10 Ways Satan Tempts Us to Dim our Light [Episode 11}

We need a bright light if we're going to shine it so that people see God through us! But that's the exact opposite of what Satan wants from us. There are (at least!) 10 ways that we are regularly tempted to dim the light that God has put in us when becoming Christian entrepreneurs.

They include things like falling prey to unnecessary mom guilt, focusing on shallow status symbols and making it about us instead of about God, just to name a few! Listen to this week's episode to ensure that we don't let any of these temptations get in the way of us building the business that God has in store for us. Are you ready?

Welcome to a powerful episode about evil... well, about combatting evil! If you're a mom of faith, then you know that there are real forces for good and evil out there. 

Everything good comes from God. He is the source of light and truth, love and kindness. When we feel inspired to do anything that yields more of these things, it's from God 

Satan is the root of all evil. He tempts us with selfishness, cruelty, jealousy, anger, contention and more. If we let him influence us, we may find temporary satisfaction but never lasting joy or peace. 

So what does this have to do with building a business? Burning brightly is what God has asked of us so that others can see His light through us.  

This means that Satan wants the exact opposite. He wants us to struggle and doubt ourselves and God and he wants us to dim our light. 

Today I'm sharing with you 10 ways that Satan regularly tries to get amazing Godly entrepreneurs to stop burning brightly. 

1. Mom guilt

So many would-be incredible entrepreneurs fall prey to the idea that they "should be" doing more with or for their kids. Guilt in general is not a bad emotion; I believe all emotions teach us things!

But guilt is designed to help us get back on track with our values, it should set in when we're not living in integrity. 

Satan will used mom guilt to turn us away from sharing our light with the world and keep us only ever serving our families. To be clear, serving our family should be a top priority! It's number 2 for me, right after serving God. 

But sometimes I have to leave things undone or let my kids become more independent so that I can do God's will outside of my home.  

When guilt comes up, analyze it and see if there's any truth to where it's coming up. If so, make adjustments, if not peacefully let it go 

2. Fear

Let's start with scripture. Psalm 56:4 says: "In God I will praise his word, in God I have put my trust; I will not fear what flesh can do unto me." 

Let's start by naming our fears. What are we so afraid of? A few that have come up for me are fear of criticism, of failure, looking stupid, and losing money. 

But what's worst case scenario? Negative emotion: shame, embarrassment, financial discomfort. That's it. If we can learn to embrace those and operate anyway, there's nothing we can't do. 

Remember, if you're paralyzed by fear, you're letting Satan take control. God does not operate our of fear, only love. Pray for a release from this fear and then get busy taking action WHILE feeling afraid. 

3. Comparison and worried about appearances

I was a sprinter in high school and I ran very short distances. My longest race was not even a minute long. Do you know what I NEVER did?? I never looked in the lane next to me. 

In fact, the only way I could gauge where other sprinters were was how loud their breathing was. There was not time or energy to waste. 

Every minute we spend looking over the fence is time and energy taken away from our metaphorical candles. We need that fuel to shine for the world to see.  

Satan LOVES comparison. It takes our blessings and turns them into not enough. It turns us from gratitude to self-pity. Shun comparison at all costs!! 

4. Distraction

God has filled our lives with so much goodness, but that can be another temptation to take the focus off our mission to burn brightly. 

We can spend our whole lives focusing on good things: time with kids, serving at church, cleaning our home, talking with friends, etc. 

Remember the concept of good, better, best. If you've committed to yourself that you will work from 1pm-3pm every day, then the BEST thing you can do at that time is work! 

It's not organize photos, or play a game with a child. This can be a hard pill to swallow, but make commitments to yourself and respect them. Don't allow good things to sidetrack you. 

5. Fixating on the unimportant

When we moms become entrepreneurs, we can easily pay too much attention to the shallow stuff like having the right hair, makeup or clothes or having a house that looks a certain way or driving the right car. 

Especially as we begin to make lots of money, Satan wants us to be obsessed with these shallow status symbols. To be clear, I'm not saying we shouldn't make lots of money or spend it. 

Just be cautious about how important it is that we gain a certain status or fit in with the cool kids. Sadly, even among grown up entrepreneurs, there are mean girls. Don't ever let success turn you into that. 

6. Too much socializing

We each have a need for friends and social encounters, it's normal and healthy! But for many of us who are going from full time SAHM to part-time entpreneur, we might have to give up some social time. 

My business fills me up in so many ways and has brought me so many unexpected friends, but it is still sometimes hard to say no to social engagements due to lack of time. 

Beware of spending too much time socializing and not enough working, but also beware of making your business your best and only friend. We can't shine brightly if we never interact with anyone! 

Pay attention to this delicate balance and ask God for help.

7. Believing our poisonous stories

By now you know that the stories our brains tell us are not always facts. In fact, they rarely are! 

Satan wants to convince us that these damaging and limiting stories are true. Things like: I don't have any talents, no one wants to hear from me, I've never been successful or I'm not special. 

If you find yourself entertaining these stories, go listen to episodes 3 & 5! These will remind you how it's our brain's job to keep us safe and it, sadly, does so by limiting our experiences and keeping us in the cave. 

Self compassion is crucial here. Drop all these stories in a notebook and then ask yourself, are they true? And if so, so what? Go build your business anyway. 

8. Making it about us instead of about God

It's so easy to fall into a "poor me" mentality when things get hard or to focus on the fear or insecurity. 

But if we TRULY believe we're doing what God has in store for us - we'll quit with all the drama.

 Forget yourself and get to work. Think about the people who need God's light and acknowledge that you may be the only one they can get it from. Step up to the plate, sister! 

9. Not caring for our bodies and minds

In episode 9 we talked about the fuel needed to do this job. Satan  might tempt us to run ourselves ragged or not prioritize our self care and then we're no good to anyone. 

Do you have a system and plan for caring for your body, spirit and mind? Get one! Start small: a little exercise, some vegetables, some scriptures and some journaling or coaching. 

Treat yourself as a receptacle of God's spirit should be treated, because that's what it is. Ditch the self-loathing thoughts and honor yourself as the child of God you are. 

10. Not walking by faith

Everything God asks us to do requires faith - everything. He wants to see if we have to strength to do the things He asks, even with no guarantees. 

So do you have the faith for that? And if not, ask Him for it.  

I can't help but think of one of my favorite scriptures about faith. In Mark 9:23-24, A man asks Jesus for help with his son who has an evil spirit and Jesus says: Anything is possible if you can believe and the man says, "Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief". 

Our faith doesn't have to be perfect. In fact, I'm not sure perfect faith even exists. But it has to be stronger than the fear. Lean on that faith. Pray for more...and then get out there and shine brightly. 

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