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There is a phrase that we hear in the church fairly that is something I fear we say without knowing what it really means - or how to apply it rightly: claiming God's promises. Okay so someone says, “I'm claiming the promises of God” for this, or this or this… In this episode of the podcast I ask the questions, “What does that really MEAN - and is it OK to do when it comes to business endeavors? Subscribe to Live Build Change On Android | Apple Podcasts | Stitcher | Google Play | Podbean | Spreaker | Email Here’s a rough outline of TOPIC OR GUEST… [0:49] The right way and the wrong way to claim the promises of God [3:20] Applying God’s promises depends on your relationship with God [7:32] What about business endeavors? Is it appropriate to claim the promises of God? [10:34] A recent story of how claiming the promises of God could apply [15:03] Believing in what God is doing in your business How we are often the means of God’s promises coming true It’s important that we have our thinking straight when it comes to “claiming the promises of God.” Anyone - you or I - can go off in all kinds of directions, claiming that we are taking one of the many promises of God in scripture and actually be on the wrong track - both in our thinking and in our behavior. It’s easy to do. So how do we avoid that mistake? I've seen this practice done a couple of different ways throughout the twenty years I was a pastor and just in my life as a believer. I’ve seen it happen in the lives of people I rub shoulders with and in my own life at times. And what I’ve learned is that there is a right way and a wrong way to do this. From what I've learned of scripture and through what I have seen people put into practice, let me give you a couple of scenarios. Say you have somebody who is struggling to put food on the table. They don't have a job. They are not actively looking for a job. But they are praying and hoping that something is going to come through for them and they say things like, “I am claiming the promises of God... that He will never let the righteous be forsaken.” (Psalm 37:25) I think it's probably pretty obvious - at least I hope it is - that it's not really a very wise or proper way to “claim the promises of God.” God's promises are not isolated. When God makes a promise to the righteous, He's making a promise to a person who has certain characteristics, certain things true about them. That's what He means when He uses the word “righteous” to refer to them. And to be clear - all of the righteousness any of us have is righteousness that comes to us through Christ - and it includes having Christ Himself in us to strengthen us and fill us with wisdom. He motivates us to go and do what we need to do in order to be a part of God's promises coming true. We are often the means God uses to fulfill His promises to us. So we can't just “claim promises of God” if we are unwilling to step into the situation by faith, trusting God is going to help us, and actually put our faith into action. I think that's a wrong way to apply this idea of claiming God's promises. What would the right way to claim God’s promises, look like? That’s what the rest of this episode is about. Psalm 37:4 is and example of rightly claiming the promises of God In scripture there are some keystone kind of verses - verses that lots of other theology or lots of other beliefs rest upon. They are foundational because they communicate foundational concepts or truths that support everything else. One of those statements I believe is often overlooked in this regard and is easily misapplied in this kind of thing is Psalm chapter 37, verse number 4. It says, “Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.” As we stop and think about that, it could be taken one of two ways. It could mean: If you delight yourself in the Lord, He will give you everything you want. And so the desires of your heart is being defined as everything you want. I don't think that's what the verses is saying. The sentence is an if/then statement - so the last part of it (the desires of your heart part) is contingent on the first part. In order for us to understand the verse we have to understand what that first part really means. Okay - so, “Delight yourself in the Lord” - that's a statement about relationship. It's a statement about our affections being directed toward God intentionally. You see, we have a responsibility as followers of Jesus Christ to orient our minds, to orient our hearts, toward God Himself as our highest treasure. That's what worship really is, that's what being a Christ follower is literally about. It's about being so consumed with who our God is, who our Savior Jesus Christ is, that we delight in Him like we would delight in our spouse, or like we delight in our children, like we would delight in some favorite hobby or favorite activity that we have. You see, the idea of delighting in God is really the key part of this verse. When that is in place - THEN we have a context in which we can understand the next part of the verse. It says, “Delight yourself in the Lord… and He will give you the desires of your heart.” After understanding the conditional nature of the statement, what I think it means is this: As you delight in God, in who He is and what He's about in history and in in this world and in this universe - then He gives you the desires your heart is intended to have. So He is fashioning your desires. He's creating them for you - and it flows out of the fact that your perspective and your focus is correct. You are looking at the God of history, the One who holds history in His hand and who is bringing about all things according to the counsel of His will. So it only makes sense that the desires that begin to well up inside of you will be even more on track with what He wants because your are staying aligned with Him on a personal level. Once we have that foundation in place, we can get back to the question at hand: Is it appropriate to claim the promises of God in relation to business? Listen to this episode to hear a broader explanation of why I think it is EXACTLY appropriate given what we’ve just uncovered. Business goals in view of the promises of God: It’s not an exact science Is it appropriate to “claim the promises of God” in business endeavors? Well, if my practice of claiming the promises of God is flowing out of that deep, passionate, Christ-honoring, Christ-seeking relationship that is described in the first part of Psalm 37:4, then I would expect that I will start having desires, goals, and ambitions that are flowing out of that. It would make sense that as I come across passages of scripture that speak to the kinds of things I’m dealing with in business - either in specific or general ways - I have more cause to take those as promises as applications to my situation. Here’s why… as I'm am walking close to God and as I’m delighting myself in the Lord, I begin to have a sensitivity to the Holy Spirit that tells me whether or not I am able to take that particular promise, or that particular passage of scripture as a direct application to my situation. Remember this is about relationship with God - and no relationship is an exact science - it’s an issue of experience and faith. It’s how on a very personal, individual level, we relate with the God of the universe. In my thinking, it only follows that as we are growing tight with Him, He reveals to us where we should be headed - and part of that will be Him revealing things He has said in His word that can give us confidence as we head in those directions. So can you claim the promises of God in relation to your business IF you are doing your diligent best to delight in the Lord… if you are carrying out the practical, consistent, daily things that nurture and grow your relationship with Him in an authentic, genuine, passionate way. Then you can be more confident that the promises of God you come across in scripture will… Be discerned rightly and understood rightly by you... That you’ll accurately see how the context of the promise applies or doesn’t apply to your situation... And then can be aware of the Holy Spirit’s direction in your specific situation and in view of that specific promise Then the Holy Spirit - who is the author of that scripture - may actually tap you on the shoulder or tug at your heart and say to you in that inaudible, intangible, still, small voice kind of way, “This is for you. I want you to pursue this. It’s what I want for you and what I've placed on your heart.” That's my perspective what it means to claim a promise of God… but there’s an application side of this. What do you actually DO once you have a promise that you believe you can legitimately claim? Keep listening/reading. How will the action I take in business be different if I BELIEVE God is really working alongside me and within me? The only way I know to effectively describe this step in the process is to tell you a bit of my story - because it’s the only story I have. ;) And I don’t tell it to brag or boast - but to illustrate what God is doing or has done in my journey. My passion, my desire, my purpose in the business God has given me is to build a business that fuels more than just my lifestyle. Some of the ways that has manifested itself is in… supporting a team of eleven people at least part time funding causes that I care about All of that is just background to say this… What does promise-claiming faith look like? When I’ve done the hard work of pursuing God in relationship - entirely apart from my business endeavors at first - my confidence in my ability to hear Him grows and I begin to have a gut-level belief that God is using the business to do those kinds of things that I just described to you. It's a deep, firm conviction I have that I believe God is going to flourish the business because it's what He's placed on my heart as I've walked close to Him (do you see the connection wi

Stay hungry... It was the summer of 1980. I was 13 years old. And I was the hungriest I'd ever been in my life. I was in the middle of my "ordeal," an initiation exercise to gain entrance into a special group within the boy scouts known as the "Order of the Arrow." There was a group of 25 of us who were invited to participate. It was an honor and I was glad to be there. But it was difficult for a 13 year-old because we had to: Spend the weekend working at the camp Remain silent the entire time Sleep by ourselves out in the woods, with no tent or sleeping bag Not eat any food for 2 days Weird? Maybe. Consider it an early testosterone-laden initiation. But you can see why I was so hungry. Staying hungry impacted my thinking Of course, I was nowhere near as hungry as many people in the world are every day, but for a teenager who'd never missed a meal in his life, it felt like I was starving. Though I was plenty busy, it only took about 12 hours of not eating for my thoughts to be on one thing only - food. I wanted to eat. Badly. I couldn't sleep because my growling stomach kept me awake. I was consumed with the thought of consuming something, anything, to satisfy the gnawing in my belly. And to make matters worse, the light at the end of the dark hunger-tunnel was that we were promised that if we made it to the end, we'd be given a lavish banquet. That focused my thoughts on food even more. Staying hungry as an adult   When I hit adulthood I began to hear the phrase "stay hungry" in a variety of circles. Because of my boy scout "ordeal" I had a pretty good idea of what was meant by it. Hunger drives you. Hunger keeps you focused (on the thought of food). Hunger won't let you rest. So when I heard sports figures or business gurus say that success requires that you "stay hungry," I knew exactly what they were getting at. They meant that you had to set a goal and keep it before you at all times. You had to desire something, one thing, more than you'd ever desired anything before. They meant you had to become obsessed with that one thing. How should a Christian business person stay hungry? All of that is great advice... if you are your own man or woman. If you call the shots in your life. If you don't answer to anyone. Ever. But those are not descriptions that fit a Christian. [tweetthis]We have a LORD (Jesus). He's made claims on our lives. Yet, He still wants us to "stay hungry."[/tweetthis] How? Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. - Matthew 6:5 It doesn't really matter what your lot in life is (business, homemaking, trench digging, plumbing, etc.), you have the same calling as every other Christ-follower. You are to stay hungry - for righteousness. Nothing can take the place of that desire. Nothing should outshadow it. It's difficult to be THAT kind of hungry in business because there are so many other things to be hungry for... so many other things that vie for that place of obsessive attention: success fame notoriety money growth reputation a greater market share and the list goes on. So what do you do?   It's not easy, but it begins at the beginning of every, single day. Getting hungry in the morning Your morning is vital to your day. Even non-Christ-following people know this to be true. (See this post from Lifehacker called, "Do you have a morning ritual?" and this one, "5 morning rituals" from Entrepreneur Magazine.) Whether you've ever taken to a morning "quiet time" or "daily devotional" is not the point. The point is that morning is the time you've got to set your mind and heart for the day ahead. In the context of what we're talking about, the morning is when you've got to stoke your hunger - for righteousness. If you don't do it then, I can guarantee you the competing options that rise up through the busy business day will squelch it altogether. [tweetthis]You've got to set aside some time at the beginning of every day to get your head and heart right...[/tweetthis] ...to put yourself in a place where God is able to create the hunger in you that you desperately need. I'd suggest you create some sort of regular, methodical routine that you follow consistently. For me, it's my "Morning Mindset Reset" which you can read about at this linked post. Whatever it is that you do, you've GOT to do something. If you don't you'll become hungry for other things. You will. Believe me. I've seen it too many times in my life and in the lives of those I've coached or counseled. Staying hungry throughout the day Morning is good. But it's not enough. [tweetthis]Morning can't be your sole time of spiritual hunger. You've got to carry it with you throughout the day.[/tweetthis] This is where it has to get practical. You've got to resort to small, simple things to remind you to say a quick prayer, open the scriptures for a quick bite of spiritual food, or take a deep breath as you rely once again on the Spirit of God. Here are some suggestions: 3X5 cards in your pocket with pertinent verses or quotes to inspire you Sticky notes on the dash of your car or inside your cubicle Alarms on your phone to remind you to rest in Christ, abide in Him, or say a quick prayer Use a service like Follow Up Then to prompt your hunger via email You get the idea. The main point is that YOU have got to do something to remind yourself to be hungry for righteousness. Please don't take this lightly. You won't like the results that come from being hungry for other things. Everything else you hunger for will turn to sand in your mouth and sourness in your belly. The result of staying hungry for righteousness The scripture I quoted earlier is pretty clear. If we hunger and thirst for righteousness, Jesus promises... they shall be satisfied. The clear implication is that we'll be satisfied with what we hunger for, RIGHTEOUSNESS. That's a great deal. One I want in on every, single day. It's my prayer that you do too. (Yes, I am really praying for you as I write this.)

I appreciate you taking the time to listen to this short update - the LORD has been doing significant things in my life and heart recently and I wanted to let you know how those movements of the Spirit are impacting with I've been called to do with Live Build Change.   Contact me at https://www.LiveBuildChange.com/contact 

You know somebody once told me, “Never make decisions when you're under the cloud - wait until the sun comes out. “ And that is great advice. Get some space away from the situation. Let me tell you about the time I most felt like quitting my business... Subscribe to Live Build Change On Android | Apple Podcasts | Stitcher | Google Play | Podbean | Spreaker | Email When I feel like giving up on my business… OUTLINE [0:00] Changes to this podcast in 2018 [2:48] A time when I felt like quitting my business [4:37] What should you do when you want to quit? [6:21] Why it’s important not to make decisions when you’re under the cloud [7:18] What if God DOES show you that you’re on the wrong track? [8:18] If you’re going to stick out out - go into “learning mode” [10:18] Why making the same mistake repeatedly is inexcusable in business I think it was about a year and a half into my business, Podcast Fast Track that some events happened all kind of right in a row that made me want to quit. I was discouraged, I was down, there were things that made me doubt myself and my abilities - and whether or not should have started this crazy entrepreneurial journey in the first place. In particular the thing that made me want to quit was that I had a client who canceled his subscription to our podcast production and show notes service. Then another one. Then another one. Three customers in a row who bailed out.just when I thought I'd been doing a really good job for them. To be honest I saw the first one coming. The businesses had been growing pretty rapidly and I was scrambling to keep up with the workload. I was trying to create systems so that I could bring others on to help me out - I was doing all of that at the same time. It was during that time frame I'd made a handful full of mistakes on that particular client’s work. I made the mistakes, not my team, me. It's strange how that happens - all of the mistakes happening on one client's account. I mean if they'd been spread out over two or three client, I don’t think I would have lost any of them. But that's how it all started, that's how I began wondering if I should quit my business. Then when the second client cancelled her subscription, and the third one just on the heels of that, you can imagine my state of mind. I mean if you've been there before you're asking all kinds of questions… What am I doing wrong? Maybe be I'm am no good at this. Maybe I should have taken on the risk of starting my own business in the first place. And sometimes the worst case scenario you hear in your own mind… “This just isn't going to work.” What should you do when you hit that point? And if you haven't hit that point yet and you are starting a business, I’m pretty certain you will come to everyone. So I want to answer the question here, “What do you do when you want to quit your business?” The first thing I would say is you need to get some space from the issue. I learned the hard way that I don't make good decisions or good assessments when I'm in the pit of despair. You know I had to get some space, to get away from the situation for a little while so that I could look at it unemotionally even eventually, dispassionately. Because I want to see what's really happened, not what I feel has happened. When I was able to do that in the situation I told you about here's is what I was able to see... Number one, the first client’s issues were entirely my fault. I had made mistakes. He lost trust in me - and trust is the most valuable thing that I can give to a client so that was completely understandable. That he said, “No thanks, we're gonna to handle this another way” is completely understandable. The second client was reorganizing his business and decided the podcasting didn't fit into his plans. Okay, that kind of thing happens in any type of business there's nothing I can do about that one. The third client was in the middle of some heavy life issues. There were two deaths in his family within one month. It makes total sense that they were off-loading all the non-priority things. Again, there’s nothing I can do about that. You know somebody once told me never make decisions when you're under the cloud. Wait until the sun comes out. That is great advice. I'm am glad I thought clearly enough to do that in this situation, and I highly recommend it for you too. Get some space away from the situation. Secondly, don't be afraid of the possibility that it could be quitting time. There's always the possibility that the LORD is using a difficult or discouraging circumstance to redirect you. I'm learning not to be afraid of that possibility - after all, maybe I'm not cut out to be an entrepreneur or a business owner. Perhaps it's something that I was induced into and excited about but it really doesn't fit me. Maybe I made a mistake in my initial decision to take on something like this. If I'm going to live a humble life I've got to be open to those as possibilities. And you know in the end, if God shows me that I shouldn't be pursuing a certain course of action or a business then that's a good thing, isn't it? Even if I don't think it is at the time, even if I feel like a failure at the time. There's actually something very admirable about noticing you've made a misstep and then correcting course. And we can always rest assured God’s got our best in mind. So in the situation I told you about I spent some time in prayer. And I sought the counsel of spiritually wise people - my wife among them. People that I respect. I did that so that I could determine if the discouragement was a course correction that I needed to heed - like quitting the business - or if it was nothing more than an obstacle or speed bump that I could learn from and overcome. Prayers for wisdom work. God promises that they do. So don't be afraid of the possibility that it actually could be quitting time you got to assess. The third thing - you should go into to the learning mode. I mean if I get through steps one and two and I feel I should remain where I'm at, you know pursuing the business, then it's time for me to assess what I did to contribute to the problems that occurred. I already mentioned that I'd made mistakes on the first customer’s service. Three mistakes in close succession for that customer, so what do I do with that? Well, I need to own it. There's is nothing wrong in admitting that I made a mistake. In fact, you can't move forward until you DO admit that you made mistakes. So I had to own those mistakes inwardly and outwardly. I contacted the client, I admitted the mistakes clearly and openly, and I apologized. I told them the steps I was taking to correct the problem and I asked if there was any way I could continue to provide the service they originally hired me for. In that situation, you know the story - they said “No thanks.” But I did what was right by owning my mistake. Another thing you need to do when you go into a learning mode is you need to consider God's role in the issue. The way that I look at that situation is that God's hand was clearly in it. I mean… He could have prevented me from making those three mistakes, all on the same clients account. He could have made the mistakes minor instead a major in the client’s eyes. He could have retained the client for me even after I made the apologies… But He didn't. And I've got to trust that God knows what He's doing in my business, that He's got a great purpose in what is happened. After all, it's His business, not mine. I’ve got to learn to rest in Him. Even in a disappointment like that. When you're in learning mode you also need to pinpoint how all the mistakes happened and tweak your procedures and your systems to avoid the same mistakes in the future. In business, making the same mistake repeatedly is inexcusable. It really is - it's inexcusable. Because as a service provider or product supplier you have committed yourself to deliver a certain amount of value. If you make a mistake - wonderful - we are human and we make mistakes. But we learn from those mistakes too - and part of what we learn is how to adjust the way we are delivering that good or that service so that the mistake doesn't happen again. You see I'm not being a good manager or a good steward of the business God has given me if I allow all those mistakes to happen over and over. So we make adjustments to the way that I do things. That's my systems. That’s my procedures. I change things, I make checklists, I do things to avoid the same errors happening repeatedly. If needed, I make sure those adjustments are communicated to my entire team so that everyone knows how to avoid that potential problem. In the situation I've described I was open with my team about my mistakes so that they could all learn from them. And that's hard to do as a business owner but you know your team will respect you more for it. Not only does that model the kind of behavior that you want to see in your team, it also builds trust in you as a leader, even though you made a mistake. The fourth thing that you need to do when you experience a business failure or you're tempted to quit is to revisit visit your purposes for being in business in the first place. It’s time to refocus. What I did was I spent some time reminding myself why I'm doing this thing called business. Here's my quick bullet point list that I went through… I'm providing for my family - that's a huge responsibility in a massively important thing to me I'm am creating things that will benefit people - and I really do want to help people with the majority of my time, and let's not fool ourselves if we are working we spend the majority of our time at that. And it should be something that is benefiting people. I also have the blessing right now to do things in a way that uniquely fits me. I mean I love that about this business, it uniquely fits me and that's very fulfilling. I also to remind myself that I maintain the lifestyle of freedom and availabi

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Get the Morning Mindset every morning via Facebook Messenger https://manychat.com/l2/LiveBuildChange ***************** Get Daily Email Encouragement every morning in your Inbox http://careygreen.com/DE-List ***************** Find out more about Christian Life & Business Coaching http://CareyGreen.com ***************** Connect with the LIVE BUILD CHANGE Movement and Community Website: www.LiveBuildChange.com Facebook Community: www.LiveBuildChange.com/FB Email: Carey@LiveBuildChange.com  

Get the Morning Mindset every morning via Facebook Messenger https://manychat.com/l2/LiveBuildChange ***************** Get Daily Email Encouragement every morning in your Inbox http://careygreen.com/DE-List ***************** Find out more about Christian Life & Business Coaching http://CareyGreen.com ***************** Connect with the LIVE BUILD CHANGE Movement and Community Website: www.LiveBuildChange.com Facebook Community: www.LiveBuildChange.com/FB Email: Carey@LiveBuildChange.com  

Get the Morning Mindset every morning via Facebook Messenger https://manychat.com/l2/LiveBuildChange ***************** Get Daily Email Encouragement every morning in your Inbox http://careygreen.com/DE-List ***************** Find out more about Christian Life & Business Coaching http://CareyGreen.com ***************** Connect with the LIVE BUILD CHANGE Movement and Community Website: www.LiveBuildChange.com Facebook Community: www.LiveBuildChange.com/FB Email: Carey@LiveBuildChange.com  

Get the Morning Mindset every morning via Facebook Messenger https://manychat.com/l2/LiveBuildChange ***************** Get Daily Email Encouragement every morning in your Inbox http://careygreen.com/DE-List ***************** Find out more about Christian Life & Business Coaching http://CareyGreen.com ***************** Connect with the LIVE BUILD CHANGE Movement and Community Website: www.LiveBuildChange.com Facebook Community: www.LiveBuildChange.com/FB Email: Carey@LiveBuildChange.com  

Get the Morning Mindset every morning via Facebook Messenger https://manychat.com/l2/LiveBuildChange ***************** Get Daily Email Encouragement every morning in your Inbox http://careygreen.com/DE-List ***************** Find out more about Christian Life & Business Coaching http://CareyGreen.com ***************** Connect with the LIVE BUILD CHANGE Movement and Community Website: www.LiveBuildChange.com Facebook Community: www.LiveBuildChange.com/FB Email: Carey@LiveBuildChange.com  

Get the Morning Mindset every morning via Facebook Messenger https://manychat.com/l2/LiveBuildChange ***************** Get Daily Email Encouragement every morning in your Inbox http://careygreen.com/DE-List ***************** Find out more about Christian Life & Business Coaching http://CareyGreen.com ***************** Connect with the LIVE BUILD CHANGE Movement and Community Website: www.LiveBuildChange.com Facebook Community: www.LiveBuildChange.com/FB Email: Carey@LiveBuildChange.com  

Get the Morning Mindset every morning via Facebook Messenger https://manychat.com/l2/LiveBuildChange ***************** Get Daily Email Encouragement every morning in your Inbox http://careygreen.com/DE-List ***************** Find out more about Christian Life & Business Coaching http://CareyGreen.com ***************** Connect with the LIVE BUILD CHANGE Movement and Community Website: www.LiveBuildChange.com Facebook Community: www.LiveBuildChange.com/FB Email: Carey@LiveBuildChange.com  

Get the Morning Mindset every morning via Facebook Messenger https://manychat.com/l2/LiveBuildChange ***************** Get Daily Email Encouragement every morning in your Inbox http://careygreen.com/DE-List ***************** Find out more about Christian Life & Business Coaching http://CareyGreen.com ***************** Connect with the LIVE BUILD CHANGE Movement and Community Website: www.LiveBuildChange.com Facebook Community: www.LiveBuildChange.com/FB Email: Carey@LiveBuildChange.com  

Get the Morning Mindset every morning via Facebook Messenger https://manychat.com/l2/LiveBuildChange ***************** Get Daily Email Encouragement every morning in your Inbox http://careygreen.com/DE-List ***************** Find out more about Christian Life & Business Coaching http://CareyGreen.com ***************** Connect with the LIVE BUILD CHANGE Movement and Community Website: www.LiveBuildChange.com Facebook Community: www.LiveBuildChange.com/FB Email: Carey@LiveBuildChange.com  

It’s true, though we don’t like to admit it: the first step is the hardest. Getting started, moving out into the unknown, stepping out to discover something new, taking a risk… all of these are ways to describe the emotion we sometimes feel when it comes to doing new things. But it’s those new things that bring about the changes we want most in life. We can’t expect the future to be better, to be different if we are unwilling to make it different. That means we’ve got to get started, and the first step is often the hardest. Subscribe to Live Build Change On Android | Apple Podcasts | Stitcher | Google Play | Podbean | Spreaker | Email   Here’s a rough outline of taking the first step… [0:57] The significance of the first step in anything [2:08] The most common reason people don’t get started [3:40] Why it’s vital to step past what is familiar into the unknown It’s a bit dysfunctional, but we humans tend to prefer something that isn’t working but is familiar, to something that might work but is unfamiliar. Think about it. Often the reason we don’t take the first step into a new opportunity or adventure is the fear of what might happen. What if it’s too hard? What if I fail? What if I can’t handle the pressure? What if it’s not what I’m expecting? What if I’m not ready? The “what if”s are many. But so are the reasons to move ahead. Among those reasons are… Nothing you want to change will change if you don’t get started Wishes don’t make things reality, diligent, informed action does Nothing great in history was accomplished by doing nothing Even God makes things happen through action - God so loved, He gave… You get the point, right? So the real question is this: What is keeping you from taking the first step into something new, something that could change your life and future for the better? You’ve got to answer that question and attack what you find. You won’t build anything that improves your life or the lives of others unless you do. So find a friend, maybe your spouse, and sit down to talk it through. Identify the things that keep you from taking that hard first step. Know what they are. Get to understand why they scare you so much. Then go to prayer. Ask God Himself for the courage to not only take that first hard step, but to take the next one, and the next one as your faith in Him increases. And don’t forget, He’s with you every step of that journey, through the easy steps and the hard ones. And HE is the one who will build anything you do. So step out, even when the first step is the hardest. Trust Him. Trust Him to do the hard things that you can only imagine happening. And watch what He does.   Join the LBC Community On Facebook Follow Carey on Facebook Follow Carey on Twitter (@CareyNGreen)   Subscribe to Live Build Change On Android | Apple Podcasts | Stitcher | Google Play | Podbean | Spreaker | Email  

Get the Morning Mindset every morning via Facebook Messenger https://manychat.com/l2/LiveBuildChange ***************** Get Daily Email Encouragement every morning in your Inbox http://careygreen.com/DE-List ***************** Find out more about Christian Life & Business Coaching http://CareyGreen.com ***************** Connect with the LIVE BUILD CHANGE Movement and Community Website: www.LiveBuildChange.com Facebook Community: www.LiveBuildChange.com/FB Email: Carey@LiveBuildChange.com  

Get the Morning Mindset every morning via Facebook Messenger https://manychat.com/l2/LiveBuildChange ***************** Get Daily Email Encouragement every morning in your Inbox http://careygreen.com/DE-List ***************** Find out more about Christian Life & Business Coaching http://CareyGreen.com ***************** Connect with the LIVE BUILD CHANGE Movement and Community Website: www.LiveBuildChange.com Facebook Community: www.LiveBuildChange.com/FB Email: Carey@LiveBuildChange.com  

Get the Morning Mindset every morning via Facebook Messenger https://manychat.com/l2/LiveBuildChange ***************** Get Daily Email Encouragement every morning in your Inbox http://careygreen.com/DE-List ***************** Find out more about Christian Life & Business Coaching http://CareyGreen.com ***************** Connect with the LIVE BUILD CHANGE Movement and Community Website: www.LiveBuildChange.com Facebook Community: www.LiveBuildChange.com/FB Email: Carey@LiveBuildChange.com  

Get the Morning Mindset every morning via Facebook Messenger https://manychat.com/l2/LiveBuildChange ***************** Get Daily Email Encouragement every morning in your Inbox http://careygreen.com/DE-List ***************** Find out more about Christian Life & Business Coaching http://CareyGreen.com ***************** Connect with the LIVE BUILD CHANGE Movement and Community Website: www.LiveBuildChange.com Facebook Community: www.LiveBuildChange.com/FB Email: Carey@LiveBuildChange.com