Joe Johnson, the founder of Life Surge, has always had an entrepreneurial spirit. As the child of missionaries in Brazil, he grew up with limited means, but by age 14, he was running his own lawn care business, paying friends to mow grass while he focused on sales. His solid work ethic, combined with his faith, eventually led Johnson to launch Life Surge, a rapidly growing company hosting Christian events focused on personal, spiritual, and financial growth.
“We want to inspire, transform, and equip people to surge their lives God’s way,” Johnson informs. This mission drives Life Surge’s large-scale gatherings, which blend elements of a religious revival with practical business and investing education.
“My faith really drives everything,” he affirms. “My faith drives how I look at business, how we do hiring, how we do marketing — it drives everything.”
A New Approach to Faith and Finances
Life Surge gatherings attract thousands of attendees. A single gathering in Seattle earlier this year sold 8,000 tickets. The events feature well-known speakers from both the religious and business worlds like actor Kelsey Grammer and Shark Tank investor Robert Herjavec.
Johnson believes Life Surge is tapping into an unmet need in the Christian community. “Because a lot of church leaders have been silent on the subject of wealth creation, it creates a vacuum and a void,” he explains. Life Surge aims to fill that void with faith-based teachings on business, investing, and wealth-building.
The company frames this focus on finances through a Christian lens. “We are focused on kingdom impact,” Johnson says. “We’re trying to mobilize the Christian community to not be afraid of this issue of being a faithful resource creator and multiplier and being a good steward with that, but using it for the purposes that God has called them to use it for.”
This message seems to resonate with attendees. At the Seattle event, Johnson said 1,257 people stood up to “give their lives to Christ” during an altar call. Beyond spiritual transformations, Life Surge also aims to spur financial and career changes.
Life Surge’s rapid growth has come with challenges. The company stood out during the COVID-19 pandemic when many event companies were pivoting to virtual gatherings. Life Surge took the opposite approach, doubling down on in-person gatherings.
“In 2020, most of our industry said events are dead and are never coming back again. And we looked at it and said, ‘No, it’s actually the exact opposite,’” Johnson recalls. “What used to be a red ocean full of competition is now a blue ocean with no competition because everybody overnight left it.”
Surging Forward
Johnson sees Life Surge’s growth as part of a larger movement, comparing it to Promise Keepers, a Christian men’s organization that held massive stadium events in the 1990s. “No one has seen that since the days of Promise Keepers,” he adds of Life Surge’s attendance numbers.
Looking ahead, Life Surge aims to reach more people through in-person and virtual offerings. Jeremy Nosek, the company’s chief strategy officer, said they’re exploring ways to bring their events to smaller markets while maintaining a sense of community. “We teach people how to interact and bring their faith into the marketplace in a bigger way,” Nosek informs.
For Johnson, fostering that sense of community and shared purpose is key to Life Surge’s mission. He hopes attendees will leave feeling empowered to change not just their own lives, but the trajectory of their families for generations to come.
“It’s not about Life Surge,” Johnson said. “It’s about the people who are attending Life Surge and having the opportunity to change the direction that their family’s headed and be the one for their family that their legacy is built upon.”
How Life Surge’s Live Events Are Reinforcing Faith
Life Surge’s dynamic live events create a powerful environment where attendees can experience inspiring messages, heartfelt worship, and transformative prayer.
“LIFE SURGE was incredible! I’m so grateful I brought my husband with me. We learned so much and left feeling inspired!” Brandy C. shared on lifesurge.com.
Mala V. deemed it a “life-changing event.”
Lexie H. also expressed her appreciation. “One of the most inspiring, life-changing conferences of our lives. Literally every speaker had so much wisdom and it was so encouraging to listen to these successful entrepreneurs, keeping Jesus the center of every aspect of their lives,” she wrote on lifesurge.com.