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Many people resist the fact that God loves to bless His people with material blessings. Denominational church leaders rail against what they call the “prosperity gospel” while refusing to embrace the truth of God’s word regarding practical provision and finances.
One verse I love is Deuteronomy 8:18, where it says “Remember the LORD your God. He is the one who gives you the power to be successful (create wealth), in order to fulfill the covenant he confirmed to your ancestors with an oath.” Here, God is saying that His blessing of His people with the ability to be successful (create or get wealth) actually confirms His covenant with His people. In other words, when people see how blessed you are because of me, they will know I am the Lord who keeps my part of the deal. Wow. God’s supernatural provision in your life not only demonstrates His goodness and faithfulness to you, it also becomes a sign and a wonder to others who are still striving in their own strength. “But Matt, if I’m struggling financially, does that mean God doesn’t love me? Or if someone is walking in financial abundance that God loves them more?” No, and no.There are lots of issues at work when people take a hard look at their financial life, like bad choices, mismanagement, fiscal frivolity, greed, or on the other side good stewardship, generosity, and talent. Regardless of where you may need to grow and mature, realize your provision is a promise from the Lord because of your position, not your performance. Choosing to receive that by faith and disconnecting from the life of financial striving is where that begins. No matter where you are on this journey, realize God has already blessed you with everything you need to thrive and flourish in this life because of your position as His child, not your performance as His worker. You only have to receive it by faith.
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In Matthew 6, when Jesus taught about provision, He revealed a little-known Kingdom principle: you are designed to receive your provision through your design.
And why would he use the examples of birds and flowers? Because they have completely different ways of receiving from the Father in line with their design, yet both are abundantly provided for each day. They were made to exist and thrive in a different realm. Consider the “birds of the air”. They are constantly moving around as they fly. They have unique vision to see opportunities for food and shelter. They peck the ground, eating bugs and earthworms. They have the ability to build their nests, lay eggs, and multiply. None of this stresses them out because it’s how they were designed by God. They were made to move and exist in the realm of the air. And consider “lilies of the field” - simple flowers. They sprout, bloom and wilt all in one place. They grow deep roots which enable them to receive nutrients from the soil. They grow foliage that reaches toward the sun to receive light and life through the magical process of photosynthesis. They were made to bloom and flourish in the realm of the ground according to the seasons. What about the branches in Jesus’ parable in John 15. They receive everything they need through their connection to the main vine. They were made to grow and thrive in the realm of the vineyard. Birds can’t grow roots and aren’t designed to receive provision by photosynthesis. Flowers can’t eat earthworms. It’s simply not their design. It’s impossible. But when each receive God’s abundant provision through their unique design - in the realm they were designed for - they thrive while in a place of rest. It’s second nature to them. There’s a flow and a rhythm to life unique to them. They don’t have to work for it, only cooperate with what God has already provided for them. And so, Jesus finishes the story by reminding us that if the Father provides for the birds and flowers like this, how much more will He do it for us, His children, “of you of little faith.” In other words, you’re going to have to choose to walk this way by faith if you want to experience these results. When you pursue provision outside your unique, God-given design and the realm God designed you for, it’s like a lily trying to eat an earthworm. It only leads to frustration. What brings exhilaration to one will bring frustration to another. What brings life to one will bring death to another. The quicker you embrace this principle in your life and your uniqueness in the Kingdom, the quicker you will start to experience the abundant flow of Heaven’s supernatural provision in your life. That’s God’s plan for living. When your identity is established in Christ, your unique design is uncovered, and your kingdom assignment is revealed. But when your identity is rooted and grounded in brokenness from the past, your unique design remains covered and your kingdom assignment is hidden.
Many well-meaning Christians live their whole life in this place. Saved, and on their way to heaven, but still defined by who they used to be before they became a new creation in Christ. They spend their whole Christian life trying to do things for God, be a good Christian and ultimately pay him back for the free gift of grace. He is so generously given.  Not realizing the whole time that they have been restored as sons in the Kingdom of their Father.  But seeking an assignment - along with the resources, ideas and opportunities - to do something for God never produces lasting fruit. it produces striving Christians trying to realize spirit birth results through their own works.  The model of living that enables you to have lasting impact in the kingdom is to allow your assignment to flow out of your unique design, as you are rooted and grounded in the love of God as his child.  No accomplishment for God, however earnest in your intent, will ever satisfy the longing for his presence only found in knowing your identity in Christ.  No amount of expertise will ever replace the favor of God and his grace operating in your life to open doors and connect you through divine appointments in a supernatural way. He is the well of life, which is now living in us through the power of the Holy Spirit. He desires to flow freely through us in the unique way he has designed us for the unique things He is created us to do withHim in His Kingdom. The frustration many Christians experience in not being able to walk in the abundant life, is not due to God withholding, blessings, or favor from them, but in their misunderstanding of how the Kingdom of God is designed to work in the life of the believer. The Kingdom is always on, always working, always available and always abundant for everything at all times. Alignment begins with establishing your identity in Christ, so that you can see the world, God, and yourself the way He does. His perspective for His assignment in your life. Mental flip-flopping creates spiritual instability. Thoughts and feelings come and go like the changing of the weather. However, if you allow yourself to be tossed - to and fro - by these, it creates an atmosphere of double-mindedness, which leads to instability.
As a gardener, I am reminded of how true this is. Once you plant something in a good place, you must leave it where it is. You have to water, fertilize and cultivate an atmosphere around it that is conducive to growth. If you keep digging the plant up and moving it to different locations based on the outward circumstances of the weather, it may hang on for a little bit, but eventually, it will die. Why? No roots are going to be established. Renewing your mind is the same way. You have to decide what you believe about who God says you are, what you can do, and all he has for you in the kingdom. Once you do, you have to stay planted in that reality. This is not something God does to you but something God does with you. Over time, your roots will grow, and you will become established in the Lord. If you choose not to and allow yourself to be dug up every time the wind blows, no matter how much you love Jesus, it’s impossible for you to experience growth.  Stay planted, my friend. Ever felt something so strongly that you felt like it had to be true? But when you checked it out against God’s Word, you realized that - although you felt it deeply - it just wasn’t God’s best for your life?
It can be confusing, and frustrating and even cause us to feel anxious anger and a desire to rebel as we pursue our own path, our own “truth”. If we’re honest, I think every believer has experienced this moment of decision in various situations. Some seemingly insignificant and sometimes in times that seem to define us as people. Regardless of how these moments feel, know the enemy's strategy is always to get you to 1) doubt God, 2) minimize His Word, 3) rationalize based on popular worldview, and 4) trust your feelings and experiences more than anything else. It’s the original bait: choose the tree of good and evil over the tree of life, your way, not God’s way, figuring out life for yourself vs. receiving life by faith from the Father. But the challenge (and invitation) for every believer in Jesus is to choose to deny themselves, trust God, and align themselves with His Word versus what they feel, think, or believe. Our thoughts, feelings, and opinions will always lead us to self-serving options, but the Holy Spirit draws us to the Father and enlivens God’s Word so we can be transformed in His presence. It emboldens us to shed the old identity of our sinful nature and put on Christ. Our identity is not based on what we feel but on who God says we are. Anything else is unstable shifting sand. When you choose to intentionally align, God’s grace is released to transform you from the inside out. You are enabled to choose life when the world says choose comfort, feelings and preferences. You will be conformed to the image of Christ and walk as the new creation He has already made you to be. Jesus did not come to condemn the world because of sin nor ignore it in the name of relationship or what the world sees as acceptance, tolerance or love. He did not come as a good (or even great) man in history with a model for living that we should try to aspire to in our lives in the name of social justice. He is not one among many good people with messages of love, acceptance, and tolerance, but first among all, primary and singular. He stands apart. He did not come to make us feel better about who we think we are or endorse our ideas about what identity, life, and love should look like, no matter how deeply we feel them or how radically the world celebrates them. He is God, who came to earth as a man to walk among us, empathize with us, and love us. Save us from sin and restore us to life in Him.
Jesus came with the gift of salvation for all who would receive it: redemption, reconciliation, and restoration. That gift gives us freedom from death, hell, sin, and its separating power from God and each other. It brings us back to long walks in the cool of the day with our Father. It allows us to enjoy the blessings, benefits, and responsibilities of walking as sons and ambassadors in the Kingdom. Receiving the gift of salvation requires a choice: to lay down your old way of thinking, living and loving, and putting on Christ. Jesus’ invitation to all is to leave the patterns of this world and be restored to true love that can only be found in Him. A love that cleanses, purifies and restores. A love, like the eye of a needle, which requires we leave all our baggage behind and choose too follow Him. As the old hymn says, “I have decided to follow Jesus. No turning back, no turning back. Though none go with me still I will follow. No turning back, no turning back.” Don’t confuse Jesus’ unconditional acceptance of you with permission to live the way you want to in the name of what the world calls love. That way of thinking is a golden road of deception designed to keep you from all God has for you, not welcome you into it. If the Jesus you are following doesn't require you to leave anything behind - especially things you've become really familiar with, comfortable, or reliant on - then that's not the real Jesus.
If the Jesus you follow never calls you to a deeper relationship with Him based on His Word and the leadership of the Holy Spirit, then that's not the real Jesus. If the Jesus you are following only calls you to accept everyone and everything in the world as ok - regardless of whether or not it affirms God's original design as found in His Word - without rejecting the false narratives and identities of the world, then that's not the real Jesus. If the Jesus you are following fawns over politicians and political ideologies, demanding allegiance to the Kingdoms of this world (parties, political agendas, nations, states, regions, continents) rather than the Kingdom of God, then that's not the real Jesus. If the Jesus you follow tells you to celebrate yourself - your desires, feelings, and preferences - rather than celebrating a new, restored identity in Him, then that's not the real Jesus. If the Jesus you follow encourages you to "live your best life" without inviting Him to fundamentally transform your life from the inside out through the power of the Holy Spirit, then that's not the real Jesus. If the Jesus you follow is more concerned with equity, opportunity, and inclusion rather than transformed hearts living transformed lives, then that's not the real Jesus. The real Jesus invites you into the wide, wonderful, abundant life in the Kingdom through the narrow gate of salvation. You cannot experience the abundance of the Kingdom without the laying down of your life, without exchanging your thoughts for His, your preferences for His, and your desires for His. Fundamental to following Jesus is this radical idea that as I die to myself, I am raised in Him. In other words, as I allow myself to be crucified with Christ, I am made alive in Christ - both through the singular salvation experience and the daily choices I make. There is no life in Christ without daily dying to the flesh, no matter how strongly the flesh may try to convince you otherwise. Christians realize that the only way to be fully fulfilled in this life is to lay down what we thought was life in order to receive the new gift of life offered through Christ. Otherwise, we add Jesus on to our list of preferences and ideologies rather than making a divine exchange. The Trinity Effect™ states that transformation happens best, and is sustained the longest in the place where your identity, design, and assignment converge.
Someone can know who they are in Christ, go to church, and be committed to the Lord, in every way but not embrace their unique design and assignment and live a lifetime of faithful frustration. A person can embrace parts of their unique, God-given design, but outside of a life-giving relationship with Jesus,  knowing who they are in Christ, and having an understanding of how to walk in their Kingdom assignment, will live a lifetime of disappointment. An individual who pursues their God-given kingdom assignment outside of the Grace that comes with identity in Christ and their unique design will live a life of striving motivated by performance rather than their position as God’s child. Personal fulfillment, lasting transformation, and meaningful impact happen easiest when your assignment is pursued in the context of your unique design as your identity is established in Christ, not out of personal zeal for the Lord or a desire for impact alone. Impact, wealth and influence pursued in an effort to do something for God rarely results in lasting fulfillment. Rather, it can just as easily lead you into striving like you did before you knew the Lord, just with a religious motivation. Walk with God. Cultivate a strong identity in Christ. Respond to His leadership in faith. Embrace your unique design as you pursue what He calls you to. This is where the abundant life is found. 💡The Trinity Effect™ was developed my Matt Tommey as a methodology for helping believers experience the abundant life Jesus promised. Looking for free resources to grow as a Christian artist spiritually, creatively and in business?
Here's 6 great places available now: ✅ The Thriving Christian Artist Podcast: https://www.matttommeymentoring.com/podcast.html ✅ Matt Tommey Mentoring Blog: https://www.matttommeymentoring.com/blog ✅ YouVersion Bible App Devotionals from Matt Tommey: https://www.bible.com/search/plans?q=matt%20tommey ✅ Books by Matt Tommey https://www.amazon.com/Matt-Tommey/e/B008F0S2LQ *✅ 3 Misconceptions about Thriving as an Artist: https://thrive.matttommeymentoring.com/misconceptions-to-thriving *Only for those artists who are NOT in the Created to Thrive Artist Mentoring Program.
Has your art hobby grown large enough that you’re thinking about turning your passion into a business? In this article, I’ll share a few quick tips that will help you know when and how to get started on the road to business success as an artist. I know it will be a big help as you consider starting an art business.
Start with a Call to the Experts While there’s plenty of sites that offer “free” legal advice out there on the internet for starting your own business, nothing beats professional, local advice if you want to get started on the right foot. From navigating local, state, and national laws, picking the correct business structure, and exploring the liability and tax implications of owning a business, a good legal advisor and talented financial advisor can help you navigate the decisions you need to make and the steps you need to take as your hobby grows into a business. Is Now the Right Time? Once you have your team of experts assembled (attorney and CPA to start with), it’s time to take a look at the state of your art. Do a little cost-benefit analysis with your financial professional, and decide if your hobby has indeed grown into a business. A few of the questions to consider when you’re at a crossroad like this: Are you regularly investing personal money into your art hobby? Are you regularly selling your work or teaching art classes? Is the money you’re making from your art becoming significant enough to replace a part, if not all, of your work income? Are you making enough money to offset the expenses of having an official corporate structure in place? As you work with your team of experts, you’ll answer these and many more questions in making this determination. But if you and the experts agree it’s time, then your next move will be to… Pick Your Business Structure One of the first things you and your team of advisers will consider is what type of structure you’ll be using to start your art business. Here in the United States, we use three basic types of business structure:
While I’m no legal expert (and this is not legal advice), here’s a basic overview of each type of business entity you and your team of experts will be considering for your needs.
Want to dive deeper and learn even more? Check out what my friends at LegalZoom have to say on this subject by clicking here. Looking for more tips? Listen to what I shared with Bonnie, one of my podcast listeners.
One Last Piece of Advice
Once you’ve determined this is the time to turn our hobby into a business, do it right and do it with integrity. Setting up a business is not the kind of thing you want to leave to chance. Don’t fall into the trap of doing business under the table just because it’s easy and may save you a few dollars. Walking with integrity in business, setting up your business, taxes, and financial accounts correctly is like weaving a net for the blessing God wants to send your way. If you have huge holes in your net because you’re not thinking and working through the details or because you’re avoiding taxes, then you’re potentially setting yourself up for disappointment and failure. If an art business is in your future, then begin by finding those experts who can help you determine the best time, the best structure, and the best way to set up a business that will be a blessing to both you and others.
Have you ever wondered about the balance between God's design for your life and your responsibility to actually walk that out? Well, I want to share what the Bible says about this balance and reveal the two things every believer must do if they're going to find it.
You know, I love talking about the Kingdom of God. It's so simple. It's so clearly laid out in Scripture. And yet, so many people, me included for many years, have no clue how the Kingdom works. But once you get an understanding of how the Kingdom of God works in your life. Wow, things really begin to change. Ephesians 2:10 is one such scripture. It talks about the balance between the design of God on your life and your responsibility to walk it out. It says this, "For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them." You Are His Workmanship Now the first Kingdom truth I want you to grab onto is this: You Are His Workmanship. The Greek word for "workmanship" is poema, which we get the word poem. With that in mind, I want to paraphrase and expand upon the first part of this verse… "You are a skillfully crafted artistic narrative that expresses the beauty and the heart of God." You are not here by some random chance or happenstance. You are explicitly designed as a work of art by the Lord for His Glory. You Were Created for a Purpose The second Kingdom Truth I want to highlight is this; You Were Created for a Purpose. "Created in Christ Jesus" is how Paul puts it, but what does that mean for us today? That means we are one in Christ Jesus, joint-heirs with Him, empowered by the Holy Spirit, and fully able to receive and walk in the fullness of the Kingdom of God. But for what end? "For good works, which God prepared beforehand." God designed, crafted, and fully equipped you to express His nature and His Heart to humankind in a way that only you can do. You are the perfect person for this mission, should you choose to accept it, which brings me to the next truth. You Just Have To Do It "That we should walk in them," or as another version puts it, "for us to do." Maybe you can relate to this, but for many years, I thought that because God had a plan for my life, that He was just going to make it happen. I believed that my role in fulfilling God's call on my life was to wait on Him to do it. Guess what? That led to a lot of frustration because that's NOT how the Kingdom works. Overt action is implied at the end of Ephesians 2:10. While it's true that God has a divine plan for your life, one that He's had in mind for you for a very long time, His plan was for you to do it with Him. If you don't walk out the thing God created you to do, then you're going to miss the fullness of God's design for your life.
This Might Be Your Roadblock
But Matt, if it's that simple, why is it so hard to simply "do" the thing God has called and created me to do? The biggest roadblock most people face when fulfilling God's call on their life is their mindset. So many good, well-meaning, Jesus-loving people simply don't know who they are in Christ. Despite being fully saved, they allow their old natural way of thinking, their non-renewed mind, to dominate their life. Things like...
All of us have a past; it's just a normal part of the human condition. But have you ever wondered how to let go of the past so that you are free to do all the things God has called you to do in life? I'm going to share a really practical strategy for renewing your mind, right out of God's Word, that will enable you to let go of the past and truly begin to thrive in all God has for you. How God Sees Your Past All of us have done things and have had things done to us in the past that we want to forget. We want to get rid of it, but the enemy loves to continually bring those things up over and over. He uses these images of the past to torment us in order to impede our walk with the Lord. It’s frustrating for many and for some, it can be downright paralyzing. This may be your current reality, but it's not God’s best for you in the Kingdom! I'm so glad that Roman's teaches us that:
And that Paul, in 2nd Corinthians, builds on this verse when he wrote:
But as helpful as these two verses are, I love Scripture that gives us real practical strategy on how to walk out a Biblical principle here in the real world. And Philippians 3:12 – 14 is such a passage. Here, Paul lays out a powerful strategy for walking in freedom from the condemnation of the past:
Forgetting What Is Behind Is A Process That passage is such an excellent strategy for getting rid of, what is commonly referred to as stinkin' thinkin'. I love how this passage starts with, "Not that I have already obtained it or have become perfect, but I press on." Right at the beginning, Paul is letting you know this is a process, that he's still in process himself…
But Paul doesn't camp out there. He continues with, "forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus." I love how Paul forgets with intent. As he is laying things down from his past, it's as if Paul is intentionally saying, "You know, these thoughts, fears, and anxieties over my past that keep playing over and over in my mind, I'm choosing to and take those thoughts captive and forget it!" But he doesn't stop there.
Reaching Forward Is Key
What does Paul mention next? He exercises his faith, believing that God has so much more for him, and he leans into the process. Paul purposefully shifts his attention from the mistakes, hurts, junk from the past and begins to focus on:
Many of us have spent years focusing on the things we have done wrong. It's too easy to be wrapped up in all the ways that we missed it and walk in condemnation over the weaknesses and temptations we've given into in the past.
“Your outer life is the fruit of your inner life.” - Matt Tommey
Yet, if you allow those past failings to define you and dominate your thought life, then your life is going to be a mess. Why, you ask? It's because your outer life is the fruit of your inner life. That's why Paul talked so much about this in the New Testament.
Forget that junk! Press Into ALL That God Has For You. "Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things." Philippians 4:8 So, I want you to get this concept deep into your spirit today as you read this. If you've been having trouble letting go of the past, there is an easy place to start. Take a moment to reflect on one anxiety, fear, or regret from your past. When you have that thing in mind, find a few quiet minutes and take it to the Lord in prayer…
Listen, friend! That's how you let go of the past. You take those old thoughts captive, you throw them out, and you replace them with the truth of God's Word. You make that vision, God's plan and purpose for your life, a reality by leaning into it. As you do, you'll begin to move forward. Have you ever felt like your everyday experiences in life aren't lining up with your hopes, dreams, and the promises of God over your life? Many people feel that way, including myself over the years, until I discovered a key in 3rd John 2 that unlocked a Kingdom perspective on prospering for me. "I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers." 3rd John 2 emphasis added I love how this verse so perfectly defines thriving in the Kingdom. This is the same way that I explain it to my Created to Thrive Mentoring Program members. This verse begins by showing that prosperity in life and walking in divine health are both part of our inheritance in the Lord. They are both meant to be a regular part of every believer's life. Over the years, I've found it's easy to believe that God wants to abundantly bless His people with physical health, healing, and wholeness. But the idea that God wants His people to "prosper in all things," financially, in the marketplace, and in life seems to be harder to accept for many people.  In His sermon on the mount, Jesus said this,
31 "Therefore do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' 32 For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. 33 But seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you." Matthew 6:31-33 Emphasis Added Thriving in the Kingdom isn't a matter of working, sweating, figuring it all out on your own, and striving harder than everyone else around you. That's the world's way. That's operating out of the mammon system and John knew this when he first penned the letter that would become 3rd John. John learned first-hand what Jesus taught on that mount; that true Kingdom prosperity begins when you:
That's normal in the Kingdom of God. God doesn't have favorites. God doesn't make some people sick and some people healthy. He doesn't prosper some and not prosper others just cause He's playing favorites. Nope, prosperity and health are your birthright; it's normal for every believer. Helping Your Soul to Prosper Have you ever taken a moment to think about what it means for your soul to prosper? And what does thriving internally have to do with prospering externally? Everything that we do in the Kingdom is through faith. Meaning we see it, feel it, and believe it first, internally before we ever see those things manifest in our life, externally. That's just how God has set it up. It’s not something God does to us but rather something He does with us through the leadership of the Holy Spirit. I think that's why Jesus taught us in Mark 11:24, "Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them." You see, prospering in your soul starts with renewing your mind and aligning your heart, will, and emotions with the truth of God's Kingdom. So when you pray, you pray like you already have the thing you’re asking for - from a place of gratitude - rather than begging God for what you need. As you intentionally sow these Kingdom principles into your life, your thought life and belief systems begin to change. And over time, the internal prospering begins to manifest externally. Maybe that's why Proverbs 23:7 teaches us that "as a man thinks in his heart, so is he."  People reach out and ask me all the time how to make money as an artist. Yep. Many well-meaning artists have asked this question and most believe that it's a single answer, like there's some shortcut or secret ad you can run to make everyone buy your art and make a million dollars. SPOILER ALERT: There's no silver bullet for learning how to become a successful artist. However, after working as a creative now for over 25 years, speaking to thousands and personally mentoring thousands of artists via my books, podcasts, and online artist mentoring program, I've come to understand some of what it takes to really thrive. I'm going to share some of those insights with you right here. Since I also believe no one person has the corner on success, I reached out to several of my thriving artists friends who are creating beautiful work and selling the heck out of it all while living an incredible life. Based on their input and my experience, here's my top 29 tips for taking your artistic calling to the next level so that you can really start thriving in 2021.
As you probably know by now, information doesn't create change. Real change only happens when valuable information meets action and interaction; action on your part and interaction with others on your journey and an experienced mentor. Why, you ask? Most of the time, there are things in your life you just can't see by yourself. For those who are willing, God uses mastermind and mentoring relationships to bring you to the next level of growth. If you'd like to make this year your breakthrough year and really start thriving as an artist spiritually, artistically and in business, check out my Created to Thrive Artist Mentoring Program and read some of their stories! Thousands of artists just like you have made the decision to be a part and it's changing lives. Thanks again to all my artist friends who contributed to this list. Each one is creating great work, thriving as a professional artist and a joy to call friend!
The essence of prophetic art is listening with the imaginative ears of your spirit to release the Light and Life of God through the work you create.  "Emerging" - a prophetic art by Matt Tommey. Cold Wax and Oil Painting on wood panel. 48"x48". As artists and Kingdom creatives, we hear, see and feel what others tend to miss not because we’ve got the super spiritual mojo, but mostly because we’ve learned to listen with the ears we’ve been given. This is the essence of prophetic art: learning to listen with the ears of your spirit via your imagination in order to release the Light and Life of God through the work you create. The goal of this ability is never to exalt ourselves or our work, but rather to sense what’s going on in the Spirit realm through our natural and spiritual senses and translate that reality – the Kingdom - into the earth realm. That’s essentially what prophetic art is all about – God using an artist to bring transformation into a life or situation here in the earth realm through their art, their art process or the interaction with an artist. Operating Prophetically in Our Art Operating prophetically is at the heart of the creative process – seeing, hearing, feeling and sensing in the Spirit and co-laboring with your unique skillset and design to birth it into tangible form. Luci Shaw, in her incredible book “Breath for the Bones” says of this moving back and forth between Spirit and flesh, heaven and earth: “Sometimes I have seen myself as an amphibian, like a frog, created for two elements. I dive beneath the lakes surface, my earthly home so that my skin doesn’t dry out and wither, but I need oxygen for my lungs and have to emerge from below the surface to breathe. I discover that I am made for both earth and heaven. "Like Enoch, like Moses; unlike Adam, unlike most of us, these extraordinary individuals moved seamlessly from restricted terrestrial living into the presence of freedom and life in its optimum dimension in the presence of God.” She continues “Not only are we responsible as artists somehow to demonstrate that it is possible to bring heaven to earth by living the life of grace in an ungraceful place, by gluing together the seen and unseen, but we are required to be links with the unlinkable, with otherwise disparate entities.” (Luci Shaw, "Breath for the Bones," 2007 Thomas Nelson) Because the nature of the creative process is the prophetic “glueing together the seen and unseen”, we should always be enlarging and sharpening our unique creative language in order to be able to hear and sense what God is saying in order to release Spirit-led Kingdom expression in ways that people can respond. “Artists are the life-givers in culture. We are a pivotal intersection point where the Kingdom of Heaven meets culture. It is there that we have the unique opportunity, through the power of the Holy Spirit, to translate the Kingdom of Heaven into a language that bypasses words and goes directly into the human spirit. When we collaborate with the Holy Spirit in this dance of Kingdom creativity, His power, His Life and His Light merge with our faith, creative thoughts, imaginations, desires and skill into art that carries the literal presence and power of God. It is in this context that our art, no matter the creative medium becomes prophetic.” - Matt Tommey, Creativity According to the Kingdom Prophetic Art Calls Order Out of Chaos Just like God did on the day of creation as recorded in Genesis 1, we are called to come into chaos, bringing order and transformation into them as we release of the creative nature of God. In addition to bringing order and transformation to those things that are in chaos, our role as creative ones is also to be door keepers of the presence of God in the earth. What does that mean? It means we are called to release the presence of God in the earth through our creative expression and facilitate experiences where people can encounter the life and light of God as a part of their everyday existence. This is the nature of the Kingdom! Otherwise, what else are we supposed to be doing? When you reduce the Christian life to going to church and following a bunch of rules that you can never live up too, you embrace a dead form and deny the very power Jesus imparted to us through the cross, by the Spirit. Your creative expression literally carries the life and light of God when you co-labor with the Spirit in your creative release. Prophetic Art is Light in the Darkness Remember in John 1:1 God is light and life and everything that was created was created through the Word, Jesus. Then in Genesis 1 God released his nature – Light - into the chaotic darkness and transformation occurred. Just as sons and daughters of the Creator God are made in his image, so our creative expression carries His transformative nature through our prophetic voice. That process happens like everything in the Kingdom happens, by faith because faith IS the substance or the tangible evidence that the things we’ve seen, felt and heard in the Spirit realm are actually real. Our role is to bring them into the earth realm and allow our creative expression to be a conduit for the mountain moving power of God to be released. Now, the degree to which we get to do this in our life is not a matter of God playing favorites, but it’s based on stewarding well the gifting God has invested in us. The more you enlarge your capacity for his presence by becoming excellent at what you do, the more the father will entrust to you. That’s how you grow in the Kingdom. Prophetic Art is About Stewardship Remember the Parable of the Talents and the guy who didn't do anything with his talents? It wasn't because of his lack of ability, but his lack of belief. He told the master of the field "I knew you to be a hard man..." In other words, I knew i couldn't live up to your standards, so I just didn't even try.
Just like the men in the Parable of the Talents, you are I are responsible for the revelation God entrusts to us. It’s literally a Kingdom investment that the Father is putting inside of you, waiting to see what you do with it. That investment has the ability to grow, produce, multiply and expand when mixed with faith or it can just sit dormant. Remember, God’s Word says in Proverbs 25:2 NIV:
What Tools Are in Your Hands Right Now? As you think about your own unique Kingdom design and how the Father has designed you for your Kingdom purpose, ask yourself what is in your hand right now? What is it that the Father has given you? Maybe it's:
Take these things and begin to steward them!  Raw Diamond in a Lump of Coal. The Prophetic "Chipping Away" Ideas that come from God are like diamonds in lumps of coal. There's a lot of potential beauty inside but much has to be chipped away and polished before it can be realized. Make sense? So what needs to be chipped away in your ideas, process and art? What are the next steps you need to take to see that diamond begin to come forth and shine? Don’t minimize this! This is why we need the prophetic in our creative process, so we can sense where to move and what to do next. Again, part of that prophetic “chipping away” is in our life too, because for all artists and Kingdom creatives, we’re on a journey of personal development, not just artistic development. We’re all growing in the gifts and talents that God’s placed within us, as led by His Spirit. The great thing is that we’re not left alone in the process. Remember, it’s called being filled and skilled. It’s about operating at your fullest capacity, being totally filled with the Spirit of God and leveraging all the skill you have to release His Glory through your expression. Building On the Prophetic Art Foundations Ok, so you’ve got the foundation down, right? Hear, see and feel in the Spirit, and develop a picture or impression of what you’re supposed to be doing creatively. Then, as you chip away at the diamond and co-labor with the Father with whatever He’s put in your hand, the life and light of God will be released through your creative expression as a natural outflow of the Kingdom. As I think a little deeper about my own creative process, I recognize 5 signposts that may be helpful for you to look for in your process. They are:
Let's talk about each one of these! (But before we do, let me share some of my favorite prophetic artists with you...)  Some of My Favorite Artists Before we continue, let me take a moment to share some of my favorite artists who are creating incredible work while engaging the Holy Spirit in their creative process. While each may not call themselves a "prophetic artist", God is certainly using their work to release transformation around the world. Click on the image to visit their website and purchase their work. (All copyright retained by the artist.)
“We are called to come into chaos, bringing order & transformation into them through releasing the nature of God.” - Matt Tommey How do you know if you're creating art with the Holy Spirit of if it's just you? If you'd like to dive in a little deeper on creating with the Holy Spirit, this is an episode of 5-Minute Mentoring I did on the subject. 5 Steps in the Prophetic Art Process  "Community" - a prophetic art piece by Matt Tommey. Woven kudzu baskets, encaustic wax, copper, clay, driftwood. 1. REVELATORY CREATIVITY When a creative idea begins to percolate, it will usually come as some sort of inspiration. Maybe you see, know, hear, smell or sense something that catches your attention and you become inspired. It may be a place, a person, a song or a natural setting that you see every day or something that you’ve encountered for the first time. Regardless of how it happens, at that moment you have an encounter. The Spirit speaks and you have an “Ah-ha” moment – a light bulb experience where you know you need to pay attention. Your willingness to sense and respond to that impulse is foundational in your ability to move prophetically in the creative process. The Art of Imagination Defined by Google Dictionary, imagination is “the faculty or action of forming new ideas, or images or concepts of external objects not present to the senses.” Your imagination is a God-designed engine inside of you that receives impulses, desires and information from yourself, others and the world around you and then formulates images based on the beliefs in your heart. The root word for imagination in Latin is imaginari which actually means “picture to oneself”. It’s literally a picture engine inside of you.
Your imagination is a part of you that interacts with the movement of God within you. It is a gift to every person ever created and gives you the ability to dream, to see and know before you actually create. Just like every gift given by the Father to humanity, it has to be submitted to the Lordship of Jesus and set apart for His Glory. Imagination is the First Step Imagining is the first step in the creative process and is centered in the human spirit. For the believer, imagination interacts with the Holy Spirit in our human spirit and is then processed through our soul and body. It creates an inner picture inside of us by which we create from. This ability to see that which is not as though it already is, is the nature of God manifested through us; that is to imagine and see what is the highest, best expression of his Glory through our lives and creativity.
 Imagining the Beauty of God and Flowing with the Holy Spirit as you create Prophetic Art. The Pictures Inside You At the end of the day, it’s all about the pictures that live inside of you. Paul talked about this two times in particular as he encouraged early believers to mature in their relationship with the Father. First, in Romans 12:2 where he said “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will.” In other words, don’t think like the world thinks, don’t have their picture of reality and possibility in your mind and heart, but rather renew your mind with the God’s truth, which brings Kingdom transformation. Secondly, in 2 Corinthians 10:3-5 KJV he exhorts the church, saying
Again, Paul knew that imagining or seeing an internal picture of that which is of no use or has nothing to do with the knowledge or God, the Kingdom or Christ has no place within the mind of the believer. Not only does it not have any place, but if left to germinate, it will eventually bear fruit. Prophetic Imagination & the Kingdom Within Us You see, it’s in our human spirit, through the process of imagining that we connect to the divine consciousness or the Kingdom within us. Instead of connecting to our rule and reign or, as Paul says “the pattern of this world”, we connect to the rule and reign of the divine Kingdom that lives inside of us through the cross of Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit. That’s how we prophetically bring heavens reality and nature to the earth. This process of imagining is not only crucial to your creative process but to your whole life because creativity and living a life of passion and abundance are directly connected. God’s purposes are always followed by His promises and His promises are always followed by His pictures. When His promises and pictures are mixed with faith, they transform our identity into what God has already declared is true – an identity that can fulfill His purposes and release the fullness of the Kingdom here in the earth. It’s a beautiful circle: purpose, promises, pictures, identity. Consider for a moment, Abraham in Genesis chapters 12-17. God wanted to establish covenant with humanity and had to do it through a man. The purpose? Relationship.
Do you see? The picture took root in his heart. Then what happened? Changing a Name, Establishing a Promise God changes his name from Abram to Abraham in Chapter 17 and with it comes a physical demonstration of the promise – circumcision – that showed the reality of the new identity which was rooted in the promise portrayed in the picture that was established by the purpose. Just to give you another beautiful example of how this works think about when the angel Gabriel came to Mary in Luke, chapter 1:
Basically Mary freaks out, gets scared and the angel has to reassure her of God’s purposes again for her life and reassure of her of her identity in Him. Then, once that’s done, the angel gives Mary a picture – an expected end – that she can mix with faith in order to see God’s plan established in the earth. What happens then? She runs down the hill to her sister Elizabeth’s house in order to tell her the purposes of God over her life, stand in her new identity and give testimony to the promise and pictures the angel deposited in her heart. So what’s the bottom line here?  Dreaming with God inside your imagination is like an open door in the spirit realm. Imagination is a Vital Part the Kingdom Your ability to imagine – that is, see with God – is vital in your ability to creatively demonstrate the Kingdom and it’s tied to your acceptance of God’s purpose for your life, the identity He’s established in you through Christ and the promises He’s given you and a son and daughter in the Kingdom. Sometimes God will give the picture as with Abraham and Mary, and sometimes the promises and purpose produce the pictures like with David. Think about it, David was a lover of God and a worshipper. Firm in that identity, I’m sure God began to give him dreams, visions and promises that began to take root in His heart. How do I know that? Because I know God and that’s what He does for anyone who asks. As He mixed his faith with the promises and pictures began to form in His heart of what could be - worship, everyday, for years, with unlimited access to the Father – and sure enough the purposes of God were established in His generation. Doors began to open, people began to respond and affirm His purpose and eventually he fulfilled that purpose as King and the establishment of the Tabernacle. Why, just because God wanted it that way? No, it was because God found a man who would dream with Him to release His nature into the earth realm through imagination and see transformation happen. Strengthen Your Imagination There are practical ways to begin strengthening your imagination. Pray in tongues, ask God for pictures, meditate on His word and specifically His promises regarding your identity and your purpose. As you do, pictures will begin to form. Mix your faith with the picture and the promises and watch God begin to bring it forth.
How to Practically Partner with God If you've been wondering how to partner with God in your life and creative process, this 5-Minute Mentoring episode will be an encouragement to you! 2. SKILLFUL CREATIVITY The next step in the process of prophetic creativity is not just imagining what could be, but then stepping out and responding. You have to see and agree. If you only see, then you’ll just be frustrated because hope (a picture of an expected end) deferred makes the heart sick. On the other hand, you can go through a bunch of wrote motions but unless there’s a picture of your expected end mixed with faith, you’re going nowhere fast. This whole process of seeing and agreeing is explored in detail within my book “Creativity According to the Kingdom.” Suffice it to say, within your life there has to be a constant infilling of the Holy Spirit through an intimate relationship with Jesus. That produces desires, dreams, passion and pictures. It affirms your identity and causes you to triumph. Response is Required At the same time “faith without works is dead.” There must always be a response and that response is based in your skill set. As you grow in being filled, you must also grow in being skilled. Giving attention to both simultaneously, as led by the Spirit of God produces maturity and brings you into a place of increase. Proverbs 18:16 NKJV says “A mans gift makes room for him, and brings him before great men.” If you want influence in the world system, if you want to be a conduit of Kingdom transformation then you must pursue skill. “  "Nested in Arms of Grace" - a prophetic sculpture by Matt Tommey. 3. INCARNATIONAL CREATIVITY If imagination is source and skillful, Spirit-led execution is the process then surely art is the product. Your art, or whatever your creative expression happens to be brings into reality that which up until this point has only been a hope. The act of creating is by it’s very nature incarnational because it’s bringing the purpose and promise of God into the earth in tangible form. No longer is this thing we’ve dreamed of just an idea, but now it has become an evidential reality. This incarnational process is a core part of God’s divine nature. When we participate in His divine nature - through His precious promises - we then become participants in the incarnation, bringing the divine into the earth realm for all to see, interact with and be transformed by. God led the way and gave us the pattern. God wanted to redeem the world (purpose) and so began to let the word out through his prophets (promise) that there was a Messiah coming. Through the prophets of old, God began to give a picture of what this Messiah would look like, how He would act and what He would do when He came (picture). The Word (Jesus) became flesh and dwelt among us (skillful execution on the part of God co-laboring with Mary resulting in the Incarnation.) Now through the Holy Spirit and our ability to co-labor with him in our creativity, our artwork becomes incarnational (because we are joint heirs with Jesus in the new covenant), revealing the Nature of God in the earth. This is not a one-time event but our new, everyday reality as sons and daughters of the King. The Kingdom is Established through Sons & Daughters For me, this is where the rubber meets the road. The Kingdom of God is established in the earth as sons and daughters release demonstrations of the reality of that Kingdom into the culture, regardless of their unique gifting or calling. Jesus promised that we would do greater works than He did, that signs and wonders would follow those who believe in Him. My friend, your creative expression was destined from the very foundation of the earth to be the incarnated demonstration of God’s Kingdom in the earth.  Prophetic art is like a table set before the viewer where God is waiting to release His presence. 4. TRANSFORMATIONAL CREATIVITY When your creation does come from that place of Spirit-birthed, skillfully produced incarnation, it literally becomes a conduit for transformation. Why? Not because of us, in and of our talent but because it’s carrying the very Light and Life – the very nature – of God. Just like the sacrament of communion, your art, like the simple bread and wine, becomes a means of grace whereby God can commune with his people. Since Spirit-born creative expression is both prophetic and incarnational in nature our art has the capacity to speak and continue speaking to everyone who encounters it over time. It’s a lot like the stone cairns that you see throughout the Celtic landscape of Scotland that were created and placed there to show the way over time. These stacked stone monuments act as reminders that in the middle of what seems like nowhere, there is a trail. Our artwork and creative expression can be a cairn of sorts in the Spirit, declaring that there is a path that leads to life through the person of Jesus. Instead of just having a one-time encounters, we literally have the opportunity to set up these places of intersection in the Spirit for generations to come. Songs that would be sung for generations, buildings to be built that would declare the Glory of the Lord, even tangible objects used in daily life all acting as intersection points where God shows up and connects with His children. Art is a Table Our artwork literally becomes, as in Psalm 23 a table prepared to nourish those who come and sit before the King in the presence of everything that seeks to kill, suppress and confuse them. Oh to think of it! That the overflow of your life! The very expression of your heart and hands would be used as a demonstration of the transforming love of God. You see my friend, art and beauty are not ornamental, as some out suppose. They are essential for all life because it is through them that we touch the very nature of the creator God. "God cares much more that you create than what you create. Having you fulfill your divine design is the desire of the Father." - Matt Tommey  "Flow" - a prophetic art basket by Matt Tommey. Bark, vine, copper and encaustic wax. 5. ABUNDANT CREATIVITY The result of Kingdom transformation is always life, especially when it comes through the creative expression of sons and daughters. Life abundant. Life everlasting. Life rooted and grounded in love and the abundance of the Father of all Life. God’s abundance overflows when it transforms the hearts of man and through His grace He activates the dormant places in the heart causing vision, purpose and desire to spring forth. Man fully alive, fully satisfied in God, fully loved by God and fully able to stand in His Kingdom purpose. Cooperation, Not Performance A life of abundance and creativity always manifests in our life when we come into alignment with the intention or design of God for our life, whether as co-creators or ones interacting with the Spirit-birthed creation. This doesn’t mean we’ll never have another problem in our life or that grace is some ticket to easy street. It does mean, however that worry is no longer an option because at the end of the day, you know you are secure, provided for and in the Beloved of Almighty God. Otherwise, we stay frustrated in the ego portion of our being - our soul, mind will, emotions - wresting with feelings of inadequacy, powerlessness and frustration. This understanding of how prophetic creative expression is birthed and transformation is released should encourage you because it takes the pressure off of you to perform. Rather, you just simply cooperate with the design of God in and through your life. You don’t have to be this or that, just stand as a son or daughter, receiving and stewarding that which God has entrusted to you. Abundance is basically coming into harmony with the frequency of God in the earth and in our being. Otherwise we create dissonance by playing notes that don’t work together and tension, stress and anxiety are the result. I don’t know about you, but I want to be in harmony with all that God is doing! PLEASE COMMENT BELOW AND LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS ABOUT CREATING PROPHETIC ART! :) - Matt This blog is an excerpt from “Creativity According to the Kingdom: Connecting with Heaven to Create with God and Release Transformation”. To order your copy in print or on Kindle, visit Amazon.com today. CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT EVEN MORE ABOUT PROPHETIC ART! 
Healthy relationships are vital to thriving in life. We were created to form life-giving, meaningful, and deep connections with other people. It's just how we are wired as human beings, and we all need these bonds to be our best. God said it best, "It is not good for man to be alone."
One of the things that the Lord showed me years ago was that the principle of sowing and reaping is not just a financial principle, it's a Kingdom principle. It's a universal law, just like gravity, and it works with every area of life, including relationships. If you're not actively sowing into relationships in your life, then I guarantee you're not reaping those healthy relationships and healthy interactions you need to thrive in life. We've got to intentionally cultivate the relationships we want in our life. And so, I want to give you a few tips that I've learned over the years that have helped me grow in my relationship with God, with others, and in my life as a kingdom person. #1 – Speak to Their Design God has a design and a purpose for every person on the planet, whether they're a believer yet or not, and whether they believe and embrace their divine design or not. God loves to speak to His people's purpose, even when they aren't living up to their full potential.
"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." (Jeremiah 29:11)
Let's face it; we tend to react to others based on what we see happening in their lives, what they are demonstrating. Brokenness, bad-habits, and unhealthy choices are easy to see and even easier to point out in others. But that's not the way of the Kingdom. We have to look at others through the eyes of the Spirit to see past their current situation and speak into destiny.
In the verse above, God sent Jeremiah to speak life, destiny, and purpose to a group of isolated Israelites who were exiled because of a lifetime (actually several lifetimes) of brokenness. God's desired connection with His people, and in this example, He modeled one way to sow into relationships. Here's What I Said On My Podcast About This:
#2 - Pull the Gold Out of Others
As we learn to see others from God's point of view, we begin to recognize their purpose and are in a position to bless their design. Think about where Gideon was when the Lord called him a "Mighty Warrior." Gideon couldn't see it at the time, but God acknowledged and blessed Gideon's divine design and purpose in that declaration. Approaching relationships with the goal of seeing the best, or “the gold”, in others is a great place to start. But turning your attention towards and sowing into the best in others is vital to cultivate those healthy, authentic connections you're seeking. #3 Don't Wait, Initiate It's frustrating to be the one that always has to ask their friends out. Face it, we all love it when we get invited out to lunch after church or get asked to come over and hang out. It's an unspoken message that says, "Hey, you are someone I want to spend time with." But what do you do when those invites aren't happening on a regular basis? Take a step. Ask the Holy Spirit:
Here's the thing: If you always wait on others to sow into you, a lot of times you'll be waiting a long time. And the enemy will spin that into offense, isolation, and the lie that something is wrong with you. As you step out of your shell and begin to initiate instead of wait, bless others according to their design, and actively pull the gold out of their lives, you'll start to see incredible fruit coming forth in your relationships. By sowing into others, you'll become the person people want to be around. By speaking into the divine design of others, looking for the best in them and initiating relationships you become a beautiful conduit through which God will release His Kingdom, not only in the lives of others but in your life, too. Remember, Proverbs 11:25 says”
“A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed.”
Thanks for reading! Comment below to let me know how you’re cultivating intimacy with others. Together, we can be used by God to change the culture around us for His Glory.
Have you ever wondered how to sell art online? You have a website, you're on social media, and you've got the new collection ready to sell, but where do you start? Whether you're new to the game or are already a seasoned pro, here are 5 keys that will unleash your online art sales this year and give you more understanding of how to be a successful artist.
Key #1 – Artist, Know Thy Customer First things first. Start by discovering your ideal client. Who is the person most likely, out of everybody in the world, to buy your work and put it in their home or commercial space? As artists, we'd like to think that the whole world is a potential client, but that's just not the case. In my Created to Thrive Artist Mentoring Program, I teach artists how to create a client avatar, or what some call a buyer persona. This is a semi-fictional representation of your ideal client based on what you know about your existing customers and the research you do in your local and regional art marketplace. Listen To What I Said On My Podcast About This:
Creating a client avatar (buyer persona) is easier than it sounds, and you're probably already doing it to some degree and don't realize it. It's just the process of paying attention to the interactions and conversations you're having with customers every time you sell a piece of art and collecting that data. Even if you've only ever sold one piece of art, you know something about the person who bought your art.
This is a process that really never ends because every piece you sell is another chance to interact with people from a client perspective, from a strategic partner perspective, from a gallery perspective, and a referral perspective. As you do this over time, you'll start to get a great picture of who these people are, what motivates them, what they're looking for, and where and with whom they hang out, which brings me to the second key. Key #2 – Go Where the Clients Are In a recent article about how to sell art if you live in a rural area, I said, "If you want to catch fish, you have to go to where the fish are." Makes sense, right? The same holds true with finding customers. Once you understand who your ideal client is and what they are into, it's time to develop what I call intersection points. The goal here is simple, regularly getting in front of your ideal client using a variety of strategies. Now that you are starting to understand who your ideal customer is, you want to be found by them. In the real world, you can do this through a variety of ways like exhibiting at the kind of art shows they frequent, volunteering for the non-profits they support, and speaking at social clubs they've joined. But don't let social distancing or physical separation keep you from being found. Advertise in the types of magazines they read, start collaborating with the interior designers they are using, and follow common social media interests. Again your goal is to cross paths with your ideal clients in as many natural non-salesy ways as you can so that they can find you. And this leads us to the next key. Key#3 - Connect (Like Your Art Sales Depend Upon It) The point of the first two keys is to get you talking with your ideal client. If you don't remember anything else I share, remember this:
No Connection, No Sale.
People buy from people that they know, like, and trust. Think about that for a second. As an artist, you have to build a connection with your client so that they feel connected to you, your aesthetic, and the work you're producing. If you don't build those connections, you won't have many opportunities to make a sale.
So, again, these connections are built up over time, and they're developed along with those naturally occurring intersections points you're beginning to seek out intentionally. As the relationship grows with your ideal client, so will their interest in owning one of your pieces, which brings me to the next key. Key #4 – Make the Offer Clear The confused mind rarely buys. Now that you've got a potential client interested make it easy for them to shop. In simple terms, let your clients know precisely what they get from you when they invest in one of your creations. You should include details like:
Whatever it is that you're offering, make sure those details are available to a client browsing your website. This holds true whether you're selling finished pieces, prints, or commissioned originals.
Create a clear, compelling offer
This brings me to the final key.
Key#5 – Keep Your Checkout Process Simple Make it easy for people to give you money. I recently had an experience with a local merchant that drove this point home for me. Instead of a quick swipe, signature, and press of the yes key, I received a 10-minute lesson in loving my technologically challenged neighbor. It's so easy to accept credit cards, checks, wire transfers, and even cryptocurrencies online, over the phone, and in-person in today's world. There's really no excuse for making it hard for a customer to do business with you. Don't know where to start? Check out Square. They are great. I use them for accepting credit and debit cards both online and in person. So, there you have it, my top 5 tips selling your art, online and otherwise. Remember the keys:
Got Questions? I'd Love to Answer Them I sure hope this has been helpful. If you have a question for me, I'd love to answer it here in my blog and on a future episode of 5-Minute Mentoring. Just stop by my podcast page and leave me a voicemail. Thanks for reading.  Don't keep all of your art marketing eggs in one basket.
In our social media-driven world, should you be working to collect an email address from your website visitors and clients? Absolutely! There has never been a better time to commit to an effective email mailing plan as a part of your overall art marketing strategy.
With all of the social media platforms available to us today, I get this question all the time from folks like Misty, one of my podcast listeners, "Matt, do I really need an email list, and if so, why?" It's too easy to fall into the trap of thinking, "All I need is Facebook. All I need is Instagram. All I need is YouTube." And as much as I would love for this to be true, today's art entrepreneurs need to use a variety of tools if they want to create meaningful and profitable connections with their social media followers. Don't Keep All Your Marketing Eggs In One Basket I have been in the art marketing game long enough to realize that technology platforms, specifically social media, make significant changes without warning, often at a moment's notice. Companies routinely change their algorithms, what THEY think is important, which impacts what their users and your followers see in their social feeds. And when this happens, all of the organic connection you've worked so hard to build could disappear in an instant. Next to your website, your email list may be the most crucial marketing tool YOU OWN. And I say, "you own," because unlike the following you've built up on social media, you have complete control over the connections you cultivate with and content you deliver to the social followers and customers who have opted-in to your email list. If the unthinkable happened and your social media accounts stopped being useful, you would still be able to use email to stay connected, create interest, inspire people, and bring them to an event, class, or sale. Want to Hear More on This Topic, Then Listen To:  Giving away a free resource is a great way to build your email mailing list.
Building Your Email List
It all starts with building your list, giving your social followers a chance to become a bigger part of what you are doing. One of my favorite tips that I share with my Created to Thrive Artist Mentoring Program is to offer their casual followers a free resource. I use an offer similar to this on my website, podcasts, and in my blog. The embedded link takes visitors to a landing page where they are asked to share their first name and their email address so that I can send them this free resource. Feel free to click the picture to see what I mean, plus you'll get a great free resource. Your Invitation to Cultivate the Connection The other thing I love about building an email list is this: When a person gives you their email address, they are telling you they are interested in what you do, but more importantly, they are inviting you into their world. Think about it in these terms. If you owned a gallery on the main street in your town, you'd showcase your most impressive pieces in the front window of your shop as a way to capture the attention of folks passing by. But thriving art businesses aren't built upon the passers-by but by the folks who come into your studio. Once someone has come in through your door, they are looking to learn more, giving you a chance to build a connection and potentially gain a client. In some ways, social media is the online equivalent to an attractive window display. It's great when you get those likes, comments, and shares, but once a social follower opts-in to your email list, you then have the opportunity to connect personally. They effectively permit you to push that send button so that you can connect with them directly in their inbox. Once you start building that list, be faithful to cultivating that connection through weekly or biweekly emails and monthly updates. Use email campaigns to reinforce what you are doing on social media and introduce them to new concepts you're working on, collections you've completed, or classes you're planning to teach. Got Questions? I'd Love to Answer Them I sure hope this has been helpful. If you have a question for me, I'd love to answer it here in my blog and on a future episode of 5-Minute Mentoring. Just stop by my podcast page and leave me a voicemail. Thanks for reading.
Have you ever wanted to unleash yourself artistically and create free from the confines of always using reference materials when you embark upon an artistic adventure? Are you looking for a key to unlock and tap into a limitless supply of imagination and creativity that informs and inspires your creative process?
Lots of artists are looking for this, and recently one of my podcast listeners reached out for some strategies on how he could begin doing this. Nigel wants to break free from relying on photographs as his source materials into creating paintings birthed out of his imagination, but he's finding it challenging to make the transition. If this feels familiar, I get it, and I want you to know you're not alone. I spent many years using reference materials, photographs, other works of art, and even general inspiration, to inform, inspire, and shape my woven sculptures. But as I began to understand the nature of creativity in the Kingdom of God and the role that divine inspiration plays in the artistic process, my whole world began to change. As I pressed into my calling as an artist in the Kingdom of God, I began to discover the keys, Biblical truths, to unlocking the inner creative well* of inspiration that the Father has placed inside each of us. But before I dive into the "how-to," let's back up and take a look at how a healthy Holy Spirit-led imagination is supposed to function. Creative Imagination is a Beautiful Engine I believe that creative imagination is a beautiful creative engine that God has given us. It's full of emotion and fully capable of sensing both the natural world we see and spiritual realities we can only perceive. In a sense, it's a kind of divine alternate reality we can explore with the guidance of the Holy Spirit where we see, hear, feel, touch, and even taste things that are not YET tangible. And it's not just what I believe; it's an idea birth in scripture: It is by faith we understand that the whole world was made by God's command. This means that what we see was made by something that cannot be seen. Hebrews 11:3 Or this classic verse talking about Abraham's faith: God who gives life to the dead and calls into being that which does not exist. Romans 4:17 Your God-given, Holy Spirit-inspired imagination is how you get to see those things that are not as though they were. And as you begin to embrace the reality of what the Holy Spirit reveals, you have an opportunity to co-labor with the Father to bring those things to life through your creative expression. Intentionally Jumpstarts Your Creative Imagination Pulling inspiration from your imagination isn't something that's going to happen on its own. Just as you've gathered reference materials specifically and intentionally over the years, you're going to have to start cultivating and using your imagination intentionally as well. But believe it or not, you're already off to a good start. Your divinely inspired creative well won't spring forth from a vacuum. As a Kingdom artist, you are called to create from not only Holy Spirit inspiration but also from the fruit of everything you've cultivated in your heart and mind over the years. That means that all of the inspiration you've gathered, the music you've listened to, books and poems you've read, and beautiful things you've been a part of are already in your well. With this already in place, the next step is to partner with the Creator of the universe. Start by asking the Holy Spirit, "Holy Spirit, would You blow over me and awaken inspiration that is in my heart from years past? From things that I don't even realize? Would You begin to activate those things in me so that I can begin to pull on those in my creative process under Your inspiration?" Visualization Fuels Your Creative Engine Now, the other thing is that I am a big believer in visualization, allowing the Holy Spirit to take your imagination on a journey that fills your creative well with inspiration. I believe that when you visualize in your creative imagination with the Holy Spirit, that your faith is activated as you come into agreement with:
It's how you begin to see those things that are not as though they are. It's also how you begin to co-create your artwork with the Lord. If this is feeling a bit new to you, don't worry. Let me walk you through your first adventure with the Holy Spirit. To begin, you'll need a few things: Your sketchbook or art journal & a pen (Need tips on journaling? Read This)
So, begin by putting on the music, sitting down in your chair, and closing your eyes. Take time to connect with the Father and to let the cares of the world and the day wash off. Then once you feel ready, just say, "Holy Spirit, take me on a journey and open up my imagination." Now don't be surprised if you find yourself drawn to some of the source photos or reference materials you've collected over the years. This is normal. But as the Holy Spirit begins to focus you on one idea or location, maybe an old Cathedral you've visited or a landscape you photographed years ago, invite Him into that place and into your imagination. Then begin to watch, look, and listen with the eyes of your heart.
Stay in that place, exploring with the Holy Spirit, until you feel a release. It may take 5 or 10 minutes, maybe longer. Then once you're ready, open your eyes, pull out your journal and begin to capture in words or sketches what you just saw, sensed, and felt. But it doesn't have to end there. Over the next few days, go back and revisit this with the Holy Spirit. Ask Him to highlight and reveal more details, insights, and nuances. Again, finish by capturing what you saw in your journal, sketching in additional details to better capture the essence of what you're seeing. The goal is to use your God-given creative skills to capture the beautiful things you're seeing and experiencing with your Holy-Spirit-inspired imagination. Another Creative Tool for Your Belt Over the years, these Holy-Spirit-led journeys have become vital to the ongoing practice of filling my creative well. I still use reference materials, gather inspiration from my walks in the woods, music I listen to, books I read, the art I admire. But now I allow the Holy Spirit to fuse these together in my creative imagination. One time, I had a basket that I wanted to create. I'd never woven a basket like this before. I was stuck on how to connect the inside to the outside. That night before going to sleep, I simply asked, "Lord, would you show me how to do that?" That night I had a dream, now this doesn't happen every time, but that night it did. I woke up the next morning, jotted some notes in my journal to capture what the Lord had shown me, and then I went to the studio and did what I saw in my dream. WOW! And why not? If you could ask the Holy Spirit to lead your spiritual life, why can't you ask Him for the same in your art life? That is the normal way that the Kingdom works. I hope you'll give this a try. Start going on some Holy-Spirit-led journeys in your imagination. As you do, you'll begin to create unique works of art from your creative imagination that reveal the Glory of God. Got Questions? I'd Love to Answer Them If you have a question for me, I'd love to answer it here in my blog and on a future episode of 5-Minute Mentoring. Just stop by my podcast page and leave me a voicemail. Thanks for reading. * I was first introduced to this concept by Julia Cameron in her book, The Artist's Way, where she says "In order to create, we draw from our inner well. This inner well, an artistic reservoir, is ideally like a well-stocked trout pond. We’ve got big fish, little fish, fat fish, skinny fish – an abundance of artistic fish to fry. As artists, we must realize that we have to maintain this artistic ecosystem..." As I have explored it more over the years, the Holy Spirit began to bring me more revelation about how inspiration works - how it's discovered, held and nurtured within us. Central to my understanding is that the Holy Spirit moves over all the inspiration we sow into our heart and mind, allowing us to co-labor with Him in the creative process.
One of the secrets to art business success that I teach artists is that “Connection is Key.” Your ability to thrive creatively is directly affected by your willingness and ability to connect with clients, strategic partners, mentors, and other creatives.
But what do you do if you live, work, and create in the middle of nowhere, or out in the boondocks, as we say down south? Is thriving while geographically isolated even possible? Well, the short answer is yes, and here are a few nuggets of wisdom that will help you thrive where you’ve been planted. Create Community No matter where you live in the world, the internet is your gateway to connection. Even if you only have a cell phone and a mobile data plan, you can still:
So, where do you begin? Well, obviously, in today’s world, social media may be the best way to start building a connection with people online. Connecting with clients and strategic partners online is something you can do from anywhere. From regularly posting on a Facebook page or an Instagram account to posting your art process and how-to videos on YouTube, you’re only limited by your own imagination and a couple of tech tools like a phone, some basic lighting and internet connection. But the benefits of social media for creatives don’t end there. One of the worst things about remote living can be a crushing sense of isolation, and it makes sense. We weren’t created to live alone. To combat isolation, consider starting your own Facebook group of fellow artists, joining an existing group or program (like my Created to Thrive Artist Mentoring Program), and even starting a simple group chat or text among creative friends! It doesn’t have to be fancy, just get started. Fine Tune Your Website Online art sales exploded last year with close to $5 Billion worth of sales. For many artists that I know, 2020 was their best year ever. Now they did have to pivot to prosper during a global pandemic. Still, the fundamentals of what they did on their websites will help any artist succeed. Your website should pique curiosity, showcase your talents, inspire and inform your visitor, all while providing a clear, simple pathway for them to connect to you and the art you create. A great website is a mobile-friendly hub where you display, describe, and inspire people through your art. It tells the story of who you are, building that initial connection with your visitor. Then it presents them with an opportunity to purchase right on your website or through a link to a third-party site like Etsy, Fine Art America, or Saatchi Art. Go to Where the Fish Are So down south, it’s said, “If you want to catch fish, you have to go to where the fish are.” Make sense, right? The same holds for selling art. If art is not selling in your local area, you sometimes have to be willing to travel to where people are buying art. At this point, you might be wondering, “But Matt, isn’t online sales enough?” Well, yes, but mostly no. I’m a big believer in something I teach in the Mentoring Program called The Parthenon Plan ™ . I encourage artists to create a multi-pronged, multi-strategy approach to building their art businesses. This concept helps creatives build healthy businesses with multiple income streams through the variety of methods they use to connect with their clients. In a nutshell, don’t have all your “eggs” in one basket. Over the years, I grew my art business both only online and in person. I learned early on that I had to be willing to travel. From Atlanta to Philadelphia, from Atlanta to Chicago, or from Asheville to New Orleans. I sought out the shows and opportunities where I knew that my best clients would be. “But Matt, I don’t know where to go. What do I do?” First of all, don’t let not knowing something paralyze you. Begin with a little research:
As we begin to return to a sense of normality post-covid, in-person shows and sales will come back. We’ll see old shows return and new shows and opportunities to connect and sell in-person springing up for those willing to do a little “road work.” Be Intentional The last thing that I would say is be intentional. Be intentional about going to where your best clients are. Be intentional about creating community online. Be intentional about developing strategic partnerships. Don’t be afraid to be deliberate and step out. Be prepared. You have got to build a net, if you will, to be able to catch all the “fish” that God is bringing into your art business. I hope this has been an encouragement. Thanks for reading. PS: Combating isolation is one of the reasons why I started the Created To Thrive Artist Mentoring Program. Created To Thrive is a world-wide community of artists that have banded together to be encouraged, inspired, mentored, and challenged. They are embracing their calling as Kingdom artists while living life together online. Sure, we host a couple of live events a year, but we connect on Facebook, post on Instagram, and chat regularly on Zoom for the rest of the year. For many of our geographically isolated members, this online community has allowed them to find “their people.” Created to Thrive is truly a band of brothers and sisters who encourage and inspire each other along the way.
I talk a lot about journaling. It’s true. Journaling has been a big part of my spiritual life and my artistic life for years. Many people have asked me about journaling over the years, but most recently, Myra, one of my podcast listeners, reached out to me, looking for some guidance as she embarks on her own journaling journey.
What is a Journal, and why should I have one? Unlike a mere diary, which is usually a record of events that have happened, a journal is a powerful tool for exploring new ideas that are still taking shape. It’s the physical manifestation of your creative headspace. It’s where your next big idea will be born, grow, and played with before it makes the leap off the page and onto your workbench or canvas. It’s also a safe place. A judgment-free zone where you can push the boundaries of your creative process before committing your time and resources to flesh it out. For visual artists, this may be sketches, for poets, prose lines, for songwriters, lyrics. Not all of the ideas and notions committed to your journal will see the light of day, but that’s not the point. Finally, for so many creatives, an art journal is a vault for stewarding creative ideas. The concepts you’re exploring in your journal today are the seeds of inspiration that will bear fruit in the days, weeks, months, and even years to come. What do I put in my journal? The easy answer is “Whatever you want.” After all, it’s your journal, your tool for doodling with intent. I started journaling as a part of my spiritual processing with the Lord. It started with me writing and recording my prayers, and the dreams I felt came from God. That quickly evolved to include inspiring ideas, scripture verses, prophetic words, and quotes that meant a lot to me. I realized pretty quickly that the only rule of journaling is that there are no rules. Today, my journal lets me capture the creative interactions that take place between my spirit and the Holy Spirit during my quiet time with the Lord in the mornings and sometimes before I go to bed. Over the years, I got into the habit of dating every entry to track how these ideas, inspirations, and promises from God played out over time. Just this past month, I reached a major membership milestone inside my Created to Thrive Artist Mentoring Program. We were in the middle of our latest membership launch when I realized that one of these God-given dreams had just come to pass. 
Back in January of 2017, while spending time with the Lord, dreaming His dreams, and receiving His vision for the Mentoring Program, I wrote down the following divinely inspired goal…
Now while it took a few years longer for that original vision to come to pass, the point is it did! We’ve linked arms with over 2000 Kingdom-minded artists from all around the world, and we’ve been blessed with the tools and the team that made this dream a reality. And having the ability to pull an old journal off the shelf and see the faithfulness of God in action was an affirming faith-building moment I’ll always remember.
Do I need separate journals for my creative and spiritual journeys? This is a great question, and in the end, the answer is just a matter of personal preference. I actually keep two journals at any given time. I have a journal that stays with me in the studio. This volume is more of a traditional artist’s sketchbook where I work through ideas, concepts, colors, sizes, and connections for my current and future projects. At home, I keep what I would call a prayer journal. I continue the regular practice of recording the prayers, dreams, ideas, and visions I feel come from the Lord in this book. I’ve even developed my own set of marker codes to help me quickly find the goals I’ve set for myself and remember the inspired gems the Lord speaks to me in those early morning hours. It’s not anything fancy, just some rudimentary lines, scratches, and dots that help the important things stand out to me. Now without fail, I’m sitting at home in the morning with my prayer journal when artistic inspiration strikes. Instead of regretting that my sketchbook is at the studio, I simply record that initial Holy Spirit inspired stream of consciousness there at home and transfer it later when I’m back in the studio. That seems to be the most natural process for me and allows me to get the thought out and record it when the inspiration strikes. I’m ready to begin my journaling journey. How do I start? Listen, if there is one practice in my life that has made the biggest difference in my relationship with the Lord and my ability to stay moving forward, it has been journaling. And now that you are ready to embark upon your own journaling odyssey, I encourage you to go out and get a great one. A journal can be as simple as a $1 composition book from an office supply store or as fancy as a leather-bound journal from your local art store. I have a local artist fashion me a few hand-made journals each year. I love them because they are beautiful and they all match. At $60 to $70 a piece, these journals may seem like an indulgent splurge to some. But in reality, I see them as an annual investment in something that yields immense returns in my creative and spiritual life. 
I sure hope this has been helpful. So if you are a long-time journaler or just starting on this journey, I’d love to see what your journal looks like. Post a picture of your journal, or journals, on Instagram, and tag me @TheThrivingChristianArtist.
Thanks for reading.
One of the things that makes art sales a lot of fun and a lot easier is having a unique, creative voice. It’s that recognizable style and aesthetic that makes people go, “Wow!” when they see a piece of your art. It’s the thing that lets them instantly recognize that work as yours when they see it at a store, in a gallery, or online.
My unique artistic voice helped me develop my reputation as a fine artist and become known in the marketplace. It has allowed me to stand out in a unique, profitable, and very fulfilling way. So, how do you do this? How do you find your unique creative voice? I don’t believe that your unique voice is something you find as much as I think that it emerges over time. It comes out as you’re in the studio, as you are doing the work, filling your creative well, and cultivating and nurturing your creative talents. Over the years, I’ve found that artists journey through four phases on their path towards uncovering their unique creative style. Emulation - We All Start Here All of us start our artistic journeys in a place of emulation. We look at Pinterest, take classes, and find art and artists that inspire us. This process is as true for painters and potters as it is for sculptors and basket makers. In this phase of your quest, you learn some initial techniques and start creating works inspired by what you’ve learned from a specific artist, class, book, or online video. And you stay here a while honing your skills, but then something begins to itch inside creatively speaking and you begin to take things a little further. Exploration – Having a Look Around Standing on the foundation of confidence and experience you’ve built up emulating others, you, like so many other creatives, begin to yearn for more. It begins with a single step out of your artistic comfort zone as you start exploring different artists, techniques, tools, and materials. You move from the relative safety of copying others into an era of fearlessly exploring and pushing past your creative bounds. And as you do, you begin to discover and develop a cohesive expression of who you are as an artist that expresses itself through your creations. Your art’s tone and nature start to mature as you create beautiful, unique works that resonate with who you are as an artist. Once I mastered several different basketry skills, I got bored. That began a quest to find that something more, that missing piece that would take my art to the next level. I explored different materials, treatments, surface designs, positioning, and shapes to incorporate into my baskets. Even if I didn’t know it at the time, this creative quest’s goal was a unique creative aesthetic that told the world who I was as an artist and resonated with buyers out in the marketplace. Maturing – It's Gonna Take Some Time Now I’d like to tell you that the exploration phase of my journey was a safe, quick, and uneventful trip. It wasn’t. It took several years of working, testing, and pushing the boundaries of all that I had known artistically. Sure, I was turning out some beautiful pieces, but I made a lot of ugly ones along the way. The key was that I was always pushing, always exploring, always honing my skills, and cultivating the talents God gave me. You have to understand that your journey of artistic exploration will, at times, be uncomfortable. You’ll spend as much time, energy, and resources discovering what you don’t like, don’t excel at, and are not called to do as you do finding what you do like, excel at, and are called to do. The secret is not to stop and not shortcut the process of growing, learning, and discovery on the way towards defining yourself and your artistic voice. Autonomy – The Promised Land But eventually, you move through emulation, complete your artistic exploration, mature creatively, and then you arrive at a place I call autonomy. Here is where your uniqueness begins to emerge. Everything starts to fall into place. The techniques, materials, and inspiration you’ve worked with for so long just begin to click and work together. Suddenly, you start to recognize and embrace your unique creative voice, and so do your clients and potential clients in the marketplace. Your artistic individuality springs forth, and a maturity of skill and vision emerges in your work. That’s really how you find your unique artistic voice and style. Trust the Process I know this journey intimately. For me, it started back in the mid-90s when I started making baskets at 19 years old. I did that for 15 years just as a hobby, playing around with traditional patterns and materials until 2009 when I started exploring ways to create something unique and special. Even though I started from a place of traditional basketry, my artistic autonomy began to emerge as I embraced unique materials, techniques, and shapes for my work. It took a couple of years, but all of that inspiration, exploration, and studio time began to pay off. So to anyone ready to embark upon this epic quest, I would say this: Trust the Process.
But most of all, I think, just listen. Listen to your heart, listen to your materials, listen to the results of what you are creating, listen to the market and other artists that you respect. Give them all permission to speak into your work. Over time, as you do this, your unique voice will emerge.
I don’t know about you, but I get way too overwhelmed with Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, Clubhouse, Linked In, and all of the different social media platforms out there. Part of me thinks they are wonderful because we have this incredible opportunity to share our ideas, our art, and to reach out to clients and friends while building community.
The other part is that it can sometimes feel gross, overwhelming, and even demeaning when the comments start rolling in. So as Kingdom artists, how do we find the balance between the real community we create online versus those random unhinged comments that pop up on your social media feeds? What is Real Community? There are several characteristics of authentic community. Number one, is real intimacy. Being vulnerable, transparent, and knowing each other’s heart is a huge part of the ground that real relationship is built upon. While this is best built face to face, this isn’t always possible or feasible. But given the technology we have available, real relational intimacy with people online is possible. Secondly, real community is marked by an opportunity and openness to give and receive. We have all been in a one-sided relationship before where either it was us receiving something that somebody was trying to give that we didn’t necessarily want to hear, or vice versa. A healthy relationship needs a balance of both giving and receiving, sharing and taking equally so that one person isn’t being dominated by the other. Thirdly, in a real community, people are invested in each other for the long term. These are people that you want to walk with and have chosen to share your time, energy, attention, and resources. These are the people you have chosen to focus on in your life because they are important to you, and hopefully, they feel the same way about you. The real question is, how does real community differ from the comment driven “relationships” we all have on social media? Who Are These People? First of all, you really don’t know WHO most of those people are. We all have Facebook “friends” we barely know or have never even met in real life. When you think about it, you don’t know that much about them at all. You only see the happy high-points of their life and the stuff they choose to share in their posts. These are not people you’re invested in. So many of your online interactions are based on algorithms and not on authentic connection. These are people that are like leaves; they blow in and out of your life, they are here for a moment, here for only a short season. For the most part, these are not the folks you have chosen to invest your time and energy into. When you look at the Biblical concept of community, we are called into relationship with others so that we can complete one another. I am here to sharpen you, and you are here to do the same for me. Just like in a healthy body, a healthy community supports the members, supplying them with the support, comfort, and care they need. Again, this is a very different concept than the reality we face in our social media post-driven world. A Healthy Community Supports Your Godly Identity Diving in a little deeper, take a moment to answer these questions honestly. How do you define yourself, and who are you allowing to shape your identity? Of course, you can be defined by anything you want to be defined by, but from a Kingdom perspective, God’s best for us is that our identity comes from who Jesus says we are. Our identity is meant to come from the Word of God. That’s the gold standard God intended for each of us. A healthy identity that comes from the Lord is designed to be reinforced and encouraged through a healthy community. The relationships you build inside a safe, supporting, and caring community are there to build you up in the Lord and equip you to be all that God has created you to be. But those relationships, just like everything good in the Kingdom, have to be cultivated. It’s yet another case of reaping back what you’ve sowed. As you walk together with others in a life-giving community, your healthy, godly identity matures when you’re helping others do the same. So, take a moment and ask yourself these questions?
As you continue to travel through this social media-driven landscape, it’s vital that you learn to temper your reactions to posts and comments based on the level of authentic connection you have with the commentator. When the relationship isn’t genuine, then take the feedback, whether good or bad, with a grain of salt. I hope this has been an encouragement to you. I, for one, am glad that you are a part of my community.
So many artists lead paralyzed lives because they are too scared to step out and do something they have never done. No matter the cause, whether it’s fear, self-doubt, or isolation, it’s like a wave builds up to push them back to block them from being the Thriving Christian Artist they were called and created to be.
Sound familiar? If so, you’re in good company. I struggled with this very same thing in my life until God began to show me some simple strategies that gave me the confidence to step out. Defeat Fear With Faith You know, all of us, if we are honest, have struggled with the fear of stepping out into the new. I know that a root cause of this in my life stems from growing up in a situation that wasn’t the greatest emotionally or relationally. I ended up retreating in self-protection so much that I didn’t do anything unless I was fairly certain of what the outcome was going to be. In some ways, this led to some early successes in my life, especially those areas that played into my strengths. But most of the time, this fear kept me from stepping out of my comfort zone and into new experiences because I never wanted to try anything new where the outcome was uncertain. Whether it was from a fear of failure, fear of ridicule, or even the fear of success, fear kept me from trying anything new. Maybe you can identify with what I’m saying here. The enemy loves to use our past, our fear, or even our woundedness to drive a wedge between the promise of what God has for us and the reality of where we are right now. The one thing God showed me that set me free from this fear-based paralysis is this: Change only happens when my faith and my willingness to step into the promises of God become bigger and more powerful than the fear of the unknown. Think about that for a second. Transformation will only happen in your life when your faith in all that God has for you becomes bigger than the fears that are holding you back. Embrace Your Identity The second area that I had to grow in was in the area of identity. My fear of stepping out was also a result of my unwillingness and inability to accept, believe, receive, and fully embrace my identity as a Son of God and as an artist in His Kingdom. My own self-doubts and anxieties about “not being enough” kept me from even dreaming that I was meant for more. I learned, through times of healing and revelation, that having an identity that is rooted and grounded in Christ sets the stage for everything else in life. And I want to encourage you to do the same. As you begin to grow in confidence and start to embrace who God has called you to be, things start to change. You’ll find yourself in position to receive the strategies, knowledge, and guidance that God has had for you all along. Don’t Go It Alone Finally, like so many creative believers, I fell into the trap of isolation. Believing the lie that I was the only one going through this particular struggle or dealing with this specific challenge, feeling alone led to a hopelessness that kept me from stepping out. Over the years, I’ve learned that artists who try to thrive on their own rarely ever do. Why? It’s simple. We simply weren’t designed to just “white knuckle it” through life’s challenges all on our own, looking for external solutions to internal problems. As believers, we are called and created to do life together. As Kingdom Creatives, we are meant to walk together in a mutually supportive community with other artists and other believers that are on the same journey. As you receive fully by faith the promises and provisions that God has for you while embracing your identity as an artist in His Kingdom in the context of a loving, supportive community, life begins to change. Your confidence builds, your vision clarifies, faith grows, and acceleration starts happening. I sure hope this article has been an encouragement to you. If it has, please share it with others on the journey as you kick fear to the curb and embrace the fullness of who God has called you to be this week. What Does the "Renewing of the Mind" Look Like for Christians?
That’s the question most Christians struggle with and have had very little teaching on during their life as believers. Consequently, they are left feeling unfulfilled, frustrated and confused when it comes to actually living the abundant life Jesus promised in John 10:10 NLT where he said “The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.” That rich and satisfying life manifests in the life of believers through one simple, life-changing strategy: the renewing of the mind. What Does Renewing of Your Mind Mean in the Bible? Simply stated, renewing your mind according to Romans 12:2 means interpreting life through the lens of God’s Word and the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, rather than through the lens of your experience, woundedness, trauma, preferences or the opinions of others. It’s a fundamental shift toward seeing the world, yourself, others, God and especially what’s possible from a Kingdom perspective. It’s making a daily, moment by moment choice to choose the Mind of Christ which lives inside of us as new creations rather than operating from our soulish mind the way we did before we were saved. Why Do Christians Need to Renew Their Minds? Unless a Christian learns to renew their mind, they will continue to walk in defeat, struggle and confusion as they desire to experience a Spirit-led life yet have no understanding how or tools with which to see that life manifest. This is the predicament of most believers who live lives of religious obedience and obligation yet void of any real Spirit-led power. Without renewing your mind, the only two options are to wait, hope and beg God to change you or to work, sweat and strive on your own to achieve the results you so long to experience. Neither is God’s best. Renewing your mind aligns your mind with the truth of God’s Word by learning to recognize the lies of the enemy, replace them with the truth of God’s Word and then reinforce that truth every time the enemy comes at them with those same lies. In 2 Corinthians 10:5 ESV, God’s Word teaches us that “We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ…” Taking a thought captive literally means to capture or conquer that thought as you identify it and compare it to God’s Word. Does this thought agree with God’s promises over my life or not? If not then I cast it away – rejecting it’s influence in my life – and I plant in its place one of God’s promises from His Word. In 2 Peter 1:3-4, the Bible says “3 His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. 4 Through these He has given us His precious and magnificent promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, now that you have escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.” Did you get that? It’s through God’s precious promises that we participate in the divine nature. Renewed thoughts resulting in new beliefs help you engage with God’s plan for your life because thoughts fuel your beliefs. Godly Kingdom-Focused thoughts are great fuel for your godly beliefs, while ungodly, fear-driven lies and half-truths fuel ungodly beliefs. Renewing your mind is not just a spiritual process, but a physiological one as well. When you intentionally change the way you think to align with God’s Word, it literally creates new connections and pathways in your brain to make that process easier and more preferred over time. Through the process of neuroplasticity, your brain can literally be reconfigured to align with the truth of God’s Word and thus create the solutions, strategies and opportunities that best align with God’s plan for your life. Remember, in Proverbs 23:7 KJV “For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he.” Your thoughts (which ultimately create your beliefs resulting in your actions) literally create the boundaries of your life. If you want to experience a different life – the abundant life Jesus promised – you must learn to intentionally renew your mind. 5 Ways to Renew Your Mind Today
Conclusion You can absolutely live the abundant life Jesus promised if you master the process of renewing your mind including recognizing the lies of the enemy, intentionally replacing them with the truth of God’s Word and reinforcing that truth through visualization and affirmations. As you do, you’ll be amazed at the double doors of favor that seem to instantaneously appear in your life simply because you came into agreement with God’s design for your life, rather than trying to make it happen all on your own. |
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AuthorMatt Tommey is an artist, author and mentor who is passionate about empowering artists to thrive spiritually, artistically and in business. |
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