Crumbled faith…
For my entire life I have felt and encountered the presence of God.
Throughout some of the most painful times, His voice had always been present and clear.
I didn’t anticipate starting my own business to quickly sweep in as one of the darkest times I have ever faced. Naturally, I turned to God but this time I was received with complete silence.
Facing challenges that were much too big for me and filled with gut-wrenching worries that burdened my heart and soul, I stopped believing in God.
None of the chaos surrounding me made any sense and all of my prayers continued to go unanswered. My young marriage was on the rocks and I felt completely alone.
The turning point…
Two-months into my business finally being in operation, my best friend mentioned that she had gone to church. I had been looking for a new church for many years and this was the second time that C3 Toronto had been mentioned to me. That very Sunday I attended my first service. That Sunday, I also found home.
I gave my life back to Christ and made it my priority to seek God first, trusting that He would provide and that He had never left my side.
A fresh revelation…
Over the past eight months, I have discovered that the best tool and resource a business can ever implement is a simple principle called Faith.
In order to carry out the huge undertaking that comes with being in business, your words, thoughts, and actions must be full of Faith. It’s walking in business by Faith that will push you through all of the breakthroughs that you will need to simply survive.
Walking by faith…
My renewed faith has raised me to new levels as a both a business person and leader in three major ways:
1. Being at peace in the wilderness
The wilderness is essentially the training ground for resilience, character, and perseverance. It represents the seasons in our lives that bring forth the most opposition, isolation, and fear.
To stay on path, you must remain calm and joyful – and that is only possible when you learn to walk by Faith.
Faith met with prayer and action, will give you the peace necessary to remain steady while walking the muddy terrain.
2. Hitting the mark in your thoughts
I used to be a constant loop of negativity and worry in my own mind.
Pastor Sam Picken of C3 Toronto once said during one of his awesome Sunday preaches:
“When you hit the mark in your thoughts, your actions will change, and then your destiny will change.”
The power of that statement hit me profoundly and I decided to read Matthew 6:25-34 every morning before starting my day. Four-weeks later my pattern of worry disappeared and evolved into a heart of profound gratitude, trust, and optimism.
Now when I’m tempted to worry, I choose to turn my Faith on and to remain in Him. It’s in this space where you will find total rest from the endless worries that come up as a business owner.
3. Being unoffendable
In business management you deal with many different needs, personalities, temperaments, expectations, and perspectives on a daily basis. It’s so easy to feel overwhelmed by the variety of interactions, especially when you’re someone who really cares about your people.
My Faith has taught me that part of what makes a great leader is being unoffendable.
When you focus on the principles rather than the personalities, you are able to keep your head in all situations.
So when all those small offenses start to get to me, I quickly forgive and choose my walk of Faith instead.