Can you build a thriving business while facing back-to-back life-threatening crises? Travis Penfield did exactly that, transforming his brush with death from a brain tumor and his wife's cancer battle into clarity for scaling 49 Financial to 200+ advisors. His blueprint for bridging the trillion-dollar advisor succession gap prioritizes mentorship over metrics, revealing how personal trials became his greatest business advantage.

Join us for this special joint episode of the Faith Driven Investor & Entrepreneur podcast.

• Travis shares his recent experience meeting Jack Nicklaus and John Maxwell, highlighting Nicklaus's emphasis on family over golf achievements
• The powerful story of Travis's brain tumor in 2016, requiring him to relearn basic functions
• His wife Jacqueline's cancer diagnosis and the emotional journey of shaving her head during chemotherapy
• The doctor telling Travis to "prepare as if she's gone" and taking his daughters to San Diego while contemplating single fatherhood
• How these health crises fundamentally changed his approach to business success and identity

• 49 Financial's three-pillar strategy: handling more complex issues, offering more services, and building more community
• The company's focus on young advisors (22-year-olds) in an industry where the average advisor is in their upper 50s
• How 49 Financial is addressing the industry-wide 9% retention rate for new advisors
• Travis's shift from "quantity over quality" to "quality over quantity" in building his business
• His vision for bridging the gap between aging advisors with trillions in assets and the next generation

• How facing mortality transformed Travis's relationship with God and clarity about priorities
• The role of childlike faith in entrepreneurship versus the challenges of maintaining bold faith as a business matures
• Using their platform to help clients turn "tax dollars into giving dollars" through strategic charitable planning
• The daily struggle of enjoying present moments while awaiting his wife's five-year cancer-free milestone

• "I think maybe a lot of entrepreneurs out there, it is so easy, even as believers, to make our business our identity. And it's such a sneak."
• "It puts you in a different place in your faith when each one of you experience the thought of losing the other one within a day."
• "If the business doesn't make it, it's okay. If the business does hit that growth goal, it's okay... I'm going home to my bride."
• "My heart and why 49, as long as I'm around, is going to be for the young person."
• "We're going to turn tax dollars into giving dollars."

In this timely market analysis, Crossmark Global Investments' Bob Doll joins Richard Cunningham and John Coleman to dissect the dramatic market correction of Q1 2025 and the economic uncertainty driving it.

Key Topics Covered:

• The fifth fastest market correction since WWII and what caused it
• Trump administration's economic strategy: taking pain upfront for potential gains later
• Tariffs as revenue generators vs. inflation drivers
• Rising recession probability (now 35-40%) amid continued uncertainty
• The "Magnificent 7" tech stocks' slowing cash flow and what it means for portfolios
• Geopolitical outlook for Russia/Ukraine, Middle East tensions, and China's vulnerabilities
• What could restore market confidence in coming months
• Future of M&A activity and IPO markets amid regulatory changes
• Faith-driven investing insights and the need for patience in volatile times

Bob shares his current recession probability assessment and what economic indicators he's watching closely. The discussion explores how the administration's aggressive early moves—particularly around tariffs and budget cutting—are creating short-term market turbulence but could potentially lead to economic benefits if properly executed.

The conversation concludes with personal reflections on patience, humility, and maintaining proper perspective as faith-driven investors during uncertain economic times.

Recorded on April 1, 2025

In this episode of the Faith Driven Investor podcast, hosts Richard Cunningham and Luke Roush welcome Chris Morris and John Farris, founders of LandFund Partners, to discuss their journey from a college classroom to managing 50,000 acres of farmland in the Mid-South.

Episode Highlights:

• The divine intervention that brought John and Chris together at Center College in Kentucky
• How a single idea to buy 100 acres evolved into a strategy for acquiring thousands of acres
• Why the Mississippi alluvial aquifer makes the Mid-South an attractive region for farmland investment
• The price convergence thesis between Mid-South and Midwest farmland (currently 8,000 vs 15,000 per acre)
• How LandFund Partners differentiates itself through regenerative farming practices on 100% of their properties
• The implementation of cover crops and no-till farming to restore soil health
• The three-year timeframe to see results from regenerative practices in the Mid-South
• How building regional "pods" of farmland creates greater value than the sum of individual parcels
• The importance of being good stewards of both the land and community relationships
• Farmland as an inflation hedge and "gold with a coupon" that generates consistent cash flow
• The long-term appreciation potential of farmland (5.2% annually since WWII, 6.2% in their region)

Connect with LandFund Partners: Visit landfundpartners.com to learn more about their farmland investment strategy and regenerative approach to agriculture.