🌟 The Power of Marketplace Ministry: Let Your Light Shine! 🌟

Welcome to YouTube and, um, to Facebook. Welcome, you guys, and happy Sunday. Hello, Wendy, how you doing? Hello, good evening, good evening. Hello to my hubby, he's on as well. Good evening. We'll start in just a few seconds. Um, tonight's live is about the power of marketplace ministry, okay? Um, so I'll be sharing with you all tonight what that is, what that could look like, some encouragement, and also, as always, my testimony as well. So be sure to come on in the room, put hashtag replay if you want to come back and see this later. Let me know where you guys are tuning in from, what state. I live in North Carolina, I'm Eastern Standard Time, and my name is Shakeeta Torres, and I coming to you today as a teacher, a teacher, a life coach. I'm a therapist, I'm a mom. I wear many different hats, you guys, but I don't get hung up on titles, but more so on who I am in God, okay? So more than anything, I thrive knowing that I'm God's daughter. That's where I thrive, you all, not on titles, okay? So hello, welcome Sarah, welcome, welcome, welcome. So with that being said, um, I was just saying tonight I want to share with you all, um, uh very short but powerful teaching tonight all about marketplace ministry. Uh, for those of you who, who have been following me for a while, um, you already kind of know who I am, you know, my background, my story. Uh, some of you guys are new to following me, and so welcome, welcome, welcome. I have plenty of content— excuse me— on YouTube, content on Facebook, podcast, all of the above. Um, join my email list too. I have so much content I send out every week to my email list as well. Um, encouragement, things that I offer. I have an academy. I mean, I do so much, but tonight I really want to talk to you all who are called to marketplace ministry, okay? So I'm gonna say a quick prayer and then I'm gonna get into it. So Father, I thank you tonight for this word, Lord. I thank you, Holy Spirit, God, for what you gave me for your people on tonight, God, to teach them, to encourage them, to inspire them. Oh, Holy Spirit, I pray, God, that my words, God, has reached their hearts, Lord. Holy Spirit, speak through me. I yield everything to you, Lord God, to be for your glory, your glory alone. Christ's name I pray, amen. All righty, so what is marketplace ministry? Okay, so I wanted to go back a little bit and to talk about what marketplace actually is. All right, so it is often described as an outdoor market where vendors sell produce, meat, crafts, and other goods. Depending on where you are, marketplace might be called a bazaar, or a souk, okay? So this is a term that had been used for a very, very, very, very long time. But fast forward to today, marketplace today is our business, okay? What we are doing for a living, okay? How we serve others through what we create, what we build, what we work at, and so much more, okay? Under that umbrella, okay? Under that, you can be a hairdresser, you can have your own business, you can work for corporate. I mean, wherever you are placed at that can become your marketplace ministry. Okay, and so for me, every time I'm looking at something, the Lord has taught me to always go back to Christ's life, right? He is the blueprint for how we should live our life as believers, you guys. Okay, and if you go back, you can see how Christ is the blueprint for also what marketplace ministry. Okay, so I did a little bit of research here to kind of bring you guys some, um, some, some verbiage to this. And so it says that Christ spent most of his time in the marketplace, you guys, okay? He was in public more than he was within the church per se, okay? Um, he performed miracles in the marketplace, okay? He operating in healings, um, he ministered to people, um, he met them where they were at, um, he also worked as a carpenter as well in the marketplace, okay? And he also recruited the disciples in where? The marketplace. So Christ is the OG, all right, for marketplace ministry, okay? And fast forward to our time, to today's time, once again, it's very similar, but it just had different titles. We have more access to stuff too, you guys, um, as well— technology, social media, and so much more. Okay, and so before I get into the word a little bit more, I want to share with you more about my testimony and how I came into the sheepfold and how God called me into marketplace ministry. All right, so for me, I came to know who the Lord was when I was about 11 or 12 years old, gave my life to Christ at that time. But as I grew, I really didn't have like a consistent, safe space for me to grow and for me to thrive, right? I actually got saved staying with a family member, spending time with them. I'm going with them to church all the time as a little girl, um, after my mom passed away, okay? So from there, um, you know, I grew up, okay? Here I am now, I'm a grown woman. Um, I had got, you know, uh, born again, um, until like my 18 years old, per se, 19. I fell off again, okay? So at this point, I'm exposed to the world thinking the world could offer me more than Christ can, okay? And so during this time, I was literally running from the Lord, okay? I was not going to church because I knew that I had a call on my life. I didn't know what that was, okay? But once again, I was deceived to believe that the world had more to offer me than Christ did, okay? And so it wasn't until, you know, I end up going to get my bachelor's degree, went to college and all that good stuff. When I finished college, I end up working at a company I actually called Department of, um, called DSS, right, working with children and families. And I had a coworker, and she and I shared our office space together. It was me, her, and two other people, like a little cubicle area. And looking back now, I can definitely see how God had made it very strategic for me, okay? And so here I am, maybe about, what, 22, 23 years old, I think it was, and I'm working here, I'm, you know, at this agency and she is at my office. I would see her, I would see her praying, I would see her talking to God, I would see her, you know, encouraging people, you know, for here and there, advocating for guys. People could like, you know, working at that company, y'all, agency, it's a lot of work. It's a lot of work, okay? So I'm not going to get into all that right now, but yeah, it's a very stressful job. Um, and so I just begin to watch her more and more and more, and she told me later on, Shakeeta Torres, I knew what God had me to do concerning you, right? He was using me to witness to you, to bring you back into the sheepfold. Because I was not going to church, okay? I'm the kind of person that either I'mma be hot or I'mma be cold, okay? Meaning that I might want to sit here and try to serve God, and I'm sitting here out here in these streets, and vice versa, okay? If I'mma serve God, I'mma serve God. I'mma serve the enemy, I'mma serve the enemy, okay? Now, back then, I didn't say those exact words, but I just knew better. I knew better. I knew that God is someone you should reverence and you should honor, right? And I did not want to be going back and forth, back and forth, okay? So I ran, y'all. Anytime I would go to church, I would feel this tug and this pull. I'm like, nope, I'm not ready, I'm not ready, I'm just not ready for this, okay? So anywho, um, God used her to like— for me to actually watch, to be honest. And she's a little bit older than me And over time, I got to know her, you know. I would share with her about my story, you know, where I come from. Um, I learned more about her, her family, and like, we built a friendship with each other. And so over time, she ended up inviting me to her church, and I was like, ah, I don't know, we'll see, we'll see, we'll see. Okay. And but she was very patient with me, very patient with me, very kind. Uh, she would also have prayer groups sometimes at work, like early in the morning when we first got there, and I would go sometimes, and she would pray. And she was also a powerful prayer warrior as well, powerful prayer warrior. And it would be me, her, and like 3 other women, okay? Um, and so, uh, from there I got to know her. So I thought, you know what, let me go to this church she talking about. So eventually I went to her church, you guys, and it wasn't long before I submitted to God, y'all. Like, God just jacked me up, okay? If I— he followed me for a while now. I had a live I did before, probably time and time again, where I shared, you know, how God just jacked me up and saying, you know, I've been calling you for a long time. You belong to me. You're my daughter, right? You're gonna to serve me. I have, I have a plan for your life, right? He told me that, okay? And I could hear him clearly, okay? Um, and so even with that, you know, when I first got saved, you know, she really— not first got saved, but when she— when I, you know, came back into the sheepfold again, okay, she began to mentor me, disciple me. She was also a prophet as well, okay? At the time, I had no idea that God was calling me into that as well, but she knew. She always knew who I was as well. Right? And so I would just watch her and observe her in church and ministry, you know, how, you know, God had, you know, used her for the people within the church, okay? So she was actually operating in two different veins. She was operating in marketplace ministry, and she was also operating, um, in, um, at church too, as a leader, as a prophet in the Fivefold Ministry, okay? So she wore like two several hats, okay? All right, so for me, there was, you know, kind of like a, you know, a training ground for me where I learned so much about the gifts of the Spirit, you know, hearing learning the Holy Spirit. I mean, I witnessed so many miracles, signs, and wonders. Um, I also, um, you know, experienced them too as well. And I was experiencing a lot of warfare as well. Forgot I had to grow up fast, put it that way. So here I am at this church who is very just like open to the spirit, right? And I learned a lot at a fast rate, okay? And so I had to like learn quickly how to fight, okay, in prayer, all right? So that was like 2000 and what, 8, what, 9, no, 8. Yeah, 8 at this point. All right, so fast forward almost 10 years later. All right, my husband military, we done moved, you know, here, we moved there, okay. And, um, I went to, you know, churches here and there, you know. I serve in so many different ways. I was a dance leader, you know, I led the dance team, I was the usher, the armor bearer. Like, I've done a lot of things in ministry, you guys, that it's not necessarily public. You know, um, because I wasn't on social media like that. I was up here for personal use but not for like ministry, you know what I'm saying? So long story short, fast forward, um, around 2016, um, I was a part of a ministry, me and my family at this time. At this time it's me and my husband, my oldest daughter, my little baby girl. She was like— Lo was like, hmm, like 2 or 3 at this time, like not even that old, probably like 1, 1 or 2. And, um, I just started to have like just like heavy like just like discontentment in church, you guys. And I was like, God, what is this? Why am I feeling like so discontent? And me and my husband, he and I are both leaders at this ministry, and, um, I just really felt like we wasn't being as effective, um, the way that we could be. It was a small ministry, but I was discontent, you guys. And the Lord said, because I'm calling you out there, I'm calling you out here, okay, because I have need of you. Right? And I'm like, okay God, what, what, you know, what does that mean? You call me out there, okay, I hear the streets, but what are you saying? What did that look like? So at this time, you know, um, I'm at a ministry and also working at an agency where I'm providing mental health as well. So mind you, you know, at the same time, you know, I'm working at a place where God is not the forefront, God is not glorified there, but God will still use me heavily for these people. And so not all the clients I had, but some clients I had would say, hey, I have a question, like, are you are you a believer? And I would say yes, okay. And then it would kind of go from there, right? And the Lord will allow me to minister to them, um, and so much more. It was powerful, it was amazing. So God was using that too as a training ground for me to prepare me for marketplace ministry, okay. And so from there, all right, I was working there, um, you know, the Lord began to tell me like, this place is too small for you, it's too small for you, outgrowing this space. And what he meant by that, not necessarily physically but spiritually, okay, I was outgrowing and I was starting to become heavy, like more heavy than normal, which let me know that it was time to go because my grace period to be there was running out. It was running out, y'all. And, um, because it was dealing with some demons, y'all, okay, some heavy stuff, y'all, heavy, heavy, heavy. Because we had clients that would come from prison, clients that would come from the courts, trying to become off the street, who are homeless. And so when they came to my office, you guys, they're bringing all that stuff in there with them, and I'm constantly having to pray and war and break this stuff up, you know, down, because it was a lot. So I had to anoint myself, you know, when I got to work, before I left work, because if I didn't, I would bring that stuff home, y'all. It would follow me home, literally, okay? And I had to make sure that it didn't come home to my family, okay? And it has before in the past, long time ago, another story for another day. But, you know, spiritually, God was growing me up like fast, okay? Pretty fast. All right, so here I am, I'm at this company, I'm at this job. Um, during this time, my husband's overseas, okay? And I remember, um, sitting on the couch one day, because during that time when he was gone, I had a lot of quiet time with God. A lot. A whole lot. My kids would be at school, my little one be at daycare. I was working in this company, but I like made my own hours, so I had so much time to really sit with God a lot. And so, you know, I would sit and I would talk to him, and, um, he was like, I'm calling— he told me, he said, I'm calling you into entrepreneurship. And I'm like, what? Entrepreneurship? I was like, no, you— God, I don't know about that one, because I had no desire to be an entrepreneur, none at all whatsoever. And, uh, he began to mention to me again, he was like, you know, I'm calling you to Marketplace Ministry. I'm like, what's that? What's Marketplace Ministry? So I had to go and look it up. I'm like, oh, okay. It's a thing, it's a thing, okay? Because you got to think, I'm used to being at a church, I'm used to being in the fullness of a ministry, okay? And that's all I knew at that time. I didn't know anything else, okay? So, you know, here I am and I'm like, okay, got something to God. He told me, okay, I want you to begin your private practice. I'm like, okay, Lord. So you also, you know, I'll say, you know, well, you know, I look into entrepreneurship and most entrepreneurs have like several streams of income. I said, what is mine? And he was like, yours are going to change nations. At that time, I had no idea what that meant. I said, okay, awesome, beautiful, okay. No, not knowing that fast forward to today, right, things that I'm doing now is preparing that stuff for the nations, y'all, to be honest. And so I'm like, wow, God, like, he is so strategic. And so I'm sharing this story with you because I know for a fact there are so many people who I know God is calling them to branch out into marketplace ministry, but they could be afraid of the unknown. And you guys, I was for a little bit. I'm like, God, I don't know what to expect. What does this look like, right? You know, um, am I gonna be a part of a church still? Like, what— how does that look for me, for Shakeeta Torres? And so, you know, I was at the church for a little while. You know, things kind of— kind of like went haywire there. Didn't work out, okay? So we end up leaving. And all that good stuff. And so then, uh, my husband got back, um, I began my private practice after researching and studying and whatnot, figuring out what that looks like and whatnot. All that's long story, but anywho. So 2017, I be— I went ahead and, um, created my LLC. By 2018, it was open for business, okay? But it's a huge part of my ministry, it really is, okay? And so, um, it is very possible to do both, all right? Um, I'm sure, you know, you don't see folk up here all the time, all the time up here on social media who was doing it. But many of you, you know, don't know what that looks like. And to be honest, it requires faith and it requires you following the Lord. The Lord is going to give you your blueprint of what he expects from you and what he wants you to do. And I know that it can be scary. I know that it can be like, okay God, like, how I'm gonna pay my bills, all that good stuff, right? It's test, it's a test, it's a level of obedience that, you know, that you have to walk in order to really branch out into marketplace ministry. Now, can you do both? Yes, if God calling you to do both, absolutely. I know folk up here now who do both. They actually run a ministry and they also have a ministry online, okay, which is called marketplace ministry, okay, because they serving God as well through what they're doing online, okay. And when you follow the Lord and what he's telling you to do, it's not gonna make sense, y'all. It ain't gonna make sense sometimes. Because there's things that God asked me to do that I didn't fully understand at that time. Um, there's times he would tell me, okay, do, you know, do this for free, do that for free, right? And he still does to this day. There's times I have to do things for free, and I'm like, okay God, I'll do it. Whatever you want me to do, God, I'll do it, right? And so, you know, even then I would have clients that would come who couldn't afford it, and I'm like sitting here trying to make it myself. I was like, Lord, I got this new business, I got bills to pay at home now and here. And I was like, okay, how am I— so it was an act of faith, y'all. It was not It wasn't easy, I'm not gonna lie, it was not easy, okay? But it was worth it. I don't regret it not one bit, okay? And so if you just now getting on, um, the title, um, tonight is about marketplace ministry, uh, what it looks like for some people. And I share my story just now, you can go back and watch the replay in the very beginning to hear my story, okay? So I have some more notes here, it says Marketplace ministry is about living out your faith in your workplace, business, or anywhere that, um, you are placed, okay? It involves integrating your Christian principles into your professional and personal life, using your skills, your talents, and platforms to reflect God's love and truth, okay? And so let me say this, um, you know, real quick. People think that ministry is all about just preaching and teaching to people, and that's not true either. You have to use wisdom. You have to be led by the Holy Spirit. Even in my, you know, private practice, you know, in the beginning, I would have clients that would come who were professing to be Christians, but they were on different levels. They were on different levels. So I had to really tune into what the Lord was telling me, you know, when it comes to their well-being and where to meet them. And that's what Christ did, y'all, when he was doing marketplace ministry. He knew exactly where to meet the people, because not everyone's on the same level, okay? There's levels to spiritual growth, okay? You have the babies in Christ, right? Then they begin to grow, and it's like, it's, it's a process. So you can't try to feed a baby meat because they're gonna choke. And what do I mean by that? Yeah, we're doing therapy. Yeah, we're doing counseling. But there have been divine moments where the Lord would take over my whole session and have me just like minister to them and really pour into them when it was necessary, and they was very grateful for that. And also making sure that they're open to that, right? Wherever, you know, company you work for— you at a company that isn't your company, you know, per se— you can pray. Be praying in the morning. Pray for the company. Pray for the people. Pray for those that you will meet along the way, right? Pray, pray, and God will lead you. Sometimes your kindness alone will draw people in. I always say people remember how you treat them more than what you say. If you treat people any kind of way and then you want to minister to them, it's not gonna stick. If you got a nasty attitude and you get offended easily, okay, offense will take your ministry out. I'm gonna get in a moment, I'm gonna slow down right here, but— and get offended easily, because you have to understand the enemy wants you to back up off people, okay. He doesn't want you to reach that person, so he'll use whatever he can to keep that person in darkness. All right, so next thing here is this, Matthew 5, um, verse 13. We are called to be the salt and the light of the world. All right, so marketplace ministry is needed because people spend majority of their time in what? In the public. Right, at stores, restaurants, businesses, okay, online, okay. So in the past few years, we've seen this huge influx of, you know, online, uh, ministries. It's necessary because social media is like taking over people's minds and homes and all kind of stuff, right? And so he needs the gospel to go forth online even more now than ever. And so I remember that back in 2017, um, 2018 actually, God had called me, oh, called me on social media then, and, um, it really wasn't that busy up here. It wasn't. And I pulled back for different reasons. Number one, um, I got overwhelmed. Number two, you know, I had rejection going on still. Uh, number three, you know, I had confided in a leader that I looked up to for guidance about it, and I felt like I was just like, you know, diminished, and it was just a lot. And so I always regretted doing that, and the Lord said, I still have need of you. So back in 2020, I came back online again, okay? And since since then I have been pretty consistent about being up here and stood in what God has called me to do when it comes to my online ministry, which, you know, was— it's not my first ministry, okay? It's not actually my family, my first ministry. Then I had my business, right? My personal life, right? And then this is a branch of my ministries online, okay? And I love marketplace ministry. Honestly, I love to meet people who have no idea who I am, and I'm able to meet them right where they are show them love and kindness and be able to reach them in any way God leads me to. I love marketplace ministry because I don't want people to look at me and look at, you know, who God's called me to be or whatever, looking for a prophetic word or whatever, and try to get close to me, you know, and like have impure motives. So I like it when people, you know, um, you know, while I'm out and about, if I don't know who I am— when I'm home, out and about, y'all, I'm chill, okay? I have on my sweats, I have on t-shirt, I be chilling, okay? I be chilling, okay? Um, but of course, right, the more you in Christ and the— and, you know, as you mature, your light will shine. So with that being said, your presence alone can shift the atmosphere. And God had told me that time and time again. Your presence alone can shift the whole atmosphere because you carry my glory, you carry my heart, right? You carry my motive. Okay? And so even with that, right, when you at work, right, you ain't gotta say a word, but your presence alone, it should exude the nature of God. It should exude the love for people, right, without you having to even say anything. People can feel that too as well. All right, so don't, you know, minimize our marketplace ministry. I know that there's a pastor I know, um, who said that God called her online maybe about, about 3 years ago and she was receiving so much like backlash from people in her circle about, you going online, that's not ministry, that's not church, right? And look where we are today, right? Like, people need it more now than ever. They need to hear truth, okay? All right, so also on the scripture here, I love it, okay? Colossians 3:23 says this: Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart as, as working for the Lord, not for human masters. Good. Okay, so I learned this scripture a long time ago, way before I went into marketplace ministry, had my own business. Because what happens is, okay, what you gonna do if God send you to a place to work and you have a director, you have a supervisor, or you have someone who is just evil? Been there, been there, done that several times. Got t-shirt and a badge for it, okay? I have been in places like that time and time again. I'm like, God, why are you sending me here? He's like, you got my light, you carrying my light, you carrying my sword, right? Sword meaning the word of God and for me to be in prayer. And so for these people, my God, thank you, Lord, for this like revelation. They like remind me to share it because it's so important that we remain the same, that we remain steadfast, right? People, you know, I'm not sure if they knew who I was, I really don't know. But what I'm saying is that the enemy once again wants to try his best to, number one, discredit you, um, number two, keep you from reaching that person and keep you from praying for that person. So what happens is what's inside of that person will try to come against you to prevent you from following through with, with what God asked you to do. Okay, so for me, it's always been primarily prayer. Pray for them. I need to pray for them, intercede for them, cover them. I don't care what they do, right? And so it is like being a sacrificial lamb. I have definitely felt that way before. I'm like, Lord, I ain't did nothing. All I did was show up and I'm trying my best to do my work, operate in excellence, do the best I can, and they were giving me hell. Okay, that's the word I want to use tonight. Okay, give me a hard time. And the Lord was like, it's not you, it's flesh and blood. He was saying like— he was saying how, you know, it's not you, it's Spirit, okay, not flesh and blood, okay. So everything begins in the spiritual realm first, you guys. Remember that whatever you see is happening in the natural has already happened in the spirit, okay. So when God— God showing you things in the spirit, you have to pray. So for me, that's a big part of my ministry too. God will show me stuff in the spirit about situations, people, places, myself, my family, all of the above, right, for me to pray, right. Pray that either it doesn't happen, pray for their protection, pray that they're, you know, you know, that, you know, their heart would change, they would, you know, be transformed from the inside out, and so much more. And I have seen the fruit of that, okay? So do not diminish the power of prayer in marketplace ministry. It is so important, it is powerful, it is needed, okay? Um, so here are some examples here of what that can look like as far as marketplace ministry. As I just said, how you treat your colleagues, how you treat people you work with, with kindness and fairness. Not gossiping, okay? Don't be doing that. Don't be doing that, okay? Um, you know, for me, because I am a counselor, you know, I listen. I'm like, okay, you know, I'll, you know, I'll correct if I need to. But I'm also, also with that, I'm led by the Spirit, praying for that company, praying for those that, you know, you are called— I'm called to serve. Okay, and so once again, when I work earlier before at this mental health agency, you know, people would come in from off the street, from everywhere, and some of them would ask me, are you a believer? And I'm like, yes. And so it gave me an open door to be able to minister to them and share with them the good news of gospel— of the gospel. Okay, um, and at times I didn't. I would just pray for them in my private and secret time. There are times when God say, okay, this person right here, I have called them into fivefold ministry. So I need for you to pray for her future, you know, things like that. Okay, so I love marketplace ministry. I love being incognito. I love it. I do. I really do. Okay, so as a business owner or entrepreneur, right, if you have your own business and, um, the Lord is calling your ministry or your business to be, you know, definitely marketplace ministry, you know, incorporate kingdom values, right? Incorporate, you know, you know the things that you stand for into your business. Meet people where they are, okay? Support community initiatives, right, if you can, if you're able to, depending where you are in your business and ministry, right? You can be a pillar in your community for others, okay? Um, also sharing your testimony, right, when appropriate, okay? Um, demonstrating humility in challenging environments. You will be challenged. Hello, you will be challenged, right? How you respond can shift everything. Okay, being ethical as well, that's important. People are watching you. And when I say that, sometimes it's not the person watching you, it's the enemy. The enemy is looking for opportune time to accuse you of something. So be mindful of that. Be yourself. I'm not saying be walking on eggshells, but make sure that you are keeping Christ at the forefront of what you are doing. And sometimes it can be challenging, but it's worth it. It's worth it. All right, and the last one here is social media and online presence. Okay, um, you know, once again, right, online is— oh my God, it's a primary place where people are coming to almost daily. Not everybody, but most of the world is. Okay, and you can reach nations, you can reach people all over the world with your ministry and your words of encouragement. And so I know that many people sometimes can be a little afraid, um, to come to the forefront on social media because of like rejection They might think they talk too fast, talk too slow, a little country. I'm a little country, I know I am as well. Um, I talk fast sometimes, but guess what? I had to push past all that too, right, to show up for the people that God called me to serve. Okay, all righty. And so if you are in a space where you're like vacillating, my God, what do I do, right? Do I go ahead and just launch out, right? What are the, you know So first of all, change your perspective, okay? See your job as a business, um, as a, as a calling, not only a career. So allow God to use you wherever you are. If you work at Family Dollar, God can use you there. If you work at the laundromat, God can use you there. If you a janitor, it doesn't matter where you are, right? God can use you for people. Think of it as some— someone's soul could be at stake. And think of it as though you are sowing and you're watering seeds into somebody's life that might need that word of encouragement. You guys, okay? Think about yourself, you know, when you were in, you know, hard times, going through a difficult season, and how someone might have ministered to you and you really needed to hear that, right? Um, so think about that as well, right? Ask God to give you the courage and the boldness to be able to share what he put on your heart to share. Y'all, it's, it's so simple. I remember one time I was at, um, uh, Idolatry And I'm checking out at the register, and I see this lady get to register, and the Lord told me to say, tell her that she was beautiful. And I'm like, oh, okay. And I'm like, hey, I'm like, you are so pretty. She was like, thank you. She was like, thank— she was like crying. I'm like, oh my God. She was like crying because I guess she had a really rough, like, day, a rough night. And she was going on and on about, you know, how she, how she looked. And she was like, I'm like, you're beautiful, you look good, right? And so it could be the simplest things, you guys, that can just shift somebody's whole day, um, and shift someone's heart. Okay, um, again, as I said earlier, be intentional. Start your day with prayer. Bring your devotional. We, we have no excuse, y'all. We have so many apps together. Abide— I love the Abide app. I love the, um, what's the other one called with the little brown thing? I think it's called the Bible app. But so many apps out here now Um, so many books out here now, right? You can read a devotional to kind of start your day if you're not really a person that like to get up early and study, okay? Um, also stay alert, okay? You have to be vigilant and be alert about, you know, your surroundings and being in tune with the Holy Spirit, because the Holy Spirit will prompt you, okay, about certain things to do, to say. It could be so, so small, like after you in the break room with someone, right? And, you know, you gotta go. God would say, hey, stay there, stay for a minute longer, and that person might come inside, and then God will use you to minister to them in that moment, right? So God has a divine timing, right? So just be open with it. Just be open, be open to it. Um, lead by example, uphold your integrity, excellence, and kindness. And so for me, when I meet people, whether I'm at work or wherever, and they're telling me that they're a believer I'm definitely having a higher expectation because the word of God commands us to operate in these things. And if I see that, you know, they're not doing that, I'm looking like, what did you do? What you been doing? Like, that mean that you're not on your wall, you're not praying, you're not interceding, right? You're just out here saying you believe, but you're not really living anything, okay? So don't be that person who say you believe, right? And you, you at work or wherever you are and you're not leading by example, and you're like bitter, or you're gossiping about people. Okay, don't do that. Um, also be relational with people as God leads you, but also have boundaries. You know, I'm big on boundaries as well. Um, be open, um, to offer encouragement when others are struggling. Um, and then again, uh, support kingdom work as you are led by the Holy Spirit. It, okay? And so I'm gonna go over this real quickly and then I will be done. I have like 4 more points to cover. So of course you're going to face opposition. I did a live maybe about 2 weeks ago about facing opposition as a Christian leader, and it's a thing. It's a, it's a real big thing, okay? You will, okay? But the word of God says here to remain steadfast. For one. And then it says, blessed are those who are persecuted, for, um, for they will be blessed, right? And so you're doing it for Christ's sake. As I said earlier, sometimes we have to be the sacrificial lamb. It's true, it's true. Um, having balance and faith and professionalism, okay? Be professional. Um, operate, you know, your faith, but use wisdom. Use wisdom about what you should say, how you should say it. And once again, think about Christ. Jesus, when he was out here doing ministry, he used wisdom. And you know, he didn't always say everything that he knew to that person like right away, okay? Whatever God is saying about that person to them in that moment, sometimes it's for you to know and for you to pray for. So ask God, God, should I say this? Should I do this? Right? Go to him, go to him in prayer, and he might assign you one person or he might assign you a whole people group, okay? I've been places before where he told me this whole place here, everybody in here, in it is your assignment. I'm like, Golly, I'm like, okay Lord, everybody can hear, like 100 people. He was like, yes, all of them. I'm like, okay Lord, okay, okay. And so I just pray for them, I just pray for them, show love and be professional. Okay, so let's see what I have here. All right, and, um, also know this, um, remember God equips those he calls. If you don't fully equipped for it, you'll learn as you go. This is how was for me in my private practice. I'm like, Lord, you gonna have to show me how to incorporate you into therapy. He said, I'll teach you, I will show you. And so as I counsel God's people, he showed me what to do. He taught me how to do that. And over time, I became better and better and better at it. That's why I can, you know, be up here talking about faith and mental health, like, with no problem, because it's a part of who I am now. Okay, so just know that God will equip you as you go. All right, and one more thing. All right, once again, I said this earlier, but I'm telling you guys, you guys, you're gonna face opposition from people, from leaders. People gonna try to like, you know, come up against you, but God is with you. He is with you. And remain steadfast. Recognize who, who the battle is with. It's not with the people, okay? It's with the enemy. Remember that. And this has helped me to not become so offended when people do, do crazy stuff. And recognize that it's not them, but it's the enemy working through them. All right, and so if you are in marketplace ministry now, right, put in the comment section like what you do, like what has God called you to do. If you are struggling to really like, you know, walk into this, right, put down there hashtag I need help, right? If you need help, I have something for you. I have my academy, it's called Empowered Purpose— I'm sorry, Empowered to Lead Through Empowered Purpose Academy. Where I am working with Christian leaders who are new or maybe even seasoned who need more support in this area of being more confident. I'm dealing with perfectionism, I'm dealing with comparison, I'm dealing with, you know, rejection is a big one, okay? The anxiety, the fear, all the above, right? That starts, um, January 12th with our first class and it closes January 10th. So I do have it in the com— um, in my comment section here um, on Facebook and YouTube. On Instagram, it's in the description, but you can DM me to learn more about it, and I'll share the link with you. But, uh, it's powerful. Focus on— people are like signing up, you know, today and yesterday. So I'm super excited because I know that those who were signing up, God has something in store for them, and they're coming because they feel led by the Holy Spirit to sign up. Because my prayer is, God, send people who you have called me to serve. Send people who are hungry, who are ready for change, who are ready to go to the next level. And, um, it's an 8-week program, and in my 8th session, we're actually going to go over, like, you know, a thing that God's calling them to do, and I'm going to help them to, like, launch out and to do it, right? I haven't told them that yet, surprise, but I'm saying it now, and I will share that with them via email. But yeah, we're gonna go over that one thing, that one thing God gave you that you won't do. We're gonna work on it. We gonna break it down. We gonna challenge— I'm gonna challenge you, right? We gonna get— have some, like, we gonna talk to the Holy Spirit, let God give you strategy, okay? I'm gonna give you some insight, some wisdom about what it is that God's called you to do in this season, like, right now. So I'm excited about that. I look forward to, um, pouring into them. Um, once again, it's already open. It closes January the 10th. Um, we begin class January the 12th on a Sunday for 8 weeks at 6:30 PM Eastern Standard Time. So this is for you. Go ahead and sign up before we close. Um, I look forward to it. All right, so once again, thank you for those who are on. Thank you for, um, your comments. Thank you for, um, your prayers up here. Those of you who know me, thank you so much. Um, and I look forward to the new year, 2025, y'all. Um, God's already showing me so much about, you know, what's to come. But he hasn't released me to really share anything yet about next year. I'm— when he does, I will, I will, I will, I will. He's actually been giving me like little trickles of things here and there about what to expect in the future, but it might not be actually in 2025. That makes sense. Okay, so, um, and I was just flowing, I was going and talking. I want to really get this word out, but I'm look at you guys' comments real quick and see what you said and answer those. And man, good morning. I think it's George from Pakistan. Hello, man. Amen. So thanks again for getting on. If you just getting on, be sure to— if you want to go back and watch the replay, I like to look at replays honestly on, on YouTube and Facebook because you can actually make it go faster, okay, at a faster speed. So you can hear it, the whole message. Um, but again, thank you so much for joining in. Hope you guys had a Merry Christmas, and as you go into the new year, that you are ready for all that God has for you. All righty, so I'm going to pray and then I'm going to end, and I will see you guys probably— I'll probably go live again next year. As the Holy Spirit, I thank you for this word. I pray that God, it has reached your people's hearts and their minds. God, for those who will come back later to watch the replay. Holy Spirit, I pray that you will tug on their heart, God, and show them the areas in which you want them to surrender so that way they can really be effective in marketplace ministry. Father, show them, God, what it is that you want them to do in this season and this hour, God. Um, show them, God, what to do as far as their church, as far as their business, as far as their career. No matter where they work at, God, God, you can use them, Lord. And God, allow them, God, to flow, Lord God, with boldness and with confidence in you. Knowing that you are a good, good father and that you will lead them and cover them in all things. Christ's name I pray, amen and amen. All right, you guys, so I will see you guys next year.