Entrepreneurial and creative life is not an easy option.

It will demand more of your heart than you first imagined, and your heart will be on the line day after day as you seek to bring your best to the table for others to benefit from.

A bit like parenting. Entrepreneurs have a drive within them that yearns to be fulfilled, and immense joy at the birth of an idea – but no clue what the cost will actually be to realise that dream beyond its first urgent cries!

If they knew at the outset they may never push out from the shore.

Back to the picture of bringing things to birth. Once the contractions have begun, there’s no turning back. I’ve found the same with this creative adventure. There have been numerous times every atom has screamed for a less challenging pathway, one not so exposing, yet despite my inward protestations of discomfort I keep pushing, believing, contributing, and creating.

The Fire 🔥 That Burns Inside

If you are a creative, I know that you know what I mean.

Creativity is a fire that burns on the inside.

It is as hot as the sun blazing in your heart.

God-in-you calling you to radiate your flame!

And yes, despite the challenges, it is the most wonderful course to chart. The high seas of possibility call us forward wondering every day what new worlds we’ll discover. No securities are soft enough to wrest us free from the thought that there’s something worth seeking over the horizon.

But make no mistake, resistance will present itself in many ways. Inwardly through insecurities, outwardly through embarrassment and criticism. Financial challenges, doubts, unrealised desires, and hopes that don’t work out. Days of despair peppering the delight of following your dreams.

And at times outright roadblocks seeking to chase you away from your promised land…

“For all the wells which his father’s servants had digged in the days of Abraham his father, the Philistines had stopped them, and filled them with earth.” (Genesis 26:15 KJV)

Embarking on a journey, simply following the voice of Heaven, believing Him for the outcomes, may in one way be the most secure of all paths to choose, yet to the natural side of our personality with its craving for certainty, it’s a fearful proposition.

Living From ❤️ The Heart

Christian creative Faithful-preneurism is not for the faint-hearted.

And it must indeed be of the heart, for only the heart will sustain you through the ups and downs you’ll face.

When disaster strikes what will you do?

When you are not received with open arms how will you feel?

When your cherished idea or story is buried in a well of obscurity what will your next step be? How will you bolster your bruised ego and battered heart when the dream leads you through the slough of despond or down into the dry valley?

These are good questions.

Pursuing a creative life of entrepreneurship is as much a journey of the heart as it is of the hand. What you create is one thing, but WHY you create it is the ship that carries the cargo.

Why Create?

Why do you want to live a creative life? Why do you feel compelled to contribute to the world in the way that you do? Why is it so important to follow the call and not throw in the towel?

I feel compelled, and gladly so, to dedicate this season of my life to encouraging other Christian creatives to step up, step out, and let their voice be heard. It is a vocation, not just an occupation. Sure, it occupies a lot of my time and thought – but the busy work is not what drives my heart.

The thought of writing another blog post or recording another podcast does not get me out of bed in the morning – it’s the idea that my words may spark courage in the heart of a fellow believer to bring their best to the world.

Maybe my story will cause someone else to cast off the fears that are common to us all and say ‘yes’ to their creativity.

The possibility that a disappointed heart or struggling saint seeking to do good in the world will read or listen and draw strength from our fellowship drives me on.

What Drives You?

These are the drivers that help my feet hit the ground and keep my excuses under those feet.

Sure there may be some wells that need some work to unstop the flow, but it’s not going to happen by sitting crying about what might have been.

I need to dig!

A legacy of saints who have blazed the creative trail before you cheer you on.

The wells of worth that they have left behind are waiting to fill us afresh with hope for our future and the knowledge that all things are possible.

It is now our day to dig fresh wells for future generations to drink from.

Every word spoken, every page typed, every picture painted, every song sung – they all plumb depths that will spring up for others, many of them for years to come.

I’m handing you my cup…

Even if you feel others carry a reservoir and you only carry a cup, even that cup of encouragement given to others will be rewarded. No act of service is unseen or insignificant.

“And whosoever shall give to drink unto one of these little ones a cup of cold water only in the name of a disciple, verily I say unto you, he shall in no wise lose his reward.” (Matthew 10:42 KJV)

This post is my cup of encouragement to encourage you to carry on.

Drink freely.