the sins of humankind, buried and raised on the third day, He will soon return to judge the earth.

Once overcome with water, the world will next face the fierce fires of God’s wrath – The loving God who sent His only Son, becoming flesh and blood Himself to save His beloved mankind, is also holy and bound by His own spotless character to judge rebellion and sin. No one is exempt.

God’s love is reaching out to you today in the person of Jesus Christ. Be reconciled to Him today. Repent, turn from your sins, and believe the good news.

In the words of Jim Elliott:

“He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.”

Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

All else will fade but His words will never pass away.

To know Him is eternal life.

Here are some soundbite lessons from the last 365. What are yours? Share them in the comments…

1. Consistency is key to creative production…

Consistency is one of the fruits of patience at work in our spirit. Consistent pressure and action in one direction over time is powerful.

2. Persistence not perspiration is the route to prolific creation…

A small amount each day patiently and persistently produced leads to a remarkable body of work, far more than spurts of sweaty production crammed into short windows of ‘inspiration’.

3. Inspiration lives in you ready to tap at any time …

Jesus said rivers of living water will spring from your inner man. Tapping the flow is skill you learn by letting down your bucket into your heart well daily.

4. Sometimes the greatest blessings come when you don’t get what you think you wanted…

The divine hand leads us into experiences with Him that are driven by the hunger of the heart, and sometimes its the disappointments that remind us not to attach our joy to external outcomes.

5. Don’t be moved by metrics, make stuff anyways …

Number counting can discourage you from continuing. Your work is worthy of the world, even if right now the world doesn’t realise it. Keep creating because you never know when the key will turn in the door and the tipping point will come.

6. You find your voice by using it …

Don’t wait for perfection, lay your value on the table in all its imperfection. You will begin to hear your own voice singing through the noise and your communication will grow in clarity as you keep singing the song the Lord has placed in your spirit.

7. Prayer is the greatest service we can ever offer humanity…

Secret prayer seen only by the Father is the greatest service we ever offer, and the most richly rewarded.

8. Comparison and competition are an absolute diversion from your destiny.

God’s plans and pathway for your prosperity (and by that I mean far more than mere money) are perfectly and personally designed for your feet alone. There is no comparison possible to the joy you’ll discover when you step into His loving purposes.

9. Shut out the noise if you want to be present and walk in step with the presence of God.

Listen to me. The feeds you devour are designed to hook your jaw and reel you in to take actions conceived by someone else. Whether its to accept a thought, take a position, or press buy now, there is almost always an agenda. You will find a great freedom to choose when you close out the plethora of ‘choices’ the world wants to present you with and decide instead to focus on just one or but a few things of importance.

10. There is power and safety in community.

In the multitude of counsellors there is safety. That’s how the Bible describes a chosen community of trusted friends and advisors to walk the journey with you. Being part of something bigger than yourself empowers you to engage at a higher level. The people you engage with offer opportunities to see yourself in the mirror of their genius and insight, and to do the same for them in return.

11. Creating and consumption in balance (weighted well toward creation) is the pathway to progress.

It’s easy to think that reading, watching, or listening to someone teach a subject constitutes “taking action” but the act of consumption is not an action until it is applied. When the rubber meets the road traction happens and forward motion becomes not just possible but inevitable.

12. The best business to be in is the business of being yourself.

It’s not as simple as the sales pages spout, but it is absolutely possible to press through and discover what it looks like for you to turn up fully as yourself. You are not called to impress anyone, and your secret power is alive within you right now. In partnership with your Maker you will discover layer by layer just how magnificent His workmanship really is!

And one that goes without saying or explanation…

Jesus first – everything else follows!

As one year ends and another opens, a natural junction for reflection (looking back) presents itself. How have the last 365 stacked up? What moves have you made toward fulfilling your creative call in Christ?

The closing days also encourage a forthright future view. Looking forward.

The danger is that we’ll stand at the junction with regret for what’s gone, or pining for what once was, or stretching our view to some future hope with wistful longing, and lose ourselves in the in-between.

The past is there to inform your present. The future will be populated with ideas and actions you choose to take right now.

The present moment is the best present Heaven has given you. Now, this very moment, is the time you begin to build your future legacy.

What decisions will you make today fuelled by the lessons you have learned in the last 365, and spill with growing wisdom to tomorrow and the 364 that follow?

Here are some joyous signposts by the side of the road:

“We are assured and know that [God being a partner in their labor] all things work together and are [fitting into a plan] for good to and for those who love God and are called according to [His] design and purpose.” (Romans 8:28 AMP)

“For we are God’s [own] handiwork (His workmanship), recreated in Christ Jesus, [born anew] that we may do those good works which God predestined (planned beforehand) for us [taking paths which He prepared ahead of time], that we should walk in them [living the good life which He prearranged and made ready for us to live].” (Ephesians 2:10 AMP)

This doesn’t mean the path will be easy. Or that all your cherished hopes will miraculously fall into painless place. It doesn’t mean there won’t be challenges, but you are fitted to fight the battle and overcome. It means you’re formed to fill your place and stake your claim.

No devil can stop you. And if God be for you (which He is) who can stand against you.

God is a partner in your labour, and your obedient steps today will plant seeds that will bless generations to come.