After nearly three years in a mentoring relationship with Founder and Chairman Howard Dayton, Brandon joined Compass-finances God’s Way as its President and CEO in September 2019. Brandon is excited to serve Compass in pursuit of its global vision to see everyone, everywhere, faithfully living by God’s financial principles in every area of their lives.
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(00:18):
God's given me power over the enemy. God's given me power with all authority.
Nothing can hurt me, nothing canharm me. He's given me power,
(00:53):
power gods in. God's giving mepower. God's given me with all
the horty and nothing can hurt me. No, nothing can harm me.
(01:19):
No, no, I no know. He's given me. He's getting me
fo He's gonna be Welcome to theforty My Life podcast, where we learn
(02:00):
how to develop a dependency on Jesusin the marketplace, from the border to
the bathroom. God is with you. Here's our host, author, speaker,
speaker, encourager Howard to coach myhusband the man they called us Recordified
Kicktion. Hey, what's going oneverybody? Jason Davis aka a Mister forty
(02:25):
five back with another episode of theforty five Life Podcast where we're passionate about
developing a dependency on Jesus and themarketplace. Really excited about our guest this
week because the organization this person workswith has had a big impact on my
life personally, and so I'm excitedto have this conversation. Before I bring
(02:47):
him on, let me introduce andTee. After nearly three years in a
mentoring relationship with founder and chairman HowardDayton. Brandon Steven joined Compass Finances God's
Way as its President and CEO inSeptember twenty nineteen. Brandon is excited to
serve Compass in pursuit of its globalvision to see everyone everywhere faithfully living by
(03:13):
God's financial principles in every area oftheir lives. Brandon, Welcome to the
forty five Life. How's it going, man? Going great? Jason,
thank you for having me. Yes, well, Brandon, I'm excited to
have you on. I know inthe bio there you came on in twenty
nineteen, but if you don't mind, just give us a little bit of
(03:35):
history with your professional background and howyou got the Compass Well nonprofit was new
to me in twenty nineteen. Priorto that, I spent twenty five years
in corporate America. Was a businessguy and had a chance to do about
everything in business. My education's financeand accounty. So I started there and
then just kind of worked my wayup over the years, and for the
(03:59):
twenty five five years in business,had an opportunity to lead a number of
different companies globally and domestically, andas you mentioned, I met Howard in
twenty sixteen and we went through aprocess of mental learning just completely transformed my
life and so joined Compass in twentynineteen and coming up on five years here,
(04:20):
Wow wow, that you know,Brandon brings up something interesting transition for
some people, you know they've donethe business and nonprofit or nonprofited business.
But what was your experience like?Was that? Was it seamless? Was
it you weren't really sure and youhad to take a step of faith?
(04:41):
What was it like for you?A long journey? It's probably more than
I can answer in a podcast,but sure, ten years of really reflecting
on what God had for me,he was putting different thoughts on my heart.
Of mentoring with my dad, workingwith Howard and just you know,
(05:02):
you get conditioned in business to pursuemore and you get conditioned to believe that
this is all you can be andit's great in business, it was financially
rewarding. I had a great runwith the companies that I was with,
and you have a lot of fearwhat's going to happen if I make the
(05:23):
transition? And so when I metHoward and we started to talk about life
and what it means to be aChristian, and we went into what the
Bible says, I mean really says. There's there's love in the Bible.
There's also truth and the Bible,and Howard showed me both and so it
was really getting convicted and wanting tobe on the right side of the conversation.
(05:47):
The day I meet Jesus, youknow, I want to hear well
done, my good and faithful servant. It's going to be a bad day,
I think if it's a different conversation. Was really the opportunity God connecting
me with Howard and then really understandingwhat God had in store for me.
(06:08):
That truly became the catalyst for makinga change. You know, right,
you touched on something huge, becauseBrandon, I feel like whether you're talking
about in a church environment or evenin the business world, mentoring and a
(06:29):
lot of people have their own perspectiveson that. But can you just talk
about just the mentorship relationship you toldyou touched on how the love and the
truth part, But especially with thenext generation coming up, how important is
mentoring That we live in an informationage or so much with social media and
(06:53):
all that, it seems like there'sonly pockets of it going on. Can
you just touch on how important itreally is as each generation transitions. It's
significant, it's critical. I mean, it's so important, and it's needed
with young people. You know,we have three teenage daughters and they need
(07:13):
it. They need to know thatJesus loved them. They obviously we have
a responsibility as mom and dad tomentor our kids, but they're not getting
it in school and they're not reallygetting it in their peer group either,
And so it's a very important rolethat can be played by young people and
old people. And you know,it's some of the best mentors are people
(07:35):
like Howard, my dad, othersthat have experienced life and have so much
to give to these young people.And with Howard, you know, he
has a process and we have aprogram called One More and it basically is
go through some books and then applyit to your life together. So,
(07:58):
for example, the first book wetogether was Humility, the book written by
Andrew Murray, a South African andeighteen ninety five, but it could have
been written today and it really posesthe question really or what does it mean
to live in Christ? What doesit mean to be humble? What does
it mean to surrender? These arebasic things that mean everything to a young
(08:22):
person, having an anchor or havingan identity in something that's lasting. Many
of the other things that they're grabbingfor today are fleeting, you know,
and so it's in the world,but not of the world. But mentoring
is very, very important. It'salso a great way that people learn.
(08:46):
You know, only ten percent oflearning comes from classroom instruction. The proven
fact, you know, twenty percentcomes from mentoring and seventy percent comes from
experience. And so if you canhave a mentor that helps you get experienced,
then you're being you know, youhave the ability to be guided in
(09:07):
your life and to get kind ofexperiences that help you along your your your
Christian walk and journey. Wow,that's powerful, Brandon, and I think
that's so relevant to how the transitionoccurs. And you're now president CEO of
(09:28):
of Compass. When you came toCompass, Brandon, what was that like?
Where you were you more in observationmode trying to understand where the org
has been and certainly Howard's mentoring playeda factor in that. But what was
that maybe that first year, likebecoming the leader of a brand new organization,
(09:50):
Well, to be honest, Iwas like a fish out of water.
I mean, I mean nonprofit Christianministry is so different than for fuck
profit business, and so, youknow, just joining the team and humility
and being someone that was prepared tolearn and coachable was a huge step.
(10:11):
We have a great team. Howardwas great. We have a lot of
people in our ministry that have beenaround a long time, and so just
trying to get into their world andunderstand what the ministry needed and how ministries
operate was a very critical step forme. And it took every bit of
a year and I'm still learning,you know. I joke with Howard the
(10:35):
first six months, I probably quitat least once a week just because it
was so different and so difficult.In business, it's very clear you make
products or services, you go findcustomers. You know, you do a
deal and as long as you providegood, good service and execute while they're
(10:56):
going to keep on buying from you. And nonprofit that space, it's a
it's a it's an episodic event thatreally requires daily nurturing, you know,
for trying to disciple people, whichwhich we are at Compass. It's really
how do you play the long gameand serve people with distinction, and so
over time, I think it's becomea really good blend. I mean there's
(11:20):
some things that I picked up frommy experience in business that have complimented what
we need in the ministry. Andalso there are things in the ministry that
have really helped me become a betterperson and leader than I was before.
I mean, simple truths like waiton the Lord. I mean, we
(11:43):
don't really do that in business.We have an idea and we go versus
and ministry, you know, maybewe have an idea, we pray about
it, we wait for some feedbackfrom God and then and then we move
forward. And so it's just beena great learning, but it was a
tough transition, Brandon. Can youtalk about for those who may not know.
(12:07):
I know, the Compass will alwaysbe special to me just because of
a lot of the materials that youall have that provide financial discipleship. And
we'll come back to that terminology later. But for those who don't know who
Compasses, Brandon, can you introducewho Compasses and what they do for serving
(12:28):
the community at large. Yes,we are a nonprofit, non denominational,
a political, global Christian ministry.So We're in sixty to eighty countries around
the world, and we teach peoplewhat the Bible says about money and how
(12:48):
to apply it to their life.So it's Compass Finances God's Way, and
that's really our charter. That's whatGod has called us to do, to
show people what's in his book onmoney and break it down into ways that
they can practically apply it to theirlife. And then once they understand and
are applying God's principles on money andpossessions, give them tools and help them
(13:13):
build capability so they can take itto everyone in their sphere of influence,
their family, their business, theirchurch, their community, etc. Love
that and Brandon front and center.If someone goes to Compasses website right there
you see that financial discipleship. Talkabout what that is and how it factors
(13:35):
into learning about God's ways of handlingmoney. Well. Financial discipleship is really
designed to be a holistic approach tofinances God's Way. So every serious Christian
who believes the Bible is the Wordof God and wants to go deeper,
(13:58):
here's about discipleship. Jesus is veryclear in Matthew four discipleship is a priority
when he says, follow me andI'll make you fishers of men. And
he's very clear at the end ofMatthew and the Great Commission where all the
go make disciples, teaching them allthat I've commanded, which should include the
money part. And between Matthew fourand Matthew twenty eight, Jesus talks about
(14:18):
money over a hundred times, andso it's discipleship is a priority for Jesus.
Money is a priority for Jesus,and using money to advance his kingdom
is all connected to financial discipleship.So at the highest level, what financial
discipleship is is following Jesus, makingdisciples and glorifying God in the area of
(14:41):
money and possessions. Huge, huge, Brandon. When we think about financial
discipleship, it starts with the foundation. And one of the things I love
that you all have is you allactually have five pillars. And I'm sure
brain and that could be like itsown whole other thing, but just touching
(15:05):
on them briefly, the ownership,surrender, choice, multiplication, and eternal
focus, you mind, just touchingon those and how they establish that foundations
as those five strong pillars. Absolutely, and for me, when I got
to compass you know, you're you'restaring down two thousand, three hundred and
(15:26):
fifty verses and thirty five topics andthe Bible on money, and it's overwhelming,
and for a lot of people,it's overwhelming. And so these five
pillars really become the foundation for everythingthe Bible says, and five words are
things that people can recall and theycan connect scripture too. So ownership,
(15:48):
surrender, choice, multiplication, andeternal focus become a framework for what's in
the Bible on money. They're separatepillars, separate items, but their relation
there's like a progression there. Soownership really drives to whose money it is.
It's God's money. The money comesfrom God. He and trusts that
(16:10):
money to us. It needs togo back to God, you know,
and saw twenty four one or firstChronicle of twenty nine to eleven through twelve.
A lot of scripture talk about God'sownership. So if God owns the
money, what's our job. Ourjob is to be surrendered to the lordship
of Christ and to be good stewards, and that's surrender. He can look
at Luke fourteen thirty three or FirstCorinthians four to a lot of scripture that
(16:33):
talk about our role of stewards surrenderto the lordship with that money, and
he entrusted with us. Choice thenis the decision we make every day.
And Jesus is clearer. And Matthewsixty got to choose God our money.
He could have chosen any topic toput up there against God, and he
chose money, which is it's achief competitor. It's universal. Everybody deals
(16:59):
with money. Almost every decision wemake touches money. So you've got to
choose every day. And so ifwe have those first three things, God
owns the money, we're surrendered tothe lordship, and we choose money every
day. These three first three pillarsreally are a setup for the rest of
financial discipleship. And these three togetherkind of form what stewardship means. Stewardship
(17:23):
in and of itself does not enough. And we've been talking about stewardship for
twenty years and stewardship has become aslong as I'm doing it, that's enough.
That's not what's in the Bible.Once we have stewardship down, now
we're equipped to go do what Jesusreally wants us to do, to go
(17:44):
disciple to others, and then tohelp people see every financial decision they make
is a spiritual decision. And somultiplication really becomes how do I use my
time, talent, and treasure tomake disciples of other people, to help
my family, business, community,church, et cetera, understand and apply
what God says about money and aneternal focus is about pointing people to the
(18:08):
Lord and that the reason that wehave money is to be able to glorify
God. And you can see thatin First Timidity six and so many other
places in scripture. Multiplication the parableof the talents and Matthew twenty five or
even the Luke nineteen version is areally good place to look there. And
(18:29):
so those five tillers then become thefoundation for people to go a little bit
deeper and to the thirty five topicsand the more practical topics that people struggle
with, like what should I tie? You know, tell me about this
debt thing, I got a spendingproblem. All these things they all roll
(18:51):
up to these five pillers. Soif you get these five tillers right,
typically it leads to what we're reallyafter first, which is not the head
knowledge. It's transactional, but it'sthe heart transformation, finances really doing finances
God Day, Jason is first aboutheart transformation and when we surrender to the
(19:11):
lordship of Christ and invite the HolySpirit end the application of financis finances God.
I believe it's fairly simple and straightforward. Without the heart, it's very
difficult to sustain. You know.That's why I have such an issue with
just financial literacy these days. It'sa big topic. It just doesn't sustain
(19:33):
biblical financial literacy. You know,Jesus is the rock and obedience is required
to really make it over the longhaul. Amen, Brandon. That that'll
preach in a sermon as well everythingthat you said. One of the things
I like about Compass, Brandon isyou have the pillars, but then as
(19:53):
you as you alluded to, peoplehave different issues. It may be debt
for someone, it may be overspendingfor someone else, and you all have
different resources and learning systems to meetpeople where they're at. Can you talk
to us about how Compass what resourcekind of pairs with where people are at?
(20:18):
Yes, we have over two hundreddifferent products and services that are designed
to help people understand, apply andmultiply finances God's Way and so we've organized
these products and what you just referencethe system of learning, and it's really
a curriculum that would almost emulate aschool curriculum or a college curriculum, you
(20:38):
know. So we have the oneon one, two oh one and three
oh one progression, and so ifsomebody didn't know anything about finances, God's
Way, they could start with ourone on one curriculum. These are things
like blogs, devotionals, two minutevideos, workshops, you know, the
basics, just to get their feetwhat can get some understanding, or if
(21:02):
they had a specific felt need,like I don't even know where my money
is going on in real trouble.I just need to get on a budget,
we have a workshop for budgeting.My marriage is on the ropes,
you know, and money's the problem. We have a workshop on money and
marriage. So those kind of thingseither respond to early learner or somebody that's
(21:22):
that's got a problem, a feltneed or I'm in debt, you know,
and what do I do? Thosekind of things that address those topics.
Then the progression goes to two ohone again, which is a little
bit deeper, a little bit moreadvanced. We have a number of financial
discipleship studies that are led by others. So one oh one is can be
(21:42):
a little bit more DIY, doit yourself, and two a one is
a little bit more you know mentormentee, and the idea and the studies
is to help people go much muchdeeper in terms of the foundation of what
the Bible says and how it getsapplied. And so they're they're you know,
basic blocking and tackling finances, God'sway to long range planning to what
(22:06):
is my legacy need to be foradults, for married couples, and for
kids. So there's a broad setof products there. And then three oh
one is really for the most advancedlearner, somebody that wants to commit to
a year to become a financial disciplesIt's a discipleship development program. And so
the way the system works, ifsomebody started in the beginning and went all
(22:29):
the way through, could be threeyears of learning. By the time they
come out on the other side,they are a financial disciple and they're equipped
to go lead others. It's alsoset up to be ala carte, so
if somebody just wanted to go grabone piece of information or had one felt
need, it's designed to support thatas well. Wow, lots of great
(22:55):
or resources that can meet people exactlywhere they are, but also chat challenge
them to grow and brandon And withthe impact that Compass makes, especially as
CEO, is what is so excitingto you? What do you what gets
you out of bed every single daywith just the impact this organization makes.
(23:21):
Well, it's seeing howards mission fulfilledand so his You know, our mission
has two parts to it. Weteach people what the Bible says about money
so we can point them to Christ. And so what wakes us up in
the morning and what really gives usfulfillment is when people understand what the Bible
(23:41):
says about money, you know whoowns it, what their role is,
begin to start to apply those things, make the progress. But then through
all that they grow closer in theirrelationship with Christ. That is the most
important thing. It's not about themoney at the end, it's about saved
(24:02):
lives. It's about Jesus Christ.It's about glorifying God. And that is
what is the most fulfilling and forme coming in here over the last five
years. When you see that happen, when you see somebody realize for the
first time, like God owns themoney and the light bulb goes on.
(24:23):
It's awesome. And then when yousee somebody get to the place where they're
on a budget, they're spending lessthan they make, they're giving and saving,
they're getting out of debt, it'sawesome. When they become debt free,
it's awesome. And when they saynow it's my turn to pay it
(24:44):
forward and you see the generosity increase, you see them step into leadership roles,
whether they're on staff or volunteer,it's awesome. And so that's truly
yet pointing people towards Jesus and seeingpeople take the initiative and and just transforming
their whole life, their heart theyhad their hands to feed all of it
(25:06):
for Jesus. And seeing God beingglorified. Man, that's what it's all
about. Amazing. Well, Brandon, before we get ready to wrap,
and I understand if you have tokeep, you know, be tight lift
about some things. But is theresomething in twenty twenty four that you're looking
forward to that Compass is working onthat you might be able to divulge a
(25:29):
detail or two about. Absolutely,And I'll give you three things quick.
One, we have a new videostudy that's for the Church Dying for Sunday
School, a large classrooms, veryeasy to teach, watch a video,
throw out some provocative questions, andtalk about it with your Sunday School when.
(25:52):
I'm very excited about that. Secondis a semester long curriculum that's going
to be for young people sixteen totwenty two years old that may have jobs
and some sources of income or maynot. And so it's really excited about
that. And the third thing,which is a project that's probably going to
be out by the end of thisyear or next year, is going to
(26:15):
be specific material focused on low incomepeople that are really struggling, people that
are in poverty. And it's adifferent customer and there are different needs in
there, and so I'm very veryexcited about stepping in and trying to help
the low income community get into abetter place in their life and also to
(26:40):
see Jesus as the reason for gettingup in the morning and taking those steps.
Lots of exciting things coming up forCompass, Brandon. I look forward
to learning more about all those resources, as I know the listeners are as
well. Well. Brandon, thankyou so much for taking time out to
come on the forty five life.You've given so many nuggets of wisdom and
(27:04):
gotten us all excited about financial discipleship. Where can people go to learn more
about Compass Compass one dot Org isour website, or they can go to
if they want to send us anemail, they can go to info at
Compass one, door or org.The website or email would be the great,
(27:29):
great way to get to us.And I want to say before we
go, thank you, Jason.I mean, I'm so encouraged by what
you're doing, brother, and I'mso encouraged by your heart and I'm so
encouraged by your story and just keepcharging for Christ. We need more like
you out there. So whatever wecan do to serve view and support your
(27:52):
listener group, let us know andput us in, put us in the
game, and we're end us together. And then I appreciate that Brandon,
and folks, we'll have all we'llhave links to all the resources that Brandon
is talking about, So don't youworry Jericho Force dot com, Slash podcasts
or Fortified Life Podcasts dot com,So don't worry. Well, Brandon,
(28:18):
thank you so much again for comingout on the show and hanging out with
us. Thanks again, Jason,really appreciate you having me. Well,
everybody, you know how we leavethings. Don't compartmentalize your faith in the
marketplace and from the boardroom to thebathroom. God is with you. We'll
see you next time on the FortifiedLife podcast. I was walking in the
(28:41):
neighborhood with my God seeing his beautyabsolutely had me in all the trees and
the birds, the sun shining withall its glory. But my journey took
me up a hill and I startedto tire. But that's when the spirit
of the Lord started to inspire mewith words from heaven and all his glory.
(29:04):
He send to me, my honI you were you the product with
them the key and the story ofhow the Lord encouraged my spirit with sounds
from heaven heaven above throwing with hiswisdom carry young Gary carry un. Spirit
(29:26):
of God says, very un carryungry n Gary, carry un sons and
does very gry uncry uncry n Garygry un. The spirit of God says,
very uncry unairy young Gary carry unsons and does cary gary n.
(29:51):
My son, my son, youwere tired and fatied and downcast. You
think I'd left you alone with unfulfilled. Sire, you're up, Blake,
You're up early. Kind need toget money and impact. You say things
like I got son, I'm justnone in the dry things my way this
(30:14):
time. And focus on others,not just yourself. There's a fire inside
you and I don't need you getdistracted by anything else. Keep these words
ALIGNE. I need you to riseto the occasion. Drive called you my
son to speak to the nation.Carry Gary, carry on. The spirit
(30:37):
on done says very on. Carryon, carry on, Gary, carry
on, sons and Gary carry on, carry on, carry on, Gary,
carry on the spirit of done,says very un carry uncary, you
very gory. Thank you for listeningto the Fortified Life podcast. You can
(31:04):
catch us live on Wednesdays at eightthirty pm Eastern Times and on demand.
Check out Fortified Life podcast dot comfor more details. So learn how to
live out your faith in the marketplace. Grab a copy of Jason Davis's book
Fortified, Being Rooted in God's Planfor Work and Business, available on Amazon.
(31:26):
You listening to do see what yourpotip
God's given me power over the enemy. God's given me power with all authority.
Nothing can hurt me, nothing canharm me. He's given me power,
(00:53):
power gods in. God's giving mepower. God's given me with all
the horty and nothing can hurt me. No, nothing can harm me.
(01:19):
No, no, I no know. He's given me. He's getting me
fo He's gonna be Welcome to theforty My Life podcast, where we learn
(02:00):
how to develop a dependency on Jesusin the marketplace, from the border to
the bathroom. God is with you. Here's our host, author, speaker,
speaker, encourager Howard to coach myhusband the man they called us Recordified
Kicktion. Hey, what's going oneverybody? Jason Davis aka a Mister forty
(02:25):
five back with another episode of theforty five Life Podcast where we're passionate about
developing a dependency on Jesus and themarketplace. Really excited about our guest this
week because the organization this person workswith has had a big impact on my
life personally, and so I'm excitedto have this conversation. Before I bring
(02:47):
him on, let me introduce andTee. After nearly three years in a
mentoring relationship with founder and chairman HowardDayton. Brandon Steven joined Compass Finances God's
Way as its President and CEO inSeptember twenty nineteen. Brandon is excited to
serve Compass in pursuit of its globalvision to see everyone everywhere faithfully living by
(03:13):
God's financial principles in every area oftheir lives. Brandon, Welcome to the
forty five Life. How's it going, man? Going great? Jason,
thank you for having me. Yes, well, Brandon, I'm excited to
have you on. I know inthe bio there you came on in twenty
nineteen, but if you don't mind, just give us a little bit of
(03:35):
history with your professional background and howyou got the Compass Well nonprofit was new
to me in twenty nineteen. Priorto that, I spent twenty five years
in corporate America. Was a businessguy and had a chance to do about
everything in business. My education's financeand accounty. So I started there and
then just kind of worked my wayup over the years, and for the
(03:59):
twenty five five years in business,had an opportunity to lead a number of
different companies globally and domestically, andas you mentioned, I met Howard in
twenty sixteen and we went through aprocess of mental learning just completely transformed my
life and so joined Compass in twentynineteen and coming up on five years here,
(04:20):
Wow wow, that you know,Brandon brings up something interesting transition for
some people, you know they've donethe business and nonprofit or nonprofited business.
But what was your experience like?Was that? Was it seamless? Was
it you weren't really sure and youhad to take a step of faith?
(04:41):
What was it like for you?A long journey? It's probably more than
I can answer in a podcast,but sure, ten years of really reflecting
on what God had for me,he was putting different thoughts on my heart.
Of mentoring with my dad, workingwith Howard and just you know,
(05:02):
you get conditioned in business to pursuemore and you get conditioned to believe that
this is all you can be andit's great in business, it was financially
rewarding. I had a great runwith the companies that I was with,
and you have a lot of fearwhat's going to happen if I make the
(05:23):
transition? And so when I metHoward and we started to talk about life
and what it means to be aChristian, and we went into what the
Bible says, I mean really says. There's there's love in the Bible.
There's also truth and the Bible,and Howard showed me both and so it
was really getting convicted and wanting tobe on the right side of the conversation.
(05:47):
The day I meet Jesus, youknow, I want to hear well
done, my good and faithful servant. It's going to be a bad day,
I think if it's a different conversation. Was really the opportunity God connecting
me with Howard and then really understandingwhat God had in store for me.
(06:08):
That truly became the catalyst for makinga change. You know, right,
you touched on something huge, becauseBrandon, I feel like whether you're talking
about in a church environment or evenin the business world, mentoring and a
(06:29):
lot of people have their own perspectiveson that. But can you just talk
about just the mentorship relationship you toldyou touched on how the love and the
truth part, But especially with thenext generation coming up, how important is
mentoring That we live in an informationage or so much with social media and
(06:53):
all that, it seems like there'sonly pockets of it going on. Can
you just touch on how important itreally is as each generation transitions. It's
significant, it's critical. I mean, it's so important, and it's needed
with young people. You know,we have three teenage daughters and they need
(07:13):
it. They need to know thatJesus loved them. They obviously we have
a responsibility as mom and dad tomentor our kids, but they're not getting
it in school and they're not reallygetting it in their peer group either,
And so it's a very important rolethat can be played by young people and
old people. And you know,it's some of the best mentors are people
(07:35):
like Howard, my dad, othersthat have experienced life and have so much
to give to these young people.And with Howard, you know, he
has a process and we have aprogram called One More and it basically is
go through some books and then applyit to your life together. So,
(07:58):
for example, the first book wetogether was Humility, the book written by
Andrew Murray, a South African andeighteen ninety five, but it could have
been written today and it really posesthe question really or what does it mean
to live in Christ? What doesit mean to be humble? What does
it mean to surrender? These arebasic things that mean everything to a young
(08:22):
person, having an anchor or havingan identity in something that's lasting. Many
of the other things that they're grabbingfor today are fleeting, you know,
and so it's in the world,but not of the world. But mentoring
is very, very important. It'salso a great way that people learn.
(08:46):
You know, only ten percent oflearning comes from classroom instruction. The proven
fact, you know, twenty percentcomes from mentoring and seventy percent comes from
experience. And so if you canhave a mentor that helps you get experienced,
then you're being you know, youhave the ability to be guided in
(09:07):
your life and to get kind ofexperiences that help you along your your your
Christian walk and journey. Wow,that's powerful, Brandon, and I think
that's so relevant to how the transitionoccurs. And you're now president CEO of
(09:28):
of Compass. When you came toCompass, Brandon, what was that like?
Where you were you more in observationmode trying to understand where the org
has been and certainly Howard's mentoring playeda factor in that. But what was
that maybe that first year, likebecoming the leader of a brand new organization,
(09:50):
Well, to be honest, Iwas like a fish out of water.
I mean, I mean nonprofit Christianministry is so different than for fuck
profit business, and so, youknow, just joining the team and humility
and being someone that was prepared tolearn and coachable was a huge step.
(10:11):
We have a great team. Howardwas great. We have a lot of
people in our ministry that have beenaround a long time, and so just
trying to get into their world andunderstand what the ministry needed and how ministries
operate was a very critical step forme. And it took every bit of
a year and I'm still learning,you know. I joke with Howard the
(10:35):
first six months, I probably quitat least once a week just because it
was so different and so difficult.In business, it's very clear you make
products or services, you go findcustomers. You know, you do a
deal and as long as you providegood, good service and execute while they're
(10:56):
going to keep on buying from you. And nonprofit that space, it's a
it's a it's an episodic event thatreally requires daily nurturing, you know,
for trying to disciple people, whichwhich we are at Compass. It's really
how do you play the long gameand serve people with distinction, and so
over time, I think it's becomea really good blend. I mean there's
(11:20):
some things that I picked up frommy experience in business that have complimented what
we need in the ministry. Andalso there are things in the ministry that
have really helped me become a betterperson and leader than I was before.
I mean, simple truths like waiton the Lord. I mean, we
(11:43):
don't really do that in business.We have an idea and we go versus
and ministry, you know, maybewe have an idea, we pray about
it, we wait for some feedbackfrom God and then and then we move
forward. And so it's just beena great learning, but it was a
tough transition, Brandon. Can youtalk about for those who may not know.
(12:07):
I know, the Compass will alwaysbe special to me just because of
a lot of the materials that youall have that provide financial discipleship. And
we'll come back to that terminology later. But for those who don't know who
Compasses, Brandon, can you introducewho Compasses and what they do for serving
(12:28):
the community at large. Yes,we are a nonprofit, non denominational,
a political, global Christian ministry.So We're in sixty to eighty countries around
the world, and we teach peoplewhat the Bible says about money and how
(12:48):
to apply it to their life.So it's Compass Finances God's Way, and
that's really our charter. That's whatGod has called us to do, to
show people what's in his book onmoney and break it down into ways that
they can practically apply it to theirlife. And then once they understand and
are applying God's principles on money andpossessions, give them tools and help them
(13:13):
build capability so they can take itto everyone in their sphere of influence,
their family, their business, theirchurch, their community, etc. Love
that and Brandon front and center.If someone goes to Compasses website right there
you see that financial discipleship. Talkabout what that is and how it factors
(13:35):
into learning about God's ways of handlingmoney. Well. Financial discipleship is really
designed to be a holistic approach tofinances God's Way. So every serious Christian
who believes the Bible is the Wordof God and wants to go deeper,
(13:58):
here's about discipleship. Jesus is veryclear in Matthew four discipleship is a priority
when he says, follow me andI'll make you fishers of men. And
he's very clear at the end ofMatthew and the Great Commission where all the
go make disciples, teaching them allthat I've commanded, which should include the
money part. And between Matthew fourand Matthew twenty eight, Jesus talks about
(14:18):
money over a hundred times, andso it's discipleship is a priority for Jesus.
Money is a priority for Jesus,and using money to advance his kingdom
is all connected to financial discipleship.So at the highest level, what financial
discipleship is is following Jesus, makingdisciples and glorifying God in the area of
(14:41):
money and possessions. Huge, huge, Brandon. When we think about financial
discipleship, it starts with the foundation. And one of the things I love
that you all have is you allactually have five pillars. And I'm sure
brain and that could be like itsown whole other thing, but just touching
(15:05):
on them briefly, the ownership,surrender, choice, multiplication, and eternal
focus, you mind, just touchingon those and how they establish that foundations
as those five strong pillars. Absolutely, and for me, when I got
to compass you know, you're you'restaring down two thousand, three hundred and
(15:26):
fifty verses and thirty five topics andthe Bible on money, and it's overwhelming,
and for a lot of people,it's overwhelming. And so these five
pillars really become the foundation for everythingthe Bible says, and five words are
things that people can recall and theycan connect scripture too. So ownership,
(15:48):
surrender, choice, multiplication, andeternal focus become a framework for what's in
the Bible on money. They're separatepillars, separate items, but their relation
there's like a progression there. Soownership really drives to whose money it is.
It's God's money. The money comesfrom God. He and trusts that
(16:10):
money to us. It needs togo back to God, you know,
and saw twenty four one or firstChronicle of twenty nine to eleven through twelve.
A lot of scripture talk about God'sownership. So if God owns the
money, what's our job. Ourjob is to be surrendered to the lordship
of Christ and to be good stewards, and that's surrender. He can look
at Luke fourteen thirty three or FirstCorinthians four to a lot of scripture that
(16:33):
talk about our role of stewards surrenderto the lordship with that money, and
he entrusted with us. Choice thenis the decision we make every day.
And Jesus is clearer. And Matthewsixty got to choose God our money.
He could have chosen any topic toput up there against God, and he
chose money, which is it's achief competitor. It's universal. Everybody deals
(16:59):
with money. Almost every decision wemake touches money. So you've got to
choose every day. And so ifwe have those first three things, God
owns the money, we're surrendered tothe lordship, and we choose money every
day. These three first three pillarsreally are a setup for the rest of
financial discipleship. And these three togetherkind of form what stewardship means. Stewardship
(17:23):
in and of itself does not enough. And we've been talking about stewardship for
twenty years and stewardship has become aslong as I'm doing it, that's enough.
That's not what's in the Bible.Once we have stewardship down, now
we're equipped to go do what Jesusreally wants us to do, to go
(17:44):
disciple to others, and then tohelp people see every financial decision they make
is a spiritual decision. And somultiplication really becomes how do I use my
time, talent, and treasure tomake disciples of other people, to help
my family, business, community,church, et cetera, understand and apply
what God says about money and aneternal focus is about pointing people to the
(18:08):
Lord and that the reason that wehave money is to be able to glorify
God. And you can see thatin First Timidity six and so many other
places in scripture. Multiplication the parableof the talents and Matthew twenty five or
even the Luke nineteen version is areally good place to look there. And
(18:29):
so those five tillers then become thefoundation for people to go a little bit
deeper and to the thirty five topicsand the more practical topics that people struggle
with, like what should I tie? You know, tell me about this
debt thing, I got a spendingproblem. All these things they all roll
(18:51):
up to these five pillers. Soif you get these five tillers right,
typically it leads to what we're reallyafter first, which is not the head
knowledge. It's transactional, but it'sthe heart transformation, finances really doing finances
God Day, Jason is first aboutheart transformation and when we surrender to the
(19:11):
lordship of Christ and invite the HolySpirit end the application of financis finances God.
I believe it's fairly simple and straightforward. Without the heart, it's very
difficult to sustain. You know.That's why I have such an issue with
just financial literacy these days. It'sa big topic. It just doesn't sustain
(19:33):
biblical financial literacy. You know,Jesus is the rock and obedience is required
to really make it over the longhaul. Amen, Brandon. That that'll
preach in a sermon as well everythingthat you said. One of the things
I like about Compass, Brandon isyou have the pillars, but then as
(19:53):
you as you alluded to, peoplehave different issues. It may be debt
for someone, it may be overspendingfor someone else, and you all have
different resources and learning systems to meetpeople where they're at. Can you talk
to us about how Compass what resourcekind of pairs with where people are at?
(20:18):
Yes, we have over two hundreddifferent products and services that are designed
to help people understand, apply andmultiply finances God's Way and so we've organized
these products and what you just referencethe system of learning, and it's really
a curriculum that would almost emulate aschool curriculum or a college curriculum, you
(20:38):
know. So we have the oneon one, two oh one and three
oh one progression, and so ifsomebody didn't know anything about finances, God's
Way, they could start with ourone on one curriculum. These are things
like blogs, devotionals, two minutevideos, workshops, you know, the
basics, just to get their feetwhat can get some understanding, or if
(21:02):
they had a specific felt need,like I don't even know where my money
is going on in real trouble.I just need to get on a budget,
we have a workshop for budgeting.My marriage is on the ropes,
you know, and money's the problem. We have a workshop on money and
marriage. So those kind of thingseither respond to early learner or somebody that's
(21:22):
that's got a problem, a feltneed or I'm in debt, you know,
and what do I do? Thosekind of things that address those topics.
Then the progression goes to two ohone again, which is a little
bit deeper, a little bit moreadvanced. We have a number of financial
discipleship studies that are led by others. So one oh one is can be
(21:42):
a little bit more DIY, doit yourself, and two a one is
a little bit more you know mentormentee, and the idea and the studies
is to help people go much muchdeeper in terms of the foundation of what
the Bible says and how it getsapplied. And so they're they're you know,
basic blocking and tackling finances, God'sway to long range planning to what
(22:06):
is my legacy need to be foradults, for married couples, and for
kids. So there's a broad setof products there. And then three oh
one is really for the most advancedlearner, somebody that wants to commit to
a year to become a financial disciplesIt's a discipleship development program. And so
the way the system works, ifsomebody started in the beginning and went all
(22:29):
the way through, could be threeyears of learning. By the time they
come out on the other side,they are a financial disciple and they're equipped
to go lead others. It's alsoset up to be ala carte, so
if somebody just wanted to go grabone piece of information or had one felt
need, it's designed to support thatas well. Wow, lots of great
(22:55):
or resources that can meet people exactlywhere they are, but also chat challenge
them to grow and brandon And withthe impact that Compass makes, especially as
CEO, is what is so excitingto you? What do you what gets
you out of bed every single daywith just the impact this organization makes.
(23:21):
Well, it's seeing howards mission fulfilledand so his You know, our mission
has two parts to it. Weteach people what the Bible says about money
so we can point them to Christ. And so what wakes us up in
the morning and what really gives usfulfillment is when people understand what the Bible
(23:41):
says about money, you know whoowns it, what their role is,
begin to start to apply those things, make the progress. But then through
all that they grow closer in theirrelationship with Christ. That is the most
important thing. It's not about themoney at the end, it's about saved
(24:02):
lives. It's about Jesus Christ.It's about glorifying God. And that is
what is the most fulfilling and forme coming in here over the last five
years. When you see that happen, when you see somebody realize for the
first time, like God owns themoney and the light bulb goes on.
(24:23):
It's awesome. And then when yousee somebody get to the place where they're
on a budget, they're spending lessthan they make, they're giving and saving,
they're getting out of debt, it'sawesome. When they become debt free,
it's awesome. And when they saynow it's my turn to pay it
(24:44):
forward and you see the generosity increase, you see them step into leadership roles,
whether they're on staff or volunteer,it's awesome. And so that's truly
yet pointing people towards Jesus and seeingpeople take the initiative and and just transforming
their whole life, their heart theyhad their hands to feed all of it
(25:06):
for Jesus. And seeing God beingglorified. Man, that's what it's all
about. Amazing. Well, Brandon, before we get ready to wrap,
and I understand if you have tokeep, you know, be tight lift
about some things. But is theresomething in twenty twenty four that you're looking
forward to that Compass is working onthat you might be able to divulge a
(25:29):
detail or two about. Absolutely,And I'll give you three things quick.
One, we have a new videostudy that's for the Church Dying for Sunday
School, a large classrooms, veryeasy to teach, watch a video,
throw out some provocative questions, andtalk about it with your Sunday School when.
(25:52):
I'm very excited about that. Secondis a semester long curriculum that's going
to be for young people sixteen totwenty two years old that may have jobs
and some sources of income or maynot. And so it's really excited about
that. And the third thing,which is a project that's probably going to
be out by the end of thisyear or next year, is going to
(26:15):
be specific material focused on low incomepeople that are really struggling, people that
are in poverty. And it's adifferent customer and there are different needs in
there, and so I'm very veryexcited about stepping in and trying to help
the low income community get into abetter place in their life and also to
(26:40):
see Jesus as the reason for gettingup in the morning and taking those steps.
Lots of exciting things coming up forCompass, Brandon. I look forward
to learning more about all those resources, as I know the listeners are as
well. Well. Brandon, thankyou so much for taking time out to
come on the forty five life.You've given so many nuggets of wisdom and
(27:04):
gotten us all excited about financial discipleship. Where can people go to learn more
about Compass Compass one dot Org isour website, or they can go to
if they want to send us anemail, they can go to info at
Compass one, door or org.The website or email would be the great,
(27:29):
great way to get to us.And I want to say before we
go, thank you, Jason.I mean, I'm so encouraged by what
you're doing, brother, and I'mso encouraged by your heart and I'm so
encouraged by your story and just keepcharging for Christ. We need more like
you out there. So whatever wecan do to serve view and support your
(27:52):
listener group, let us know andput us in, put us in the
game, and we're end us together. And then I appreciate that Brandon,
and folks, we'll have all we'llhave links to all the resources that Brandon
is talking about, So don't youworry Jericho Force dot com, Slash podcasts
or Fortified Life Podcasts dot com,So don't worry. Well, Brandon,
(28:18):
thank you so much again for comingout on the show and hanging out with
us. Thanks again, Jason,really appreciate you having me. Well,
everybody, you know how we leavethings. Don't compartmentalize your faith in the
marketplace and from the boardroom to thebathroom. God is with you. We'll
see you next time on the FortifiedLife podcast. I was walking in the
(28:41):
neighborhood with my God seeing his beautyabsolutely had me in all the trees and
the birds, the sun shining withall its glory. But my journey took
me up a hill and I startedto tire. But that's when the spirit
of the Lord started to inspire mewith words from heaven and all his glory.
(29:04):
He send to me, my honI you were you the product with
them the key and the story ofhow the Lord encouraged my spirit with sounds
from heaven heaven above throwing with hiswisdom carry young Gary carry un. Spirit
(29:26):
of God says, very un carryungry n Gary, carry un sons and
does very gry uncry uncry n Garygry un. The spirit of God says,
very uncry unairy young Gary carry unsons and does cary gary n.
(29:51):
My son, my son, youwere tired and fatied and downcast. You
think I'd left you alone with unfulfilled. Sire, you're up, Blake,
You're up early. Kind need toget money and impact. You say things
like I got son, I'm justnone in the dry things my way this
(30:14):
time. And focus on others,not just yourself. There's a fire inside
you and I don't need you getdistracted by anything else. Keep these words
ALIGNE. I need you to riseto the occasion. Drive called you my
son to speak to the nation.Carry Gary, carry on. The spirit
(30:37):
on done says very on. Carryon, carry on, Gary, carry
on, sons and Gary carry on, carry on, carry on, Gary,
carry on the spirit of done,says very un carry uncary, you
very gory. Thank you for listeningto the Fortified Life podcast. You can
(31:04):
catch us live on Wednesdays at eightthirty pm Eastern Times and on demand.
Check out Fortified Life podcast dot comfor more details. So learn how to
live out your faith in the marketplace. Grab a copy of Jason Davis's book
Fortified, Being Rooted in God's Planfor Work and Business, available on Amazon.
(31:26):
You listening to do see what yourpotip
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