The Thriving Christian Artist
The Thriving Christian Artist
292 - 5-Minute Mentoring: Walking with a Limp
In this world of glow-ups and the ‘Gram, it’s easy to think that everyone’s life is perfect, that nobody else struggles the way we do. But we know that the truth is, none of us is perfect. We all struggle - and those struggles have helped us become the people we are.
If you want to be a leader in the arts – to have influence and be a blessing in the artist community – then others have to know you've been through some stuff. You have to talk about the battle that comes with the blessing.
Our courage and willingness to be vulnerable, to acknowledge our weaknesses, and to share our struggles are actually one of our most powerful strengths as leaders, as artists, and as humans.
When Jacob wrestled with God, he refused to let go until God blessed him, just so he could walk away from the wrestling match with a limp.
When you wrestle with God, get ready to walk away with a new limp… plus a new name, new character, new reputation, and a new level of authority for your calling.
In this episode of 5-Minute Mentoring, find out what happens when you choose to embrace the hard-won struggles, when you can really own your limp and the name that goes with it.
Want to read about my own struggles as I’ve grown my art business? Check out the 10th anniversary of my first book, Unlocking the Heart of the Artist, on Amazon at the link below!
Unlocking the Heart of the Artist: 10th Anniversary Edition on Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Unlocking-Heart-Artist-Practical-Fulfilling/dp/1460930258
Connect with me online:
https://www.matttommeymentoring.com
https://www.instagram.com/thethrivingchristianartist
https://www.facebook.com/thethrivingchristianartist
https://www.youtube.com/mjtommey to watch the podcast on YouTube!
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Do you have a heart to inspire other artists around you to follow the Lord and to really help them to thrive in the calling that God's got for them? I'm going to give you one really important key in how to start doing that today here on 5-Minute Mentoring.
UNKNOWN:Music
SPEAKER_00:God created you to be. Hey, my friends, so glad that you are with me today here on 5-Minute Mentoring. You know, one of the hallmarks, I think, of the community that we've created over the years here in our Creative Thrive Artist Mentoring. and in the wider Thriving Christian Artists community on our podcast and our events and conferences and things like that is vulnerability. That didn't start with me. I guess it kind of did because I'm the originator of all this, but it really started years and years and years ago in my own journey with my spiritual parents, Jim and Pat Banks. They really modeled for me and my wife, Tanya, vulnerability and walking in in real relationship with people. I don't know if you've been in relationships like that with people before where you can really get beyond the superficial and you can really get into the nitty gritty of what it means to live life, to struggle, to thrive in the kingdom and to walk through everything that God's called you to. And I think as I look back, At my life, and I think about, man, who are the really influential people in my life? They're people who have been willing to share their area of weakness and how they've walked through that. They've been willing to share that with me and been able to allow me to learn from that. I actually talk about that in my book, Unlocking the Heart of the Artist, when I am talking about this idea of community and raising up the next generation. And I talk about this idea of walking with a limp. We all know the story of Jacob wrestling with the Lord and, you know, coming out with a limp at the end of that, just kind of this reminder of what he had walked through. And I think one of the most powerful things that you can do in your life to develop real intimacy with others and to be a person of influence in the lives of others is not to, in a superficial way, but in an authentic way, be able to share at the right time in the right context with The struggles and the weaknesses that you've walked through and what you've learned from the Lord in the middle of that, how that's helped you in your art career, how that's helped you in your spiritual life, in your marriage, in your business, whatever it is. You know, nobody wants to learn from somebody who looks like they got it all together. Nobody wants to really, you know, follow someone who seems perfect. Because why? That really makes all of us feel like we can't measure up. And I think artists especially, we are really attuned specifically to kind of be able to catch people that seem fake and seem like, are they for real? Or is this just a show? And I think... Learning to walk and own your own limp, that is, the things that you've struggled with, and be able to share those. Listen, that's a real, real place of opportunity for you to be able to develop a relationship with others. It's also probably, if you walk through that in a healthy way, it's the place where God has given you an immense amount of authority in your life. When I think about my own life, I think about struggling with identity issues for many, many years and really the core part of heart healing and renewing my mind. Listen, when I share that kind of stuff with people, there's an authority, not just because, oh, Matt's a good teacher or he knows how to market. No, God's got an authority in my life. He's worked a real hard settledness in me. He's worked a work of healing that now I can speak out of. And when I speak out of that, guess what? It elicits healing in others. It becomes a catalyst for change in others. And so when you share vulnerably and transparently the things that you've walked through and you share how God's brought you through that, you share the success that you've now got, the momentum that's happened in your life because of it, that gives people hope. And that also allows God to use you as that catalyst for change, that catalyst for influence. The other thing that I've learned is that when you can really own your own limp, when you can really own the things that you walk through, the more that you share it, the stronger that you get in that area. Every time I teach about renewing your mind and healing your heart, every time I teach about marketing, every time I teach about connecting with people and walking in community, guess what? God's reinforcing those things in my life. All areas that I used to struggle with, but all areas that God is has healed and is healing. And as I share those parts of my journey with others, it really, really is an incredible thing and benefit not just for me, but also for them as well. And that's how community is built. That's how authenticity is built. That's how sons and daughters walk with each other. See, orphans are all about trying to look right, be right, got to have everything together, performance mentality. My identity is based on who I am and what I do and that sort of thing, as opposed to who God says I am. And even though I've been through some stuff, that doesn't define me. My fear doesn't define me. All the stuff I've been through doesn't define me. All my mistakes don't define me. But they do inform. They do inform who I am. And when I submit those to the Holy Spirit, they can become an incredible catalyst for transformation. and others. Hey, my friend, I hope you will choose to live like that. The more you do, the more you will see God show up in huge, huge ways. If you want to learn more about really thriving as the artist that God's called you to be, living out of that beautiful place of divine design, I want to encourage you, grab my book, Unlocking the Heart of the Artist. It's been out now over 10 years, brand new revision, lots and lots of great additions in the book that came out this year, and I know it'll be a huge blessing to you. You can get it in print, you can get it on Kindle, you can get it even an audio book nowadays with my little old voice reading the whole thing to you. Listen, I love you. Thank you so much for being with me today. And wherever you are, whatever you're doing, remember you were created to thrive. Bye.