I've literally listened to so many different expressions about the personal meaning of a faith journey. After all the last question on every episode of the ReinventingPerpectives Podcast is always,
What has faith meant to you on your journey?
Christian entrepreneurs often call themselves 'faith driven entrepreneurs', but what does that even mean?
In order to answer any question, we have to begin by defining the terms.
What is FAITH?
Hebrews 11: 1 tells us that "Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see."
"Confidence in what we hope for" is to have trust, belief, and conviction in what we desire, wish, and expect. This isn't to be 'sort of' convinced in your dream. It's being 100% certain. I'm reminded of one of our very first interview guests, Dr Kelly Henry. He said, "I never questioned if I was going to be successful, I always knew it was only a matter of WHEN, not If."
In the midst of the twists and turns of life, do you realise that it's only a matter of WHEN?
That belief gives us the freedom to BE, and to stop chasing an outcome. It's already been secured by FAITH. We simply need to show up at our best in every situation and just BE. If we use this formula to always show up serving at our highest level, even in the times when our faith hits bumpy seasons, there is another promise of God to hold onto.
Proverbs 22: 29 gives us the secret to success, "Do you see someone skilled in their work? They will serve before kings; they will not serve before officials of low rank."
SKILL UP!
The only way to get skilled at something is to do it again and again and again, with a keen eye for improvement. Think about this quote from James Clear's bestselling book, Atomic Habits, "If you can get 1% better each day for one year, you'll end up 37 times better by the time you're done."
Just 1%.
There's no need for a dramatic whole-life makeover, just 1%, that's all. In our personal lives, that may be just adding a 3-minute window every day to read something in an area we feel is screaming for improvement. In our businesses, that may be spending a few minutes at the beginning of the day when our energy is high and our ability to think things through is at its peak to consider how can I make this one thing better for my clients.
And if every year we're ending at 37 times better than we started, is it any wonder that success is often 10 to 15 years in the making. Keep working, you're going to be world-class at this thing, it's only a matter of WHEN. We see this with athletes, they become super-human to the rest of us, but that's only because every year for 10 to 15 to 20 years, they were getting 1% better daily.
That's FAITH!
In order to have that kind of discipline, you have to believe in what you're doing.
Hebrews 11:4 speaks of excellence as the way of faith, "By faith Abel brought God a better offering than Cain did. By faith he was commended as righteous, when God spoke well of his offerings. And by faith Abel still speaks, even though he is dead."
Why did Abel brings his best to something that, to be honest was routine? I believe it speaks to the second part of the definition of faith in Hebrews 11: 1, "... assurance about what we do not see." Abel trusted in the promise, it was real to him, he had a guarantee in his heart that this was his offering to the living God. It wasn't just another religious practice to be ticked off on the calendar. In our time it would be like the difference between going through the Sunday routine of going to church compared to preparing to go and sit at the feet of God with other believers and hear God speak. Even though Abel couldn't see God, he knew the offering belonged to God and it needed to honour the Almighty God.
If we believe that God is who He says He is, then everything we do is an offering to Him. That changes everything.
Colossians 3: 23 -24, "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving."
Daily our actions are a reflection of our walk of faith. The true constant inner talk of a faith driven entrepreneur has to be: If this is for God, how should it be done?
Hebrews 11: 6 tells us, "And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him."
Let us walk in faith and not by sight. Our lives must be dictated by what we believe and not by what we experience.
OH Happy Day!
P.S Thank you for taking the time to visit my website. Please share this article if it adds some good news to your day.
