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Today as I launch a new business initiative I’m paying attention to my heart. While I am massively excited about the impact these new programs can have, there is a part of me (much like every entrepreneur I know) that wonders if it will all go down in a ball of flames.
Where does your heart go when things go wrong—or when you fear things might go wrong? This question was posed to me by Dave Sanderson during a coaching session. .
Historically, bad news puts me in a place of paralysis. I freeze. And in the moments that follow, my heart tends to go down paths of poverty thinking and fear that were carved in my childhood.
- “This house of cards is about to fall.”
- “This will fail.”
- “You’re in big trouble now.”
To counter this, Dave Sanderson recommended that we come up with a question that we ask ourselves when bad things happen. This is our primary question.
With this exercise, I began to formulate some potential primary questions that I could lean into when I receive bad news. Some of the initial questions I came up with:
- What could I learn from this?
- What are three things I could do to take action right now?
- What are three good things that have happened that I can remember?
While these questions all have merit, they didn’t really seem to get to the root. Below all of this was a question of identity. I needed more than mind tricks of learning, action, or gratitude. I needed to know who I was and whose I was.
The primary question I came up with needed to address the core issue of my identity. It needed to speak to the primal fear that arises when I forget who I am.
The primary question I adopted is this: What would a beloved son feel?
“You are all sons and daughters of God through faith in Christ Jesus,” the Apostle Paul states in Galatians 3:26. I was adopted into an incredible family. I have a Good Father who loves me. I am a beloved son.
This identity is the key to countering fear. Paul also says, “For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons and daughters by which we cry out, ‘Abba! Father!’” (Romans 8:15)
The real question is “Am I a slave to fear or am I a son?” And, if I am a son of God in Christ Jesus, that changes everything. Why would I bother being afraid?
- I have God’s love
- I have an inheritance
- I have a purpose
- I have provision
- I have protection
- I have permission
When I read the words of Jesus that say, “Do not worry,” it sounds like a great idea. But in daily reality, how do we pull this off in a business world with so many unknowns? How do we not worry when there are people who depend on us and on things going well?
The path is through identity. If I am a beloved son or daughter of the Creator of the Universe who says He is my Father, what do I have to fear?
What would a beloved son feel? Confidence. Trust. Peace.
From this place of identity we speak to our souls—our spinning minds, our impulsive wills, and our restless emotions. King David knew how to do this:
“Why are you in despair, my soul? And why are you restless within me? Wait for God, for I will again praise Him For the help of His presence, my God.” Psalms 42:11
So, today as I launch into a new venture, my primary question is, “What would a beloved son feel?”
Today’s episode is brought to you by Revenue Growth Engine. To scale your impact you need to scale your business. To do this, you need a powerful Revenue Growth Engine. Listeners to Surrendered Business can get a free copy of the Revenue Growth Engine audiobook at www.revenuegrowthengine.com/book.
Creators & Guests
What is Surrendered Business?
Welcome to Surrendered Business, the place where faith-driven entrepreneurs and business leaders find inspiration to make an impact as they surrender their business to God. In each episode you will be encouraged and challenged by experienced believers with real-world business experience as we explore what it means to be light as a leader in the business world.