There was one problem: Cedarville said “no.” Oberbrunner, now in year two as the Berry Chair, framed the rejection letter in his office. “Sometimes it's the right dream, but the wrong time. God wanted me to be an entrepreneur first.” That almost didn’t happen either. He dreamed of leveraging his books into something more, but the business world intimidated him, and with young kids, leaving a stable job with benefits paralyzed him. “It immediately caused panic and fear. Why would people want to hire me? How could I replace my income? I had all these self-limiting beliefs.” Oberbrunner even put out a fleece to someone in the business world, looking for mentorship, just to see if this dreamwas possible. That person denied his request. No doors were opening. Then, one flew open, almost by chance. A friend of Oberbrunner invited him to a talk by John Maxwell, a former pastor who became a leadership guru. Oberbrunner almost didn’t go, only able to secure a babysitter at the last minute while his wife was at work, but as he listened to Maxwell speak, God illuminated his path forward. “I was almost bawling. Something in me came alive as he was talking about impacting others and doing your life’s purpose.” Maxwell was starting a new venture called the John Maxwell Team and mentioned it toward the end of the night. Getting in would cost $5,000, but it included mentorship fromMaxwell himself and the ability to coach others on leadership. The opportunity felt like a chance to bridge the gap between where Oberbrunner was and where he now knew he wanted to go. That same night, he told his wife. Initially, she did not share his enthusiasm. “My wife thought it was a scam. That's bad words for a husband to hear, but she also said if I felt God wanted me to do it, then to go ahead.” After some prayer, Oberbrunner jumped in with both feet. And he thrived. MAKING BUSINESS A MINISTRY Within a year, he had left the pastorate to become an entrepreneur. To some, this move gave the impression that his faith had weakened. For Oberbrunner, it allowed him to explore his true ministry calling. It gave him a way to share his faith with a broader audience. However, sharing his faith in the business world would require a different approach from his days as a pastor. “I had to learn about value creation. When you create value for people, it gives you the permission to share your faith.” He used Bono from the iconic band U2 as an example. “Bono’s currency is his music. It allows him to stand on a bigger stage and share his faith.” He also saw howMaxwell could speak at Dell and Microsoft and Delta and, without turning people off, do it in a way where everyone knew he was talking about God. Oberbrunner viewed these examples as applications of Matthew 5:16, where Jesus exhorts Christians to “let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.” So, in 2012, Oberbrunner set off to create so much value for people in the business world that it gave him the right to share his faith with his clients and stakeholders. That began by creating his own personal brand around his books, not just publishing them but creating value for people through speaking on the topic, providing seminars, coaching, and more. Those efforts would eventually become foundational to his success: turning his and others’ ideas into 18 streams of income. It was a huge success, and in the spring of 2014, so many people asked him how to publish their own books that he set up a phone call with dozens of interested parties to answer their questions. It was on that phone call that his own personal brand exploded into a fully functioning business. He floated the idea of creating a publishing company and explained what that would look like. He told the people on the call that if 25 people would commit to it in the next six months, he’d pause his own work and launch the company. “In 72 hours, all 25 spots were filled.” Oberbrunner smiles like he still can’t believe it. “I said ‘Okay, God. That’s the answer I needed.’” His company, Igniting Souls, has published over 1,100 authors, getting multiple books on major 8 My role is to give students the tools to be in the world but not of the world, to create so much value in the company that they earn the right to share Jesus with others.
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTM4ODY=