The Thriving Christian Artist
The Thriving Christian Artist
The Secret Place: Where Success Really Begins
What if your greatest artistic and business breakthroughs aren't hiding in the latest marketing strategy but in the secret place with God? This paradigm-shifting episode reveals a powerful truth I received during an exclusive marketing mastermind event that completely recalibrated my approach to creative success.
The divine whisper was clear: "Be focused on pulling on my glory, not pulling on the levers of business systems." This counterintuitive wisdom unlocks the supernatural paradox that has transformed countless artists' journeys—lasting success flows from intimacy with God, not just strategic business actions.
As creatives, we're often tempted by quick fixes and industry hacks that promise visibility and profit. But Scripture consistently points us toward a different path. Matthew 6:6 reveals how secret prayers yield public rewards. Psalm 91:1 shows that dwelling in God's presence provides divine covering. And Psalm 37:4 demonstrates how delighting in the Lord shapes and fulfills our deepest creative desires.
This doesn't mean abandoning business wisdom—it's about holding tension between practical know-how and spiritual sensitivity. Your unfair advantage as a Christian artist isn't just talent or technique; it's communion with the Creator Himself who can accomplish more through one divine appointment than years of self-reliant striving. When you prioritize His presence over performance, you position yourself for divine inspiration, heavenly connections, and supernatural breakthroughs that transform both your art and life.
Take the challenge this week: return to the secret place, realign your heart, and watch how God begins revealing His unique creative pathway for your artistic journey. Remember, you weren't just created to survive as an artist—you were created to thrive!
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Welcome to the Thriving Christian Artist, the podcast, where we hope you connect with God to bust through the roadblocks that have held you back for years, create the work you love and really live the life you know. God created you to live as an artist in His kingdom. I'm Matt Tama, your host. Let's get started. Well, hey, my friend, so glad that you're with me on the podcast today. You know, several years ago I was privileged to be at a marketing mastermind with really some of the top minds in internet marketing in the world. My coach at the time had several of these over the year that we were privileged to be a part of and just get to grow in not only what we were wanting to do in business but also personally just a really great time. I got a lot out of those things, but I remember specifically sitting in one of these conference meetings one time and the Lord whispering something in my ear that really helped to recalibrate me and recalibrate my heart, because I don't know about you, but when I get a hold of something that is working man, I love to take it and just run. I love to run with it, press the gas on it and everything, and as great as that is and as great as God can use those moments of acceleration in our life, those can really be sometimes also opportunities for strongholds to get developed in your life and for the enemy to use something that was good and something that was God to turn it into something that was self-serving and striving oriented and really gets you off track. And God said this to me and I actually was. I found this the other day in an old journal and I just thought, wow, this is so good, Even in my season. Right now, like God, I'm going back to this, but here's what he said to me and I'm just reading out of my journal. He says, matt, I want you to be focused on pulling on my glory, not pulling on the levers of business systems. Only it's in the secret place that I will release the secrets of my heart for you and all you've been called to. I have so much more for you. Don't just settle where it's comfortable. Believe me for the more, for I am reigniting your heart with a passionate fire again, an unquenchable thirst for my presence and transformation.
Speaker 1:You are an encounter facilitator for millions of people, a media magnifier, and I was like, wow, it was just kind of this moment with the Lord that he's like listen, dude, I got, I got so much more for you, but it was it's really focused on. In other words, the way it's going to happen is not only leaning into the business levers that you can pull. You know how to be more profitable, how to get in front of more people, how to get the latest Instagram hack, how to sell my work for more money, how to, you know, sell more books and be on more podcasts and be more successful in all the ways that the world say is successful. He said no, listen, I want you to first be pulling on my glory. In other words, get in that secret place with me and begin to delight yourself in me again. If you're going to spend most of your day doing something, most of your time doing something, do it on entreating my presence, do it on inviting me into this process. Do it in tuning your heart to the Lord, because here's what I've learned in my life, over these 30 plus years of being an artist and being an artist mentor Success In our life and in our art and in our business, 100% of the time, lasting success flows from intimacy with God, not just strategic business actions. That is so, so huge. And you know that's the way the kingdom works. Right, transformation from the inside out. But the enemies always want you to get to look toward the outside things. Right, the latest Instagram hack, the latest sales thing, the latest way to do it cheaper, faster, stronger and keep you in this kind of bouncing around of looking for the next thing. But here's some scriptures that I think really speak to the opposite spirit of that right. Matthew 6, 6 says but when you pray, go into your room, close the door, pray to your father, who is unseen, and then your father, who sees what is done in secret. What will reward you? In other words, outward reward. Outward success comes where? From your secret time with the Lord, from starting your day, starting everything you're doing in that place of prayer with him. What about Psalm 91, 1? You know this. Whoever're doing in that place of prayer with him. What about Psalm 91.1?
Speaker 1:You know this whoever dwells in the secret place, in the shelter of the most high, will rest in the shadow of the almighty. In other words, when you dwell in the Lord, he dwells in you. Right, we talk about that a lot with renewing your mind, right? I always say you know the thoughts you dwell on, create the world that you dwell in. Well, listen, if the thoughts that you're dwelling on are always about business, business, business, growth, growth, growth, how do I get out there? How do I make more money? How do I quit this job that I hate? Ah, striving. Then guess what? That's the land that you're going to dwell in, my friend. That's the world that you're going to find yourself in. But when you're dwelling in the secret place and the shelter of the most high, you can rest in his shadow, in other words, rest in a place where you know that he is overshadowing and empowering everything you're doing, not out of your strength, but out of his.
Speaker 1:And what about Psalm 37, four, one of my favorite scriptures? Delight yourself in the Lord and what he will give you, just barely what you need to get by. Nope, Doesn't say that. Delight yourself in the Lord and what he will give you the desires of your heart. One of the things that I've learned over the years of the Lord is that he puts desire and vision in our heart, not separate from himself, but through his nature. That's how God gets his desires and his plans and purposes for the world and for our life into the earth and into our life is through dreams and visions. But you can't just grab a dream and vision and go out there and try to make it happen yourself.
Speaker 1:The pattern, again, is really clear. Everything starts with delighting yourself in the Lord, being in the secret place with him, taking time in his presence. As you do, that, not only does your desires change, your perspective change, your ear is, and the ears of your heart, the eyes of your heart, are tuned to the Lord. So what is that secret place? That secret place with the Lord, I think, is not only that time where you go into your prayer closet, your studio, the sacred space of your studio or whatever it is, and just spend time in his presence, but I think it's cultivating an atmosphere of that in your life every day, where, as you're walking, as Paul talks about being a state of continual prayer, we're constantly in this place of communion with the Lord, listening and looking for and recognizing the things that he's saying, doing, nudging us the opportunities that he's bringing, and tuning our spiritual ears and tuning our spiritual eyes to the opportunities that he has for us. Again, god could release so much more in just a suddenly, in just a divine appointment with one person than you could get in years of trying to grow your art and grow your business all by yourself. That is this supernatural secret weapon, right?
Speaker 1:Some people said the unfair advantage right that we have as believers is that we get to connect with the mind of God, the heart of God, for what we're doing. And so God releases not only divine creativity and inspiration and ideas, but he releases us moments of understanding of what to do next in your life and in your business, in that secret place, in that place of focused, intentional relationship with him. Now, this does not mean that you got to lay on the floor and be in your prayer closet for eight hours. No, we spend time with the Lord, we focus on that. We read his word, we meditate All the things that we talk about in developing a relationship with the Lord. If you've been around me at all, I mean we meditate all the things that we talk about in developing a relationship with the Lord. If you've been around me at all. I mean we talk so much about that.
Speaker 1:But anytime listen, anytime you're with Jesus, it will motivate and inspire you to get up and start walking in the things that he's designed you to do right. And so, again, this is this paradox in the kingdom, but that's the way the kingdom is made of paradoxes, right? Business success, artistic success, personal success, flows out of prioritizing his presence over our performance. I'll say that again Success flows from prioritizing his presence over our performance, prioritizing his presence over our performance. And when you do that, it gives you the confidence to really start breaking out of these comfort zones that we're so used to walking in. And so these places where we're just doing everything that everybody else is doing, we're just following the crowd.
Speaker 1:And well, I thought you're supposed to sell your art and develop your creative voice and get out there in the marketplace this way, because that's where everybody else was doing it. We just kind of settle in this rhythm of well, if everybody else is doing it, it should be the way I'm doing it. Listen, as the old adage goes, if you do what everybody else does, you're going to get what everybody else has got. And I don't know about you, but I don't want what everybody else has got. I want what everybody else has got. I want what God has for me in my creative practice, in my business, in my life. And so God ignites passion and inspiration and direction in our life, in the place of his presence, in the sacred place of the studio, in this place of us walking with him and the things that we have been designed to do.
Speaker 1:So, my friend, if you're thinking this year about how do I grow my business, how do I be more profitable, how do I get out of that job that I hate, how do I see God use me more, I promise you the time that you choose to spend with the Lord, meditating on his word, being in his presence, laying before him on the floor, whatever it is that you do to get with Jesus. As you get in there and develop that secret place routine, I promise you God's going to speak to you and move you. It's all about learning to hold intention, if you will, this balance of business, wisdom and the practical things you got to know and, at the same time, spiritual sensitivity and learning to lean into the voice of the Lord. All right, listen, my friend. I promise if you'll do that, you're going to see change and transformation in your life this year, and I just want to challenge you do that this week, take some time with the Lord. Maybe it's time for you to come back and say, lord, I've been out pulling on every lever out there except the lever of your glory, except using the tools and strategies that you've told me about leaning into your presence. God, I repent of that. I want to change the way that I think about that. Lord, draw me into your presence and use me for your glory. Help my heart to delight in you so that I can be everything and do everything that you've called me to do.
Speaker 1:Listen, my friend, trusting in yourself is not how you're going to get there. True success isn't just making a living from your art or being successful. It's making art and making a life that flows from life himself, life in Christ. I love you, my friend. Until next time, remember, you were created to thrive. Bye, hey. Thanks so much for spending a few minutes with me today on the podcast Listen. I hope it's been a huge encouragement to you on your journey as an artist. Hey, also, before you leave, make sure to hit the subscribe button so you don't miss any of the other episodes of the Thriving Christian Artist podcast, and also be sure to connect with me on Facebook, instagram or at my website, which is matttommymentoringcom. Until next time, remember, you were created to thrive. Bye-bye, thank you.