Founder | Q Media

Gabe Lyons is the co-author of Good Faith (2016), unChristian (2007) and authored The Next Christians (2010), as a manifesto for how Christians can faithfully lead in a changing culture. He is the founder of Q, a learning community of Christian leaders where they are equipped to engage our cultural moment. Their Q Conference (www.Q2017.com) annually convenes thousands of leaders from all industries while Q Commons, their global event simultaneously unites 140 cities and over 10,000 people on an October evening (www.QCommons.com). Called “sophisticated and orthodox” by The New York Times, Q equips Christians apply their faith to daily life by addressing some of the most difficult and controversial issues of our time. Gabe speaks to over 100,000 people each year on topics of equipping the next generation, cultural issues and research related to the intersection of faith and public life. He lives in Nashville with his wife, Rebekah, and their three children.

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CONTRIBUTIONS TO FAITH DRIVEN ENTREPRENEUR

We continue to count down the Top 100 Books for Faith Driven Entrepreneurs with…

Entreleadership

by Dave Ramsey

EntreLeadership is Dave Ramsey’s championship playbook with step-by-step guidance to take your business where you want it to go.

Dave has grown his company to a winning national brand with more than 800 team members who have impacted millions of lives. EntreLeadership is how he did it, mistakes and all. This is 20 years of real-world experience with all the sweat, tears and prayers. This is how his company has been named one of the Best Places to Work in Nashville seven times. It’s proven. It’s practical. And it’s how you can do it too.

Whether you lead a team of two or 200, you can grow your business to where you want it to be. Reaching your dream is no longer a question of “What if we could?” You can. EntreLeadership is how.

Click on the book cover to check out the Reviews and Purchase at Amazon

President | Christian Men’s Network

Rv. Paul Louis Cole, D.Th., is one of the world’s leading experts on men’s issues, character maturity and personal life expansion, the restoration of families and rescuing children trapped in abuse and neglect. His work as a journalist has taken him from inside firefights in Middle Eastern wars to perilous revolutions deep in the jungles of Central America. His extensive charity work ranges from the launch of the highly successful charity FarmAid working with Willie Nelson, assisting in launching one of the most successful AIDS programs in African history to building a mentoring program for at risk youth in the U.S. His professional accolades range from Emmy awards to Addy awards to numerous charity and civic awards. He could be considered a double outlier having invested over 20,000 hours in the pursuit of masculine excellence.

As global President of the highly regarded Christian Men’s Network, Paul is a man driven with a global mission for the transformation of men and nations. His passion is to build strong men who lead their families, serve their community and live life to the fullest. He is a dedicated champion for raising up successful young leaders, and committed to challenging and helping men to be great dads. His organization is active in more than one hundred nations.

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CONTRIBUTIONS TO FAITH DRIVEN ENTREPRENEUR

— by Charlie Paparelli

I was in church listening to a sermon when I realized why entrepreneurs are so important to our society. They see the same problems we see, but they do something about it. 

They start. Others don’t.

The pastor was delivering his 2020 vision on the last Sunday of 2019. He used as his illustration a children’s book called Stone Soup. He asked who in the audience knew the book. 

Kathy’s hand went up with everyone else’s, and I was outed, once again, as the father who rarely read to his kids.

As he retold the story, I was thinking, “The guy who had the idea of stone soup is the perfect example of an entrepreneur.”

Here’s the story.

This village is starving. There isn’t enough food for each family to survive. A fellow in the community goes to the center of town where he gathers three stones and puts them at the bottom of a cauldron. He adds water and lights a fire under it. 

The people in the village become curious. They are drawn to what he is doing and ask, “What are you cooking?” 

He answers, “I am making stone soup.” 

“Stone soup? That doesn’t sound very appetizing or nutritious. Wouldn’t it be better if the soup had some carrots?” 

“Yes. It would be much better,” he answers.

One village resident says, “I have some carrots. I’ll go home and get them and put them in the soup.” 

This happens again and again. Eventually, the stone soup becomes the most robust and nutritious meal anyone in the village could have imagined. It feeds the entire village.

Entrepreneurs are stone soup makers.

They address the problem everyone is talking about.

They design a solution to solve the problem.

They make it public. And take the criticism.

They welcome ideas from others and create an even better solution.

Eventually, everybody wants the solution. 

Problem solved. 

When entrepreneurs follow these simple steps, one of three things happens.

1. The solution fails because people didn’t care.

2. A company is created.

3. A whole new industry is created.

I just had to share this with you. Maybe I should read more children’s books. I have a second chance now that I have grandchildren.

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[ Photo by Gary Sandoz on Unsplash ]

This article was originally published here by TwoTen Magazine

— by Tricia Despres

They told him it couldn’t be done. They said it was a waste of time. They went as far as telling the award winning producer, known for such television hits as “Survivor” and “The Voice”, that he was downright crazy to think anyone would spend their precious spare time watching a story about the greatest story ever told…especially in, God forbid, primetime.

The credits could have rolled right then and there.

But they didn’t.

Instead, alongside the beauty and talents of wife Roma Downey and despite the predictions of many, famed producer Mark Burnett pushed through the skeptics and brought the 10-hour mini-series “The Bible” to History Channel in March 2012. Over a span of five weeks, the epic production garnered an average of 15 million-plus viewers during its original airings and over 100 million viewers to date. According to 20th Century Fox, “The Bible” also ranked as the fastest-selling TV title released on home video in the last five years, and became known as the top mini-series title ever during its first week of release.

The mini-series not only attracted faith-seeking viewers in the United States, but around the world. Ratings were huge in Australia, for example, where over half of the otherwise secular nation watched. And despite much opposition, “The Bible” even aired in Hong Kong, and went straight to number one in the ratings book.

“The Bible” had reached global success.

More Than A Mini-series

Yet, it ends up that the journey of the “little mini-series that could” was just at its beginning stages, thanks to what Burnett refers to as a calling he has followed his entire life. “Some people might call it instinct and some people might call it intuition, but for us, it’s a calling,” explains Burnett during a recent interview with TwoTen Magazine. “It was a calling that basically told us that ‘The Bible’ franchise was meant to be much bigger than just the television series. We listen when we are called. Yet, trust me when I tell you that it’s not always a clear message. It’s more of a feeling, and the feeling surrounding this project was that we needed to keep pursuing ways in which we could grow what we had started, even when everyone was telling us not to. We have always listened to that feeling, and it has sent us in all different directions. It’s just the way we live both our personal and professional life.”

“Some people might call it instinct and some people might call it intuition, but for us, it’s a calling…”Mark Burnett

Indeed, the directions which “The Bible” miniseries will ultimately take will be on full display in 2014. The first element will be unveiled on February 20th, when Century Fox will release the feature film, “Son of God,” distilled from the Mark Burnett and Roma Downey-produced “The Bible” mini-series and supplemented with scenes not aired in the telecast.

“People told us that we would never be able to get a full feature film made about Jesus, and now, here it is,” says the 53 year old known for bringing a multitude of programs to life, including rating grabbers such as “Shark Tank” and the ever-popular NBC reality show “The Apprentice”. “And if you ask me, the film is even better than the series. We were shooting both the series and the film simultaneously. This is a completely fresh edit from what we included in the series. As far as I’m concerned, to be able to see it on the giant screen, in community with a few hundred people at a time, is going to be an incredible experience.”

The Bible On Tour

Further leveraging the power of the mini-series and the accompanying movie “Son of God,” “The Bible Tour,” will continue Burnett’s calling to share the word of God with an endless group of believers and non-believers. “What we really wanted to do with the stage show was to be able to give audience members an immersive live experience that they could enjoy with their families,” says Burnett, who joins once again with partners such as Downey, Word Entertainment and World Vision for the tour.

Kicking off on March 20 at Rick Warren’s Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, California, and running 16 dates through April 13, “The Bible Tour” is a two-hour live event that will feature not only award-winning artists, immersive video and stunning visual effects, but rely heavily on the power of music throughout.

“The music is one of the most important parts of the entire production,” explains Burnett of the show, which will feature music from award winning Christian artists such as Francesca Battistelli, Sidewalk Prophets, Natalie Grant, Chris August, Meredith Andrews and Jason Gray. “The music ties in fully into the production and is in fact inspired by both the film and the series. These are some of the most talented and best known artists, so to have them singing an amazing selection of songs is just an amazing thing to think about.”

If that wasn’t enough, Word Entertainment released “Son of God: Music Inspired by the Epic Motion Picture” in late 2013, followed shortly thereafter by “The Bible: Music Inspired by the Epic Mini-Series” on March 12, 2014.

Shared Passion

The journey that “The Bible” franchise has been on thus far would be overwhelming to anyone. But according to Burnett, it’s even more rewarding knowing that he did it with his wife of six years by his side. “I have been telling people that our lives over the past few years have been all Jesus, all the time,” chuckles Burnett, who was once referred by Time Magazine as one of the world’s most influential people. “Roma has worked very closely with Word Entertainment, for example, tirelessly going over the music videos that will be shown throughout the live tour. But yes, the fact that we get to do all of this together as husband and wife is a wonderful thing. We are very much in love and we are very much best friends. To be able to do something such as this with someone you love is so fulfilling. It’s been a long journey of four and a half years, especially when we have continued to work on all the other shows. I consider us very favored and very blessed to be able to work on The Bible Series, whether with the film, the series or the tour.”

Throughout the journey, Burnett says that his faith has strengthened and his beliefs have evolved greatly from the times he spent as a little boy in England. “Growing up, I felt that the Bible and the word of God was a bit threatening. It was one of those things where I felt you could get struck by lightning if you stepped the wrong way. You better do this and you better do that. But as I have gotten older, I have learned that God and the Bible itself is really a love story. The entire Bible is the story of the love of God and God’s love for us. Nothing we do is going to make us lose that. Jesus came and then died for us, and was resurrected for our sins. Focusing your life on those principles helps to put everything in perspective.”

Indeed, in a career where he has produced thousands of hours of television in countries throughout the world, Burnett admits that there have been times where the nature of the entertainment business directly and indirectly challenged his beliefs. “I think we are very clear, in everything that we do, that we are Christians and that we love Jesus,” concludes Burnett. “Nothing negative has been said. I believe when you are clear, you are supported. I mean, we are a major part of pop culture, so maybe they give us a break. {Laughter} Completely immersing ourselves into the story of the Bible has been an amazing experience. It’s like swimming in a beautiful ocean of faith. Naturally, your faith grows.”

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[ Image taken from original article ]

This is an excerpt from “Game Changer: The Remarkable Story of Caroline’s Cart, “ by Drew Ann Long with Bethany Bradsher, Whitecaps Media, 2017.

— by Drew Ann Long with Bethany Bradsher

As one winter day ran into another, I was living for the moment when I would get the phone call from Indesign letting me know the prototype they were creating was finally complete. I was still meeting with my idea team, but we reached a point where we decided we really couldn’t do anything more until we got the prototype. So we waited.

To fill the time, I worried about the cart’s prospects once we did actually have one we could push around. My extensive research of other entrepreneurs and their paths had convinced me that a mom from Alabaster, Ala. trying to create and sell a product to retailers was both unprecedented and probably insane. I would vent to my husband David about it.

“All of these other people who create products sell to the consumer. No one that I know of has ever done this before. What am I thinking? What if no one buys it or I can’t even get an audience with the grocery chains?”

Always the steadying force, David would tell me, “You don’t even have a prototype yet, sister. Calm down. You’re on step six thousand, and you should be on step two hundred.”

Then in late February 2011 a phone number popped up on my screen with an Indianapolis area code. On the other end was an Indesign engineer telling me I was free to drive up there anytime to pick up my completed prototype! I wanted to jump in the car and take of right then and there, but that was unheard of at that stage in my life. Before I could even think of leaving town, I had to do hours of preparation—writing out Caroline’s medicine and therapy schedule, Matthews T-ball schedule and Mary Grace’s dance schedule for David; washing school uniforms; arranging rides with neighbors; and making sure everyone was straight on homework and projects.

I recruited my sister Pam to join me for the trip. We took the back seats out of my van to make room for the cart, and we headed for points north. I know I was a ball of jumpy excitement all the way up to Indiana, and at some level I really couldn’t believe it was happening. We checked into a hotel on March 1, ready to get up bright and early the next morning to drive to the Indesign office.

When I think about the emotions of that morning, on our way to Indesign, and when I first laid my hands on the prototype, I feel like the English language doesn’t have sufficient words to describe the way I felt. I was about to lay eyes on something I had been talking about, praying about, agonizing over, and dreaming of for years. Those years had been marked by plenty of setbacks and we almost abandoned the cart altogether, but that morning every trial, every discouragement, seemed to evaporate. It was a tremendous feeling of accomplishment to know we finally had a prototype, but also humility that God had actually let us get this far. I felt boundless gratitude and joy, even as I had this surreal feeling that I was watching someone else in my body.

We arrived at Indesign, got our visitors’ badges, exchanged pleasantries, and were ushered into a room where we were told that the cart was just on the other side of the wall. After what seemed like forever (but was really only about a minute), they walked us into a large room, and there she was, in all her three-dimensional glory—an actual Caroline’s Cart! I was speechless. I felt like I was looking at my fourth baby, and I certainly had the labor pains and the scars to show for it. The cart that greeted us on March 2, 2011, was very similar to the one that today helps thousands of special-needs families have an accessible shopping experience. It was painted a light orange color, with a gray seat and handles that swung out to make it easier to put a passenger into the seat and then pivoted back together when it was time to push the cart. It had a five-point harness, a basket behind the seat for groceries, and a tray on the bottom to hold more items.

One of the first things I did was sit in the cart to try it out. We pushed it around the office, talked about the cart’s specifications, and finally after thanking the Indesign engineers profusely for this miracle, wheeled it out into the parking lot to load in my car for the drive back to Alabama. I don’t remember exactly what Pam and I talked about on that trip, but as we covered those five hundred miles I probably turned my head around five hundred times just to get a glimpse of this beautiful rolling object.

When we arrived home that evening, David met me in the garage to help us unload the cart and we maneuvered it into our dining room. Right away we strapped Caroline in and pushed her around. I have dozens of pictures of that historic moment—Caroline Long in the cart that not only bears her name but we believe firmly could be her lasting legacy. I stood amazed at God’s faithfulness, and I had a glimpse of the difference the cart could make for families across the nation and the world. Standing in our dining room, settling Caroline in for that short ride, we were seeing the unfolding of something that was truly bigger than ourselves.

I was still writing an endless succession of checks, but at long last we had something to show for the expenditures. At some point that spring, one of our children asked, “Where are we going for vacation this summer?” David responded, “We’re going to go to the dining room and ride around in the cart.”

For now, trips out on the pontoon boat and outings to the neighborhood pool would have to be vacation enough. And as exhilarating as it was to finally have possession of the prototype, its daily presence in my house somehow made the other tasks ahead of me weightier. We weren’t playing around at creating a product anymore. A cart existed, and it seemed to shout at me to do something that would get it out of my dining room and into some grocery aisles.

Excerpt from “Game Changer: The Remarkable Story of Caroline’s Cart, “ by Drew Ann Long with Bethany Bradsher, Whitecaps Media, 2017.

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[ Photo by Bruno Kelzer on Unsplash ]