by Henry Kaestner

Every once in a while I (HK) will highlight a sermon that I think is especially good and helpful for the entrepreneurial journey, but without any mention of being a business owner per se. This work from Toby Kurth is one of those.  From time to time we need a message that brings us radically back to the faith that we have and that makes the “faith” part of the Faith Driven Entrepreneur.

http://realitysf.com/sermon/the-light-of-the-world/

I, too often, find that my worship and understanding of God is more head than heart.  Toby speaks here about that in a way that especially grasps me.  Maybe the part of his message that resonates with me most is the way he describes a vacation with his 3 boys (I have 3 as well).  It reminds me hilariously of some of my own vacation memories where a boy can go from “this is the best vacation ever” to “this is the worst vacation ever” in a span of minutes. Toby brings this back to how the Israelites experienced God in the desert and how we experience him now.

He finishes with some illustrations of God’s light in Malawi and then back home in San Francisco with a flourish that makes me want to go run through walls for God.  That is so often the message that we, as entrepreneurs, need to hear on our lunch time runs or morning commutes as we get ready to go and slay the dragons that emerge daily, isn’t it?

Great quote from Toby’s message: “God doesn’t give a rip in the end of times what you knew, God wants to know what you did with what you knew”

Photo by Melissa Askew on Unsplash

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by Rusty Rueff, Henry Kaestner and William Norvell

In this episode of the Faith Driven Entrepreneur Podcast,  Henry, William and Rusty tackle the issue of language.  At one level, they aren’t going to tell you anything that will surprise you….cursing is a bad thing and it’s not helpful in the workplace, or anywhere else for that matter.  The book of James hits this issue squarely, and so do dozens of other references.  Yet there’s some nuance here that we think is worth exploring as the effective use of language and even emotion are so incredibly important for us as leaders in the workplace.

We look at this issue from a variety of angles in this short edition: How does one navigate the dynamic between relatability and holiness?  Is the “Queen’s English” sufficient to get our point across?  How does one deal with bad language from others in the office?  How does language and it’s use help us to understand our level of anxiety, our ultimate identity and our ability to witness.

Let us know if you think we’re missing something in this brief look at how to communicate effectively, and please, as always, forward this to others if you think it might be helpful especially those you know overseas as it’s our hope that this won’t just be a North American initiative.  That’ll allow us to get more feedback on how to improve the podcast, and more ideas from a broader audience.  Thank you for your partnership!

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In this episode of the Faith Driven Entrepreneur Podcast,  Henry, William and Rusty tackle the issue of language.  At one level, they aren’t going to tell you anything that will surprise you….cursing is a bad thing and it’s not helpful in the workplace, or anywhere else for that matter.  The book of James hits this issue squarely, and so do dozens of other references.  Yet there’s some nuance here that we think is worth exploring as the effective use of language and even emotion are so incredibly important for us as leaders in the workplace. 

Show Notes for Episode 6

by Gabe Cooper

Sometimes, God calls entrepreneurs to audacious obedience in their business ventures. While starting a business in Lincoln, Nebraska can have just as much Gospel impact as starting a medical clinic in Malawi, the latter will likely require far more personal sacrifice and risk along the journey.

That’s exactly what has happened with Jun Shiomitsu. Jun is the founder of African Business Institute (ABI), a Gospel-centered business accelerator/MBA program serving three African countries. A few years ago, Jun left his successful banking career at Deutsche Bank to pursue his passion for supporting entrepreneurs in Africa. He partnered with African Bible Colleges to launch contextualized startup accelerators in Uganda and Malawi.

Jun’s accelerator has already graduated its first batch of entrepreneurs, and his students have gone on to launch several successful businesses in Malawi. ABI believes that sustainable change in Africa will require strong, local businesses run by competent, ethical, local leaders. They also believe that Christian entrepreneurs who are living out the Gospel and receiving practical business training are in the perfect position to transform Africa. Jun is already seeing the tangible results of ABI’s strategic approach.

In an effort to bridge the gap between Christian entrepreneurship and traditional business education, Jun has also partnered with the University of Oxford to bring teams of students from the UK to Africa every year to work side-by-side with African entrepreneurs. The partnership has given these entrepreneurs access to the best and brightest business students in the world, while providing Oxford students with a first-hand look at true, God-centered, dignity-honoring businesses.

African Business Institute on Facebook

I had the opportunity to spend time with Jun a few months ago, and I asked him what factors drove his decision to step out in faith with ABI. It was fascinating to dig into his entrepreneurial journey. As we talked, a few core principles really stood out to me. These principles aren’t true for everyone, but they’ve been helpful for me as I learn how God could better use my passion for entrepreneurship.

1. No Fear! Jun had no idea what he was doing when he launched ABI. He’s a Japanese finance expert – and what he’s building is completely innovative, new, and scary. Despite his fear he jumped in with both feet, knowing that God is sovereign. The best Christian entrepreneurs may have moments of worry, but they often choose to believe that God is bigger than their fears.

2. Relationships matter. Jun is a Japanese banker living in Uganda – but because of the power of a relational network and mutual friends, he is able to share his story across the globe. Never underestimate the value of authentic, durable friendships with people who will support you in your journey. God-honoring entrepreneurship is a team sport.

3. You’re never too young. I won’t tell you how old Jun is, but he’s definitely not a seasoned banker looking for meaning in the second half of his career. Jun is young, hungry and just a little bit crazy. The truth is, if Jun had waited until he had more experience, or until all the stars aligned, he would have been waiting forever. It’s never too early to start working toward the big vision God has given you.

(Editor’s Note….Gabe is a long term friend, someone I met who has a passion for ministries that bring the Biblical Message of Generosity to people around the world.  As soon as he heard about us launching the FDE site, he exclaimed, “I’m in”.  Encouragement is essential to any entrepreneurial journey and Gabe has been just that for FDE.  Check out more about him and get a sense as to why I think he’s so cool HK)

Photo by David Travis on Unsplash

By Henry Kaestner

Rick Rock is an entrepreneur.  Together with some partners, he started and owns a money management firm with offices in 3 cities and more than $3B under management.  Rick is also an elder in his church and over the last several years has started preaching more and more. He talks about his faith, family and work.

There is something very, very interesting to me about a guy who can excel as a business owner, but also has a command of Scripture in such a way that he can give a well balanced, Bible based sermon.  He unpacks Romans 1 and 2 in a new way for me. 

One aspect of the sermon that especially resonated with me is how he talked about having turned his back on his faith for so long and the blessings that he missed out on during the period.  He opines that it’s these missed blessings that are often the baggage that people bring in to a relationship. That made me think a bit.  I think he’s on to something with that, and something definitely for young people that have grown up in the Faith but are “taking a season off”, planning on returning once they raise a family (or finished having fun).

The other big takeaway for me is the power of Scripture memorization, and finding a partner to do that with.  Scripture Typer is the app that he mentions…I need to check that out.

I think that it’s a reasonable expectation that we might all aspire to have enough of a command of God’s word, having steeped in it, to then be able to share it with others.  Rick shows us what this might look like:

Central Christian Church podcast – Episode 9 – Week 4 “Shaped by Scripture”

Fundraising. It’s something that we as entrepreneurs all have to tackle at some point. In this week’s FDE podcast episode, we examine the different issues that are associated with fundraising. You’ll hear Henry note at the outset that this particular episode is a bit more weighted for the social entrepreneur or ministry entrepreneur….but I hope you’ll agree that the mindset on fundraising is very relevant for entrepreneurs of all types. J. Paul Fridenmaker from Generosity Path joins us for this discussion.

Show Notes for Episode 5