Let me start with a disclaimer: I'm not a "blogger". I don't want to be a "blogger". I'm a marketer, a social media manager, a designer. With that being said, I always knew that I wanted to start a blog for my business. I want this blog to be somewhere that I can easily share social media tips, design tutorials, business advice and more aspects of my creative company!
Now that it's finally the time in my business journey to start that blog, I felt lead to first write this personal post about me, my business, and my faith.
With that being said, let me add one more disclaimer: My business is not a "Christian Business". By that, I mean my products and services have nothing to do with my religion. You don't have to be a Christian to work with me or to follow me on social media. My social media pages are 90% business and 10% personal. However, I know that my business would not be here today if it was not for my faith. That is why I want to share my walk with Christ with you, because I have to give credit where credit is due. And all of my glory belongs to God.
So, this first post is about my relationship with God. This is my testimony.
This is how my faith built my business.
In October of 2017, I quit my full-time job as the head of Public Relations and Marketing at a large company, where I made a good, steady paycheck. I quit because I knew there was more out there for me than what I was doing. I was unhappy where I was, to say the least.
Less than two weeks after quitting, I booked my first freelance client. By the end of the year, I had two clients with a third soon to follow. However, I still had no confidence in myself or my ability to successfully run my own business. I questioned if it was the right path for me. I was searching for something more.
On January 14, 2018, I was baptized. That same day, I started a 21-day journey of fasting and prayer. During this time, I doubted myself and God more than ever before. The Devil attacked me like you wouldn't believe. I still had clients and was running my business, but my heart wasn't 100% in it. I was afraid I would fail. I begged God to let me find another job, something that would be easier and more stable. My thinking was, if I got another job, it wouldn't mean that my business had failed, it would just mean that I let it go in order to pursue another position.
A few weeks after my 21 days of prayer and fasting was over, the final door to another job opportunity shut. The strange thing was, I didn't feel defeated. I didn't feel sad. I heard the Lord tell me "You didn't get that position for a reason. You were made to run this company. Go after it with your whole heart. Do not be afraid."
That's the thing. It was never that I couldn't run my own business. I just couldn't do it alone. In order to be successful, I had to bring God into it. He had to show me that it was His plan for me. He had to know that I was listening and putting my full confidence in Him. It was through that confidence in Him that I found confidence in myself.
So, I listened to God. I went after my business with my whole heart. I treated it as my priority, not as something I was doing on the side until a different opportunity presented itself.
The day before I launched my website, I tithed out of my business account for the first time. I had already seen the power of bringing God into my business. I knew that if I was going to do this, I had to do it right. I had to do it with God knowing I was trusting Him with every aspect of my business, finances included.
The next few weeks after I launched my website completely blew me away. There aren't words to accurately describe exactly what happened. I was flooded with Facebook messages, emails and phone calls, all from people who wanted me to help their business in some way or another. I spent so much time afraid to tell the world about my business because I was afraid to fail. Little did I know what would happen when I did open myself up to the world. I'd like to say "if only I had known sooner", but I know everything that happened was in God's perfect timing.
I'm not sharing this story with you to brag. I'm sharing it with you so you can see what will happen when you trust in the Lord. When you bring your faith into your business, or whatever else you may be doing, you will not fail. God has a plan for you that is so much greater than anything you can ever imagine. My exact words in my prayer journal from February 2018 were "I pray I get another job." Now I'd be devastated if I didn't have my business. The Lord gives to us what He knows we need, not what we think we want.
Moving forward, I allow my faith into every aspect of my business. I pray for it every morning and night. I talk to God about the clients I'm considering working with. I know He will not bring anyone into my business that is not supposed to be there. If I am rejected in any way, I have peace knowing there is a bigger reason behind it. It doesn't mean I'm not good enough, it simply means that wasn't in the plan God has for me. Any new services that I offer, or expanding that I do, I always discuss it with God first. Sometimes I just sit in silence and wait for Him to tell me what I need to do.
If you're a believer in any way, I encourage you to bring it into your business. Pray about your future and your past. Pray about your clients and your services. Pray before you send every email. Talk to God when you're feeling lost. Tithe, so He knows that you trust Him with your finances.
My faith is what built my business. Without it, I wouldn't have this opportunity to share my story with you. That's why I felt it was important that this be my first blog post. My relationship with God influences everything that I do in my business. I don't always post about it, but that doesn't mean it's not always there.