His Love for Entrepreneurs Endures Forever: The History of Creative Complex and God's Work In It
Today I read Psalm 107 and it was the story of my entrepreneurial career.
Psalm 107 The Message (MSG)
1-3 ”Oh, thank God—he’s so good! His love never runs out. All of you set free by God, tell the world! Tell how he freed you from oppression, Then rounded you up from all over the place, from the four winds, from the seven seas.”
I remember when God first saved me and I was a baby Christian bringing all of these new ideas into my business. I was so greatful and business was thriving. This was back in 2008-2009.
4-9 ”Some of you wandered for years in the desert, looking but not finding a good place to live, Half-starved and parched with thirst, staggering and stumbling, on the brink of exhaustion. Then, in your desperate condition, you called out to God. He got you out in the nick of time; He put your feet on a wonderful road that took you straight to a good place to live. So thank God for his marvelous love, for his miracle mercy to the children he loves. He poured great draughts of water down parched throats; the starved and hungry got plenty to eat.”
I remember in 2010 when I found our current office space. Until then I was running my business out of my houses and apartments. My employees would come to my house to work! But prayer brought the perfect space where Creative Complex now resides.
10-16 ”Some of you were locked in a dark cell, cruelly confined behind bars, Punished for defying God’s Word, for turning your back on the High God’s counsel— A hard sentence, and your hearts so heavy, and not a soul in sight to help. Then you called out to God in your desperate condition; he got you out in the nick of time. He led you out of your dark, dark cell, broke open the jail and led you out. So thank God for his marvelous love, for his miracle mercy to the children he loves; He shattered the heavy jailhouse doors, he snapped the prison bars like matchsticks!”
This reminds me of my life from 2007 -2009 when I was a nightclub promoter and still running my business and just starting to go to church. But in 2009 I cried out to God to stop the madness. I was living in that dark cell, depressed. I stopped promoting January 2009. I got baptized that week.
17-22 ”Some of you were sick because you’d lived a bad life, your bodies feeling the effects of your sin; You couldn’t stand the sight of food, so miserable you thought you’d be better off dead. Then you called out to God in your desperate condition; he got you out in the nick of time. He spoke the word that healed you, that pulled you back from the brink of death. So thank God for his marvelous love, for his miracle mercy to the children he loves; Offer thanksgiving sacrifices, tell the world what he’s done—sing it out!”
But baptism in January 2009 didn’t just make all my problems go away. I was love sick. I desperately wanted to be in love, find a wife, stop the promiscuity of past 10 years of living. Then I prayed out to God for love, and in May of 2009 I met my wife Stephanie.
23-32 ”Some of you set sail in big ships; you put to sea to do business in faraway ports. Out at sea you saw God in action, saw his breathtaking ways with the ocean: With a word he called up the wind— an ocean storm, towering waves! You shot high in the sky, then the bottom dropped out; your hearts were stuck in your throats. You were spun like a top, you reeled like a drunk, you didn’t know which end was up. Then you called out to God in your desperate condition; he got you out in the nick of time. He quieted the wind down to a whisper, put a muzzle on all the big waves. And you were so glad when the storm died down, and he led you safely back to harbor. So thank God for his marvelous love, for his miracle mercy to the children he loves. Lift high your praises when the people assemble, shout Hallelujah when the elders meet!”
In 2010 I started 3 different companies and got into business with 5 different partners. I was calling myself a ‘serial entrepreneur’ and loving the attention and thrill of starting new ventures. But then it all crashed down. Lost money, lost partners, lost confidence. God brought me back to focusing on Creative Complex and my new non profit at the time, Jose’s Hands.
33-41 ”God turned rivers into wasteland, springs of water into sunbaked mud; Luscious orchards became alkali flats because of the evil of the people who lived there. Then he changed wasteland into fresh pools of water, arid earth into springs of water, Brought in the hungry and settled them there; they moved in—what a great place to live! They sowed the fields, they planted vineyards, they reaped a bountiful harvest. He blessed them and they prospered greatly; their herds of cattle never decreased. But abuse and evil and trouble declined as he heaped scorn on princes and sent them away. He gave the poor a safe place to live, treated their clans like well-cared-for sheep.”
In 2011-2012 we were back on track, focused! I stared the Nightlife Marketing Association, I joined entrepreneur groups and started really learning how to run a business.
In 2013 a key business partner of mine left the company and things got crazy. New partners came in, new staff, new direction, but things weren’t the same.
In 2014 I tried my hardest to keep going in the nightlife world, but God was tugging at my heart saying you need to let it all go, the entire nightlife.
2015 had turned into an amazing river of hope! So much clarity, so much opportunity. God is blessing this business as I write this post.
42-43 ”Good people see this and are glad; bad people are speechless, stopped in their tracks. If you are really wise, you’ll think this over— it’s time you appreciated God’s deep love.”
This story is to be continued….always.
And I’m greatful to God for for everything he has done to bring me out of trouble, out of the night, and into the light….in Jesus Christ name! Amen and amen.
His Love for Entrepreneurs Endures Forever: The History of Creative Complex and God’s Work In It was originally published on DailyGodpreneur.com
