Faith and Business with Guest: Tamra Andress

Foreign. Hello, everybody. It's Ron and Hope. Unfiltered. We are so glad to be in your house, in your car, your bathroom, your kitchen, your workspace, wherever you are.

That kind of don't sound right. I don't want to be in their bathroom. I'm just going to be honest with you.

They could be doing their hair, their makeup. That's what we do in the morning.

The thought of it.

We listen to podcasts in the morning. That's what we women do.

I don't want to go in your bathroom with you, but I'm glad you're watching. I'm so glad I'm sucking on this cough drop.

Me, too, because I've been coughing.

Why you've been coughing?

I've been sick for three weeks and I've taken three Covid tests. Every Monday, you have people thinking they.

Can get Covid through the computer. If you say stuff like that right, you can't tell people you've been coughing every week. I have, but allergies from all the traveling.

It is allergy okay? Yes. I'm draining.

I haven't hurt your sleeping at all.

And itchy ears. But I haven't got Covid because I've had it like four times already.

Like a worship leader, somebody. I worship leaders. That covered about 23 times. I think we still have somebody.

I don't think.

She's from the country, bless her heart. And she just.

She claims.

She just rolls.

She claims Covid.

She ain't thinking about no kind of protection anyway, whatsoever. So. Anyway. Anyway, I am. Look at us in our black pants. This is our first time.

Like we're going to a funeral.

Been together in a while. They've had to watch me do one or two of these without you. And I don't think they liked it. I don't think the numbers did good.

When you. Joe, our. One of our producers told me he didn't like it at all.

Did you really say that?

Yeah, he said, ron.

He works for Ron Carpenter Ministries. I'll deal with that.

Ron was just pre. It felt like Ron was just preaching.

All right, I'll call him when this is over.

He said hi.

Anyway.

He said it's much more fun when.

I did really good, though. I really did good. I had a lot of good things to say, but I didn't clown around much. I didn't clown around much.

You're not real.

Because you are a major, major distraction. Am I To my seriousness. Trying to be serious. I haven't seen you in a while.

I know. Well, don't start.

It's been a while. You got in late last night and you brought two grandkids home.

Did. Yeah.

I got in my house last night and my grandkids were at my house from South Carolina.

You knew they were coming. Here's day one today and we've already had a fight. Kellen's already. They raced up and down the hall, me and you.

Fall out the kids.

And they were racing up and down the hall and Kellen slammed into this huge four foot planter and shattered it everywhere on the ground and almost broke his knee. I mean, it's been interesting already. It's boys. Boys will be boys.

I told you they were going to liven things up when they got there.

I love it.

We have a special guest with a special topic and I'm going to kind of forfeit to you because I know her through you, but it's a relationship that has sprung up and become very meaningful to you. And I want you to introduce her appropriately and then kind of tell everybody where we're going. Because the fact is, I don't really preach a success gospel. I believe highly in success. I believe the promise of God and Abraham is I'll make your name great. I'll make you great. I'll bless those who bless you. I'll cur. So I believe it is a covenant promise that God wants me to rise in whatever I do. Yes, but I believe greater than.

Because we're kingdom people.

Yes, but I believe greater than success is significance. In other words, do something in the earth, whether it be business, whether it be ministry. No matter what it is, do something where you leave your print on it where people can tell it was different because you were there. And so I'm excited about being able to talk about people in ministry or in business, but who want to see it elevate and do it God's way. I'll let you take it from here.

So my buddy Tamara Andress is with us today. There she is. My sweet friend. And how we, I mean, you've been knowing us in the ministry for many, many years, but how we actually met was on your podcast about my book last year. Isn't that pretty cool?

It's so amazing and God is so cool because he. He introduced me to you through a third party person who ordained me was someone who was at your All's University and College together back in the day. And so it's just been neat to see how God's been moving since day one, before we ever knew a conversation like this. Would unfold.

I know. It's so cool how. How God orders our steps, brings people into our life. And you, you have been such a major. How could I say it? A B12 shot for me. Yes.

Major encourager.

Yes. You still didn't get me on the beach doing that exercise, though. At the girlfriend's getaway, you waved and I just waved at you. I said, you're doing so good.

Wait a minute, wait a minute. You were exercising? Yeah.

She exercised.

You were trying to get her to exercise. How did that go?

It didn't go.

How did that go?

She laughed at me. She laughed at me. And she ordered French fries.

And I ordered French fries.

She had a French fries and ate a pizza that night and fried chicken the next morning.

But we had a blast, right?

So good in her bikini, so it didn't even matter.

Okay, okay.

My granny. Both.

As long as she can aesthetically pull it off, I guess she's all right. Go ahead. I'm going.

Eat anyway. Tamara. Tamara has her hands and so many buckets, and I don't know what she's eating and drinking, but she's got the Energizer Bunny on her side. Tamara, just share a little bit about who you are, where you're from, what you're doing. I know you just got back from your anniversary trip, so I know you're. That's why you're grinning so big. But just tell the listeners who you are, what you do, and all that good stuff.

Don't assume anything. Tell. Tell them about your world.

Yes.

Tell them what your world's like.

I'm going to bring you inside my world, which, as you can see, if you're watching, is very colorful with intention. I know that so many of us have lived a life that isn't always so bright. And so it's some of my biggest passions to bring joy and B12. I'm going to use that hope all the time now into other people's lives. But my name, like they said, is Tamara Andress. And the Fit In Faith Media team, or ministry, I believe business is ministry, was catapulted after a season of darkness, after a timeframe of working the grind. The American dream, I like to call it the rat race, if you will. I was an entrepreneur for a decade, and I got really burnt out. I got really overwhelmed, and I found myself hiding in plain sight. And I don't know if that means anything to you, but it's one of the reasons that Hope and I connect so well, because we are really good at putting on the face. And we found ourselves starved for love and starved for the attention that we ultimately wanted to see and hear and feel from God. And so when I had an opportunity to reemerge, I call it a quarter life crisis. Thank goodness. Thank God it didn't happen later. My reemergence happened with this company because it's for founders, innovators, and trailblazers no different than anybody listening. You can all wear that hat. You can all claim that title because God calls us movers and shakers for the kingdom. And I got to reposition my as a daughter of the king in business world in the marketplace, because that's where my natural gifts and interests and talents lie, and that's in teaching and training and growing people into their God dream, into their businesses. And so I do it a lot of different ways, whether it's in podcasting, whether it's in business coaching or retreat settings. And one of the ways we get to collaborate again here soon is in a conference situation that's happening in Nashville. So I'm always on the move, and I eat very healthy. Ron and I are on the same team when it comes to.

Yes, you are. You really are. But. But I'm over here just. Just spicing it up for y'.

All.

Let's go. Let's go. I need some spice. I need some sweet tooth.

I go home and I see what she's got on the stove, and I just shake my head because I'm in. I'm in this terrible spot. Because if she cooks and you don't eat what she cooks, that's not going to end well. No, but if you eat what she cooks, then you know what? Those of you that have studied it, you know what it's doing while it gets in there. And so I'm putting this dilemma.

Cook so healthy for you. I do hello Fresh.

You have started doing hello Fresh.

I do our greens.

You put a little gravy on it, but you're doing hello Fresh.

Some extra butter, some extra gravy.

Here's the hello Fresh. And I'll say, what's this? So I just. I'm making a sauce. I'm making a little gravy over here on the side.

It's a sauce, not a gravy. Oh, my gosh.

I'm not gonna uncover you no more.

With the seasoning, with the, like, sauces, all the extra thing. Like, there's a rap song. That's a Christian rap song. Don't worry. And it's. I got the sauce. I got the sauce. Sauce Sauce, Sauce. And it just reminds me of you.

Oh, yay.

I'm making this sauce. Well, what are you making it out of? Well, I took the bacon grease from yesterday morning and run.

You are lying, dad. You about to get struck by lightning. I don't do that. But anyway, back to Tamra. Tamara, let's talk about this conference in November because I'm so excited about it and I want the listeners, we are doing this podcast in time for our listeners to hear about the conference so they can come join us. They can tell their business friends, the entrepreneurs go, can boys come?

Yes.

There's many.

All human party.

Yes.

So first of all, intentionally, because I do hear this often, that we are often a women centric company. I have Pink in my brand, so people think that I don't invite men, but my husband looks good in pink, so guys are invited. We have some incredible speakers that will be there, both men and women and the heartbeat behind it. And one of the reasons I wanted you to be there, Hope, was because there is a necessity, a necessary emergency. I'm going to say that weird, after Covid, people are probably like, no more catastrophes, no more emergencies. But I'm saying it because I am seeing a rise in the business in ministry concept. The marketplace ministers are really stepping out and starting to speak and teach and share. And they're doing so shamelessly. And if y' all know Hope, which you must because you're hanging out here on the unfiltered show, she's shameless about her faith and she's shameless in such a way that is so often authentic and true that people need to know and not shun away from money, not shun away from profitability, not shun away from a wild idea, because those are God given things. And he's intended for you to be prosperous, no different than Ron and Hope are prosperous.

Right.

And so I want to bring people together that get that. And so when I talk about like mindedness, there's tons of conferences there, virtual summits, holy moly, tons of podcasts that are for the like minded. You have an interest and so you tune in. But when you get energetically in a space like it is, when you're at Redemption Church of like heartedness, you feel family and family and faith are two things that aren't often celebrated in business as much as they should be. And so that's one of the reasons that we're coming together. But there's a plethora of tactics and tips and tricks and actual tangibles that people will Leave with.

And let's talk about the speakers. Who all will be there.

We've got you.

Great lineup.

We really do.

He said, I want to talk.

I want you to talk. I didn't know you were going to be there. If you are, you have a stage anytime. We actually, I really want to have it. As I just mentioned, like, family's not talked about a lot in business is. I want to have a marriage panel. And you guys would be incredible to be on it because it's important for people to realize I have an entrepreneur husband as well. And so we are both entrepreneurs. And that can be very friction filled, stressful.

Yeah.

Like who's. Whose dream takes priority? What's most important at this point? How are we going to train the kids up in this way? Oh, we're both busy now. What happens? Right. And there can be friction on what we invest in versus what we don't. And I want those conversations to be wide open. So other people that will be there that could help in even this conversation are people like Alexander, who is just an amazing, energetic. Talk about B12. He's got it Gonzalez. We've got Pastor Anthony Hart. We've got Renee Bob. Some names that you might know are Tim Story. He was and is the coach, the life coach to celebrities, specifically Oprah Winfrey, Latrice Washington. Are you guys familiar with Tresse? I love her. She's the money maven. She was on the Steve Harvey show for six years. And she has so much wisdom. And I could go on and on. You might not know the names, but you will know them and you will never forget them after you experience them on stage.

And there's something, Tamara, that's so exciting, that's different, that you always just specialize in going the extra mile. You really do. And it is the anthology that is coming out with all of these speakers who are now authors, co authors in the book. Let's talk about the book.

Yeah, this was.

I have some questions I want to ask you. Just keep running through all these things.

Okay, Go ask a question.

If you finish yours, then I'm gonna go back. I got something I want to ask. Okay.

Okay. So the anthology is called the Joyful Entrepreneur. And we Talked about that B12. We talked about the color. The color and the vibrancy is a constant reminder of the promise of God. And that's in our businesses, our prosperity and our abundance, too. And so I wanted entrepreneurs from both the pastoral lens, the church front, as well as from the marketplace to come together with a blended front speaking about the principles, the presence and the power of God in their businesses and how they are profitable and not shy away from that conversation that I often feel people will, especially in the church. And I would love to hear your opinion on that, Ron. I get a lot of pressure in that realm on not being a non profit or not being a ministry and it not being God's work.

And so that's where I'm going to go when Hope gives me my opportunity. Okay, go ahead and finish. You want me to go ahead?

No, no, no. Let her finish the book. Let her finish the book.

The anthology is bringing together 20 authors to speak about these different things. And they're all answering questions through the lens of their own experience and testimony. And it's going to be utilized as a resource. I use an anthology currently as I walk people through Mastermind and so I know it's going to be so supportive to the people who are still in the questioning realm or they haven't broken that upper limit of limiting belief on their own ability to use faith and business. It's not faith or business. It's not faith. It's with business. It's together. And God was, this was his idea. I didn't come up with this. I'm just stewarding it.

Yeah, because that's who you are if you are a Christian. Right. I mean that you are a faith filled person. You don't separate them. It's who you are. It can never be put on a shelf to go do your business. It, it all integrates together. So I, I just celebrate you for talking about it, making people talk about it, taking away the shame and the taboo of actually being successful. Who doesn't want to be successful? Everybody does. Nobody says, oh, I just hope to be poor this year or make less than I made last year. I just, that's just wonderful. That's what I want. Nobody wants that. We all want to succeed. But you're right. In the church there is this type of taboo that, you know, we've got to suffer for Jesus or we can't have too much. Right. So I'm sure that goes right into what you were going to ask.

Yeah, I'm going to get highly here in the next few minutes. You hit on something that is a hot button with me. I don't know where that started. I don't know the origin of that belief. I'm a really common sense guy. But we're living in a day and age where common sense is almost a superpower. It's almost like a gift because we have education running out of our ears, and that's what the Bible says. Ever learning, but never coming to a knowledge of the truth. I don't know where it started, but one of the most difficult battles Hope and I have fought is when God started blessing us.

So true.

When. When we had nothing. Nobody was mad at us. Nobody. Nobody was mad at us like you.

Stay right there.

I didn't have any enemies. But what I can't get people to understand is, no, Jesus did not come and die and be raised on the third day to make sure Ron had plenty of money.

No.

But he gives you the keys of the kingdom. And if you apply the principles of God, they work in ministry, in business, in home, in personal life, it is impossible not to rise. It gives your whole life what I call what an airplane has. It has the law of lift, and it causes you to defy the law of gravity that wants to pull you down. The blessing of God for honoring his principles is a very real thing. Be it business, be it nonprofit, it doesn't matter. And I want to see the day where the stigma against profitability is broken. Because the same people that will get mad because you take an offering that will get mad if they see men or women of God blessed, they want the church to change the world, or.

They get mad if you charge $59. $59 is too much for some people.

To pay Hope's ear. So if you don't have a seat to her next retreat, it ain't gonna be that cross ever again. I'll tell anybody about it.

I do get complaints if I put, like, a registration fee on anything. And I know people. I got a business friend of mine in the security business that paid $10,000 to go be with Tony Robbins. But a Christian don't want to pay $59 to hear truth. That can elevate their life and change it and revolutionize it forever. That mindset, I've tried my best to break it, but I'm going to tell you, it's a deep one. It's a deep one. When Hope and I first started walking in our blessings Tamil, I'm not screaming.

I'm passionate. I'm just getting passionate.

I feel you, brother. This is it.

When God really started elevating our life and turning our life around, Hope and I were extremely generous. Me and Hope are extravagant givers. We are extremely generous givers. We live our life by a set of values that we're very dedicated to. I could go on and on. And then immediately life began to elevate and literally I felt such pressure from the church community that if I got anything nice, I would hide it. I bought my first nice car, which was a used one, but it was a nice car. And I named it literally Knight Rider because I wouldn't drive it unless it was nighttime because I would catch such grief if anybody saw me in it. So I want to say kudos to you, kudos to this conference and kudos to people with and like you, like my wife, who we need to break the stigma of poverty, lack, and just getting by off of God's people. Life was meant to be lived, not survive. And when you do things right and you do things God's way, it's impossible not to prosper.

Even the Bible says the poor will be with you always. Always. But how are we supposed to help the poor if we don't have anything?

Right? Right. And you know when people talk about like being fruitful and multiplying, for a long time I thought that that was just me having more babies. And I was like, this is, this is just a womb thing. Yeah, but it's a bank account thing, It's a blessing thing. It's a fruit of the spirit thing. The more joy I have, people don't like that. People like when you walk into a room and you got joy or you got that B12 up your sleeve.

Right.

She's so happy. I'm like, I got the joy of the Lord.

You want some?

Right?

Right.

But they don't want it. They want everyone to be in this state of zombie, which is why I talk about that from a rat wheel. American dream is like herd mentality. Everyone needs to be kind of blinded, the scales upon their eyes versus lifted and free. And actually saying like, this is me. This is where God is leading me. And we get to point to the glory of God when we're gifted these things and it's not about us, but when we are stewards of what is gifted to us. And God gets to be the conduit through our mouth, through our money, through anything that's given to you, you have plenty for other people to receive. I don't have to walk around scarcity mentality or poverty mindset. I can walk around in abundance and know that every. If I spent every dollar I had, I wouldn't be scared because I've seen God work. But I don't have to do that because I've multiplied from an investment perspective. And so we can talk about revenue streams and profitability all day long. And that's something I Want to see the church do better at. Which is why conferences charging $59 is not going to cut it. I get to see John Maxwell with you guys at your church in a couple of months. And I saw the price of the ticket. I'm like, we have to have a look.

She said, we've got to have a call.

When John Maxwell saw the price, he texted me. He's like, for real.

Right.

And the fact is, can I just be real? We're real raw and unfiltered. I'm going to take a huge hit on that computer. Huge hit. Ron Carpenter Ministries is going to take a huge hit because if I filled my registration up, it would not touch the bills that I'm going to have. But the thing is, I realized that I'm trying to take the people somewhere. So I'm trying. If I can get them in the room, then maybe I can help with the mindset.

You know, we don't mind paying for our. It just blows my mind. People don't mind going and paying for their fingernails. $65. And you got to do it every two weeks. Two weeks. Because it's just things that fade away. Our roots, our hair, all of the things.

Did you get your roots done for $60?

No, I didn't say the price of that, but it fades away. But you don't. People don't mind.

I have to take out a second mortgage to do her roots. But anyway, go ahead.

I'm going to leave that right there.

Go ahead.

Okay. But that. It just frustrates me at the fact that we will go do our nails, we'll do our hair, and we'll go get a new outfit for a women's conference, but don't want to give a hundred dollars in an offering. It blows.

It's a frustrating mindset. And I.

When you said coaching world objections.

Yeah.

Essentially, the church is objecting anything because they are justifying their comfort and they're saying, God's not going to take from me, so why is my pastor taking from me? Meanwhile, you're doing. You're literally grabbing it and you're putting it over here. It's literally growing everything that they're taking advantage of on a consistent basis.

Wow.

And so it's something that they need to stop and not look at as it's going in your bank account. Regardless of what you buy, it's going to bless them further because you're multiplying the kingdom.

Exactly. I tell people, you got to get out of the mindset again that what's leaving your hand is leaving your life.

It's not.

It's not leaving your life. You're moving it from one place to another place with a promised from God return.

Yeah.

It is the principle of investment, which is a very biblical principle. Jesus chastised the master of the garden because he did not do anything with the garden. And he came back and a tree that wasn't growing, he said, yeah, cut it down. And so to be fruitful and multiply means that your life is a garden and that your life should be producing everywhere you go. My goal is that everybody.