When is the right time to take action? When is the right time to “let go and let God”?
We all want to make a difference for the Kingdom of God. We all want to be all that God designed us to be. But knowing when to “take action” and when to “wait on God” is a tension every Christian faces. And I know there are many opinions.
So let’s dive in, shall we?
A new day is like a blank page…a blank page that we can fill with words of our choosing.
But it doesn’t often feel like that does it?
Most of life feels like waiting…being stuck…and being dealt a hand that we can’t change.
Life wasn’t just meant to be received, but seized. Not a movie to watch but an adventure to be embarked on. What are you doing to make the most of every moment? What are you risking? How are you making art, being vulnerable, and offering the world something worth noticing?
To succeed in work – to spread your message, make a difference, and create a stir – you can’t just sit around and wait for it to happen. You have to rise up and go. And it doesn’t have to do with talent.
Some of the most talented people in the world are unknown because they lack hustle and drive to spread their art. There are also those with moderate talent who hustle and see their dreams come true.
Self Promotion or Humble Hustle?
“But David”, you may ask, “is all this talk of self promotion? Isn’t it God who raises up? Isn’t it just your responsibility to be faithful?” This is the tension I want to explore today.
When it comes to our work, career, art, or ministry, no one will argue that success is a goal. But when does success slide past the will of God into self promotion and a chasing after the next big thing?
You will always have critics. Haters will hate. It’s easy for those who sit on the sidelines to criticize those in the game. They observe from a distance. They are jealous. They make assumptions.
Without critics, your work is too safe.
Here’s the bottom line for me: when I believe in something, I promote it.
- If I create an ebook, a blog post, or a podcast, I promote it because I believe the contents will help you.
- If I organize an event for my worship team, I promote it because I want people to show up and grow.
- If I’m mentoring a young guy, I want him to show up to our meetings because it’s good for his spiritual well being.
It comes down to creating stuff and communicating about it. If it’s good, others will promote it too.
It’s not humility to avoid making what God has put inside you. It’s not humility to keep quiet.
It’s just another form of hiding and you’re keeping your friends, your ministry, and the world from art that could change their lives.
Matter of fact, I believe more of us need to stop sitting on our hands and release what God has put inside. I call it humble hustle.
- It’s a hustle that is aligned with “seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness…(Matthew 6:33).
- It’s a hustle that says…God isn’t going to create for me. I have a calling and a responsibility to make stuff – whether that’s music, paintings, events, interactions, or connections.
- It’s a hustle that says…God has placed me on this earth for a reason and I’m going to make it count.
- It’s a hustle that says…There are people who need and believe in what I have to say. I’m going to serve them.
If Rick Warren was worried about this…would we have The Purpose Driven Life?
If Matt Redman was worried about this…would we have his beautiful songs?
Who knows – without the right people taking action, would we have study Bibles, Planning Center, church services, or electric guitars? Somebody took a risk and stepped out with their art. And we are all grateful.
What About You?
What are you going to do about it? And as always, I’d love your feedback on this tension between self promotion and kingdom ministry.
Do you struggle with this? What’s your take on it? Let’s continue the conversation in the comments.
*This post originally appeared for my newsletter subscribers – over 3200 worship leaders. Due to such a high reaction, I wanted to post it here to continue the conversation. If you’d like to subscribe to my FREE newsletter (and receive a FREE ebook) you can do so HERE.
This is something I struggle greatly with. Somewhere along the line my brain has linked success as a Christian with selfishness. It doesn’t make any logical sense, and I know it’s not true, but there’s always that nagging in the back of my head telling me this. As a “worship leader” or whatever verbiage you want to use to describe it, I’ve shied away from promoting myself for the sheer fact that I thought I was supposed to. I felt like I was being more humble and in line with what Christ wanted from His children. How silly was I 😉
Jeremy, I feel the tension. What is God calling you to make?
I think he’s calling me to make the best of my abilities and use them in any way that can glorify the Kingdom of God. Thanks for the reply!
There is a fine line. Like any musician I have the “rock star” dream but it has to be for the glory of God. I’ve seen so many great musicians cross that line and unfortunately fall away. Keep humble, seek God and communicate with your pastor. Be blessed.
Ruben, wise words. When you mention “fall away” what do you mean? Losing their faith in Christ? Leaving their local church?
Yes sorry I didn’t clarify lol. And thank you for a response!
You know how I tease you a bit and say “Your blog is so good I don’t know which ones to delete?” Well this one is a keeper for the archives! Over the past couple of years and most recently this topic has been one of my biggest battles. Being one of your team members I have no problem expressing and exerting the energy necessary, but I struggle with the idea of having something personal to express and offer. What I struggle with the most is, “is the effort really worth the energy?” I will now answer that question this way as you list number one, “seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness…all the rest will be added unto you”. With that always in mind then the focus for the energy is developed if your project glorifies the Father, through the Lord Jesus Christ. Then yes, it’s worth the energy, and any other of those “things” added great or small, come direct from Him. So even while we live this life here on earth and exert the effort for temporary things, eternal results are recognized as the focus is on the kingdom! In whatever shape, form, personal experience you have to present, it will be an eternal blessing to some-“one” or some “many” as the Lord sees fit. Thank you David for this post, my desire has been rekindled.
Matt. 11 28-30 – The Message:
“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me-watch how I do it. Learn the UNFORCED rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.”
I deeply struggle with the line between self-promotion and kingdom building. As a worship leader, where is the line drawn of posting pictures of yourself leading a large crowd on social media? Is that really kingdom edifying or just a way for you to look cool? Two of my deepest passions are leading the church into worship through music as well as digital art and photography- however I struggle with checking my heart why I want to post certain things – is it for my self benefit or to lift the name of Jesus up.