Faith Driven Investor

Today, we’re talking coffee, co-working, and Chick-fil-a cows. That’s right. You’ve heard a lot about the ups and downs of WeWork, but now we’re going to look at a panel of faith-driven experts who are leading the way in co-working and how it can provide economically and spiritually for those participating in it. Tune in to hear Trevor Hightower, Peyton Day, and David Salyers share their stories and what the intersection of their Christian faith and co-working looks like.Useful Links:Craftwork Coffee and Co-WorkingThe Roam StoryPeople Provide the Ultimate Competitive Framework

How do you remove corruption from a society? How do you create lasting, sustainable prosperity in developing nations? Neither of these questions has an easy or obvious answer, but today’s guest is a leading thinker in how we can make positive investments in developing countries. Efosa Ojomo is co-author of Prosperity Paradox, and he’s here to help us think about how to create prosperity. He was such a great podcast guest that we asked him to speak at the FDI event in a few weeks, so you’ll want to tune in today and then at the conference to hear everything he has to share.

“We have a financial and Biblical responsibility to steward the money that has been entrusted to us.”Mike Silvestri taught us a lot about social impact bonds on this episode, and if you haven’t heard of these—or maybe you’re already familiar—it’s something you simply have to hear about it. The way he describes them, it’s a chance for everyone to win.At the very least, Mike got our wheels spinning and helped us to think about a conversation that we may not have previously been involved in. We hope you can join us in this conversation moving forward.

Did you know that 37% of all Americans live in apartments and other multi-family units? And they're over 96% occupied? What used to be a form of transitional housing has become the centers of communities where marriages start and kids are raised. Multi-Family Real Estate investing is continuing to be a dynamic place for Faith Driven Investors, and we want to make sure you’re aware of this trend. To do so, we’re talking today with David Snyder of Continental Realty Group and Steve Vecchitto of Advenir. Few people know more about the social and spiritual changes happening within the multi-family real estate space than them. Let’s listen in...

One of the things we love about the Faith Driven Investor movement is that it isn’t limited to just one corner of the globe, rather there are faithful men and women all around the world letting their faith guide their investing. One of those people is Sid Mofya. Sid helps steward the Draper Venture Network, a global alliance of over 20 independent venture capital firms investing in outstanding entrepreneurs across the globe. Their team is the coordination hub for the collaboration between the funds and provides post-investment support to a portfolio of over 800 companies. His insight on investing is Africa is one you won’t want to miss.

Today’s guest was once recognized by President Barack Obama during a speech at the White House, and she was named one of Forbes’ Most Powerful Women Changing the World with Philanthropy. As the CEO and Co-Found of Rising Tide Capital, Alfa Demmellash is working to help underserved entrepreneurs get the recognition and investment capital they need.In this podcast, she took us on a journey to Ethiopia, Harvard, and Rwanda, and we think you’ll love every step of the way...

Today’s podcast has us traveling all the way across the pond to Belfast, Ireland. Malcolm Johnston is the Executive Director at Angello Capital, where he and his team are working to provide sustainable social transformation by investing in enterprise-led development. He talked to us about the work that he did during a time when unemployment in Ireland had hit 65% and how God called him to use his understanding of business to help the community around him. Our conversation with Malcolm is a reminder that Faith Driven Investing has hands moving in every corner of the globe and as faithful men and women steward what God has given them, lives change…

Every once in awhile, we get to have conversations with living legends. Today is one of those days. If you’ve been around the faith driven conversation, you’ve most likely heard the name Chuck Bentley. Chuck is the CEO of Crown Ministries, as well as the Founder and Executive Director of the Christian Economic Forum. His fingerprints are all over the Faith Driven Investor and Entrepreneur websites, and today’s episode is a reminder why. He’s been a faithful steward of this conversation, he freely shares his wisdom born out of experience, and our conversation with him today is one you’ll enjoy...

Today, we’re talking about the future with two people who work with colleges to prepare the next generation of Faith Driven Investors. They’re both applying hands-on practice to their business school students in ways that uniquely prepare them for the world of finance and investing.Dick Blanc is the Executive Director of Beyond: The Startup Accelerator at Cedarville University. He works alongside founders in the Accelerator by providing guidance and inspiration sourced from years of experience.Steven Diedrich is the Executive Director of the Baylor Angel Network at Baylor University where they are helping engaged students receive a real-life education concerning the inner workings of angel investing.If you’d like to reach out to Steven or Dick about getting involved with either of their programs, you an contact them via email:Steven_Diedrich@baylor.edudblanc@cedarville.edu

Welcome back to the Faith Driven Investor podcast. Today’s guest is the survivor of a parachute failure. Seriously. And while that was shocking to us, during our conversation with Wade Myers, we found that that is only one of the many many interesting things about him. He joined us today to talk about small business exit strategies, how investors and entrepreneurs alike can plan for them, and what it looks like to finish well.As always, thanks for listening.Useful Links:Every Entrepreneur Needs to Think About Exit StrategyWade Myers WebsiteEagle Venture Fund: Capital Works

Today’s episode features a Super Bowl champion. And while his NFL career is illustrious, it’s what Benjamin Watson has done off the field as both an author and leader that he’d like to tell you about. He’s written two books—Under Our Skin, which addresses the racial divide in America and The New Dad’s Playbook, which is a must-read for any father with a newborn. He’s known for speaking truth and saying the tough things that need to be said in the moment. And in times like these, we’re grateful for his willingness to have an honest and real conversation. As always, thanks for listening.Useful Links:The Watson 7Under Our SkinThe New Dad’s Playbook

We hope you’re ready to learn because today’s episode is chock-full of lessons, insights, and theories that are here to educate and inform you, the Faith Driven Investor. Today’s guest is Ken Barnes. Ken works as the Director of the Mockler Center for Faith & Ethics in the Workplace at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. He is also the author of Redeeming Capitalism, which takes a look at our current capitalistic society through both a theological and economical lens. Ken shared a history of the relationship between capitalism and morals, where the two began to separate, and what we can do to bring them back together. As always, thanks for listening.Useful Links:Redeeming Capitalism BookWhy Redeeming Capitalism is ImportantImagining a Virtuous Capitalism

Today’s guest is Greg Lernihan. Greg and his family work together to faithfully steward the resources God has entrusted to them. They grant to Christian ministries and invest from a faith driven perspective, seeking spiritual, social and financial returns.  He is the Co-Founder of Convergint Technologies, which started in a basement in 2001, and is now the world’s largest electronic security firm with over 5,000 colleagues globally. He’s also been one of the leaders of this Faith Driven Investing movement over the past decade, and we’re thrilled to have him join us. We’re going to hear some of his journey towards Faith Driven Investing and the insights he has for those just starting the journey. As always, thanks for listening…Useful Links:ConvergintMake Fun Part of Your MissionImpact Investing - Greg Lernihan

Today’s episode, we’re talking to someone who is an expert in his field but also a dear friend to all of us who host this show. Luke Roush co-founded Sovereign’s Capital in 2012 and serves today as Managing Partner. On today’s episode, he shared the story of the startup that spans from Jakarta to Silicon Valley and Washington DC. As you know, the Faith Driven Investor movement is a global one, and Luke provided some great insight on some of the snares and pitfalls, as well as trends he’s seeing emerging, as we head into the future.As always, thanks for listening.Useful Links:Sovereign’s CapitalImpact Investing with Sovereign’s CapitalCreative Destruction and Work as Transformation

We’re so excited to share a conversation today that we think is long overdue. If you’ve been following the website, you’ve no doubt seen the name Jerry Bowyer as we’ve featured several of his blog posts (including “Jesus’ Terrible Financial Advice,” “How God’s Work is the Model for Your Work” and others)—all of which are must-reads. Jerry is a leading thinker in finance and economics and a frequent contributor for Forbes and Townhall. His writing has been influential in the Faith Driven Investor movement, and we think you’ll enjoy our conversation.Tune in to hear Jerry’s thoughts on how to read the Bible, how to live like Jesus, and how to invest as faithfully as we possibly can. Useful Links:Jesus’ Terrible Financial AdviceWhat Does Jesus Teach About Investing?How God’s Work is a Model for Your Work

What could Scott Drew, the Coach of Baylor Men’s Basketball have to do with investing? Well, we’re excited to announce that we’re launching a new initiative—The Faith Driven Athlete. Our passion is to show how God moves in all of our work, as entrepreneurs, investors, athletes and this is the next step in that.We’re bringing you this special episode because, had it not been for COVID-19, this weekend would’ve been the start of the NCAA Final Four. And Baylor is one of the teams who likely would’ve been competing for a title. In our conversation, Scott Drew let us in on the challenges he faced early in his career, the faith that carried him through it all, and how he’s responding to life’s most recent curveball.So if you enjoy this episode, be sure to subscribe to the Faith Driven Athlete podcast to hear from athletes like Kirk Cousins, Jeremy Lin, Adam LaRoche and more in the coming weeks. As always, thanks for listening...Useful Links:Scott Drew’s Long Journey to SuccessFCA Recognizes Scott Drew with John Lo

We’re living in unprecedented times. Coronavirus continues to spread, and the fear and anxiety attached to it are moving even faster. It’s no secret the effects this pandemic is having on the economy and investing market. So, what do we do?That’s the question we posed to James Cham, a venture capital investor with Bloomberg Beta. He provided a unique and positive spin on everything happening worldwide, and we’re excited to share his encouraging words amidst these challenging days.If this episode encourages you, we hope you share it with others who may need an uplifting word. As always, thanks for listening!Useful Links:An Interview with James Cham@jameschamJames Cham LinkedIn

We’re combining the Faith Driven Entrepreneur and Faith Driven Investor audiences today to continue to address the current events we face. Todd Wagner joined us to speak into how we as believers can respond to the fear and worry surrounding COVID-19. Todd is the lead pastor at Watermark Community Church in Dallas, Texas. If that name sounds familiar to you it’s probably because you’ve heard Henry mention it in the intro to this podcast as the location for where we will be hosting our Faith Driven Entrepreneur and Investor Conferences this fall. In addition to being our host and a speaker at the event, Todd is also a great voice in the faith-driven conversation. His words of wisdom—or as his Twitter handle calls them, words from wags—are encouraging, challenging, and uplifting to all who hear them. And with our current events, we could all use encouragement. Like Todd shared, “worry is not our friend and panic is not our way…”Useful Links:Should Christians Be Anxious About Coronavirus?Coronavirus is redefining

If you’ve been following the Faith Driven conversation, you’ve no doubt heard the name Tom Nelson. He’s been featured on the Faith Driven Entrepreneur podcast twice, and we’re so glad to get to talk to him about the investing side of this conversation. Tom recently wrote a book titled, The Economics of Neighborly Love. In the book, Tom brought his theological insight into the realm of finance and investing. We talked to him about all of this as well as what the good news of Jesus means for economics. Marrying biblical study, economic theory, and practical advice, he presents a vision for church ministry that works toward the flourishing of the local community, beginning with its poorest and most marginalized members. Find out more in our conversation. As always, thanks for listening.The Economics of Neighborly LoveVideo of Tom Talking about the bookTom Nelson TGC Breakout

On today’s episode, we’re talking to an expert on capital, influence, and how investments can serve the common good. Finny Kuruvilla is the Chief Investment Officer for Eventide Funds, and if you haven’t heard of them, you’re going to be glad you did. They’re on a mission to pursue investments that make the world rejoice—and today, Finny is going to tell us just how they do that. With a unique background in healthcare, statistics, and investing—not to mention two postgraduate degrees from Harvard and one from MIT—Finny is the type of guest you just can’t get enough of.As always, thanks for listening.Useful Links:EventidePriorities and InvestingDo You Know What You Own?To Change the World by James Davidson Hunter