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Welcome to the Soma SoulWorks Podcast! This podcast serves to help people, particularly those who may label themselves as "creatives," to seek wholeness and calling so they are ready to embrace the mission God has for them. Consider this podcast a rogue harmony of professional development and self-care, hosted by John Bergquist and Chris Skaggs.

What’s covered in this episode: 

• The Stronghold of Warfare doesn’t have a margin for how spiritual warfare affects your daily life. The lies behind it sound like some variation of, "Everything that happens is a result either of yourself or the people around you. The spiritual stuff isn’t real."
• There is no gauge for the spiritual war or even the existence of an enemy.
• “You may not know why you were created, but God does, and so does the enemy," says Gavin
• This all begins with an inciting event: You’re wounded, emotionally or spiritually, but you may not be aware there’s another voice in the conversation—a voice that isn’t God’s or yours. The enemy’s entire goal is to steal, kill, and destroy. He wants to rob us of our passions and joy, and this eventually kills our hearts, Chris says. 
• How does this manifest in an artist’s life? As John “JB” shares, every kid starts out as an artist. They only stop when someone tells them they can’t draw. Perfectionism—or paralysis by analysis—has stopped many artists from becoming artists. Jason says, “Actually going and doing art is warfare.” Awareness of this attack on our art is vital to the process, otherwise we’re vulnerable to the paralyzation that follows. Art is a form of worship, and when we worship, the enemy has to shut up and listen. 
• How to combat it:
  • Identify the area of warfare. “I want to know what the enemy was going after. I want to know why he thinks it’s dangerous, because I want to make it more dangerous.” Gavin
  • Think about what triggers you, look into the root cause. 
  • Undo the stronghold, and replace the lie with the scriptural truth. 

Resources mentioned:

• The Matrix
• Bootcamp Northwest
• The Spirit of the Disciplines: Understanding How God Changes Lives by Dallas Willard
• The War of Art by Steven Pressfield
• Sign up for the Tempus Divum newsletter 

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