Kingdom Entrepreneur

What does it really mean to build a business God's way? Can Christian entrepreneurs grow a profitable company, lead with integrity, build lasting trust, and still put people before profits? 

In this episode of Kingdom Entrepreneur, Stephen Lambert, owner of Oprex, shares how faith-based leadership, biblical business principles, and servant leadership have transformed the way he approaches entrepreneurship, business growth, and success.

After transitioning from the oil and gas industry into commercial construction, Stephen discovered that building a successful business requires more than financial growth, operational excellence, or landing bigger projects. It takes humility, accountability, strong company culture, honest communication, and a willingness to trust God when circumstances are beyond your control. From costly construction mistakes and broken client relationships to difficult hiring decisions and financial setbacks, Stephen shares the leadership lessons that shaped his journey.

If you're a Christian business owner, entrepreneur, CEO, or leader struggling to balance faith and business, this conversation offers practical encouragement for leading with purpose. Discover why character matters as much as competence, why admitting mistakes strengthens relationships, and how surrendering control to God can reshape your definition of success. Learn what it means to build a Kingdom-minded business that honors God, serves employees, strengthens families, and leaves a legacy beyond money.

You’ll Learn:

→ Why people matter more than profits: How Stephen builds a company culture around integrity, communication, teamwork, persistence, and excellence while prioritizing employees, clients, and subcontractors.

→ How to rebuild trust after costly business mistakes: The lessons Stephen learned from a troubled construction project, significant financial losses, and a damaged client relationship, and why accountability and competence must work together.

→ How to trust God without abandoning your responsibilities: Why faith-driven entrepreneurs must pursue opportunities, make difficult decisions, manage cash flow, and work diligently while trusting God with the outcome.

→ Three leadership lessons that change everything: How humility, continuous learning, and overcoming fear help business owners escape a scarcity mindset, develop stronger teams, and pursue a legacy that lasts.

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Some of the most successful men are also the loneliest.

They lead companies, churches, teams, and families. Everyone comes to them for answers, but they may have no one they can call when they’re struggling. In this episode of Kingdom Entrepreneur, JD Small shares why male friendship, Christian community, accountability, vulnerability, leadership, and authentic relationships are essential for men who want to succeed without destroying what matters most.

If you’re an entrepreneur, business owner, Christian leader, husband, father, or high-capacity man carrying more than anyone realizes, this conversation is for you.

JD explains why “lonely at the top” should never become a leadership strategy, how successful men can have hundreds of connections without having one person who truly knows them, and why isolation can quietly threaten your marriage, business, faith, health, and legacy. He also shares the story behind The Forge, a community built around six areas of a man’s life: faith, family, fitness, finance, friendship, and fun.

You’ll discover why vulnerability creates stronger leaders, how healthy accountability helps you live up to your potential, why friendship requires intentional investment, and how simply asking someone “How are you really?” can open the door to a completely different kind of relationship.

What You’ll Learn:

→ Why successful men can be surrounded by employees, customers, church members, business contacts, and family yet still feel completely unknown, and why having even one or two trusted friends can radically change your leadership and life.

→ How to build meaningful male friendships when you’re busy, including JD’s practical advice for initiating conversations, inviting another man to coffee, working out together, doing activities shoulder-to-shoulder, and learning to “get deep quick.”

→ What healthy accountability actually looks like and why JD defines it as helping another man “account for his ability” rather than judging or condemning him.

→ How faith, family, fitness, finance, friendship, and fun work together, and why men who neglect relationships, emotional health, spiritual disciplines, rest, and community may achieve outward success while quietly losing the people and priorities that matter most.

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Can a business be growing and still be financially unhealthy? And how should a Christian entrepreneur balance faith, money, risk, debt, leadership, and family without treating business and ministry as two completely separate worlds?

In this episode of Kingdom Entrepreneur, banker and executive pastor Jonathan Hill shares lessons from nearly 20 years in commercial banking, church leadership, financial stewardship, and personal growth. Jonathan explains why Christian business owners cannot rely on revenue alone, why cash flow and accurate financial statements matter, how debt can become either a useful tool or dangerous risk, and why faith should never become an excuse to ignore financial wisdom.

We also explore biblical stewardship, Christian entrepreneurship, leadership, business relationships, emotional intelligence, mentoring, integrity, wealth, business growth, and the difference between appearing successful and actually building a healthy life.

If you’re a Christian entrepreneur, business owner, leader, or professional trying to build something successful without sacrificing your faith, family, finances, or integrity, this conversation will challenge how you define both business success and personal wealth.

What You’ll Learn:

→ You’ll discover why growth and financial health are not the same thing and how rapid expansion can actually create serious cash-flow problems.

→ Jonathan explains the financial numbers entrepreneurs should watch, including cash, expenses, balance sheets, profit-and-loss statements, bank reconciliations, and financial trends.

→ You’ll hear how to distinguish faith from financial foolishness, including the role of prayer, Scripture, wise counsel, accurate numbers, and understanding the risk behind debt.

→ You’ll also learn why relationships outperform transactions, why integrity begins with the people closest to you, and how Christian entrepreneurs can treat the marketplace itself as an opportunity for ministry.

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Your employees are wearing your reputation every time they pull up to a customer’s home. Before they explain their experience, show their craftsmanship, or even say hello, customers are already forming an opinion about your contracting business based on how your team looks.

In this episode of The Builder’s Edge, Deanna Lucas sits down with Jace Stevens, founder of Onward Customs, to break down how employee uniforms, custom apparel, contractor branding, brand identity, and visual consistency influence customer trust. If you own a construction company, home service business, or blue-collar company, you’ll discover why branding is much bigger than putting a logo on a shirt. Jace explains why clean, consistent employee apparel can make a smaller contractor look more established, why putting phone numbers and every service you offer on a shirt may actually weaken your brand, and how your uniforms should connect with your trucks, website, business cards, signs, social media, and customer experience. You’ll also hear how companies can provide professional branded apparel without constantly buying large bulk orders or wasting money on unused inventory.

If you want customers to see the quality of your company before your crew ever starts the job, this conversation is for you.

You’ll learn:

→ Why your employees become the face of your company faster than many business owners realize, and how their appearance influences the first impression customers form about your professionalism.

→ Why simple, consistent contractor uniforms can create stronger brand recognition than shirts overloaded with phone numbers, services, colors, and marketing information.

→ How a clear brand identity connects your employee apparel, truck wraps, website, signage, business cards, social media, and customer experience so everything tells the same story.

→ How employee apparel portals and clothing allowances can help growing contractors control uniform costs, reduce wasted inventory, give employees appropriate choices, and maintain consistent branding as the company grows.

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Learn more about Deanna Lucas through the following links:

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What if the key to building a successful business isn’t loving your product, but learning how to lead people, solve problems, build relationships, and steward what you’ve been given?

In this episode of Kingdom Entrepreneur, Casey Doyle shares the leadership principles behind carrying forward a third-generation family business that began in 1947. Casey explains why flooring itself isn’t what motivates him, the people, relationships, teams, and opportunities the business creates are what matter most. From moving out of education and coaching into the family business to navigating difficult seasons, expanding into new ventures, developing employees, managing risk, and balancing work with faith and family, Casey offers practical lessons for entrepreneurs and business leaders at every stage.

You’ll also hear why he believes entrepreneurs should stop obsessing over finding their passion and instead “find a problem and get to work,” why character matters more than competence when hiring, how the right business partners can create more horsepower, and why Christian entrepreneurship begins with replacing an ownership mentality with a stewardship mentality.

Highlights:

→ Casey explains how his years as a teacher and coach taught him to build teams, motivate people, handle wins and losses, and create a company culture where employees stay.

→ You’ll discover how Casey approaches family business leadership, including working with a brother whose strengths are almost the exact opposite of his own and why those differences make the company stronger.

→ Casey shares the four priorities that guide his time, God, his wife, his children, and everything else competing for his attention, and why getting that order wrong eventually affects the business.

→ You’ll hear his philosophy of relationship equity, partnerships, calculated risk, stewardship, hard work, and becoming memorable enough that people think about you even when you aren’t in the room.

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The bank said no to your business loan. Now what?

A business financing rejection doesn’t always mean your project is bad, your company is too risky, or your opportunity is over. Sometimes the problem is your equity, credit, collateral, experience, project timing, or use of funds. Other times, you may simply be talking to a lender whose lending model was never designed for your deal.

In this episode of The Builder’s Edge, Deanna Lucas talks with Jordan Blanchard, co-founder of X-Caliber Capital, about what business owners, contractors, developers, and entrepreneurs should do after being denied business financing. Jordan brings more than 40 years of banking and government lending experience and explains how lenders evaluate commercial loans, USDA OneRD loans, SBA financing, construction financing, equipment financing, and large business expansion projects.

You’ll hear what lenders actually want to see before approving a loan, why equity matters, what makes a project “shovel-ready,” how credit and collateral affect the decision, and why one lender can reject a project another lender is willing to finance.

If you’re trying to grow your business, purchase equipment, build a facility, expand locations, or finance a major project, this conversation can help you approach your next lender better prepared.

You’ll Learn:

→ How to tell whether a lender rejected your business because of a weakness in the deal or because the loan simply didn’t fit that lender’s programs, lending limits, policies, or risk tolerance.

→ Why equity, project readiness, industry experience, credit, collateral, and a clearly defined use of funds can dramatically affect a commercial lending decision.

→ How USDA OneRD loans, SBA loans, conventional business loans, construction financing, and other funding sources can fit very different types and sizes of projects.

→ What to do after multiple lenders say no, including asking for specific feedback, correcting weaknesses, preparing a concise two-to-four-page project summary, and finding a lender whose financing model fits the opportunity.

Learn more about Deanna Lucas through the following links:

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Learn more about Deanna Lucas through the following links:

AI Visibility Scorecard

Builders Visibility Blueprint

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DND Youtube

Email Template for 5 Star Reviews

Facebook

Facebook Group

LinkedIn

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

What happens when success, money, leadership, and ambition still leave you broken on the inside?

In this episode of Kingdom Entrepreneur, Andrew Swofford shares the hard business and life lessons that completely changed the way he sees success, Christian entrepreneurship, leadership, marriage, identity, and faith. After years of chasing financial success, Andrew reached a point where he believed he could lose his marriage, his career, and his family. What happened next transformed the way he understood God, work, business, and his identity as a son.

Andrew also shares the story behind 518 Energy, why Ecclesiastes 5:18 shapes the company’s identity, and how he moved from corporate America into entrepreneurship. This conversation is for Christian entrepreneurs, business owners, leaders, and anyone trying to understand how faith and business can work together without building your own kingdom instead of God’s.

Highlights:

→ You’ll hear why Andrew believes you don’t need a perfect business plan before taking action, how becoming comfortable hearing “no” made him a stronger salesperson and entrepreneur, why character and integrity can matter more than experience when hiring, and how surrounding yourself with people who carry strengths you don’t have can transform your leadership.

→ You’ll also discover Andrew’s “distribution center” approach to stewardship, receiving what God gives without holding tightly to it, and why asking “Who am I in this situation?” can sometimes be more powerful than constantly asking, “What should I do?”

→ Most importantly, Andrew explains why knowing information about Jesus is different from actually knowing Him, and why that distinction became one of the most expensive lessons of his life.

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What would happen to your business if you disappeared for four weeks? Would your employees know what to do, would customers still be taken care of, and would projects keep moving, or would every decision, question, and problem come straight back to you?

In this episode of The Builder's Edge, Deanna Lucas talks with Dr. Sabrina Starling, business psychologist, founder of Tap the Potential, international bestselling author, and creator of The 4 Week Vacation. Sabrina explains how contractors, builders, and small business owners can build a profitable business that runs without the owner being involved in every decision.

You'll learn why chasing revenue can actually make your contracting business more complicated and less profitable, how identifying your best 20% of clients can simplify operations, why hiring A-players based on core values matters, and how systems help you delegate without losing quality. Sabrina also explains the power of $10,000-an-hour activities, the strategic work only the business owner can do, and why moving out of day-to-day firefighting is essential for sustainable business growth.

If you're overwhelmed by employees, customer issues, jobsite problems, constant phone calls, or a business that cannot function without you, this conversation will show you a different way to build.

Highlights:

→ Discover why complexity is the enemy of profit and how narrowing your services and focusing on your most profitable customers can make your construction business easier to manage.

→ Learn how the 80/20 principle can help contractors identify their best clients, reduce difficult projects, improve profitability, and create repeatable systems their team can actually follow.

→ Understand Sabrina's $10,000-an-hour concept and why your highest-value work may not be answering emails, visiting jobsites, or solving employee problems, but thinking strategically about where the business should go next.

→ Learn how to hire A-players, delegate around clearly defined results, use accountability and metrics, and manage outcomes instead of micromanaging employees so your team can perform without constantly depending on you.

Learn more about Deanna Lucas through the following links:

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Learn more about Deanna Lucas through the following links:

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What if leaving church ministry doesn’t mean leaving your calling?

For many Christians, ministry and vocational church work become so closely connected that stepping into business can feel like stepping away from God’s purpose. In this episode of Kingdom Entrepreneur, Mark Hadley shares his journey from youth ministry and senior church leadership into entrepreneurship, and how he discovered that serving God in business isn’t a lesser calling.

Mark explains how he navigated fear, financial uncertainty, identity shifts, and the challenge of starting again with little marketplace credibility. He also shares how his years in pastoral ministry prepared him to become a better consultant, listener, problem solver, and business owner.

If you’re a Christian entrepreneur, pastor considering a career transition, ministry leader exploring business, or believer trying to understand what kingdom entrepreneurship actually looks like, this conversation will help you rethink the relationship between faith, work, calling, stewardship, business, and ministry.

Highlights:

→ You’ll learn how to separate your calling from your paycheck and recognize that ministry can happen far beyond the walls of a church. Mark explains why the skills developed in pastoral ministry can translate surprisingly well into entrepreneurship, especially listening, problem solving, leadership, and serving people through difficult situations.

→ You’ll also hear how to discern whether a business opportunity aligns with your kingdom identity, why entrepreneurs need the discipline to keep showing up before results appear, and how to resist compromising your values when financial pressure increases.

→ Mark shares a practical perspective on stewardship, viewing your time, talent, treasure, influence, and business success as resources God can use. He also explains why Sabbath remains one of the most important disciplines in his life as an entrepreneur and how rest reminds him that the success of his business does not depend entirely on him.

→ Finally, if you’re considering leaving vocational ministry, Mark offers encouragement for navigating the fear of starting something new without abandoning the faith, community, and spiritual identity that shaped you.

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What if one of the biggest problems in your construction business is something you’ve completely normalized?

Scattered emails. Text message approvals. Handwritten notes. Forgotten decisions. Clients calling because they don’t know what happens next. Contractors, builders, architects, remodelers, and residential construction firms deal with these communication problems every day, but the cost can be much bigger than a few wasted minutes.

Poor construction communication can lead to lost time, frustrated customers, project mistakes, damaged trust, fewer referrals, disputes, and hours of unpaid administrative work.

In this episode of The Builder’s Edge, Deanna Lucas sits down with Nola Solomon, founder and CEO of Renoverse AI, to explore how artificial intelligence can help construction businesses organize project communication, automate administrative tasks, document decisions, manage project information, and create a reliable single source of truth.

Nola shares how problems during her own home renovation inspired Renoverse AI and why construction companies don't necessarily need another complicated software platform. They need better ways to connect the emails, texts, files, tasks, conversations, and project management tools they're already using.

If you run a construction, remodeling, architecture, interior design, or service-based business and want to save time while creating a better customer experience, this conversation is for you.

Highlights:

→ Why communication problems become invisible: Discover how construction business owners can become so accustomed to scattered emails, texts, handwritten notes, and disconnected systems that they stop recognizing the damage those workflows create.

→ How AI can reduce construction admin: Learn how AI assistants can capture tasks, draft emails, organize documents, search project files, record job-site notes, and turn everyday conversations into actionable project information.

→ Why documentation protects your business: See how a centralized project record and clear audit trail can help contractors document homeowner decisions, approvals, project changes, responsibilities, and important conversations.

→ How better communication creates more referrals: Learn why customer experience and trust matter so much in residential construction—and how giving clients greater clarity can reduce anxiety, prevent misunderstandings, and strengthen the referrals that drive many construction companies.

Learn more about Deanna Lucas through the following links:

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Learn more about Deanna Lucas through the following links:

AI Visibility Scorecard

Builders Visibility Blueprint

DND Website

DND Youtube

Email Template for 5 Star Reviews

Facebook

Facebook Group

LinkedIn

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.