podcast

Staying on course during troublesome times is not always easy. You may feel that your voice is lost in the noise. But don’t quit speaking, don’t stop declaring. Most folks lurk in the shadows, listening for a note of hope, never daring to show their personality above the parapet.

It is only when another bold soul steps onto the field that courage rises.

---

00:00:00.000]
I want to talk today about why your presence is paramount for others to progress, why its so important that you turn up in the world in an authentic, confident, honest and forthright manner. Now we don’t live in a vacuum, though. The world is here swirling all around us, looking for direction and we have a choice. Really. We can join in the confusion.

00:00:34.520]
We can get caught up in the maelstrom or we can choose to stand up, stand out and make a Mark, staying on course, you’re in trouble times. And Jesus so clearly said, Man, you’re gonna have some trouble. You know, in this world you’re going to face some challenges, you’re going to face some mountains, you’re going to experience trouble but rejoice and be happy because I have overcome the world. You know, you may feel that your voice is lost in the noise, but I just urge you, don’t quit speaking.

00:01:12.450]
Don’t stop declaring.

00:01:14.980]
Lot of people lurk in the shadows, listening for a note of hope. They’re just listening for some hope, never daring to show their own personality above the parapet before they see someone else stand up and step out, someone else like them, someone else that they feel they understand and who would understand them. Sometimes when we look at the glitter of the world around us, it’s these bigger than life personalities that are the ones who are paraded as those that we should aspire to. But often the inspiration doesn’t come from the kind of those big, big out of this world personalities on the ground.

00:02:08.560]
Inspiration for ordinary people comes from ordinary people who have chosen to do the extraordinary thing and actually step up and seek to make a difference.

00:02:22.040]
And so you stepping out gives permission to others to step out themselves. And like, of course, the world is always kind of swaggering around like some overweight Goliath. Yeah, saying, okay, you can go this far, but no further, you know, will be allowed a little bit of rope. But as soon as we begin to step over that line of what is generally accepted or generally tolerated, it’s going to begin. The world is going to begin pushing back and really saying, look, who are you to make a difference?

00:03:03.540]
Who do you presume yourself to be, that you would stand up and start a podcast or begin to share your views and share your worth and share your ideas on YouTube? Or who in the world do you think you are to write a book or create a blog? And oftentimes that intimidation that we feel from others who get nervous because we are no longer accepting the status quo can back us back into our box. I just like one of I want to blow the box apart. Renegade voices are always going to be someone’s going to try and silence them by criticism by pointing fingers, whatever it may be.

00:03:54.400]
But we’ve got to be willing to stand in the face of that fear and anxiety of what others might think and say, man, I am ready to be counted. And what I say counts just Pierce that shroud of political correctness and just bring some real meat to the table for people to enjoy and engage with promise you your presence is requested. Your presence is requested. The King has sent out invitations to this meal where we sit in the presence even of our enemies and rejoice in the goodness of God and celebrate the gift that He’s given us by actually using them.

00:04:47.120]
I read the other day.

00:04:48.760]
You know, God’s gift to us are the talents that he puts in our in our hand. And our gift back to Him is when we use them. And when we put them to use on behalf of other people. And, you know, the thing is as creatives were called to count and to kick against grey. Yeah.

00:05:11.260]
Kick against a whatever colour you want to call it, if it’s kind of on, if it’s a non colour. Yeah, that’s what we’re called to kick against. Something simply are black and white, night and day. Yes and no. And sometimes those are the things that you need to say, not for political reasons, not for Fame or fortune, but for the future of the ones who’ll hear your voice.

00:05:37.500]
People are looking for leaders. Yeah. People are looking for those who are willing to kind of step beyond what is deemed acceptable. And of course, Lee, you’ve got to understand and hear what I’m saying here. I’m not telling you to be rude.

00:05:54.680]
I’m not telling you to put things out there that I just flat out offensive. But really, I guess what I’m trying to say is oftentimes when we begin to step out in our chosen field of favour in our chosen field and we begin to get that confident ring in our voice. It makes other people who long to do similar things nervous. And there can be a pushback, you know, and we’ve got to move through that sense of embarrassment, move through that sense of anxiety, move through that intimidation that sometimes our spirit might feel and continue to create, continue to serve and continue to bring value to the table that others can partake of an emboldened by your decision to stand up and stand out and say, what’s in your heart you others will begin to squirm free of that grip from the intimidation of the world and the devil wants to put on them.

00:07:08.040]
Those slimy fingers will lose their hold.

00:07:11.320]
And Kingdom voices are going to rise up in Synchrony, you know, shaping a new way of seeing the world, bringing a new perspective, a Kingdom perspective, like outside of the madness of this world in its present, like just crazy confused state. There’s going to be this Orchestra of voices, Kingdom voices in every sector of society, creative voices, bringing solutions and bringing perspectives that are much higher coming from a higher place. Like god said, My thoughts are higher. My thoughts are way above and we can come in and we can through the Holy Spirit, have many of those thoughts and ideas revealed to our heart so we can bring something new and fresh and vibrant into this kind of confusion and darkness.

00:08:11.480]
I truly believe that I believe that God is raising up Kingdom, entrepreneurs, Kingdom, men and women in the realms of business.

00:08:20.400]
Kingdom, artists, actors, voices, Kingdom, singers, musicians, Kingdom, painters, Kingdom, whatever you name an area of communication. You name any realm where where value is being exchanged and communicated. Jesus has his people whom he will plan and raise up in those areas to bring great things to the world. And now we’ve really got to learn what I call the vicious art of authenticity. Vicious and that word vicious.

00:09:03.200]
It may sound a little kind of out of place there, but vicious to the sensibilities of those who would silence your service to the world. You know, these things are like, like an attack on their ears, an attack on their eyes when they see someone stepping out of the grey box that the world wants to push us into, where our creativity has been squeezed see from us through years of conformity. And we begin to step out of that. And then it just like, aggressively irritates that worldly spirit that wants to conform people to its own way of thinking and doing and being.

00:09:49.460]
But as we know, the Scriptures tell us, do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed, be transformed and more than transform others.

00:10:03.040]
Your work, your words, whatever you bring is transformative in nature when it flows from a heart sanctified to the Kingdom purpose. Get real, real good at the art of being real, living openly and vulnerably on the pages of history, a history that only you can write. You know, your living words, populate the pages of each day with every breath you take, and your generosity feeds the hearts of more people than you’ll ever know. Like I say, many people just lurk in the shadows, afraid to actually step out and make their voice known.

00:10:48.260]
Don’t be one of those people.

00:10:49.790]
Be someone who gives permission, Like when others look at you and they see that you have said yes to yourself. That could be the very permission car that they need to step out of the storm and begin to speak themselves. You know this, my brother, my sister is a Symphony. This is a Symphony. A Kingdom Symphony that we’re playing together, bringing the word and the word and the wonder of God’s creative being and creative character to the world.

00:11:27.720]
Yeah. And you are an instrument in the hand of the maker himself. So go make something today, say something, seeing something and let your genuine be heard. Well, thanks for listening. Hopefully, it’s been an encouragement to you today.

00:11:44.860]
If you want to connect any further you can do so through my website. DavidLeeMartin.Com have a great day.

Even the Joseph in the pit, Daniel with the lions, and three boys in the fire moments, are prime times for the fourth Man to step into the fray and lift you to places you never before imagined possible.

---

00:00:01.060]
Well, I’m excited to be back in the saddle here on the podcast again, it’s been a little longer than I anticipated. I have actually moved house three times in the past several weeks, moved my family, moved my daughter to a new job that she’s taken on with Burnham Row Ballet, and moved my son to a new place up in London, where he’s studying his third year in drama school. So having done three moves, I’m ready to kind of just settle in for a short while. And of course, me and my family.

00:00:37.620]
And so here we are in our new property.

00:00:41.280]
I’ve set up my office and I’m finally getting back into a bit of a rhythm. But it made me think about what happens when we do fall off the horse, proverb the proverbial horse, or when all of those well intentioned and passionate pronouncement of how we believe things are going to be go belly up. Like, our recent move was completely unexpected and came totally out of the blue. We were renting a property here in the UK, and the owners of the house decided that they wanted to move back in in time for their daughter to start at a school that was local to us.

00:01:24.760]
And so our entire summer was thrown into an unexpected disarray.

00:01:31.480]
So what happens when things like this crop up? What happens when unexpected occurrences, unexpected circumstances, just throw your rhythm and perhaps even lead you to a place of despondency or disappointment, where things don’t just work out the way that you’d hoped maybe they would. And really, in these kind of situations, there are two options. We can stay in the dust and spend our days eating dirt. Or, of course, we can stand up, brush ourselves down and take another step.

00:02:10.620]
And, you know, even when the breezes of disappointment sting as we take that step, another step, really, honestly, is the only and the best way forward. You know, because life isn’t linear. Life is not just kind of cupcakes on a plate, you know, where we just breeze through without challenges that we are privileged to be allowed to overcome. You know, we don’t see the beginning from the end. And sometimes the lurches that life take seem like diversions.

00:02:47.390]
And, you know, we can feel quite befuddled. They can challenge our reasoning. But history shows that even the Joseph in the Pit, Daniel with the Lions and the three guys in the fire moments prime times for the fourth man, Jesus to step into the fray and lift us to places that we never imagined possible. I know, certainly, for me, one of the phrases that I coined in my recent book, Faithful Creative, was two thirds of your wow is how and that’s so true sometimes, isn’t it the the way that we are thrust into situations where we have to discover solutions that previously we would never have had to before can sometimes be the very thing that is that pivotal moment that brings us into destiny.

00:03:49.180]
And so, you know, and of course, it’s easy to say that when we’re out of the lion’s den or when we’re finally sat on the throne of Egypt.

00:03:59.360]
But these men, you know, Joseph, Daniel, and many others in the scriptures, they had to walk through things that were stingingly difficult and due in that journey to their outcome. They did not necessarily know that they were going to come out of the other side of these circumstances. Unscathed. It made me think as well of Mary, the mother of Jesus. She accepted this high call to carry God’s Son, but really not with stars in her eyes.

00:04:37.780]
She fully understood that she may well be branded a loose lady. She may end up single like she may even lose the unsay. And yet she accepts, walked in, embraced and carried that call, even though she knew that there was going to be difficulty involved in the process. You know, the scriptures even talk about her, how her heart would be pierced. She was warned and yet still embraced the journey.

00:05:11.520]
And I believe that we need to do the same whatever creative journey you’re on, whatever journey you are to discover your worth and share it with the world. There are going to be some challenges that stand in your way sometimes. And so we don’t want to look with rose tinted glasses. And we don’t want to even look at the pioneering fathers and mothers that have gone before us and just see the peaks. We need to understand that sometimes the Valley is the place that we learn some of the richest lessons.

00:05:47.400]
I don’t want to speak this into existence, but there will be days when you will be singing and rejoicing in the overt goodness of God, whooping it up and declaring how great God is and how faithfully is, and just celebrating the manifest goodness of Jesus Christ in your life and all that the gospel has brought to your life and all that is now yours as a result of His sacrifice and as a result of the leading of His Holy Spirit in whatever realm of life you are operating in and on and again.

00:06:32.820]
I don’t want to speak this into being, but I’m just going to be very real with you there be other days when you’ll feel like you are being dragged through the dirt and may well feel like giving up. I just want to say one thing. Don’t give up, don’t give up, don’t give up.

00:06:54.020]
As I was raised as a word of face man, you know, and it chokes me to even say that there will be days where you feel like giving up, but they are bound to come. But don’t worry about them. You know, it certainly irks me that I can’t sustain this life of living on the peaks. But as I say, I’ve got to admit, I’ve learned just as much, if not more in the valleys. And looking back in my history, I would not trade those valleys for anything I’m reminded of Joseph Lee mentioned him earlier.

00:07:34.780]
His brothers, Lee, stood before him. Joseph was second in charge over Egypt. I mean, this dude was heavy duty, and his brothers are terrified for their lives. But Joseph, in retrospect, looks back and says everything that has happened to me happened for my good and the good of all of these people that I’ve been able to sustain and to save. And that included the very ones that he threw him into the pits.

00:08:10.940]
You know, whatever you’re facing, whatever circumstances are standing before you right now, you know, sometimes, and I hope that they’re good. I hope that you’re doing well. I hope that you are prospering and abounding to every in every way into every good work. But even if you feel as though you’re in the depths right now, you know, sometimes the depths where we learn to dig the deepest and we discover God in ways that would would never have chosen to explore if we’ve not actually been, I say led there more like forced.

00:08:49.420]
There a lot of the time, you know, those are things that I’ve gone through that I would not have chosen, not in a million years.

00:08:57.820]
And yet, as I look back, I can say with Joseph, Joseph, God used that to bring me to the place that I am today. You know, whatever test you face, your King is able whatever the day brings, he is with you to carry you through to ultimate victory. You know, you may not see the end of Fulfilment the Celestia. It somewhere over the brow of the Hill, or maybe even over a mountain range, it seems. But he does.

00:09:32.320]
He knows the end from your begin. He knows your end from your beginning and bless God. He has purpose and plans to prosper you to give you a hope and to give you a future. I encourage you as I jump back in and begin to just share my heart and share my thoughts here on the podcast and on my blog. To Lee, courage, fill your heart today, take your next courageous step.

00:10:02.660]
I promise you Jesus is faithful and he will not let you down. I’d also love to encourage you to cheque out my new book. I just wrote a book called Faithful Creation. If you jump over a jump on your web in your browser and just drop in faithful Creative Book dot. Com and you can cheque that out.

00:10:29.940]
It’s selling at just $4.99 at this moment in time. That may change and you’ll get the digital book plus a whole host of other cool stuff as well. Just a book that is designed to encourage you in your creative work and your creative work, especially if you are a follower and a believer in Jesus. Hey, God bless you. Jump over Faithful Creative Book.

00:11:00.460]
Com cheque that out and I look forward to seeing you again tomorrow. It’s been an encouragement to you today. If you want to connect any further, you can do so through my website. DavidLeeMartin.Com have a great day.

Season One – 136 episodes from a standing start – some lessons I have learned along the way. I’m taking an active sabbatical to move house among other things, and will be back with season 2 in September.

---

00:00:02.830]
Well, praise the Lord Jesus Christ for his amazing goodness, all I can say is Jesus first. Everything else follows all the way 100 percent of the time, 365 days a year, 366 on a leap year. Jesus is the king. And here I am on my one hundred and thirty six podcast. And I’m just coming in here to say that this podcast will wrap up season one of my podcasting, my stellar podcasting career so far. I just I’m going to wrap things up for season one with this episode.

00:00:55.360]
My Family, A Moving House, my two older children are moving into new accommodations for their university drama. My sons are in drama school. My daughter starts a new job with the Royal Ballet in August. So we’ve got a lot of things happening in our home right now. And I know that I just need to focus on helping my children. We got one of our younger ones is also moving on up to a new school, so to his secondary school.

00:01:30.130]
So I just really want to be present here as a father and as a husband and also just to you know, sometimes punctuating this is I believe why is certainly one of the reasons why God instituted the concept and the principle of Sabbath. So we punctuate our lives with seasons where we are not just putting out, but we’re allowing him to speak into us. You know, it’s no good if we’re just breathing out all the time. You would soon turn blue and keel over on the floor.

00:02:09.700]
Sometimes we have to just breathe in and that should be something that we do every day in prayer and in our fellowship with the Lord. But I also believe that there are kind of times where we more intentionally punctuate. Yeah. And give ourselves some space to not feel so pressured to give ourselves space so we can think and breathe and hear more clearly. Sometimes in a lot of activity, we can kind of stir the waters so much with all of our business that they become cloudy.

00:02:47.410]
Yeah, sometimes we have to just allow a few days or even a few weeks for let the dust settle and let the waters become clearer again so we can see more clearly the way forward and the next steps at the Holy Ghost would have us take. And so that’s what we’re going to be doing. It’s going to be quite an active sabbatical, if you like, as I say, are moving two of my older kids into new homes. I’m moving to a new house.

00:03:15.430]
So there’s a lot happening. And I guess that that’s one of the reasons and also because I want to focus on kind of the next stage of my creative journey. We’re working with the Christian Creative Academy to develop something called the Creator’s Highway, which is a year long program to help people discover their awesome, discover their worth, and then help them and show them ways in which they can then share that with the world. So it’s. Yeah, and just really to discover themselves and then discover ways in which they can put themselves out there to bring value to other people.

00:03:56.950]
So I’m I’ll be continuing to create content for that in preparation for opening the doors wide in September. But we just want to I just really want to say how much I appreciate anyone who is being listening. Anyone who’s interacted engaged with got in contact with me over this season. And season one will be rapping today. And I feel confident that I have delivered value. I feel confident that I’ve shared my heart in a in an honest and an open way.

00:04:33.940]
And I hope it’s been helpful to you. Certainly, there are a couple of things before I wrap up that I’d love to share, just things that I’ve discovered in the making of this podcast and some of the other things that I’ve been doing over these past months. And I think that they’ll be relevant and helpful to you, number one. Yeah, it’s very easy to get caught in the thought and the idea that you have. To do a lot of complicated things before you begin and despite being like a prolific creative, despite putting myself out there again and again and again and jumping into the ring, even though I’ve been knocked over a few times, you know, you could get the impression that, you know, I am like this kind of bravado to just start moving.

00:05:26.440]
I’ll be honest with you. There are certain things and this is as true for anyone when we start something new, there’s a level of kind of anxiety that sometimes comes with that. Now, podcasting was one of those things for me. And I was thinking, you know, I’ve got to have all of the little jingle at the beginning and the jingle at the end. And I’ve got to have all sorts of kind of some kind of very special structure for the show, etcetera, etcetera, etcetera.

00:05:55.290]
And, you know, and then I’ve got to know how to sign up to Apple podcasts and this podcast and this platform and that platform, etc., etc., etc.. Now, I’ve got to have this mike and de de de de de de da da da da da. On and on it goes. And we pile up the reasons why we can’t get started and say, in the end, I just chose a kind of funky little bit of music for the beginning.

00:06:17.190]
And at the end, just like some kind of like just another piece of music, like copyright free music and just said, hey, jump over to my website at Davidleemartin.com. Now, I’m sure I could utilise that more powerfully and probably will in time to come, but the problem was that I probably will in time to come. Was the thing that was stopping me getting started. You are much better off steering a moving vehicle than waiting until you feel as though everything is in place and everything is stacked up perfectly before you do that, because the problem is most of the time you won’t even begin once you begin.

00:07:03.000]
And this is the second point I want to make. So the first point is, hey, just do it. Just do it, however imperfectly it may be because once you begin doing it, you’ll then know the real questions to ask and you’ll understand that the changes that are necessary for you to make while we allow things to just remain in the realm of ideas and imagination, you know, we really don’t know until we’re actually on the ground and in the trenches what is what really matters in any creative project.

00:07:40.360]
So just get started. Secondly, what I found is you and I say you, because I’m just speaking of my own experience here. But I know that most of us are like the rest of us. You have a much greater capacity than you believe you have. You have a much greater capacity that will be drawn upon when you step out. And it’s almost like you’ve got to step out before you see the miracle take place. And it’s not going to happen as some times were like sat there waiting and thinking, well, when God does this, then I will.

00:08:21.780]
Or when this happens, then I can. But really, sometimes it’s like you got to turn that the other way round and make the move. And I know certainly in the scriptures it says seek first the kingdom. Yeah, seek God, draw near to God. And he and he will then draw near to you. There’s a there’s a there’s a place where when we begin to move, it activates things and gives permission, if you like, for something to take place.

00:08:55.650]
When we move, he moves. And so and I found that in doing so you’ll be amazed at your capacity. As I say, since beginning this season, I’ve done a hundred and thirty six episodes, daily episodes, five days a week without fail. And that to me just seemed so incredibly impossible previously. Not only that, each episode has been based on a piece of writing that I either had in my hand already that I’d already written. But most of them have actually also sprung from daily blogs and daily writing that I’ve done, daily thoughts that I’ve had and recorded and shared with the world.

00:09:45.150]
And so I was writing every day, producing a podcast every day, and at the same time doing all of the other elements of my publishing business, developing the Christian Creative Academy, building out that content, writing books I’ve published. And now. Number of books during the in this season as well. So I just want to say to you, you know, you will not know your capacity until you give it the opportunity to be tested and to be called upon.

00:10:16.540]
And you will be surprised when you do that, just how capable you are and just how resourceful you can be to make it happen. So I encourage you to get started. Don’t underestimate your ability. Don’t underestimate what you can do if you’ll only give yourself the opportunity to be stretched and to grow and to affect change out there in the world. And so with that, I’m going to wrap up season one. I’m going to be returning into the podcasting cockpit in September.

00:10:55.060]
And I just want to just pray for you as as I kind of close here, Father, I just want to thank you for your incredible goodness towards us. I want to thank you for the creative coalition and anointing on the people listening to my voice. I just declare God that those creative gift things that you have planted will be unlocked within them and that we will see incredible fruit, lord four for every seed that they sew, for every step that they take.

00:11:26.890]
I pray, God, that your favour and your blessing would be upon it and it would open doors and unlock potential. Father, we just declare and thank you for all of the possibilities that you have placed in our hand for the opportunities that you’ve given each one of us. I pray, Father, for the stirring of the waters, the stirring of the Lord, that people would be provoked and propelled to begin making things and putting their value out into the world.

00:11:58.000]
Lord, I just declare, Lord, that according to your word, just as you say in your word, we are made in your image, made to be makers. I thank you, God, that your creative anointing rests upon each person and that God you’re going to use them to extend your kingdom and bless and benefit many, many people. I look forward to seeing you in September. God bless you. And thanks again for listening. Well, thanks for listening.

00:12:24.400]
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.

You are called to compete, in the best and most noble sense of the word, not compare. Comparisons are fruitless. Compete with yourself each day. Look for ways to improve your serve.

A Powerful Serve

---

00:00:02.750]
The most prestigious and popular tennis tournament in the world just drew to a conclusion that Wimbledon, tennis, my family and I lived in London literally just up the road from a Wimbledon lawn tennis club for 11 years. And it really was quite an amazing time of year every time that the tournament took place. Now, you know, I’m no big kind of sports sporty type person, but the buzz in the area when this tournament was on each year was incredible.

00:00:41.780]
And actually where we lived, even though the tennis courts were a good walk away and probably a 10 minute walk away, we could hear the uproar and the cheers as we sat in our back garden when the tennis was taking place. And it really was it was so exciting to hear and to and thrilling to watch. And our entire area would come alive for the weeks of the Wimbledon tournament. Yeah. Now, hundreds of thousands of people arriving on our doorstep and just so excited to be there and so excited to be a part of this whole event.

00:01:22.700]
You know, and despite all of the covid stuff that has been happening, like the Wimbledon did not happen in 2020, but by God’s grace, it was able to happen this year. And it was just so exciting to see Djokovic come through and make history like he did. But one of the things that defines many of these elite athletes in tennis is how powerful and accurate this is. And the same is true. I know it’s a, you know, a powerful, accurate serve.

00:02:02.810]
And I was thinking about this this morning and I thought, wow, the same is true in the creative business that we are part of. And I got to thinking, how strong is your sense of how well this how well do you know your target market? How well defined and accurate is your service to them? Do you understand the pains that they’re experiencing with regard to the solutions that you are offering? Do you know the joy that they are seeking and that they’ve set before them and and the ways in which are you improving all at all at the time?

00:02:43.770]
Are you improving the ways in which you can help them fulfil their joy at creative life, especially when we’re talking about vocational Christian entrepreneurship and artistry? And by vocational, I mean called to the marketplace. I don’t just mean the stuff you do and fill your time with every day, but a sense of mission, a sense of calling, a sense of like the reason for being here is that that is the life of service that we’ve been called to as a Christian artist, author, entrepreneur, someone who’s bringing personal value to the world’s table.

00:03:26.630]
What you offer is more than just a commodity. Commodities compete on cost alone, but you bring something priceless into the arena, something that places you in a company of one. Yeah, you you, you, you bring yourself to the table in the same way as these remarkable men and women. Yeah. On the on the Wimbledon courts, in the same way that this has been honed through practise, you hone your serve and you improve your service through practise, putting yourself out there and helping other people.

00:04:07.640]
I encourage you to do that. Don’t just, you know, prove that you can help people by helping them. Don’t just speak about how strong your serve is. Step into the arena and take some swings, you know, and as you do that, you’ll improve your game and you will inevitably improve your impact and your income as you do. So it’s really the only way to play. And you’ve got to understand that we are in a game.

00:04:36.440]
You know, there has to be joy in the pursuit. I mean, doubtless my own daughter was an elite gymnast. Yeah, I know how hard they work. I know that the hours and the sweat and the tears that went in to her in into her elite gym gymnastic. And now in Bali and, you know, it’s but there is a joy that said before them, there is some some sense of purpose bigger than themselves that’s at work in them that prompts them and propels them through the necessary discipline and the pain and challenges that they face in order to hold that cup in their hand.

00:05:30.140]
And as you do that, you know, this is this is the same game that we play as Christian businessmen, businesswomen, Christian artists, Christian authors, entrepreneurs. We are called to compete in the best and the most noble sense of the word compete, not compare. Comparisons are completely fruitless. And competing in the most noble sense of the word is to compete with yourself, compete with yourself, look for ways to improve your serve. And not only that, I love Hebrews 10, verse 24 encourages us to encourage each other, spurring one another on to love and good works.

00:06:18.740]
You know, part of the game is working with others. Part of the game is helping others. Part of the game is inspiring and spurring others to become their very best selves. As they find their stride, as they practice their swing, it’s to cheer them on. I especially love the message translation. It reads like this. Let’s see how inventive we can be in encouraging one another. Let’s let’s become inventive and see how inventive we can be in this art of encouragement.

00:06:59.690]
What better way to exercise your creativity than inventing ways to spur your brothers and sisters to excel in their commitment to change the world. And I promise you, as you do, that you will be changing the world for that person and for everyone else they reach and obviously direct from you to your community. Don’t hold back. Just keep practising your serve. The biggest game you’ll ever play, the biggest grand slam that you’ll ever enjoy is right here in the purpose of God.

00:07:41.120]
And I encourage you to play to win. 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.

You won’t find your voice sitting under a tree waiting for it fall on you like an apple. That’s not the way the creative dynamic works. The only way to truly discover your voice is to start using it.

Find Your Voice By Using It

---

00:00:02.410]
One of the things that I always say to the members and students in the Christian Creative Academy is that you’ll only ever find your voice by using it. You know, you’re not going to find it or discover it. You’re not really going to discover, certainly the fullness of what you’re called to just sitting under a tree waiting for it to fall on you like an apple. You know, that’s not the way that the creative dynamic works. The only way to really discover your voice is to start using it.

00:00:32.650]
You know, it might you may use a brush and paint. It might be a magic and music film or fabric word and page. The form that it takes is flexible. But the key thing is to be willing to step out and begin to express and begin to experiment in a trying new things. And, you know, we’re not backing off, refusing to kind of remain silent and just giving your hard, giving your time, giving your energy to make what’s on the inside, outside.

00:01:07.480]
And like any language, this language of the heart is something that we learn to express. You know, initially, I certainly am a find and still find. You know, I have a vision, a vision of what can be on the inside. But the swipes that I take often miss that Mark. You know, I brush what’s possible. I come close, I skim it sometimes. Sometimes I get a bit closer. But, you know, it’s only as you hone your gift and use your voice to bring value to others that your heart, your hand, your mind and mouth really begin to harmonise.

00:01:49.060]
And what you hold on the inside, you’re able to translate with greater clarity. And the message that you carry is becomes sharper. So it penetrates deeper below the surface. But not all of us begin with everything in place. None of us begin perfectly expressing what we want to say. None of us begin writing the the perfect novel or singing the perfect song. The Scriptures tell us that even Jesus had to grow in wisdom and stature. Luke five Luke, to verse 52, says Jesus increased in wisdom and stature and in favour with God and with man and early stage entrepreneurship.

00:02:44.800]
And this this creative and barking that we’ve undertaken, you know, is really it really is a battlefield strewn with abandoned dreams because often the first faltering steps lead to scuffed knees or worse, and certainly a lot of bruised egos. And those those grand dreams that we have are these big ideas that we carry. These are high hopes that we come, you know, really can smash hard into reality when we realise, wow, this is going to take work.

00:03:26.590]
This is going to take a lot of energy, a lot of focus. It’s going to actually take more of me than maybe I initially anticipated. But the antidote to whatever discouragement you may face can really be summed up in one word. And that word is action. Do your way through. OK, take that one to the bank, man. Do your way through. Keep making, keep believing, keep the joy set before you, whatever you may be enduring.

00:04:00.970]
You know, while, you know, while we are building a business or building a family or building a legacy or whatever it is or whatever else it is we’re looking to build. God is in the business of building you. He is in the business of honing your character. And you know that that that stalwart character that can carry the kind of responsibility that he would have you carry and the influence that he would have you bring. That character is often chiselled, you know, on the rock face of discovering who we are and discovering how much we got to bring.

00:04:41.350]
But you got to dig deep. Sometimes the challenges that we face when we commit and devote ourselves to discovering this kind of creative freedom that we were craving, it means that we have to dig into some subterranean areas. There is. A huge deep well within you that I believe God wants to open up and beneath that ton of dust that is blocked that well, all of that humanity that sits like covering up this divine call invocation, you know, as you keep digging, it will begin to bubble up.

00:05:21.590]
It will be it will begin to be seen more and more and more on the surface, you know, with every swing of the speed, with every time you put yourself out there with, every time you have another go, with every other chance that you take, yeah, you are a spirit. And inside of you, the Bible says that there is a fountain of life springing up. Yeah, this this fountain is poised and prepared to bring deliverance to many, many, many other people and your creative life and call a part of a far greater purpose than just the songs you sing or the words you write, the pictures you paint, the videos you make.

00:06:08.660]
These are all just like one part of the picture, one one shaft of light that’s shining from that inner world that that is inside of you. And so I just want to encourage you, you know, find your voice by using it. Keep digging. Just write one more article, sing one more song, put another encouraging word out, you know, and your voice may feel like it’s hidden right now. It may be muffled under layers of questions and even plenty of doubts.

00:06:44.630]
But as you commit to consistently arrive on the world’s doorstep and make your thoughts and dreams, knowing the questions, one by one will be swept to the floor and new doors of opportunity are going to open for you. You are a creator. Yeah, you know, you can go make something today and you need make no apology for doing so. We’re all on a journey to discovering ourselves and I think that even you will be amazed how remarkable you actually are when that river breaks through and breaks through all of the noise and the beauty of the new creation, the new creation, who you are, the old is gone.

00:07:29.210]
The new has come. There’s this wonderful creative call on your life. But it’s only ever going to be seen and heard as you choose to step out and make it known as you choose to exercise your creativity and let your voice and let your let what’s on the inside come out. You know, you are going to be amazed at who you find on the inside of your own heart as you do so. Well, thanks for listening. Hopefully it’s been an encouragement to you today.

00:08:04.730]
If you want to connect any further, you can do so through my website at Davidleemartin.com. Have a great day.