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The Estherpreneur is a weekly chat about doing business and life God’s way. Join your host, Edna Harding as she offers biblical strategies and practical applications to improve your mind, business, spirit, relationships, and finances. Listen along as she talks with guests on how to thrive in all areas of life. Edna is a Wife, Mother, Growth Strategist, Author, Minister, Certified Maxwell Business Consultant and Executive Coach, an accredited Master Mindset Coach, and Speaker whose message of hope, truth, and wisdom reaches people all around the world. FavorandWealth.com Estherpreneur.com
Edna Harding [00:00:03]:
Welcome to Estrepreneur, a podcast for entrepreneurs and leaders doing business and life God's way. Each week we discuss biblical and practical tips to improve your mind, business, spirit, relationships, and finances. Listen along as I speak with special guests on how to thrive in all aspects of life. Hi, I'm Edna. Like many of you, I wear many hats. I'm a military wife, mother, author, certified John Maxwell business and executive coach, trainer, and founder of Favor and wealth, where we help the good guys win. So tune in as we bring on the light.
Edna Harding [00:00:46]:
Well, hello everyone. Thank you for tuning in for another episode of the Esther Printer podcast. My name is Edna Harding, and I'm so excited that you're tuning in this week. If you're new to this channel, just want to let you guys know, know that in this podcast, we do all things business and life God's way. And so if you are a returning subscriber, returning listener, I say welcome. Welcome back, family. I'm so excited that you guys are continuing to gain. Gain some value, you know, from this podcast because I try my best to ensure that whatever the Lord tells me to teach you, whatever week this is, I just want you guys to know that it came from the throne room, it came from my time with the Lord.
Edna Harding [00:01:30]:
And so I hope it blesses you as it's so much as it blesses me whenever I hear from you all saying that it really helped you with your business or really help you with your situation. So I just wanted to say welcome. All right, so today what we're going to talk about is how do we know the difference between a good idea versus a God idea? Right? Because as we know, that not every good idea is a God idea. And so I want to say first of all that if you are one of those individuals that have had God ideas before, you know that it was a God idea because things were not what you thought it was going to turn out. But all of a sudden, it was exactly that move the needle for you or it was exactly what made impact for you. Right. Or impact for others. It was very fruitful.
Edna Harding [00:02:29]:
That's how you know when it was a God idea versus drinking something that was a good idea and you go all in and the results were subliminal. Right. It wasn't what you expected. And so I wanted to say that if this is something that you've experienced or you're not really sure you're in the right place. Okay, So I guess the question I want to ask you is have you ever poured into something like gave it all you got and thought it would work and it did it right. So, for example, you did the research, the marketing look amazing. You invested a lot of time and money into it, but then it flops. Why, why do you think that it.
Edna Harding [00:03:14]:
That is, you know, it. Was it really a good idea or was it a God idea, or was it still a God idea, but he's just preparing you for the real God idea, if that makes sense. Now if you're confused, it's okay. I was confused too when I first, you know, was coming up with this. But I want you to know that you're in good hands. All right? So today we're going to equip you with the tools and the wisdom you need to discern the difference so you don't waste another minute in another season. You don't waste another minute on a resource, and you don't waste another money, another money, another dollar on an opportunity. Okay, I want you to really think about this.
Edna Harding [00:04:01]:
And if you're distracted right now, my suggestion is to come back to this later on because I really want you to focus on this. So, you know, maybe go to a cafe, maybe go to a quiet room, like, hear the words that are coming out of my mouth. It's not me, it's God. And I truly believe that as we continue to surrender our thoughts, our minds, everything to you, that God is the one who's going to instruct us and what to do. Okay, so let me start off with this, that remember that good isn't always God. Okay? Good isn't always God. Okay, let's start off with Isaiah, chapter 55, verse 8 to 9. Okay? And that is me opening up my Bible because I want you guys to hear me.
Edna Harding [00:04:49]:
It says, for my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways. My ways, says the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts. First of all, good ideas make sense. Absolutely. They're logical. They seem like the smart decision. They follow trends, they maybe they follow algorithms, maybe they follow what's proof out there and they rely on logic.
Edna Harding [00:05:22]:
But I want you to hear me by way of this spirit that God ideas, typically, usually more than likely will challenge logic and require three things. It will require faith, obedience, and his perfect timing. Okay? Faith, obedience and his perfect timing. Okay? For example, Noah building the ark. For example, David building Goliath. For example, the disciples leaving their fishing business. Right? Think about all those things. And if you know the story, if you don't, just read Them all.
Edna Harding [00:05:57]:
You know, go look at the characters in the Bible. A lot of times when God tells you to do something, it's always in the most inconvenient time. It's. It's going against your logic, it's going against your flesh. Your mind is probably like, are you crazy, Edna? Are you crazy, Sean? Are you crazy? Like, you know, Malia, are you crazy that if that is what you're experiencing, when that idea comes, it's more than likely God. I hate to say it, I absolutely hate it, but a lot of times that's what he does. Like, for me, I finally get out of debt. I pay off everything I owe, right, for my business.
Edna Harding [00:06:37]:
I'm finally making a lot of profit. And then he tells me, go invest in this mastermind. I'm like, are you freaking kidding me? I'm sorry. I don't mean to cuss. And not in the. I know that's not really cussing, but to me it's kind of cussing. Like, are you serious? I finally paid off everything. I'm finally like, okay, this is awesome.
Edna Harding [00:06:55]:
Then you want me to invest in this? The next thing? Okay, but what does it do? It's. It's what? Stewardship, right? Obedience and faith. Because if. If it's too easy for you, that means you're not living by faith, my friend. You are living by flesh. Okay? So at every, any point in life or in business, you're always going to require some sort of faith. Things are never going to be perfect. And it's just as you get more mature in the Lord, as you continue to increase and enlarge your territory, it just requires another level of faith.
Edna Harding [00:07:27]:
So it never ends. My friends, you're in the faith test and a trust test for the rest of your life until we go, and I truly believe this, until we get to heaven. So get used to the faith walk, because it's not going to end. He's always going to ask you to do things that are outside your comfort zone. Okay, so let's go back to Noah, David and the disciples. They chose a God idea or a God instruction. Hear me. Over a comfortable, proven path.
Edna Harding [00:07:55]:
And what did God do? He backed them up supernaturally. This is what he requires of his children today. And if you're listening to this and if this is speaking to you, I want you to, like, comment, subscribe, I don't care. I guess you can't really comment because this isn't live. Well, maybe if my YouTube. And by the way, guys, I'm sorry that my YouTube channel is not really doing well, meaning I haven't posted any new stuff. It's because I've just been really, like, stewarding my time very well. And right now all I have time is for LinkedIn, but hopefully as I hire this new people, that they'll be able to help me with my YouTube and edit and stuff like that.
Edna Harding [00:08:28]:
But I just, I have to focus on the right things. And right now it's LinkedIn. Okay? LinkedIn. And this podcast. Okay? So anyways, comment. I want to know. I want to know if this is speaking to you. Please message me because it really encourages me, actually.
Edna Harding [00:08:43]:
Thank you, Holy Spirit. If you haven't already, I created a WhatsApp. Was it a WhatsApp? I don't remember. Whatever. Community for my podcast people. If you download my app, go to edna harding.com, utilize your phone, cell phone. You could download my app and there's a community where you can join and you can message me there. Hopefully by the time you're listening to this, that's already up and running and then I'll be able to communicate with you guys on a regular.
Edna Harding [00:09:10]:
Okay? So, yes, please, please join my community. All right, so the second thing I want you guys to think about is prayer, okay? Prayer is your strategic tool, okay? You need to ask for wisdom without doubting. Okay? James, chapter one, verse five and six. Yes. I want you to open up your Bible, just like I'm opening up my Bible, even though I already know what this says. I'm opening up my Bible because I want you guys to know that opening up your Bible is probably one of the best things that you could do for your business. Yep, yep. I said it in James 1:5 to 6.
Edna Harding [00:09:45]:
It says, here you go, my friends, but if any one of you lacks wisdom, you must continually ask from God and the one who gives generously without reproaching. And it will be given to him, but he must always ask in faith and without doubting. For the one who doubts is like the surf on the sea being moved by the wind and blown here and there. Okay? So don't doubt, okay? You don't need another strategy session. You need a spiritual download. Okay, my friends, when you pray, when you pray, you know, it's so funny. For those of you guys who've been through coaching with me or my mentorship program, I ask them. I always ask my clients, what did the Holy Spirit say to you? And even though I have another, like, advice, I tell them, listen to the Holy Spirit, not me.
Edna Harding [00:10:32]:
This is what I'm thinking, but this is what I feel. But if the Holy Spirit and you. And it could be wrong, it might be their flesh. It might not be the Holy Spirit. It might be the enemy. But the end of the day, I'm teaching them how to fish. I'm not giving them the fish. I'm teaching them, okay? If you believe that's the Holy Spirit, let's do that.
Edna Harding [00:10:51]:
And sometimes they're right on, and sometimes they're wrong. But at the end of the day, my job isn't to be the Holy Spirit in your life. My job is to point you to the Holy Spirit. Does that make sense? I am not the Holy Spirit. I'm not Jesus. I'm not. I'm the Father. I'm just a messenger.
Edna Harding [00:11:05]:
I'm kind of like his. His guide that he used as to kind of help navigate. Help you navigate your journey. But at the end of the day, this is between you and God. And so I hope you hear me by way of the Spirit. Always ask the Holy Spirit first. And whatever he says, just do that. Okay? All right.
Edna Harding [00:11:23]:
So how do we. How do we pray properly? Okay, what are some three things that. Three ways to pray in order for you to get direction? Number one, we need to ask for direction, okay? A directional prayer. Okay? Ask God. God, is this from you? Ask God. God, is this from you? The second thing is a protective type of stance, okay? Say, father, expose any deception. So right now, in the name of Jesus, I ask you to expose any deception from any of these vendors that I'm currently looking at and give me wisdom on. On who to choose.
Edna Harding [00:11:57]:
Okay? Example number three, prophetic prayer. What haven't I considered that you want me to see? What are some blind spots? What are some things that I'm not aware of that I should be aware of? And making this decision, my friends, prayer is not just for Sunday, okay? It's truly a strategy, okay? It's a strategy that a lot of people don't utilize. And the third takeaway I want you guys to take from this episode is to surround yourself with some spiritual advisors. Proverbs 27:17 says, Iron sharpens iron. Basically, right? So you need three types of people, okay? Around your next big idea. You guys ready? First, you need spiritual advisors. They hear from God and aren't impressed by numbers. You need that.
Edna Harding [00:12:39]:
I operate in that, okay? So it's one of my gifts, okay? I. I don't go off of revenue or profitability. I go off of what the spirit of God is saying in that particular moment. Number two, you need business mentors. You need people that's going to see the road ahead. Practically. I have that gifting as well. It's one of the things I'm blessed.
Edna Harding [00:13:00]:
And if you've worked with me in the past, you know, because I. I'm not just like, in theory, I've actually experienced it. And as you've seen results and have worked with clients for many, many years, as well as I did this for corporate America, where I help group businesses globally, introduce products and services that's never existed before. You know, made that the most successful, most profitable sector in the company. I've also worked with teams and. And led, you know, all types of people. Not just sales, business development, but operational people, like finance people, IT people. These are all my giftings.
Edna Harding [00:13:39]:
Okay? And so I operate in that sense. I'm a business mentor, I'm a life coach. Right. I'm an executive coach. I'm all these things. Okay? You need something like that in your life. Okay? And again, it doesn't have to be with me, but I'm giving you an example. Okay? The third thing is a personal advisor.
Edna Harding [00:13:55]:
Someone that's going to help you guard your heart and your motives. Okay? This could be a friend. This could be a spouse. This could be me. If you don't have that, I do that as well. I care about your soul, not just your bottom line. All right? Okay. So I want you guys to pray for discernment this hour because I truly believe that there's going to be a lot of opportunities that presented to you that may look like gold, but it's not gold.
Edna Harding [00:14:21]:
It's actually. It's actually the devil. Right? So if your team only claps, hear me. If you own the people, only if the only people around you are all yes people. And they don't never say no to you, they never challenge you, you're in danger, my friends. You need to fix that right off the bat. And I can tell you I will say no to you. I will.
Edna Harding [00:14:42]:
And we could butt heads. And my clients know this like we've butt heads before. But one thing they know is I love them. And I'm saying it because, again, I'm not here to make you feel good. My goal is to do. Because the reason why I. Thank you, Holy Spirit, the reason why I have to say no to certain things when I know it deep down in my spirit is because I'm accountable for your blood. Okay? If God tells me to do something and I don't do it, that's disobedience.
Edna Harding [00:15:06]:
And I will deal with the consequences of my disobedience. So I'd rather peel off the mandate and speak truth in love. I try to do it in love. Not. I'm not. Not always. I'm a flawed individual, but I try to do it in love. And hopefully that's going to move the needle for you.
Edna Harding [00:15:20]:
Okay? So I want you guys lastly to watch for the green lights from the Holy Spirit, okay? So when it's a God idea, there's. You'll see some sort of convergence, okay? There's like a bunch of things happening at one time. Number one, you'll get peace in your spirit. Number two, you will have scriptures confirming everything that God has been telling you. Number three, you'll have open doors that don't make sense. It's just going to come out of nowhere. And all of a sudden you're like, oh, my gosh, like, wow, you know, this is great. This is going to help me with this idea, right? And number four, you have courage.
Edna Harding [00:15:54]:
Even though it looks scary, even though, you know, like, this is like, your flesh is like, what are you doing, Edna? What are you doing to yourself? Like, this is insane. Like, why would you do this right now? You. Your courage. Because the boldness and the faith that the Holy Spirit is empowering you with will overcome that fear, okay? It's going to overcome that fear because remember, scripture says perfect love will cast out fear when you know that you're loved by God and you love him back, okay? You remember, God loves us first. He chose us. We didn't choose him. He chose us first. And we loved him back.
Edna Harding [00:16:25]:
We chose him back. And we, we. And when you trust that and we really seek God in a way that I need you, like total dependence, total surrender. He will not stir you, Wong. He will always make a way. Okay? So if you have all these confirmations, move in faith. No more delay. Move in faith.
Edna Harding [00:16:45]:
If you've been looking for a business growth consultant, if you're looking for a business coach, if you're looking for a life coach, if you're looking for somebody to mentor you, okay, and you've been listening to this podcast all this time, I don't know, for years, and you haven't really tapped into like the one on one or the group mentoring piece of. Please, please, please move in faith. I promise you, you're in good hands, okay? Because I'm not accountable to you. I'm accountable to God. And I can tell you that my integrity and my faith walk is so important to me because I do not want to let God down And so if you're looking for something, this is it. This is what you've been praying for. This is what you've been looking for. Now, if there is confusion, if you're not sure, if there's some fogginess, okay? If, like, things are contradicting, if you feel pressure, move.
Edna Harding [00:17:34]:
Wait. Wait for a green light from God and whatever that decision is, wait for him and then move, okay? When he gives you a green light, when you have peace, when you have that confidence, when you have the faith, when you have the resources, whatever resources like he's giving you, move in faith. Remember, God's timing is always perfect. And also, I want you to remember Deuteronomy 19:15. Let me go ahead and open that up. And sorry, guys, if I'm rushing, because I do have a meeting coming up. Deuteronomy 19:15. It says, let's see.
Edna Harding [00:18:09]:
Here we go. It says, one witness will not rise up against a man for any iniquity or for any sin, if any sin that he sins at the testimony of two witnesses or at the testimony of three witnesses, the mass, the matter will be established. So you need two or three witnesses. You have two or three things that. That are basically confirming. Okay? When I say witnesses, it doesn't have to be individuals, but three confirmations from the Lord that this is the right thing to do. All right? All right. So here's my challenge for you guys for this week.
Edna Harding [00:18:45]:
I want you to audit your ideas. Identify what's good and what's God. Ask yourself, what am I building from fear or from fear of missing out? Okay, if you're building something because of fear or you're comparing your journey with other people, I can guarantee you, my friends, that is not the right thing. The second thing is, what am I avoiding? Because it seems too big. And number three, what does my spiritual counsel say? This is so huge. Okay, what is the Holy Spirit is saying? What is your spiritual mentor saying? Because remember, you want to make sure that it's the spirit of God leading you. Not your intellect, not your degree, not your coach, but. But the spirit of God, the Holy Spirit, and not your flesh.
Edna Harding [00:19:24]:
All right, so again, my friends, I want to invite you guys, if you're ready to stop guessing and start building with God's blueprint, I want to invite you to apply to be part of my business unlimited program. Go on my website, favor well.com. there's also a link in the description, Apply now and join us. And I hope to see you guys on the inside. So blessings, my friends. I hope you have a wonderful week ahead. Take care. Bye Bye.
Edna Harding [00:19:52]:
Thanks for joining us this week on Estrepreneur. Make sure to visit our website, favorandwealth.com for more information on our services. While you're at it, if you found value in this show, we'd appreciate a rating on itunes. Or if you simply tell a friend about the show, that would help me out, too.
Edna Harding [00:20:08]:
Also, check out my book, the Ugly.
Edna Harding [00:20:10]:
Side of Sales, available on Amazon, where I share seven of my secrets on how to win and grow business the right way. Until next time, keep shining.