Episode 117: How will you profit from your circumstances?

Welcome to Hustle in Faith. This podcast is dedicated to helping you find your trail to a happier healthier you by discussing topics regarding Christianity, health & wellness, beauty & so much more! I’m your host Tosha Johnson.

Episode 117: How will you profit from your circumstances?

You don’t need me to tell you that the Coronavirus situation continues to wreak havoc on the world. This virus has brought death, destroyed economies, and dare I say, permanently changed how we live our daily lives. What we need to realize is that the Coronavirus is not going anywhere anytime soon.

Despite the chaos this virus is causing in our lives, we can still live the extraordinary life Christ came to give us (John 10:10). The one “bright spot” that I have been noticing lately is that this virus has forced people to tap into their hidden talents. These are God-given talents that many of us did not know that we possessed. Dare I say this, due to the Coronavirus situation, many of us are not only able to pursue our God-given passion but turn them into lucrative businesses.

Although the Coronavirus is affecting everyone, I can truly say, thanks to Christ, this year has been one of my most profitable year; both mentally and financially. The purpose of this episode is to encourage everyone that you can still live the extraordinary life Christ came to give us. 

Again, despite the Coronavirus creating trouble in the world, if you put Christ first, you can be profitable in the midst of this pandemic. In case you want to learn more about what I consider to be an extraordinary life, check out my podcasts. What is an Extraordinary life?  And What will your dash look like? 

My point is, although the Coronavirus is affecting everyone, it does not have to be in a negative way. For some of us, this virus has created opportunities for many of us to pursue and showcase our talents.  Again, the Coronavirus is affecting everyone in different ways. Once again, these different ways are NOT necessarily bad for everyone.

For example, I’m a part-time group fitness instructor. I teach dance and boxing/kickboxing. Up until this point, many of my fellow instructors who teach fitness full time, were running themselves crazy working at multiple gyms to make ends meet. 

What’s interesting is when the virus hit all over the world, this virus forced many of these talented instructors to be creative with their talent.  Some way, somehow, many of these savvy instructors were able to get in touch with their students and started hosting virtual classes.  As you can imagine, these instructors are living their best life.

They do not have to run themselves crazy from gym to gym; they can teach in the comfort of their own homes. Even better, these gyms that callously mistreated their fitness instructors and took their talents for granted are basically begging these instructors to allow the gym to promote their classes for them. Again, the Coronavirus is affecting everyone in different ways and these ways are not necessarily bad for everyone.

The dilemma of these instructors reminds me of a Bible principle. The Bible teaches us that we will reap a harvest if we do not give up (Galatians 6:9). I know this way of life takes more effort, but the benefit is well worth the outcome. Much of my success is due to me learning this principle of not becoming weary in well doing.

My hope from this episode is that you do some soul searching and find out who you really are and what God-given talents you have in your possession. In order to accomplish this endeavor, you must put Christ first in your life.  You do this by daily reading, meditating, and properly applying the word of God to your life.  In doing so, you will find out who God made you to be and what talents He put in your possession. The story of Gideon is a good example of what I am talking about (Judges 6 Chapter).

To make a long story short, Gideon was hiding from his enemy when the angel of God approached him. The Angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, and said to him, “The Lord is with you, you mighty man of valor!”  I can only imagine Gideon’s expression when the angle of God said this to him.  Nothing about Gideon’s personality screamed valiant warrior. In fact, it was the complete opposite. 

Gideon was fearful and hiding from his enemy. I can only imagine him saying “What you are talking about . . . mighty man of valor!” I can see Gideon looking around to see who the Angel was really talking to. It’s easy to understand where Gideon is coming from because he like many of us don’t see ourselves the way that God sees us.

If you read the story, you will see that Gideon had gifts and talents that he did not know that he possessed. Like many of us, Gideon had settled for living a settled for life.  He saw himself as the world saw him, powerless and without recourse. In other words, Gideon did not know that God created him to be a victorious leader, not a victim.

Again, like many of us, Gideon did not know who he was from God’s perspective.  Due to his lack of knowledge, Gideon did not know what talents and gifts God had already given him. This is why I encourage people to study the Bible. By studying God’s Word, the Holy Spirit will show you your God-given talents as well as how to pursue them. All of which will help you to live the  extraordinary life Christ came to give us (John 10:10).  

Once again, the Coronavirus situation has not been bad for everyone. I know firsthand that many of the fitness instructors are out there living their best life. They are literally making more money now than they did before the Coronavirus. They have been able to teach students not just from their local gyms, but ALL over the world virtually by live streaming via Zoom or other online platforms.  I for one have been attending many of these classes.

In fact, I had the wonderful opportunity of connecting with one of my favorite dance fitness instructors who teaches overseas. When I don’t create my own choreography, I can rest assured that they have choreo I can use. Needless to say, this virus situation has taught people that they do have other resources.

I know many people are faced with the dilemma in how to stay safe as well as pay their bills. Teachers on a larger scale are facing a similar situation as the fitness instructors. The business side of me sees all sorts of opportunities these teachers can leverage. I hope these teachers do as my fitness instructors did and harness their power by tapping into the gifts that they possess. Many of these amazing instructors realized that teaching virtual classes allowed them the opportunity to not only save money, but still have the ability to do what they love.

Sadly, corporations and institutions have proven time and time again, that they believe their employees are disposable.  Although we may not be able to control our circumstances, we can control our reactions to them. Instead of wallowing in self-pity and believing the lie that you are doomed without that dead-end job, you need to seize this opportunity to channel your time and energy into seeing your life from God’s perspective. All of which will help you to carve out other career paths to help pay the bills.

This is what I did. Seeing how corporate America mistreats people, I channel my time in energy into developing my God-given talent. I am happy to say, many of my passions (side hustles) have been very, very lucrative. In fact, this year financially has been fantastic! The bottom line is, I learned to see myself how God sees me. Only in this perspective can you truly see what talents and gifts you have at your disposal.

By Gideon embracing who God made him to be, a valiant warrior, Gideon was able to defeat the Midianites and protect his people. The reason Gideon was defeated all those other times, is because he saw himself as a coward even though God made him to be a valiant warrior.

With this being said, so many of us walk around with defeated mindsets because we buy into society’s narrative of who we are. Some of us have even bought into the lie that where we are born and/or the families we were born into determine our success in life. Now, don’t get me wrong. I know that some of us were born into this life with more hurdles to overcome than others.

Nonetheless, this does not determine your level of success.  If you recall, even Christ, our Lord and Master were not born in the best of areas. Neither was He born to rich and famous parents. In other words, Jesus did not have the best of circumstances. Evidence of this fact is why Nathanael said to Philip, “. . . Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth. . .” (John 1:45-46).

My point is that you can be profitable despite your circumstances. My hope is that you learn from Gideon as I did. Roman 15:4 teaches, “. . . For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope . . .”.  Gideon’s tribulation is one of these things.

His story was written so  you and I can learn to accept ourselves as God made us  to  be. In this world, in order to be successful in life, you have to master the art of embracing who God says you are, not how the society sees you. Seeing myself from God’s perspective is how I became successful. 

Here are some thought provoking podcasts to help you along the way to your journey are my interview with the Hustle in Heels podcast and What has the Coronavirus taught you about your brand?

Regardless of how many hurdles that you have to overcome,  run with all of your might so you can gain enough speed to clear over every last hurdle in your path. You may get tired along the way, but if you focus on God, He will give you the strength that you need, until you cross the finish line. 

Thanks so much for listening to today’s episode. Don’t forget to check out Hustle in Faith’s Prayer and Gratitude Journal for Men and Women of Faith  and StarenguCrew, our new fitness apparel shop.

If you enjoy Hustle in Faith’s content, please consider becoming a supporter by donating, purchasing a journal  or item from StarenguCrew in order to help offset the cost of producing this show.

Be sure to connect with us on Facebook and Pinterest. Remember, if you’re everything to everyone then you risk being no one. You never know who will inspire you in the next episode!