The millennial generation is recalibrating what’s important. They truly believe they can change the world and they won’t stop until they’ve done it.
They’re addressing what they believe to be failures of the world, its institutions, and its governments. They have demonstrated an ability to go after certain parts of the world’s systems and transform how they operate. They even have an idealized notion of what they consider to be basic human rights.
Millennials are not interested in just having a job to make a living. They want to work for something that has meaning and purpose—something bigger than themselves. Even their purchasing decisions are based around brands that support a cause they believe in.
Building a successful and profitable business is a great achievement, but it can’t be the ultimate aim. In today’s world, revenue-generating activities should also be used to impact communities and change lives in real and measurable ways.
Training for reigning
Isaiah 60 says, “Arise and shine, for your light has come.” God is telling us that it’s time for His people to step up and take our place in influencing society.
My wife and I own an agency called Pneuma33 Creative. As we’re working with clients, it’s not uncommon for them to feel as if their life or organization isn’t really making a big impact. But after we work with them for some time, they come to the realization that they’ve always felt compelled to do something great or influential.
Once we give them permission to think big, most begin to articulate what the world would look like if they had the chance to do what’s in their heart. Deep inside, they know they want to change the world, but they just need someone to affirm the greatness inside of them.
The business of transformation
At its essence, the Gospel brings people into alignment with the Father and His will for the Church. Years ago, it was not uncommon for businessmen in the Church to feel as if they were inferior ministers and that their greatest contribution was to merely fund the ministries of the Church. Entrepreneurs were not seen as ministers and were often looked down upon as people who just wanted to make money.
But a transformation has happened.
Now, we understand that when a business is operating in the Presence of the Lord, it actually impacts the marketplace and plays a vital role in the advancement of Kingdom-transformation. Marketplace ministry is now seen as a powerful tool to impact people where they are. Kingdom-minded businesspeople are seen as being on the very front lines of what the Lord is doing around the planet. We’re being strategically positioned as change agents in society.
Branded by the Holy Spirit
God loves branding. In fact, the core of the Gospel is transformation. It’s branding in its purest form. When God rebrands people, He re-aligns them to their correct identity, releasing them into their destiny.
The Bible is filled with stories of branding. Many times in Scripture, God spoke to people who had been called by a certain name, but then He renamed them and gave them a fresh start. Take Abraham and Sarah, for example. In Genesis 17, God rebranded Abram, saying, “No longer will your name be called Abram, but your name will be Abraham, for I have made you the father of many nations.”
Then in verses 15-16, God rebrands Sarai:
And God said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you will not call her name Sarai, but Sarah will be her name. I will bless her, and moreover, I will give you a son by her. I will bless her, and she will be the mother of nations; kings of peoples will come from her.”
God’s heart for rebranding is reflected when he renamed Jacob to Israel. Jacob grew up under a false identity of “deceiver.” But, in time, God said, “That’s not your name. You are an overcomer. You are Israel.” He called Jacob into his destiny by giving him a new name and his full identity of “Israel the Overcomer.”
Other examples of God’s heart for rebranding include Saul who became Paul, and Simon who became Peter. Knowing our true identity catapults us into our destiny, and releases us to pursue what God is calling us into.
Master plan
God loves revealing himself to those who have been living under a false identity and giving them a new name. In Revelation 3:12, God promises to rebrand us. He says:
The one who is victorious I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will they leave it. I will write on them the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of Heaven from my God; and I will also write on them my new name.
Oftentimes, our earthly names and nicknames falsely define us. Sometimes, it’s the enemy trying to destroy us. Other times, it’s parents, friends, or enemies who unknowingly wound and falsely label us.
Revelation 3:12 explains that God is actually restoring us into the identity of how He sees us in Heaven. The Lord will give us a new name and a new identity. And as we learn to walk in that, we find freedom and come alive.
This is what He’s called Pneuma33 Creative to do in the business realm.
Heaven’s Blueprints
The most valuable thing that our agency brings to the marketplace is the Creative Blueprint. But let me make one thing clear: the Creative Blueprint was not our idea. It was God’s.
A few years ago, we received a promise from the Lord that He was going to release to us Heaven’s blueprints for people, ministries, businesses, organizations, regions, and nations. So, we took our branding process and we asked the Lord to give us clarity about how to apply it in the marketplace. He showed us an aircraft carrier with planes of all shapes and sizes landing on it, and He told us that many would come to us, get refueled and be launched out again. He told us to call it the Creative Blueprint.
The Creative Blueprint is made up of five stages: Runway, Aerial View, Jet Fuel, Flight Plan, and Launch.
- Runway is all about identity. What is your creation story? Where have you come from? What is your brand known for? How do people perceive you?
- Aerial View is the vision. What are you being called to? Where is the Lord taking you? What is His vision for you? What will the world look like when you’ve completed everything you’re called to do?
- Jet Fuel is the creativity and innovation of the Holy Spirit. What is the creative framework for everything we’re going to do next?
- Flight Plan is the strategy. How are we going to get to the vision?
- Launch is the execution and implementation of the vision.
Out of these five stages come everything that a brand needs to change the world—from inception and ideation to creative, strategy, and execution. We now use this approach with both global technology brands and one-person startups.
Jesus as CEO
Because of the Creative Blueprint, we built Pneuma33 Creative a certain way. We didn’t necessarily know why the Lord told us to do it that way, but we obeyed His voice anyway. Five years later, it’s making sense.
Doing business God’s way has opened doors for us that we couldn’t possibly have opened on our own. It’s amazing to see that things we didn’t understand at the start—about the foundation we were laying, and even about our own DNA—have become absolutely essential as we step into each new level.
Acceleration
Right now, there’s a quickening in the Spirit. The Lord is strategically putting pieces in place and is speaking very clearly about alignment and acceleration. To those who are listening, He’s releasing ideas and strategies, and whoever is willing to implement them can have them.
In this year of Jubilee, the Lord is releasing provision to see His dreams and visions realized through His sons and daughters. He is inviting us to join and partner with Him to see the Kingdom advanced on earth.
It’s time to move!
James builds world-class brands and positions them for maximum impact. He believes Christians should be on the cutting edge of technology, innovation, and design. James and his beautiful bride, Anna, are co-founders of Pneuma33 Creative.
