Have you ever questioned if your business is being fueled by your faith, or your flesh? 

The truth is, you are either being fueled by your flesh or you’re being fueled by your faith, and that is in business and in life. 

Now, the gray area between the two is a lukewarm Christian, and if you don’t know what the Bible says about lukewarm Christians, Revelation 3:16 says, “So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth.”

There is no gray area here. It’s either you’re fueled by faith or fueled by the flesh, and we are talking all about that today, especially in regard to entrepreneurship. 

In this post, I’m going to be sharing with you 7 key differences between a faith-fueled business and a flesh-fueled business.

You will learn…

• How to make sure your business is faith-Fueled and not flesh-fueled
• 7 key differences between a faith-fueled business and a flesh fueled business
• Why reaching a certain goal in your business isn’t going to fully satisfy you
• Why it’s important to pursue the freedom that Jesus offers versus what the world offers as “freedom”
• How God used my business as a catalyst for sanctification
• What to do if you find yourself being fueled by your flesh
• Why having the right mindset is only a piece of the puzzle
• What to do if you find yourself being fueled by your flesh

Honestly, I think this is one of my favorite episodes I’ve ever put together, and this is probably the longest I’ve ever spent preparing a podcast episode/blog post since I prepped episode two of this show.

It’s funny because episode two is another one of my favorite episodes. Now, if you want to tune into that one after this one, I highly recommend it. I still get messages about this one all the time. The episode is titled Five Reasons You Might Be Self-Sabotaging and How To Biblically Stop It, but before you head over please make sure you check out this blog post first.

It is juicy as usual. 

But before we get into the blog post, I want to let you know that the Called to CEO Collective is finally open.

You can join us right now!

And I literally cannot believe this is real life because this has been two years in the making. 

But basically…

The Collective is a community-driven membership of faith-based business owners, creators, dreamers, and leaders who know it’s time to take bold and obedient action on their God-given callings, and ultimately steward their roles as Faith-Fueled CEOs.

I’ll share more about what this membership is about later, but just know that inside this membership, you get community AND coaching from me, and you even get access to my Faith-Fueled Framework that’s almost three hours long. When you put it together, the value of this membership really is insane.

But if you join us now, you get access to the current rate, which if I’m being totally honest… is really, really low considering the value you will receive from the membership. 

Now, all that being said, if you want to learn about all the nitty gritty details or you wanna go ahead and join us at the current rate, you can do so by heading HERE.

That said, go ahead and grab a notebook and pen and let’s dive in.

Is Mindset Really The Key?

We hear so often that mindset is the key to unlocking your next level. And while Yes, mindset is obviously very important (it’s been proven time and time again), it’s only a piece of the puzzle.

Especially for you, because the truth is, you cannot have a faith-fueled business if you are not totally fueled by faith and have a faith-fueled foundation.

This goes for everything in your life.

And in order to be faith-fueled, you must make sure you are consciously realigning yourself with Father God, King Jesus, and Holy Spirit.

Being faith-fueled is all about disconnecting yourself from the flesh and the king of the world, which is Satan, and fully connecting with the all-powerful King Jesus.

This is so important because the enemy will use your business to take your eyes off of Jesus, or try to take your eyes off of him. Because he wants your business to become more important to you than Jesus. 

In fact, I fully think he’s banking on that because 1 Peter 5:8 says, “Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.”

But at the same time, God is going to use your business for your sanctification. He is going to use your battles to bring you to his feet because Romans 8:28 says, “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”

To be faith-fueled, we must totally align ourselves with him, which is the opposite of what we were born into. We were born into this broken world, and it is in our human nature to align ourselves with our flesh, which is equivalent to the world or sin. 

That said, we must purge ourselves of our flesh because our flesh has actually been trained by the world… And the process to do that is a spiritual war.

Because our flesh will fight the spirit, because our flesh doesn’t want to die. Our flesh knows that when it dies, we will fully and only operate under and with Holy Spirit, King Jesus, and Father God. 

The flesh is fighting for Jesus not to be your king. That’s why scripture says to “deny yourself.” So in this war, you may find yourself being fueled by two different sources, flesh versus faith.

Faith-Fueled vs. Flesh-Fueled

And so the question then becomes how can you tell the difference, and which side are you going to let take over? 

Let’s first talk about how you can tell the difference. 

At its core, being flesh-fueled is being fueled by the world or yourself while being faith-fueled is being fueled by the word, which is Jesus.

So that said, what does that actually look like? If you’re being fueled by your flesh or by the world in business, that’s going to look like being money-driven or even recognition driven.

This used to be me back in my network marketing days. I was always striving for the next rank, and I would go around saying that I was very recognition driven. 

And then when I first started coaching, I was very money driven. I was obsessed with making the alluring $10k months to the point where I began dabbling in manifestation and other new-age tactics that I really do not recommend, and I had to repent of those things. 

Being fueled by worldly desires is congruent with being flesh-fueled. Now, does that mean you can’t want to make more money or quit your job and go full-time in your online business? No, not at all. 

But what are you fueled by? What drives you? What is constantly on your mind? 

You can often tell if you’re being fueled by the flesh if worldly/fleshly desires are at the forefront of your mind. If you are faith-fueled, Jesus will always be at the forefront of your mind.

It’s a heart posture, and if you’re curious about what I mean by heart posture, I talked more about that in the previous episode. It’s episode 63, so I highly recommend tuning into that one next if you haven’t yet. 

But basically, being fueled by faith is very much a heart posture. It is always seeking Jesus first, which in and of itself is also a heart posture, so it’s important to ask yourself…

What fuels you in business? Or in your brand, or your online presence, or whatever your career or creative outlet is?

What fuels you?

I just really want to encourage you to be honest with yourself here. Back when I was being fueled by my flesh, I would’ve never admitted it (even to myself), because I was taught and wanted to say that I love Jesus above all things, and I was seeking Him above all things.

I didn’t want to admit that I wasn’t, and I convinced myself that it wasn’t the case. 

So, please be honest with yourself and with Him, and if you discover that you have been fueled by your flesh, ask for forgiveness. Repent. Allow Him to shift your heart posture and start seeking Him first. 

Will you always be perfect at this?

No. You are human. I’m human. I’m not perfect at it, which is why I’m so passionate about sharing this with you. 

We have an incredible God who loves us, shows us mercy, and just gives us so much grace, and He is a forgiving God. So, go to Him and repent. He’s waiting for you. And when you fully seek Him, he’s not going to turn you away.

7 Differences Between Being Faith-Fueled vs. Flesh-Fueled

There is one core difference between being faith-fueled and being flesh-fueled, and from this one core difference, there are actually six more differences between the two that actually relate back to the first one. 

1 – Flesh-Fueled = Fueled by the World & Faith-Fueled = Fueled by the Word

This is the core difference between the two, and we’ve already talked about it a lot! Scroll up to read more about what I mean by this one. 

2 – Flesh Fueled = focusing on the physical world & Faith-Fueled = focusing on the spiritual world 

When you are flesh-fueled, you are focusing on the physical world or the physical realm.

When you are faith-fueled, you are putting more focus on the spiritual world or spiritual realm. 

So again, that relates right back to worldly desires like recognition, money, or fame versus heavenly desires, which is Jesus. 

3 – Flesh-Fueled = Works of the Flesh & Faith-Fueled = Fruits of the Spirit

When you are flesh fueled, the indicator of that will be works of the flesh. When you are faith-fueled, the indicator of that will be the fruits of the spirit. 

Galatians 5:19-26 shares, 

19 The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; 20 idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21 and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. 24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. 26 Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.

I find it so interesting that selfish ambition is one of the works of the flesh. I have heard this passage several times growing up, but I actually never noticed that part until a couple of years ago, so I just wanted to share that with you because selfish ambition, idolatry, jealousy, and even witchcraft are the ones I see going on in business most often, and ones that I have also either experienced myself, or know someone who has experienced.

Now that said, I think it’s really important to repent of these acts of the flesh and pray for the Lord to give you the strength and the ability to replace the works of the flesh with the fruits of the spirit and to do it by changing your heart to want Him over everything. 

4 – Flesh-Fueled = Death and Torment & Faith-Fueled = Eternal Life

The third difference is that being flesh-fueled results in death and torment while being faith-fueled results in eternal life.

That was very indicative of the second part of verse 21 in Galatians 5, which reads, “I warn you as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.” 

This is just a reminder for you that when you are fueled by your faith and you seek Jesus above everything, you’ll be granted eternal freedom.

I think as business owners, we are so captivated by time and financial freedom but is that true freedom? 

The freedom that we are striving for and yearning for and craving is found in Jesus alone. 

5 – Flesh-Fueled = Lies & Faith-Fueled = Truth

The fourth difference between being flesh-fueled and faith-fueled is that being flesh-fueled revolves around lies while being faith-fueled revolves around the truth.

Despite what the world says, there is only one truth. There is no my truth, her truth, your truth, his truth. There is only one truth, and that is that Jesus is the king of kings and Lord of Lords. Period. 

This is also so important to remember because again, being flesh fueled revolves around worldly desires, and we can easily convince ourselves that reaching $10k months will make everything better and it will solve all of our problems.

I hate to be a party pooper, or bust your bubble, but it’s just not true. It will not solve all your problems. In fact, it might make them worse unless you have a really solid faith foundation. 

Yes, of course, money can make things easier and simpler, and money in and of itself is a tool. It is a neutral thing. It is not good or bad. It’s how you look at it. It’s your heart posture, so if you’re being fueled by your flesh, the love of money can get a foothold. 

That’s exactly what happened to me, but I had to repent of that and will continue to keep praying that that stays off of me. So, that said, the only thing that will fulfill you is Jesus. I promise you will not be fully fulfilled until you are pursuing Jesus with every fiber of your being.

Do not let the other side convince you that something in this world will satisfy you over Jesus, because that is a big, fat lie. Even though it can be really, really tempting and it can feel really convincing, it’s just not true. 

6 – Flesh-Fueled = Bondage & Faith-Fueled = Freedom

The fifth difference between being faith-fueled and flesh-fueled is that being flesh-fueled results in bondage while being faith-fueled results in freedom.

As I said earlier, the only way to receive true eternal freedom is through Jesus. And while, yes, I get that this concept of time and financial freedom exists to some extent, it really doesn’t matter how much money you have because everything could change in an instant. So, I would argue that having true financial freedom isn’t really a thing.

I mean, obviously, there are major differences between working in a corporate job versus being an online CEO, but it’s not all butterflies and rainbows and you do have to work really, really hard to get to a point where you don’t really have to work at all and still make a bunch of money. But even then, it could all be gone in an instant.

So, I guess you could say that I don’t really fall for the narrative of time or financial freedom anymore because I know it can be such a trap. It was a trap for me because I craved time and financial freedom. That was my focus, and I made it an idol. I made worldly freedom an idol, which ultimately put me in bondage because when I finally did get to those $10k+ months, there was a new milestone I needed to chase every time. 

That’s what happens when we hit a goal… We set out for another one.

Hitting one goal isn’t going to satisfy us because there’s always more, and going after more becomes slavery. 

You literally become a slave to your work, even though you’re chasing financial and time freedom… So, you don’t have to be a slave to your work anymore.

The only thing that will fulfill us, that will sustain us, and help us experience true freedom is Jesus. It’s not found in the world. 

Does that mean we’re not supposed to have a business? No. It just means that we shouldn’t let our business success, or lack thereof, control us. And to put Jesus above all things. 

Again, it’s important to just check your heart posture here.

7 – Flesh-Fueled = Prince of the World (Satan) & Faith-Fueled = King of Kings (Jesus)

The last difference I have between being faith-fueled or flesh-fueled is that when you are flesh-fueled, you are being ruled by and following the prince of the world, which is Satan. But when you are faith-fueled, you are being ruled by and following the King of Kings, which is Jesus Christ.

And my question for you now becomes…

Who are you going to follow, and which side are you going to allow to take over?

I think it’s going to be really important for you to take time to journal through this question, to pray to our God, and to just surrender everything… including your business over to Him. 

If you loved this blog post and you know you are being Called to CEO by God, and you are being called to steward your role as a Faith-Fueled CEO, and you want to make sure you’re getting support and being fueled by faith, not flesh…

Read the next steps below. 

Next Steps

If you loved this blog and you know you are being called to CEO by God and you want to make sure you’re getting the support you need, you’re being held accountable to live out the call He’s placed on your heart, AND you want to do it fueled by your faith and not by your flesh, then I want to invite you to just join us inside of the Called to CEO Collective.

The Called to CEO Collective is a community-driven membership for faith-based business owners, creators, dreamers, and leaders who know it’s time to take bold and obedient action on their God-given callings and ultimately steward their roles as Faith-Fueled CEOs.

I have absolutely no doubt it is what you’ve been praying for!

Why?! Because I’ve been praying for something like this for an awfully long time. 

This membership has been totally designed by the Holy Spirit to help you cultivate a deeper relationship with the Lord. We will also go deeper on topics and faith, life, and business that you learn about because honestly, it’s time to say goodbye to overconsumption and say hello to implementation.

And it is also time to work from a place of overflow from the Holy Spirit versus overwhelm and stress. And it’s also time to finally overcome these spiritual battles against the enemy that has been keeping you stuck in your life. 

Basically, it is a faith-based, community-driven membership where we go deeper on topics in faith, life, and business.

And the thing is, I have known for a really long time that business owners, creators, and leaders really need a place to process and share what they’re going through in their life and business in a safe space to receive feedback, support, and accountability… 

All without the high ticket price point.

The Lord has just pressed this on my heart for a really long time and I know you’re probably wondering…

Is there any coaching involved? 

Absolutely, there is coaching involved. 

Not only will you be with other like-minded individuals, but you’ll have an experienced and Certified Life Coach and Faith-Fueled Business Mentor at your fingertips (that’s me, btw lol)… You will have a group of other talented individuals there to support you too!

And yes, we are going to go deeper on topics together, but I’m also here to help you grow your business or whatever God-given call you have right now. You can get coached by posting inside the community or on our live coaching calls happening twice a month. 

That said, if you want to learn all the nitty gritty details or go ahead and join us at the current rate, you can do so by heading to www.hannahbrindley.com/membership