August 12, 2025 • 34 mins
What if the creative breakthrough you've been searching for isn't found in more techniques or strategies, but in learning to be still? In this soul-stirring episode, we explore how sacred stillness unlocks divine creativity in ways that constant striving never can.
The tension between worldly pressure and spiritual flow creates a fascinating paradox for Christian artists. While culture pushes us to create faster, stay visible, and constantly perform, God whispers an invitation into stillness. "Cease striving and know that I am God" (Psalm 46:10) becomes our creative manifesto, challenging us to trust that God has already given us everything we need for inspired artistry.
Drawing from personal experiences and biblical wisdom, this episode offers practical guidance for transforming your creative process. Learn how beginning each studio session with intentional quiet time, eliminating digital distractions, and releasing the pressure to make everything "content" can dramatically shift your artistic flow. Discover when to push through creative blocks and when to trust that stepping away might actually be the most productive choice.
At its heart, this conversation reveals that the most profound art comes not from straining or performing, but from positioning our hearts to receive. When we approach creativity as co-creation with the divine—receiving gifts of inspiration rather than manufacturing them through willpower—we access a flow that's both deeply fulfilling and spiritually transformative.
Ready to experience the difference that sacred stillness can make in your creativity? Subscribe now, share with fellow artists, and join our community of creatives who are discovering how to thrive spiritually and artistically by embracing God's creative rhythms rather than the world's demanding pace.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
So what if the creative breakthrough and
fulfillment that you've beenlooking for in your life is
really nothing to do with moretechniques or strategies or
becoming a better artist, butit's actually in learning to be
still, in learning to listen tothe voice of the Lord, enjoy his
presence and actually connectwith everything that he has for
you in your creative process?
(00:22):
Well, today, on the ThrivingChristian Artist, I'm going to
be talking about how stillnesscould be the key that you're
looking for to unlock God's flowin your art.
All over the world, artists areawakening.
Painters and potters, writersand weavers, poets and dancers
not chasing followers or fame,but sons and daughters called
for such a time as this,transformed from the inside out,
(00:43):
creating with purpose,releasing the glory of God and
living in the power of thekingdom.
Right now, this is the ThrivingChristian Artist.
Well, hey, my friends, superglad that you are here, whether
it's your first time, first timein a long time, or whether
you're a regular listener orviewer, really, really glad that
(01:03):
you're here.
Make sure you subscribe so younever, ever, miss any of the
great content that I'm puttingout right here on the Thriving
Christian Artist.
You know, today I want to talkabout this idea of stillness
because, I don't know about you,but in today's world that we're
living in, this generation thatwe find ourselves existing in,
it seems like more and more asartists, as people who are
(01:25):
trying to share the creativitythat God's put in our heart.
Man, it just seems like there'sso much pressure to be out
there to create faster andcreate better and to perform and
stay visible and don't missbeing on all the social media
platforms and doing all thestuff and the latest short form
content and it could just bereally, really, I don't know,
(01:47):
devastating, I think, sometimesto our, our creative process.
Because I don't know about you,but I find that that I don't
create the best when things arereally fast, when things are
really feeling rushed and when Ifeel like I'm striving.
Those are some of the times Ifeel the least creative, some of
the times I feel like I'm justrunning on fumes, and I think we
can all agree and probablybecause you're watching this
(02:08):
video, I think you would agreewith me that that is not God's
best for our life as artists.
God's best is that we be ableto walk with him and operate as
creatives in a flow, a flowthat's not only meaningful for
us, but a flow that is connectedto his heart.
Not only meaningful for us, buta flow that is connected to his
heart.
The thing I've learned in my ownlife is that when I'm feeling
(02:29):
pressured and when I'm feelingpushed, that's almost always a
recipe for disconnection, notonly from the Lord, but also
from the best creativity that hewants to flow through my life.
But when I will connect withthe Lord and connect in his
presence, but when I willconnect with the Lord and
connect in his presence, hispresence is always a source of
greater creativity, greaterinspiration, greater flow.
(02:51):
See, in the kingdom of God andthis is just not only in
creativity but in everything inlife the kingdom of God is
always opposite of whatever theworld is trying to sell you and
pressure you and put on you.
And the world says you got todo it faster and bigger and
better than everybody else andshinier, and you got to do more
of it, that more is better.
(03:12):
The kingdom of God comes inthis sort of deep breath,
quietness sort of way.
In this stillness it says nope,this way is different.
The kingdom of God is different.
God doesn't invite us intostriving, he's inviting us into
stillness.
The difficult fact is, I think,for a lot of us is that
(03:34):
sometimes we're so doggone busydoing things for God and trying
to keep up with the Joneses, ifyou will, trying to keep
ourselves out there and relevanton social media and doing all
the stuff that we miss thesilent voice of the Lord.
We miss the still small voicethat he's speaking.
We miss the Holy Spirit nudgesand clues that are absolutely
(03:56):
all over us and all around us inlife.
But because we're so busy wetend to miss those things.
You know, here on this timetogether, I love every episode.
I love going back to Scriptureand just based on everything
that I'm teaching you here aboutbeing a creative in God's
kingdom, on His Word.
And there are two Scriptures, Ithink, that really come to mind
(04:19):
that have a lot to do withstillness and not striving and
really connecting with who God'screated us to be as artists and
in that place where we can beconnecting with his best and
deepest and most authenticcreativity for us.
And the first one is in Psalm4610.
You've probably heard it saidbe still and know that I am God.
(04:42):
I love that.
But actually in the NASB itsays something a little
different.
It says cease striving and knowthat I'm God.
See, it's one thing to thinkthat you're being still, but
it's another thing to take adeep breath, slow down, look at
your life and say, even thoughI'm being still, am I really
still striving or am I reallytrusting the Lord?
(05:04):
I, I think about the the.
You know, I heard a joke onetime about a little boy, you
know, that was mad.
And his mama said you better,you better be nice, you better,
you better act nice to yoursister.
And uh, you know, you, youbetter be.
You know being polite and usingall your manners that we talked
about.
And he said I'm being polite onthe outside but I'm mad on the
(05:32):
inside.
I don't know if you've everfelt that way, but it's like I'm
trying to be still God on theoutside, but I'm striving up a
storm on the inside Right.
We're, we're always trying tofigure out the next, the next
best thing to do, the greatestthing to do, the next technique
that we need to find, that, thenext class we need to take, or
retreat that we're going to goto or conference we're going to
attend, that's going to changeeverything.
That's going to be thebreakthrough that we're looking
for and God is just saying hey,hey, hey, hey, hey.
Will you just take a deepbreath and cease your striving?
(05:57):
In other words, would you trustme enough to believe that, in
the stillness of my presence,you're going to be able to
receive everything that I'vealready given you in Christ?
Yes, what the Bible says right,we've already been given
everything we need in Christ.
And we participate in thedivine nature, says in 2 Peter,
(06:18):
1, 3, and 4.
It says we participate in thedivine nature.
Through what?
In the divine nature?
Through what?
Through the precious promisesof God.
Well, what if the whole time,the Holy Spirit's been inviting
you and me not to strive more,not to try to figure it out more
, not to get better at this orthat, although there's nothing
wrong at all with getting betterand growing in our skill and in
(06:43):
the talent that God's given us?
Of course that's a part of it.
Right, being filled and skilled.
And growing in our skill and inthe talent that God's given us?
Of course that's a part of it.
Right, being filled and skilled.
But what if, the whole time,God was trying to lead us into
an invitation of receiving, byfaith, all that he's already
given us by grace.
What do you mean, matt?
Well, I mean that what if youstarted looking at your creative
process as you receiving giftsfrom the Lord, gifts of
(07:06):
inspiration, gifts of creativeoutlet, gifts of technique,
gifts of strategy, gifts of waysof creating, gifts of
perspective and inspiration, sothat when you go into the studio
, you're not going in there justtrying to make it happen,
you're not going in there justtrying to make something that
will sell.
You're going in there knowinglisten that your father has
(07:31):
already given you and set asidefor you every creative
inspiration, every piece ofknowledge, wisdom, understanding
, every skill.
He's already set all thosethings to the side for you,
every skill.
He's already set all thosethings to the side for you, and
all he's waiting for you to dois come and rest in him, receive
by faith and then lean intothis process of co-laboring with
(07:54):
him, so that the things thatyou are only seeing by faith in
the supernatural actually becomeincarnational, actually become
spiritual In the natural.
They become art right throughyour cooperation, not because of
your striving, but because ofyour stillness.
(08:15):
Wow, you know one of the versesthat I heard a lot of years ago
that really struck me, and thisis the second verse that I want
to kind of bring to you today isin Isaiah 30, 15.
This is the Lord talking to thenation of Israel and he says in
returning and rest, you shallbe saved.
In quietness and in trust shallbe your strength.
(08:37):
And you say, oh, that's a nice,that's a nice scripture.
But you know what the last partsays.
But you would not.
But you would not.
In other words, there's strengthfor us to receive as artists,
in our creative process, in theplace of quietness and trust, in
just showing up in the studio,knowing who we are in Christ,
(09:00):
knowing the calling that he'sgiven us, being clear on the
vision that he's given us forour life, knowing that, as we
return to him and rest in himand are quiet before him, and
trust that we've already beengiven everything that we need
and that, as we create, as weshow up in the studio, that's
when those things are going tobegin to flow to us in the
(09:23):
measure and at the pace that weneed in our life.
Listen, god's word, if you'venot learned this yet, god's word
, these aren't just poeticsuggestions, right, these are
actually divine strategies, notjust for us as artists, but for
us as people in the kingdom.
This is where supernaturalpeace and creative power and
(09:45):
inspiration and executionactually come from.
Not from our own abilities, notfrom us just getting better at
doing what we do as artists, notjust the latest Instagram hack
or the latest course that wetook from another artist that we
really like.
It comes from us learning towalk according to the word of
God, not by power, not by might,but what?
(10:07):
What?
By my spirit, says the lord.
And so, listen, I just can'ttell you how important it is,
when you approach your art, toget to the point where you, you
are laying down on a regularbasis your need to perform, your
need to, to show everybody thatyou're still in the game, your
need, you need to get the nextamount of instagram followers or
(10:27):
youtube followers, or or sellthis much at a show or whatever
it is.
And again, there's nothingwrong with setting goals.
Of course we set goals, westeward well what God's put
before us.
But listen, when those thingsbecome the driving force behind
what you're doing, when thosebecome the motivations of your
heart, my friend, I'm tellingyou, they become a place of
(10:49):
death, they become a place of,of torture, they become a place
of of real uh, I don't knowdestruction and derailment and
distraction that the enemy canuse in our life, rather than
choosing to abide.
And there's nowhere, there'snowhere that it's more important
for us to learn to abide thanin the studio.
(11:11):
See we, you know you've.
You've had this experiencebefore where you've been in the
studio.
Maybe maybe the studio is yourgarage, like it was for me for a
lot of years, or your backporch, or or a spare bedroom, or
your, your comfy chair.
You know the front, whereverthat is.
You've been in that place,where've been creating before,
and all of a sudden, two, three,five, six hours go by and
(11:33):
you're like, whoa, what justhappened?
It happened when you just gotin the flow, just this beautiful
place of not worrying aboutwhat you're creating but just
being so enthralled in theprocess that you just lose track
of time.
Listen, I want to tell you God Ibelieve God loves that.
He loves when we're fullyengaged in the things that he's
(11:56):
called us and created us to do.
But I'm telling you, when thatprocess gets mucked up, if you
will, and gets clouded up andgets crowded by all of the
striving and all of theperformance stuff that we often
try to bring to our creativeprocess as artists, the pipeline
of creativity, the pipeline ofinspiration, the pipeline of
(12:19):
fulfillment begins to slow andeven stop.
And so it's so important for usto be intentional about
learning to posture our heartsand our mind in a place where we
can intentionally listen andreceive from the Lord, where
we're starting intentionally,not with pressure to perform,
(12:43):
but with presence.
See, that's where, when you canstart really looking at your
creative process not just assomething that's going to make
you money only, not just assomething that's going to get
you recognized, not just assomething that's going to make
you and the Lord, where yourcreativity becomes worship,
(13:16):
that's when the flow begins tohappen.
That's when true fulfillmentbegins to happen in your life,
and I believe that's where trueimpact and influence are
happening in your life as well,when we can say, lord, this
thing that I do as an artist,this ain't about me, this is
from you, this ain't about me,this is from you, it's for you,
it's about you, it's through you, and although it's not only you
that does it, I'm required tobe a part of the process.
(13:36):
Lord, I know that me justshowing up and doing it on my
own is not going to bring thelife and bring the
transformation and bring theresults that you intended for me
as an artist is only when Iposition my heart in your
presence and jettison thepressure to perform.
It's only there that I'm goingto be able to walk in the
(13:58):
fulfillment and the fullnessthat you have for me.
So I want to give you a fewthings today.
I hope you know I love to tryto make things as practical as
possible for you as you're, asyou're leaning into your
creative process.
The first thing I would say isis this why not begin every
studio session that you havewith some stillness?
(14:21):
I remember the first time I eversaw this.
I was in Denmark.
The only basket class I evertook was from a woman named Ann
Linsgaard, incredible basketrysculpture artist in Denmark.
I had flown over there and Iwas taking a, I think a five,
seven day.
I forget studio.
You know class with her, me andseveral other people, but every
(14:41):
morning in the studio this wasin this like Danish farm field
by the sea.
I mean just like, oh, thisgorgeous.
You know, in the summertime shewould, she would encourage us.
I was going to say she made us,but I mean this is what we did.
So I guess she did kind of makeus.
But, uh, every morning we'dcome in and for 15 minutes she
(15:02):
would encourage us to close oureyes and she would play this
really meditative music for us.
Now I don't know that she's abeliever or not, I'm not, I'm
not sure.
But, man, I had such aconnection with the Lord during
those times because I don't knowabout you.
But sometimes when I come to thestudio I'm like I'm all excited
(15:23):
, I'm ready to get going, andbefore you know, you're just
kind of like on with the day andyou're like, oh yeah, and Jesus
, would you come and be with metoday?
Thanks, you know.
Now, listen, we know HolySpirit's with us all the time,
right, he's not going anywhere,he's on board, he lives inside
of us, right.
But there's something reallyimportant I think about you
pausing.
Just like you may pause to saythe blessing at dinner, to pause
(15:45):
in the morning and the evening,whenever you come in the studio
and just say, holy Spirit, I'mtaking a deep breath right now
and I'm breathing you in and I'mbreathing out all the troubles
and and things that want to takemy focus today, and I'm pausing
to listen and to breathe and tofocus on you and to hear your
voice.
(16:06):
Maybe you pull out your journal,maybe you sketch a little bit
in that place.
Maybe you're you know, turn onsome soaking music or just some
real meditative music.
Maybe you're asking the HolySpirit, you know, what do you
want to do today?
When do you want to speak to metoday?
Maybe you just do nothing,maybe you just sit there in
silence and just breathe andjust really sense the presence
of the Lord.
But I'm telling you, when youdo that, it's almost like
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declaring a Sabbath every day inyour studio.
See, sabbath, the Bible says.
There therefore remains aSabbath rest for the people of
God, not that every day has gotto be a Sabbath day where you
don't do anything, but thatevery day is lived in the spirit
of Sabbath, which is what I'mgoing to cease my striving.
I'm going to cease, dependingon my own strength, and I'm
(16:51):
going to.
I'm going to lean into trustingthat, even when I'm not doing
anything, god is doingeverything.
Even when I'm not, even whenI'm doing things that look like
not a lot, even when I'm justshowing up and worshiping and
breathing and inviting the Lord,I can trust that God is at work
, that all he's looking for ismy agreement, not my striving
(17:13):
right.
So starting every session withsome sort of stillness, I think,
would be a huge, huge thing.
Number two and this is just goodlife practice, I think, but
this is especially important forus is artists turn off
distractions.
I can't tell you how manyartists that I coach in our
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mentoring program in thefoundations course.
So many of them talk aboutbeing overwhelmed, distracted,
can't get enough time to create,always being pulled in a
million different directions,all this kind of stuff.
And one of the questions Ialways ask is well now, surely
your cell phone is off, right,you have your notifications
turned off.
You're not responding to everytext message, every Facebook
(17:55):
message.
Surely you don't have yoursocial media notifications?
Just ding, ding, ding, ding,ding.
It's all on your phone all thetime, right, and almost every
time artists look at me and gowell, you know, listen.
Let me just encourage you toput on your big boy, your big
girl pants right now and turnthose doggone notifications off.
(18:17):
One of the one of the biggestthings I think that that we can
say to the Lord when we'resaying you know we're, we're
serious about this calling asartists is is when we will
choose to turn off and block outthe distractions that want to
come in our life.
You don't have to respond toevery text message immediately.
(18:38):
You don't have to respond toevery like or comment on your
Facebook immediately.
You can turn those off, you canset a time to respond to those,
and so I would encourage youemail notifications, social
media notifications, textmessages, whatever that is turn
those things off and allow yourstudio time to be a time in the
(19:01):
sanctuary and time with him.
Don't be somebody that isalways responding to everybody
else's emergency.
Otherwise, you'll never, ever,ever have time to create All
right.
You'll never have time to beAll right.
You'll never have time to beable to enter into that, that
really sweet spot of stillnesswith the Lord.
Number three, I would say inregards to that create without
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feeling the pressure to perform.
Now, what do I mean by that?
I specifically mean don't treatthe sacredness of your creative
process as only a source forInstagram content.
I don't know about you, but, um, I mean I well, let me just say
(19:49):
this I built a very, very, very, very successful art business.
Over the years, I've soldhundreds and hundreds of
thousands of dollars in my ownpersonal art and other people's
art.
Over the years I did all ofthat and I coach artists to do
that in the mentoring program,primarily off of social media.
You may be going.
What I learned to love thatWell, we'd love to teach you
(20:11):
right inside the mentoringprogram.
Come on in and join us.
We talk about every day, buthere's the deal.
I think there is a huge risk toyour creative flow and to the
sacredness of your creativitywhen you treat everything that
you're doing in the studio ascontent.
That you got to have thedoggone video camera on all the
(20:34):
time, that you got to besnapping pictures all the time.
Now, listen, nothing wrong withthat If you want to, you know,
create short form content, longform content.
If you want to have things forInstagram, facebook, tik TOK
again, love it, love it, love it.
But if all that you're doing isfeeling this pressure that well
, I was going to do this thing,but I better get it on film, I
(20:55):
better take a picture of it, Ibetter stop and do an Instagram
post, that's going to kill youcreatively and that's going to
suck the flow right out of you,and so you've got to learn to
let your creative time be thissacred moment, not always a
public performance, and that Ithink that's just a a healthy
limit that all of us can have inour life as artists.
(21:18):
And also this not everythingthat God's given you and showing
you in your creative process issupposed to be shared or is to
be shared, then I mean sometimesthings, sometimes God just
shows you something because heloves you.
Sometimes God's showing yousomething just to teach you
something in the moment.
It doesn't mean that it's aquotable quote or an
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Instagrammable moment or has tobe the subject for a next reel.
It can just be for you.
And so I would just say get offthat train of having to feel
like everything's content.
It's a big, big, big time.
Sucker and flow sucker if youwill All right.
Number next, learn to stopcreating.
(22:01):
Or I'll say, be willing toswitch gears creatively when the
flow isn't there.
Listen, a lot of times, ifyou've got a lot of pressure to
perform and you're approachingyour creativity with a lot of
pressure, you'll keep going,even when you know you have
passed the point of beauty.
I have screwed up more piecesof art in the name of I've got
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to get it done.
Listen, you know, it's likethat old song the thrill is gone
, you know, you know.
And the thrill is gone, youknow.
You know when the thrill isgone, right, you know when the
inspiration has ceased.
You know when the fulfillmentis is waning, right when you're
kind of shutting down creativelyfor the day.
Maybe that's the time youswitch to cleaning the studio,
(22:47):
maybe that's the time you goanswer emails, maybe that's the
time you go for a walk or dosomething else.
But I would just encourage you,part of recognizing and maybe
cultivating this place of sacredstillness in our life is is
allowing ourselves to rest andallowing ourselves to stop
creating when we feel like theflow is no longer there.
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See, the lie of the enemy.
The lie of the enemy is what?
Well, if you don't keep going,you're not going to be done in
time.
If you don't keep going, youcan't be a real artist.
If you don't keep going, you'renot going to have enough pieces
for the real show.
It's all this.
You're not enough, you're notenough, you're not enough.
So how do we always do spiritualwarfare?
We come in the opposite spiritof what the enemy says, and if
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he's coming at you with fears ofnot enough or you're going to
miss it.
The best thing to do is pullthe plug.
Stop.
Take a deep breath, go take awalk, go be inspired, go sit on
the back porch in the swing, goget you a cold drink of ice tea,
whatever it is.
But don't play that game withthe enemy.
Be willing to know that he isGod in your creative flow and
he's God in the moments whenyou're just being you.
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God blesses you with thecreativity, not because you're
performing, because he's good,because he loves you, and so the
opposite is always true.
If the flow is flowing, allright.
This would be number next.
If the flow is flowing, keepgoing.
Is flowing, all right.
This would be number next.
If the flow is flowing, keepgoing.
Let yourself go If you're inthe moment, if you're in the
(24:18):
flow, if it's just happening,man, let the river flow right.
Enjoy these moments with God.
Be willing to text a friend andsay hey, I'm going to be a
little late, I'm right in themiddle of this.
Let God lead those sessions.
Let your creative flow leadthose sessions.
Listen, this is the beautifulpart of being an artist, whether
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you're doing this for ministryor as a hobby or in business.
This is this beautiful placewhere you and the Lord get to
kind of guide the ship.
And so I would say, when it'sflowing, man, let it flow and
don't feel bad about it Again.
Don't let the enemy come andlie to you that you're not
enough, that you'reirresponsible if you stay in the
studio.
Obviously you can't stay in thestudio for 24 hours a day,
(25:02):
seven days a week and not go fixdinner and not do your
household chores and care foryour loved ones and all that.
We've got to balance everythingright.
But I'm just saying, in thosemoments right from time to time,
when the flow is there, go withit and also create boundaries
in your life and schedules inyour life where you can be
creating at the time where youhave the most freedom and
(25:24):
ability to do that.
I say this all the time on theThriving Christian Artist.
I'm saying all the time if it'simportant enough for God to
give it to you, it's importantenough for you to take it
seriously and listen.
God gave you your art becausehe loves you, because he's good,
because he thinks it'simportant, because it's a way
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for you to release his natureand his kingdom in the earth.
And, my friend, listen, if it'simportant enough for God to
give it to you, doggone it.
It's important enough for youto take time to focus on it and
to flow with it when it'sflowing.
All right, listen these thingsI hope they're not an exhaustive
list, right, but these arethings that I believe that, if
(26:08):
you'll begin to build theserhythms, if you will these
signposts, if you will rhythms,if you will these signposts, if
you will these, allow you tointentionally make room for the
Lord and make room for Him toguide you, make room for Him to
inspire you, make room for Himto flow through you.
And that's what, in myestimation, being an artist is
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all about is allowing the beauty, the nature of God to not only
flow to me and not only flow inme, but flow through me in
everything that he's got.
Listen, my friend, I want topray real quick and just ask
that the Holy Spirit would usehas been using, I hope, this
time together today to reallybring you clarity and sort of
(26:53):
nudge you into making a place ofmore and more stillness in your
life, jesus.
I thank you that you, even inyour life, Jesus, you pulled
away from all the hustle bustleand you went to be with the
Father and Jesus.
You said it was good that yougo so that the Holy Spirit could
(27:15):
be with us and lead us andguide us into all truth and
wisdom and comfort us.
And, holy Spirit, we repent,lord, for being so busy that we
miss the nudges and the stillsmall voice of your Spirit.
Holy Spirit, I pray that youwould, even now, inspire us and
(27:37):
nudge us and lead us, enlightenus, god, in ways that we can be
more intentional about creatingbreathing room, space, stillness
in our life, so that we canhear you and sense you and
interact with you and enjoy yourpresence in our creative
(27:57):
process.
We thank you for that, lord, inJesus' name, amen.
Hey, my friend, listen, if thishas been a big blessing to you
today.
If you're watching on YouTube,I'd love for you to leave a
comment.
Let me know what you're doingto increase the amount of space
(28:17):
in your life, stillness in yourlife, intentionality, where you
can hear the Lord.
Also, if you've been listeningto this today and you're like,
wow, there's a lot of work Ineed to do, I've been really
listening to the lies of theenemy about striving and maybe
who I am and what's possible ornot possible, maybe you've been
feeling like you want to get outof that striving flow and into
(28:40):
this really rest, restful flowof the Lord, this kingdom flow,
this identity flow with him, butyou just don't know how.
Listen, I'd be remiss if Ididn't invite you to become a
part and enroll today in ourFoundations course.
I started the Foundationscourse and I created this course
as a way for artists toreconnect with our identity in
(29:03):
Christ.
Allow Jesus to heal the brokenplaces in your heart, allow you
to get clear on the vision thatGod has for your life and then
begin to create daily habitsthrough God's word and through
the practical things that you'redoing every day to pursue the
call of God on your life as anartist, whether that's for your
personal enjoyment or forministry or for meditation, or
(29:25):
maybe it's even for you thatwant to do this as a business.
Maybe you're already doing yourart as a business, part-time,
and you want to take it to thenext level.
It all starts with building asolid foundation in Christ.
Here's what I've noticed overthe years.
I've been an artist now forover 30 years.
I've mentored thousands andthousands and thousands of
(29:46):
artists over my time as a mentorand I can tell you definitively
no matter how great of amarketer you are, no matter how
great of an artist you are, nomatter how short or long you've
been doing it, no matter howmuch favor you may have on your
life, if you are not building asolid foundation in Christ
(30:09):
through intentionally learningto renew your mind with the
truth of God's word, gettingclear on the vision that he has
for you and creatingintentionality toward walking
toward that every day.
Listen, I promise you.
I promise you, at some pointthe enemy is going to pull the
rug out from under you and allof your good intentions are
going to fall flat without asolid foundation in Christ.
(30:30):
And that's why we started theFoundations course in order to
help artists develop a solidsolid as a rock foundation in
their life, so that we're notbuilding our art life on
shifting sand, on the shiftingsand of social media, on the
shifting sand of fickle buyers,on the shifting sand of whether
(30:53):
people like me today or not.
We build it on who God says weare in His Word and in that
place we can do anything right.
We can do anything Building abusiness, building an art career
, pursuing and growing as anartist.
It becomes a whole lot easierwhen you're doing that in
agreement with who God says.
(31:13):
You are in Christ, and I'd loveto be able to walk you through
that process.
Foundations is a nine-weekprocess.
It's a self-guided process.
We've got an incrediblecommunity of artists from all
over the world and just aboutevery creative medium.
You get to ask me questionsalong the way.
I'd love to walk with you andshow you how to build this solid
foundation in your life as anartist.
(31:34):
All right, hey, all theinformation for that is right
here in this episode.
You can click and enroll todayand I can't wait to see you
inside.
All right, listen, friend.
I love you so much.
Thank you for being here withme every week on the Thriving
Christian Artist and rememberuntil next time you were created
to thrive.
Bye, hey, my friend, before yougo, make sure that you're
(31:58):
signed up for the ThrivingChristian Artist Weekly.
It's my free newsletter, fullof spiritual encouragement,
creative inspiration andpractical tips to help you
thrive in everything that God'scalled you to do as an artist in
his kingdom.
Every issue is absolutely freeand it includes the latest
podcast episode, featured artistspotlights, a worship song of
the week and, again, tons oftips and encouragement and
(32:19):
inspiration for you, to keep youinspired and encouraged, and
everything that God's got foryou as an artist in the kingdom.
You can click the link righthere in the show notes to join
us, and it's a great way to stayconnected.
All right, love you, bye.
So what if the creative breakthrough and
fulfillment that you've beenlooking for in your life is
really nothing to do with moretechniques or strategies or
becoming a better artist, butit's actually in learning to be
still, in learning to listen tothe voice of the Lord, enjoy his
presence and actually connectwith everything that he has for
you in your creative process?
(00:22):
Well, today, on the ThrivingChristian Artist, I'm going to
be talking about how stillnesscould be the key that you're
looking for to unlock God's flowin your art.
All over the world, artists areawakening.
Painters and potters, writersand weavers, poets and dancers
not chasing followers or fame,but sons and daughters called
for such a time as this,transformed from the inside out,
(00:43):
creating with purpose,releasing the glory of God and
living in the power of thekingdom.
Right now, this is the ThrivingChristian Artist.
Well, hey, my friends, superglad that you are here, whether
it's your first time, first timein a long time, or whether
you're a regular listener orviewer, really, really glad that
(01:03):
you're here.
Make sure you subscribe so younever, ever, miss any of the
great content that I'm puttingout right here on the Thriving
Christian Artist.
You know, today I want to talkabout this idea of stillness
because, I don't know about you,but in today's world that we're
living in, this generation thatwe find ourselves existing in,
it seems like more and more asartists, as people who are
(01:25):
trying to share the creativitythat God's put in our heart.
Man, it just seems like there'sso much pressure to be out
there to create faster andcreate better and to perform and
stay visible and don't missbeing on all the social media
platforms and doing all thestuff and the latest short form
content and it could just bereally, really, I don't know,
(01:47):
devastating, I think, sometimesto our, our creative process.
Because I don't know about you,but I find that that I don't
create the best when things arereally fast, when things are
really feeling rushed and when Ifeel like I'm striving.
Those are some of the times Ifeel the least creative, some of
the times I feel like I'm justrunning on fumes, and I think we
can all agree and probablybecause you're watching this
(02:08):
video, I think you would agreewith me that that is not God's
best for our life as artists.
God's best is that we be ableto walk with him and operate as
creatives in a flow, a flowthat's not only meaningful for
us, but a flow that is connectedto his heart.
Not only meaningful for us, buta flow that is connected to his
heart.
The thing I've learned in my ownlife is that when I'm feeling
(02:29):
pressured and when I'm feelingpushed, that's almost always a
recipe for disconnection, notonly from the Lord, but also
from the best creativity that hewants to flow through my life.
But when I will connect withthe Lord and connect in his
presence, but when I willconnect with the Lord and
connect in his presence, hispresence is always a source of
greater creativity, greaterinspiration, greater flow.
(02:51):
See, in the kingdom of God andthis is just not only in
creativity but in everything inlife the kingdom of God is
always opposite of whatever theworld is trying to sell you and
pressure you and put on you.
And the world says you got todo it faster and bigger and
better than everybody else andshinier, and you got to do more
of it, that more is better.
(03:12):
The kingdom of God comes inthis sort of deep breath,
quietness sort of way.
In this stillness it says nope,this way is different.
The kingdom of God is different.
God doesn't invite us intostriving, he's inviting us into
stillness.
The difficult fact is, I think,for a lot of us is that
(03:34):
sometimes we're so doggone busydoing things for God and trying
to keep up with the Joneses, ifyou will, trying to keep
ourselves out there and relevanton social media and doing all
the stuff that we miss thesilent voice of the Lord.
We miss the still small voicethat he's speaking.
We miss the Holy Spirit nudgesand clues that are absolutely
(03:56):
all over us and all around us inlife.
But because we're so busy wetend to miss those things.
You know, here on this timetogether, I love every episode.
I love going back to Scriptureand just based on everything
that I'm teaching you here aboutbeing a creative in God's
kingdom, on His Word.
And there are two Scriptures, Ithink, that really come to mind
(04:19):
that have a lot to do withstillness and not striving and
really connecting with who God'screated us to be as artists and
in that place where we can beconnecting with his best and
deepest and most authenticcreativity for us.
And the first one is in Psalm4610.
You've probably heard it saidbe still and know that I am God.
(04:42):
I love that.
But actually in the NASB itsays something a little
different.
It says cease striving and knowthat I'm God.
See, it's one thing to thinkthat you're being still, but
it's another thing to take adeep breath, slow down, look at
your life and say, even thoughI'm being still, am I really
still striving or am I reallytrusting the Lord?
(05:04):
I, I think about the the.
You know, I heard a joke onetime about a little boy, you
know, that was mad.
And his mama said you better,you better be nice, you better,
you better act nice to yoursister.
And uh, you know, you, youbetter be.
You know being polite and usingall your manners that we talked
about.
And he said I'm being polite onthe outside but I'm mad on the
(05:32):
inside.
I don't know if you've everfelt that way, but it's like I'm
trying to be still God on theoutside, but I'm striving up a
storm on the inside Right.
We're, we're always trying tofigure out the next, the next
best thing to do, the greatestthing to do, the next technique
that we need to find, that, thenext class we need to take, or
retreat that we're going to goto or conference we're going to
attend, that's going to changeeverything.
That's going to be thebreakthrough that we're looking
for and God is just saying hey,hey, hey, hey, hey.
Will you just take a deepbreath and cease your striving?
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In other words, would you trustme enough to believe that, in
the stillness of my presence,you're going to be able to
receive everything that I'vealready given you in Christ?
Yes, what the Bible says right,we've already been given
everything we need in Christ.
And we participate in thedivine nature, says in 2 Peter,
(06:18):
1, 3, and 4.
It says we participate in thedivine nature.
Through what?
In the divine nature?
Through what?
Through the precious promisesof God.
Well, what if the whole time,the Holy Spirit's been inviting
you and me not to strive more,not to try to figure it out more
, not to get better at this orthat, although there's nothing
wrong at all with getting betterand growing in our skill and in
(06:43):
the talent that God's given us?
Of course that's a part of it.
Right, being filled and skilled.
And growing in our skill and inthe talent that God's given us?
Of course that's a part of it.
Right, being filled and skilled.
But what if, the whole time,God was trying to lead us into
an invitation of receiving, byfaith, all that he's already
given us by grace.
What do you mean, matt?
Well, I mean that what if youstarted looking at your creative
process as you receiving giftsfrom the Lord, gifts of
(07:06):
inspiration, gifts of creativeoutlet, gifts of technique,
gifts of strategy, gifts of waysof creating, gifts of
perspective and inspiration, sothat when you go into the studio
, you're not going in there justtrying to make it happen,
you're not going in there justtrying to make something that
will sell.
You're going in there knowinglisten that your father has
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already given you and set asidefor you every creative
inspiration, every piece ofknowledge, wisdom, understanding
, every skill.
He's already set all thosethings to the side for you,
every skill.
He's already set all thosethings to the side for you, and
all he's waiting for you to dois come and rest in him, receive
by faith and then lean intothis process of co-laboring with
(07:54):
him, so that the things thatyou are only seeing by faith in
the supernatural actually becomeincarnational, actually become
spiritual In the natural.
They become art right throughyour cooperation, not because of
your striving, but because ofyour stillness.
(08:15):
Wow, you know one of the versesthat I heard a lot of years ago
that really struck me, and thisis the second verse that I want
to kind of bring to you today isin Isaiah 30, 15.
This is the Lord talking to thenation of Israel and he says in
returning and rest, you shallbe saved.
In quietness and in trust shallbe your strength.
(08:37):
And you say, oh, that's a nice,that's a nice scripture.
But you know what the last partsays.
But you would not.
But you would not.
In other words, there's strengthfor us to receive as artists,
in our creative process, in theplace of quietness and trust, in
just showing up in the studio,knowing who we are in Christ,
(09:00):
knowing the calling that he'sgiven us, being clear on the
vision that he's given us forour life, knowing that, as we
return to him and rest in himand are quiet before him, and
trust that we've already beengiven everything that we need
and that, as we create, as weshow up in the studio, that's
when those things are going tobegin to flow to us in the
(09:23):
measure and at the pace that weneed in our life.
Listen, god's word, if you'venot learned this yet, god's word
, these aren't just poeticsuggestions, right, these are
actually divine strategies, notjust for us as artists, but for
us as people in the kingdom.
This is where supernaturalpeace and creative power and
(09:45):
inspiration and executionactually come from.
Not from our own abilities, notfrom us just getting better at
doing what we do as artists, notjust the latest Instagram hack
or the latest course that wetook from another artist that we
really like.
It comes from us learning towalk according to the word of
God, not by power, not by might,but what?
(10:07):
What?
By my spirit, says the lord.
And so, listen, I just can'ttell you how important it is,
when you approach your art, toget to the point where you, you
are laying down on a regularbasis your need to perform, your
need to, to show everybody thatyou're still in the game, your
need, you need to get the nextamount of instagram followers or
(10:27):
youtube followers, or or sellthis much at a show or whatever
it is.
And again, there's nothingwrong with setting goals.
Of course we set goals, westeward well what God's put
before us.
But listen, when those thingsbecome the driving force behind
what you're doing, when thosebecome the motivations of your
heart, my friend, I'm tellingyou, they become a place of
(10:49):
death, they become a place of,of torture, they become a place
of of real uh, I don't knowdestruction and derailment and
distraction that the enemy canuse in our life, rather than
choosing to abide.
And there's nowhere, there'snowhere that it's more important
for us to learn to abide thanin the studio.
(11:11):
See we, you know you've.
You've had this experiencebefore where you've been in the
studio.
Maybe maybe the studio is yourgarage, like it was for me for a
lot of years, or your backporch, or or a spare bedroom, or
your, your comfy chair.
You know the front, whereverthat is.
You've been in that place,where've been creating before,
and all of a sudden, two, three,five, six hours go by and
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you're like, whoa, what justhappened?
It happened when you just gotin the flow, just this beautiful
place of not worrying aboutwhat you're creating but just
being so enthralled in theprocess that you just lose track
of time.
Listen, I want to tell you God Ibelieve God loves that.
He loves when we're fullyengaged in the things that he's
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called us and created us to do.
But I'm telling you, when thatprocess gets mucked up, if you
will, and gets clouded up andgets crowded by all of the
striving and all of theperformance stuff that we often
try to bring to our creativeprocess as artists, the pipeline
of creativity, the pipeline ofinspiration, the pipeline of
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fulfillment begins to slow andeven stop.
And so it's so important for usto be intentional about
learning to posture our heartsand our mind in a place where we
can intentionally listen andreceive from the Lord, where
we're starting intentionally,not with pressure to perform,
(12:43):
but with presence.
See, that's where, when you canstart really looking at your
creative process not just assomething that's going to make
you money only, not just assomething that's going to get
you recognized, not just assomething that's going to make
you and the Lord, where yourcreativity becomes worship,
(13:16):
that's when the flow begins tohappen.
That's when true fulfillmentbegins to happen in your life,
and I believe that's where trueimpact and influence are
happening in your life as well,when we can say, lord, this
thing that I do as an artist,this ain't about me, this is
from you, this ain't about me,this is from you, it's for you,
it's about you, it's through you, and although it's not only you
that does it, I'm required tobe a part of the process.
(13:36):
Lord, I know that me justshowing up and doing it on my
own is not going to bring thelife and bring the
transformation and bring theresults that you intended for me
as an artist is only when Iposition my heart in your
presence and jettison thepressure to perform.
It's only there that I'm goingto be able to walk in the
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fulfillment and the fullnessthat you have for me.
So I want to give you a fewthings today.
I hope you know I love to tryto make things as practical as
possible for you as you're, asyou're leaning into your
creative process.
The first thing I would say isis this why not begin every
studio session that you havewith some stillness?
(14:21):
I remember the first time I eversaw this.
I was in Denmark.
The only basket class I evertook was from a woman named Ann
Linsgaard, incredible basketrysculpture artist in Denmark.
I had flown over there and Iwas taking a, I think a five,
seven day.
I forget studio.
You know class with her, me andseveral other people, but every
(14:41):
morning in the studio this wasin this like Danish farm field
by the sea.
I mean just like, oh, thisgorgeous.
You know, in the summertime shewould, she would encourage us.
I was going to say she made us,but I mean this is what we did.
So I guess she did kind of makeus.
But, uh, every morning we'dcome in and for 15 minutes she
(15:02):
would encourage us to close oureyes and she would play this
really meditative music for us.
Now I don't know that she's abeliever or not, I'm not, I'm
not sure.
But, man, I had such aconnection with the Lord during
those times because I don't knowabout you.
But sometimes when I come to thestudio I'm like I'm all excited
(15:23):
, I'm ready to get going, andbefore you know, you're just
kind of like on with the day andyou're like, oh yeah, and Jesus
, would you come and be with metoday?
Thanks, you know.
Now, listen, we know HolySpirit's with us all the time,
right, he's not going anywhere,he's on board, he lives inside
of us, right.
But there's something reallyimportant I think about you
pausing.
Just like you may pause to saythe blessing at dinner, to pause
(15:45):
in the morning and the evening,whenever you come in the studio
and just say, holy Spirit, I'mtaking a deep breath right now
and I'm breathing you in and I'mbreathing out all the troubles
and and things that want to takemy focus today, and I'm pausing
to listen and to breathe and tofocus on you and to hear your
voice.
(16:06):
Maybe you pull out your journal,maybe you sketch a little bit
in that place.
Maybe you're you know, turn onsome soaking music or just some
real meditative music.
Maybe you're asking the HolySpirit, you know, what do you
want to do today?
When do you want to speak to metoday?
Maybe you just do nothing,maybe you just sit there in
silence and just breathe andjust really sense the presence
of the Lord.
But I'm telling you, when youdo that, it's almost like
(16:29):
declaring a Sabbath every day inyour studio.
See, sabbath, the Bible says.
There therefore remains aSabbath rest for the people of
God, not that every day has gotto be a Sabbath day where you
don't do anything, but thatevery day is lived in the spirit
of Sabbath, which is what I'mgoing to cease my striving.
I'm going to cease, dependingon my own strength, and I'm
(16:51):
going to.
I'm going to lean into trustingthat, even when I'm not doing
anything, god is doingeverything.
Even when I'm not, even whenI'm doing things that look like
not a lot, even when I'm justshowing up and worshiping and
breathing and inviting the Lord,I can trust that God is at work
, that all he's looking for ismy agreement, not my striving
(17:13):
right.
So starting every session withsome sort of stillness, I think,
would be a huge, huge thing.
Number two and this is just goodlife practice, I think, but
this is especially important forus is artists turn off
distractions.
I can't tell you how manyartists that I coach in our
(17:34):
mentoring program in thefoundations course.
So many of them talk aboutbeing overwhelmed, distracted,
can't get enough time to create,always being pulled in a
million different directions,all this kind of stuff.
And one of the questions Ialways ask is well now, surely
your cell phone is off, right,you have your notifications
turned off.
You're not responding to everytext message, every Facebook
(17:55):
message.
Surely you don't have yoursocial media notifications?
Just ding, ding, ding, ding,ding.
It's all on your phone all thetime, right, and almost every
time artists look at me and gowell, you know, listen.
Let me just encourage you toput on your big boy, your big
girl pants right now and turnthose doggone notifications off.
(18:17):
One of the one of the biggestthings I think that that we can
say to the Lord when we'resaying you know we're, we're
serious about this calling asartists is is when we will
choose to turn off and block outthe distractions that want to
come in our life.
You don't have to respond toevery text message immediately.
(18:38):
You don't have to respond toevery like or comment on your
Facebook immediately.
You can turn those off, you canset a time to respond to those,
and so I would encourage youemail notifications, social
media notifications, textmessages, whatever that is turn
those things off and allow yourstudio time to be a time in the
(19:01):
sanctuary and time with him.
Don't be somebody that isalways responding to everybody
else's emergency.
Otherwise, you'll never, ever,ever have time to create All
right.
You'll never have time to beAll right.
You'll never have time to beable to enter into that, that
really sweet spot of stillnesswith the Lord.
Number three, I would say inregards to that create without
(19:26):
feeling the pressure to perform.
Now, what do I mean by that?
I specifically mean don't treatthe sacredness of your creative
process as only a source forInstagram content.
I don't know about you, but, um, I mean I well, let me just say
(19:49):
this I built a very, very, very, very successful art business.
Over the years, I've soldhundreds and hundreds of
thousands of dollars in my ownpersonal art and other people's
art.
Over the years I did all ofthat and I coach artists to do
that in the mentoring program,primarily off of social media.
You may be going.
What I learned to love thatWell, we'd love to teach you
(20:11):
right inside the mentoringprogram.
Come on in and join us.
We talk about every day, buthere's the deal.
I think there is a huge risk toyour creative flow and to the
sacredness of your creativitywhen you treat everything that
you're doing in the studio ascontent.
That you got to have thedoggone video camera on all the
(20:34):
time, that you got to besnapping pictures all the time.
Now, listen, nothing wrong withthat If you want to, you know,
create short form content, longform content.
If you want to have things forInstagram, facebook, tik TOK
again, love it, love it, love it.
But if all that you're doing isfeeling this pressure that well
, I was going to do this thing,but I better get it on film, I
(20:55):
better take a picture of it, Ibetter stop and do an Instagram
post, that's going to kill youcreatively and that's going to
suck the flow right out of you,and so you've got to learn to
let your creative time be thissacred moment, not always a
public performance, and that Ithink that's just a a healthy
limit that all of us can have inour life as artists.
(21:18):
And also this not everythingthat God's given you and showing
you in your creative process issupposed to be shared or is to
be shared, then I mean sometimesthings, sometimes God just
shows you something because heloves you.
Sometimes God's showing yousomething just to teach you
something in the moment.
It doesn't mean that it's aquotable quote or an
(21:39):
Instagrammable moment or has tobe the subject for a next reel.
It can just be for you.
And so I would just say get offthat train of having to feel
like everything's content.
It's a big, big, big time.
Sucker and flow sucker if youwill All right.
Number next, learn to stopcreating.
(22:01):
Or I'll say, be willing toswitch gears creatively when the
flow isn't there.
Listen, a lot of times, ifyou've got a lot of pressure to
perform and you're approachingyour creativity with a lot of
pressure, you'll keep going,even when you know you have
passed the point of beauty.
I have screwed up more piecesof art in the name of I've got
(22:27):
to get it done.
Listen, you know, it's likethat old song the thrill is gone
, you know, you know.
And the thrill is gone, youknow.
You know when the thrill isgone, right, you know when the
inspiration has ceased.
You know when the fulfillmentis is waning, right when you're
kind of shutting down creativelyfor the day.
Maybe that's the time youswitch to cleaning the studio,
(22:47):
maybe that's the time you goanswer emails, maybe that's the
time you go for a walk or dosomething else.
But I would just encourage you,part of recognizing and maybe
cultivating this place of sacredstillness in our life is is
allowing ourselves to rest andallowing ourselves to stop
creating when we feel like theflow is no longer there.
(23:10):
See, the lie of the enemy.
The lie of the enemy is what?
Well, if you don't keep going,you're not going to be done in
time.
If you don't keep going, youcan't be a real artist.
If you don't keep going, you'renot going to have enough pieces
for the real show.
It's all this.
You're not enough, you're notenough, you're not enough.
So how do we always do spiritualwarfare?
We come in the opposite spiritof what the enemy says, and if
(23:36):
he's coming at you with fears ofnot enough or you're going to
miss it.
The best thing to do is pullthe plug.
Stop.
Take a deep breath, go take awalk, go be inspired, go sit on
the back porch in the swing, goget you a cold drink of ice tea,
whatever it is.
But don't play that game withthe enemy.
Be willing to know that he isGod in your creative flow and
he's God in the moments whenyou're just being you.
(23:57):
God blesses you with thecreativity, not because you're
performing, because he's good,because he loves you, and so the
opposite is always true.
If the flow is flowing, allright.
This would be number next.
If the flow is flowing, keepgoing.
Is flowing, all right.
This would be number next.
If the flow is flowing, keepgoing.
Let yourself go If you're inthe moment, if you're in the
(24:18):
flow, if it's just happening,man, let the river flow right.
Enjoy these moments with God.
Be willing to text a friend andsay hey, I'm going to be a
little late, I'm right in themiddle of this.
Let God lead those sessions.
Let your creative flow leadthose sessions.
Listen, this is the beautifulpart of being an artist, whether
(24:39):
you're doing this for ministryor as a hobby or in business.
This is this beautiful placewhere you and the Lord get to
kind of guide the ship.
And so I would say, when it'sflowing, man, let it flow and
don't feel bad about it Again.
Don't let the enemy come andlie to you that you're not
enough, that you'reirresponsible if you stay in the
studio.
Obviously you can't stay in thestudio for 24 hours a day,
(25:02):
seven days a week and not go fixdinner and not do your
household chores and care foryour loved ones and all that.
We've got to balance everythingright.
But I'm just saying, in thosemoments right from time to time,
when the flow is there, go withit and also create boundaries
in your life and schedules inyour life where you can be
creating at the time where youhave the most freedom and
(25:24):
ability to do that.
I say this all the time on theThriving Christian Artist.
I'm saying all the time if it'simportant enough for God to
give it to you, it's importantenough for you to take it
seriously and listen.
God gave you your art becausehe loves you, because he's good,
because he thinks it'simportant, because it's a way
(25:46):
for you to release his natureand his kingdom in the earth.
And, my friend, listen, if it'simportant enough for God to
give it to you, doggone it.
It's important enough for youto take time to focus on it and
to flow with it when it'sflowing.
All right, listen these thingsI hope they're not an exhaustive
list, right, but these arethings that I believe that, if
(26:08):
you'll begin to build theserhythms, if you will these
signposts, if you will rhythms,if you will these signposts, if
you will these, allow you tointentionally make room for the
Lord and make room for Him toguide you, make room for Him to
inspire you, make room for Himto flow through you.
And that's what, in myestimation, being an artist is
(26:31):
all about is allowing the beauty, the nature of God to not only
flow to me and not only flow inme, but flow through me in
everything that he's got.
Listen, my friend, I want topray real quick and just ask
that the Holy Spirit would usehas been using, I hope, this
time together today to reallybring you clarity and sort of
(26:53):
nudge you into making a place ofmore and more stillness in your
life, jesus.
I thank you that you, even inyour life, Jesus, you pulled
away from all the hustle bustleand you went to be with the
Father and Jesus.
You said it was good that yougo so that the Holy Spirit could
(27:15):
be with us and lead us andguide us into all truth and
wisdom and comfort us.
And, holy Spirit, we repent,lord, for being so busy that we
miss the nudges and the stillsmall voice of your Spirit.
Holy Spirit, I pray that youwould, even now, inspire us and
(27:37):
nudge us and lead us, enlightenus, god, in ways that we can be
more intentional about creatingbreathing room, space, stillness
in our life, so that we canhear you and sense you and
interact with you and enjoy yourpresence in our creative
(27:57):
process.
We thank you for that, lord, inJesus' name, amen.
Hey, my friend, listen, if thishas been a big blessing to you
today.
If you're watching on YouTube,I'd love for you to leave a
comment.
Let me know what you're doingto increase the amount of space
(28:17):
in your life, stillness in yourlife, intentionality, where you
can hear the Lord.
Also, if you've been listeningto this today and you're like,
wow, there's a lot of work Ineed to do, I've been really
listening to the lies of theenemy about striving and maybe
who I am and what's possible ornot possible, maybe you've been
feeling like you want to get outof that striving flow and into
(28:40):
this really rest, restful flowof the Lord, this kingdom flow,
this identity flow with him, butyou just don't know how.
Listen, I'd be remiss if Ididn't invite you to become a
part and enroll today in ourFoundations course.
I started the Foundationscourse and I created this course
as a way for artists toreconnect with our identity in
(29:03):
Christ.
Allow Jesus to heal the brokenplaces in your heart, allow you
to get clear on the vision thatGod has for your life and then
begin to create daily habitsthrough God's word and through
the practical things that you'redoing every day to pursue the
call of God on your life as anartist, whether that's for your
personal enjoyment or forministry or for meditation, or
(29:25):
maybe it's even for you thatwant to do this as a business.
Maybe you're already doing yourart as a business, part-time,
and you want to take it to thenext level.
It all starts with building asolid foundation in Christ.
Here's what I've noticed overthe years.
I've been an artist now forover 30 years.
I've mentored thousands andthousands and thousands of
(29:46):
artists over my time as a mentorand I can tell you definitively
no matter how great of amarketer you are, no matter how
great of an artist you are, nomatter how short or long you've
been doing it, no matter howmuch favor you may have on your
life, if you are not building asolid foundation in Christ
(30:09):
through intentionally learningto renew your mind with the
truth of God's word, gettingclear on the vision that he has
for you and creatingintentionality toward walking
toward that every day.
Listen, I promise you.
I promise you, at some pointthe enemy is going to pull the
rug out from under you and allof your good intentions are
going to fall flat without asolid foundation in Christ.
(30:30):
And that's why we started theFoundations course in order to
help artists develop a solidsolid as a rock foundation in
their life, so that we're notbuilding our art life on
shifting sand, on the shiftingsand of social media, on the
shifting sand of fickle buyers,on the shifting sand of whether
(30:53):
people like me today or not.
We build it on who God says weare in His Word and in that
place we can do anything right.
We can do anything Building abusiness, building an art career
, pursuing and growing as anartist.
It becomes a whole lot easierwhen you're doing that in
agreement with who God says.
(31:13):
You are in Christ, and I'd loveto be able to walk you through
that process.
Foundations is a nine-weekprocess.
It's a self-guided process.
We've got an incrediblecommunity of artists from all
over the world and just aboutevery creative medium.
You get to ask me questionsalong the way.
I'd love to walk with you andshow you how to build this solid
foundation in your life as anartist.
(31:34):
All right, hey, all theinformation for that is right
here in this episode.
You can click and enroll todayand I can't wait to see you
inside.
All right, listen, friend.
I love you so much.
Thank you for being here withme every week on the Thriving
Christian Artist and rememberuntil next time you were created
to thrive.
Bye, hey, my friend, before yougo, make sure that you're
(31:58):
signed up for the ThrivingChristian Artist Weekly.
It's my free newsletter, fullof spiritual encouragement,
creative inspiration andpractical tips to help you
thrive in everything that God'scalled you to do as an artist in
his kingdom.
Every issue is absolutely freeand it includes the latest
podcast episode, featured artistspotlights, a worship song of
the week and, again, tons oftips and encouragement and
(32:19):
inspiration for you, to keep youinspired and encouraged, and
everything that God's got foryou as an artist in the kingdom.
You can click the link righthere in the show notes to join
us, and it's a great way to stayconnected.
All right, love you, bye.
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