SNS 104: Saturday Night Special – Interview with Christian Author Branch Isole
[00:00:00] Scott Maderer: [00:00:00] Welcome to tonight's Saturday night, special episode 104.
[00:00:05]Branch Isole: [00:00:05] Hi, Branch Isole. And I challenge you today to invest in yourself, invest in others and develop your influence by using your time, talent, and treasure to serve your calling. One way to do that is to listen to Scott Maderer and his podcast inspired stewardship.
[00:00:28]I find that when we live without Christ, our inactive spirit can aknowledge right and wrong, but our world be focused on self and a what's in it for me, attitude influences. And more often for a lot of people actually rules their choices.
[00:00:48]Scott Maderer: [00:00:48] Welcome and thank you for joining us on the inspired stewardship podcast.
[00:00:54] If you truly desire to become the person who God wants you to be, then you must learn to use your [00:01:00] time, your talent and your treasures for your true calling inthe inspired stewardship podcast you will learn to invest in yourself, invest in others and develop your. So that you can impact the world.
[00:01:15]In tonights, Saturday night special, I talk with Branch Isole about his journey from entrepreneur to Arthur. I also asked branch to talk about how he's discovered ways we can hear God and God can hear us. And I also asked branch to share his view on the connection between spirituality and walking, a spiritual.
[00:01:36]One area that a lot of folks need some help with is around the area of productivity. Getting not just more things done, but actually getting the right things done can be really. I've got a course called productivity for your passion. That's designed to help you do this and then to hold you [00:02:00] accountable and walk with you so that you can tailor productivity, not just to be getting more done, but actually getting the right things done.
[00:02:09] What's more, we take the approach of looking at your personality and how you actually look at things in the world and tailor the productivity system to your personality. Cause the truth is a lot of the systems that are out there are written really well for somebody with a particular personality type.
[00:02:27] But if you have a different approach to things, they just don't work, but there's tools and techniques and approaches that you can take that will work for anyone. And we help you do that in productivity for your passion. Check it out over@inspiredstewardship.com slash launch. Branch Isole is the author of 22 books in four genres.
[00:02:50] The power of personal responsibility or its avoidance is his writing focus. His self discovery themes span a wide range of reflective identity [00:03:00] situations and scenarios that every adult recognizes and deals. His stories, explore concepts and actions of struggle and relationship dynamics across the broad spectrum branch rights of on issues and emotions often experienced, but not always voiced.
[00:03:17] Welcome to the show branch.
[00:03:19]Branch Isole: [00:03:19] Thank you. Thank you for having me, Scott. It's a pleasure to be here with you. Absolutely.
[00:03:25] Scott Maderer: [00:03:25] So as a former teacher, and of course that's near and dear to my heart as a former teacher, myself and now turned entrepreneur and then turns, Arthur, how has this kind of journey? And this pathway helped you to understand personal responsibility and the power that has.
[00:03:43]Branch Isole: [00:03:43] I'm sure it's evident to your audience members, that our world moves at a blistering pace and we're exposed on a daily basis now to more information and influences than ever before in human nature. We're literally [00:04:00] testing. And tempted every way and every day, and as such, the world we live in offers us lots of excuses and lots of opportunities to rationalize our choices and our behaviors.
[00:04:14] In fact, until the advent of the industrial revolution, most people's daily focus was on survival and survival literally. Leisure time, money to spend interpersonal relationships are basically unheard of before the 20th century and today, many of us live lives, which we might think are unencumbered.
[00:04:41]Other than the problems we make for ourselves. And yet there's a lot of people out there who fail or more accurately refuse to take responsibility for their choices and actions. As I said, we live in a world full of excuses and blame. That's used to [00:05:00] cover our misdeeds and our errors, and judgment that we so often hear about.
[00:05:05]I'm trying to get to the juxta of your question. The first half of my life's journey was walking and living fully in the world's ways. I experienced its ups, its downs, and its consequences of living a life focused on self. And in all honesty, my decision to step away from the world's pain. And pursue a spiritual relation with God through belief in Christ was the decision and the action that ultimately planted the seeds, which eventually would grow and take root from my understanding and desire to begin really taking responsibility for my actions and choices.
[00:05:52]My career choices of entrepreneur and author. Both of those being sole proprietor and [00:06:00] enterprises forced me to look at the house. Of personal responsibility, but it was my growing faith that gave me the strength to understand the why. And in most of my writing, I like to look at things from the how and the why, because those two are so connected to action and behavior.
[00:06:25] And once I understood the why. You know that the, how became the easy part. As I say, being an entrepreneur and being an author. You're left on your own and every decision ultimately rests with you. So those two career choices, forced me to man up pretty quickly. Continue to make bad choices when your livelihood literally depends upon it, but I couldn't have done it in those career opportunities, without having a grounded, spiritual faith.
[00:06:58] And that was the [00:07:00] real turning point for me in stepping away from the world. And the world's ways and realizing that my responsibility to myself and my family ultimately less rested in living truthfully.
[00:07:16]Scott Maderer: [00:07:16] So when you think about that as you've gone through these different parts of your journey, what has come to you about how, you've heard God and how others can hear God.
[00:07:28]To help direct them on that journey.
[00:07:29]Branch Isole: [00:07:29] That's such a great question because I'm really glad you asked it. It allows me to share my favorite scripture. John 8 47 says whoever belongs to God. Here's what God says. It goes on to say the reason you do not hear God is because you don't belong to God.
[00:07:51] Let me repeat that for your audience. The reason you don't hear God is because you don't belong to God. God is spirit. And as [00:08:00] our creator, we are also spiritual energy in origination. As part of our birth, our spirit takes place and takes its place within our physical being. But it's inactive.
[00:08:16] As a spirit from God we innately, possess the nature and character of God, which is morality and ethics. So we have the ability therefore, to come to know right from wrong, but we don't know why. And I here again, it's the how and the why when we invite Jesus into our life has holy spirit comes to abide without.
[00:08:41] And by doing so it then activates our inactive spirit. And we now have the ability to recognize and receive spiritual guidance, counseling, and direction, whatever we face adversity or consequence. [00:09:00] I find that when we live without Christ, our inactive spirit can acknowledge right and wrong. But our world be focused on self and a what's in it for me, attitude influences.
[00:09:14] And more often for a lot of people actually rules their choices. So when we invite Jesus to abide with us, his holy spirit now is available for us to access. And every situation, Scott people are always asking me. How does it work? So let me explain what I mean. When we have a choice or decision to make, we have two options.
[00:09:42]We can respond our way, the way we know and use every day, or we can respond the way Jesus would in the same situation. So the question becomes, how do we know, how would Jesus respond in the same [00:10:00] situation that I now face? It's simple. We ask ourselves what would Jesus do? And I know that acronym has been around a long time and it's been used and misused, but when the person who has the spirit of Christ living within them asks that spirit to respond.
[00:10:22] His abiding spirit within reveals to us potential outcomes and consequences of our choice before we even decide to act. As adults, we need to realize that practically every situation we find ourselves in is a repeat or a similar situation to one we've already encountered or experienced. So we're already familiar with the consequence, particularly the negative consequence or outcome of a decision, but when Christ fairs in us, it reminds us of that possible negative [00:11:00] reasons.
[00:11:01] That we already know and experience. I always tell people when you've got the spirit of Christ within you and you access his spirit, he can actually show you the future of your decision before you even make it. And that's pretty powerful.
[00:11:18] Scott Maderer: [00:11:18] When we think about that, you were talking a lot about spirituality and about a connection with God and these sorts of things.
[00:11:25]What is the difference in the connection or how does it relate when people talk about, being spiritual, walking a spiritual path, doing the spiritual things and what we would call the practice of spirituality.
[00:11:38]Branch Isole: [00:11:38] Great question again. I find that those who claim to be Christians recognize Jesus by one or more of his titles and his oral, either savior, Redeemer spiritual arbitrator, sacrificial lamb teacher, master Lord, all of the titles that the Bible gives to Jesus.
[00:11:59][00:12:00] Interestingly though, for those who practice spiritual Christianity, the difference is that they actually attempt to embrace and employ and live by Jesus's words. So the difference between knowing and actually practicing was it's described in a couple of verses that I picked up. Your audience may or may not know these, but they re relate directly to your question.
[00:12:29] The first one is Matthew 2237. Love the Lord, your God with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your mind. And then, and Scott, here's the kicker for many Christians today. He goes on to say, love your neighbor as yourself. And if we look around, that's not always the case that we see, express them exposed by those who claim to be Christians.
[00:12:59] Yeah. [00:13:00] Today's Christians could keep in mind a couple of other related scriptures. Luke 6 44 says each tree is recognized by its own fruit. That's pretty telling in and of itself. We can believe what we want about ourselves and claim our Christian righteousness, but our actions reveal our truth. Matthew seven says, do not judge, or you too will be judged.
[00:13:27] And that's a heavy one to keep in mind. And finally, in the old Testament, Deuteronomy 32, 4 says he is the rock, his work so perfect. And all his ways are just, God is just in all ways. And he will decide how Christian or more accurately, how much like Jesus Christ. Our actions. And responses truly are. One of my favorite passages, which really [00:14:00] defines those who we claim to be Christians and it's not easy all the time to act in his name, but he gives us so many examples.
[00:14:10] And I think the one in John eight about the adulterous woman is the seminal event that reveals the state of Christianity for us to. And I'd like to read it real quickly. The teachers of the law. And the Pharisees brought a woman caught in adultery. They said to Jesus teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery and the law commands us to stone, such a woman.
[00:14:36] And they ask him now, what do you say, Jesus? And he bent down and started right on the ground with his finger. And when they kept questioning him, he straightened up and said, let anyone of you who's without saying. Be the first to throw a stone at her. Again, he stooped down and wrote on the ground and [00:15:00] this pictorial example of our righteous and us versus our practical righteousness says it all.
[00:15:10]It's been said that when he was writing on the ground in the sand, he was writing the names and the sins of all of those who were standing in front of. It's one thing to claim to be a Christian. It's sometimes not easy to be a Christian, but if we continue to emulate the thoughts and words and deeds of who we claim master Jesus, then his holy spirit within us helps us to become more like him in our responses.
[00:15:42]Yeah, it's all there for us. We have to make the choice and the decision of how we're going to respond.
[00:15:49]Scott Maderer: [00:15:49] So I've got a few questions that I'd like to ask all of my guests that we're going to go into here in a minute. But before we do that is there anything else you'd like to share with the listener about your [00:16:00] journey or this journey or anything else that you feel is really important them to take away as a nugget today?
[00:16:05] Branch Isole: [00:16:06] Gosh, if you don't have a relationship with Jesus. Today's the day to start. The one thing I find in interacting with Christians and nonbelievers both is when you're on the spiritual path and the spirit of Christ, the holy spirit of God lives within you. You immediately recognize other people on that same day.
[00:16:30] There's an innate connection, that, and an understanding that you automatically and have right away, because they're on the same path that you are walking towards Christ. The other thing is, we've all been there and we've all fallen away and we've all gotten back on the path and perhaps some fallen away.
[00:16:51] Again, the love of God is so great. He's always ready. To accept us when we finally make that [00:17:00] decision to step on the path and to stay on the path. I think that you'll find in interacting with most spiritual Christians, that they wouldn't have it any other way in their life. There's no way you can go back once you have the love of Christ within you, because nothing in this world can fulfill that void in your heart.
[00:17:21] Like having a spirit. The greatest thing about the Bible is it literally answers every question that we mortals can have and every situation that we face in this life. So today's the day to start if you're not with Jesus, and if you are keep on the path, no matter how difficult it gets, the reward is always greater than what the world has to offer.
[00:17:45]Scott Maderer: [00:17:45] So one of the questions that I like to ask all of my guests, of course, my brand is about stewardship and I speak a lot about stewardship. So as I've talked to people, I've learned that different people have different definitions for that word. It holds different meanings for [00:18:00] different people. So how would you define stewardship and what its impact has been on your life?
[00:18:06]Branch Isole: [00:18:06] Wow. I find it easy to define because Luke sums it up. Great. Whoever can be trusted with little can be trusted with much. And I believe that I see that the Lord gives blessings both to people as individuals and as groups. Those blessings are intended and given with the purpose of sharing and using them for good.
[00:18:34] And, there's a lot of people on our world who have a lot of material. Blessings, some of them give back and some of them don't and that's their choice, but when we're good stewards with the things that we receive, we can continue to give back and by giving back, we can continue to grow. And I believe the purpose of.
[00:19:00] [00:19:00] Life beyond knowing God and knowing Christ is to continue learning and growing. If you are in a situation where you serve and help people again, there's no feeling that can replace the feeling of gratitude that you receive from people who you've helped. I think that's a stewardship is, and in my life I've been up and I've been down and I've had a lot and I've been without at one time I was homeless and one time I was in jail and you can't get much lower in the world's way than being in those two, but I find that stewardship and giving back.
[00:19:40]Has its own blessings and it has its own rewards, but nothing cure cancer, plant that feeling when you help somebody else.
[00:19:51] Scott Maderer: [00:19:52] If I could pick you up, let's say I invented a machine where I could pick you up today and have you travel into the future a hundred to 150 [00:20:00] years. And you were able to look back on your life.
[00:20:03] What's the impact that you hope you've had on the world?
[00:20:06]Branch Isole: [00:20:06] I would hope that, you know what I have to say and what I have to share and my writing. Would help people understand that spirituality that has a spiritual walk and relationship with Christ and religions are two separate and distinct paths with two different purposes. That's what the understanding I would like to leave.
[00:20:33]People have to choose what's best for them and their lives. They are the ones who know what they face, but as I've grown and lived and been off the spiritual path and been on the spiritual path, I know that spirituality and religions are not always synonymous. One comes from God and one comes from man and they have different purposes.
[00:20:57]So I would encourage people to [00:21:00] explore both and see where you fit in which one works for you. But in all cases, come to God and go to God. That's the essential. So if I could leave that behind and it helped, one or more people than I will have done Monday.
[00:21:16]Scott Maderer: [00:21:16] So what's coming next for branches.
[00:21:19] You continue on your journey to living out your call and impacting the world what's coming on the roadmap for you.
[00:21:25] Branch Isole: [00:21:26] Thanks for asking Scott. My current efforts are to encourage people to be more aware of the approaching in times my energies and my writing the last three years, four years have focused on prophecy.
[00:21:42]The books of prophecy revelation, and my efforts now are trying to help people understand that we're living in pretty perilous and tenuous times. But they've all been foretold. And if we will take off the blinders and look [00:22:00] around, we'll see Jesus's words about the, and times unfolding in our lives.
[00:22:07] And once we recognize. The truth of what he's told us is about to happen. Then we can be prepared a, to face it and its consequences, but more importantly, to get spiritually grounded right now. So that we can survive. And if we don't survive that our internal life is guaranteed. We live in crazy times and there's a lot of things going on and there's a lot of things that draw people's attentions away from God and Christ and God's purposes.
[00:22:45]That's where all my energies are right now. And I hope that I can, again, help people to understand and learn more about the things they don't know about, but they need to know about.
[00:22:58]Scott Maderer: [00:22:58] You can find out [00:23:00] more about branch ECLA on his website, which is branch ecla.com. You can also find him on Facebook as the voyeuristic poet and over on LinkedIn is branch ECLA. Of course I'll have links to all of that over in the show notes as well. Branch, is there anything else that you'd like to share with the listener?
[00:23:18]Branch Isole: [00:23:18] Thanks, Scott. I really appreciate it. If your listeners today are not enjoying a spiritual relationship with Jesus, today's the opportunity to start. The love of God is so great. He never interferes in our lives without being invited. He does. However, demand that before death, we make one decision.
[00:23:41] Are we going to believe in Jesus Christ or not?
[00:23:45]Scott Maderer: [00:23:45] thanks so much for listening to the inspired stewardship podcast as a subscriber and listener, we challenge you to not just sit back and passively listen, but act on what you've heard and find a way [00:24:00] to live your calling. If you enjoy this episode. Please do us a favor. Go over to inspired stewardship.com/itunes rate.
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