How entrepreneurs can live with open hearts, open arms, and open hands

Every entrepreneur is custom-created for a purpose. In Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, he tells his readers that God “creates each of us by Christ Jesus to join Him in the work He does, the good work He has gotten ready for us to do, work we had better be doing” (Eph 2:10 MSG).

Paul doesn't leave it at that. He then tells them to “get out there and walk - better yet, run! - on the road God called you to travel” (Eph 4:1 MSG). How, though, in a world so full of noise and distraction, and with our broken humanity so prone to following our will and succumbing to fear, do we go about staying on (or getting on - let’s be honest) the road we’re called to travel? How can we approach getting in position so God can use us for the work he has for us to do?

God can use you. But sometimes, we need to examine ourselves before we see progress in the area of calling.

How My Professional Journey Challenged My Posture Toward God

I’ve been on my own journey of healthy postures toward God. In business, I’ve had to resist an overattachment to busyness, achievement, external validation, and a driving need to prove that I am somehow spectacular. After years of entrepreneurship, I carry deeply ingrained patterns, habits, and ways of thinking. And because you’re reading this, it’s likely that you see those patterns in your own experience. Consider this your invitation to actively step out of your comfort zone and into the refining process, a new posture being revealed by the Holy Spirit.

This is an invitation to surrender your needs for control, perfection, or performance.

But first, what do I mean by posture? Well, it’s not standing up straight or some kind of ergonomically designed way to sit at your desk. Posture is defined as both a noun and a verb. The noun reflects how you carry your body (standing, sitting, walking).

At a deeper level, the way you carry yourself reflects your mindset and the condition of your heart. Are you confident in your identity or insecure? Is life happening to you, or do you see the challenges in front of you to be character-building? Are you grasping for control, or consciously choosing to surrender to God’s will for your life? As a verb, posture refers to taking action on your mindset and the condition of your heart. In other words, your perspective, your way of thinking, and your frame of reference on life.

God Can Use You. But It Often Requires Surrender

Take a moment to reflect on your current mindset. How do you see the world, and does that perspective align with what the Bible tells us about God’s perspective? As we begin to reset our heart postures, we will most likely have to choose differently, to surrender to God’s plan, and to allow Him to change the way we think.

I call it open heart, open arms, open hands.

So what does that look like?

Open Heart

An open heart represents vulnerability, trust, and transparency. As opposed to a closed heart (a heart with walls), an open heart allows love to come in and flow out.

A closed heart keeps us from receiving compassion and grace, and from giving it. An open heart allows the Holy Spirit to work in us, grow us, and expand us. The heart is where love lives, the place where “Christ may make His home in your hearts as you trust in Him” (Ephesians 3:17). Maintaining an open heart is an act of obedience. It allows us to be in flow and alignment with God as He has given us love not only for us, but also so that we can be love to others. In Romans, we are reminded that “We know how dearly God loves us because He has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with His love” (Romans 5:5 NLT). The heart is the gateway. If the gateway is open, He can work in and through us. God can use you. And He wants to. He’s faithful like that.

Open Arms

Open arms represent both power and grace. I love to use the story of the prodigal son to illustrate this concept. The son returns home after wandering off (a long way off!) the path that was intended for his life, and his father was there to welcome him back home with open arms.

The father had every right to shun his son, disown him, and send him packing. But despite all the mess and the failings of his son, the father welcomes him back with powerful grace. Walking in our calling will bring challenges and demands to be bold. We will need to set boundaries, speak against what is wrong, and challenge the people we encounter. Standing in powerful grace is a requirement. Embracing grace with open arms is a way to be reflections of our loving Father, who has grace for us, who is with and in us, and who can use us. Open arms are a symbol of choosing to be who He says we are.

Open Hands

Open hands allow us to receive and also require us to let go. To receive what God has provided for us and to let go of control.

Having open hands often looks like surrendering our plans, hopes, and dreams. And also surrendering our attachments to achievement, busyness, and external validation. But open hands also represent an invitation to take courage - not manufacture it ourselves, but take what is freely and abundantly offered to us. Surrendering and taking courage leave us in a position to receive, a position of availability. We can actively let go of making plans and holding on to who the world says we are. And that means we can hold outcomes and plans loosely, pivot easily, and stay free to be and do what we are called to next. This flexibility allows God to use you in incredible ways.

This posture is a practice - stand up, open your arms wide, stretch your fingers, lift your chest slightly, and breathe. Invite Him in. Invite the Holy Spirit to change the way you think, to help you detach from the draws of the world and instead find your hope and affirmation in Him. Ask Him to help you become and remain rooted. That’s the final piece - feel the ground under your feet.

Colossians 2:6-7(NLT) says, “And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow him. Let your roots grow down into Him, and let your lives be built on Him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness.” That’s a pretty awesome promise.

Let’s See How God Can Use You!

Follow Jesus, root into Him, build your foundation on Him. And then you’ll have an abundance of thankfulness.

Open heart, open arms, and open hands is a posture where God can flow through you and use you as a conduit for what He wants to accomplish through you. You can’t be angry, weak, selfish, or closed off in this posture. There may be attacks from the side as you journey, but you are held, guided, protected, strengthened, and supported. When you walk behind the Lord in a posture representative of His power, grace, and love, you are in a position to do what He calls you to next.

About Juli

Juli Wenger is a Certified and Internationally Credentialled Coach, Human Ecologist, Speaker, Podcaster, Certified Breathwork Facilitator, and student of the Enneagram. She is devoted to guiding both Jesus-followers and the spiritually curious through their journeys to the paths that God has laid out for them.

In 2020, God called her to go on her own journey, leaving behind a successful 10-year real estate career to follow the path He had for her. Along the way, a passion for understanding who and whose we are, what our purpose is, and stepping into life with fearless confidence was born.

As Juli discovered, when we understand these things, we can leave behind our battles with not-enoughness and too-muchness, ditch fear, and create a more loving, just, and compassion-filled world. Juli blends her training and experience to walk you through the same life-transforming process that God brought her through and that she has guided clients and audiences through.

You can reach Juli at:

Instagram: @juliwenger @becomingourselvespodcast

Facebook: @julimwenger @firedupfulfilledfree @becomingourselvespodcast

Want to hear more stories about how you can reset your posture before God? Check out this video where an ex-Amazon executive shares his story of handling power in his position and letting go control of his life.