When Don Speer and Cassie Cox attended a Life Surge event at a Phoenix megachurch last November, they expected a day filled with worship and inspiration from high-profile Christian speakers and musicians.

After all, Life Surge billed itself as a seminar on how to “inspire, train and equip others to surge their resources and influence for kingdom impact.”

But they weren’t prepared for the high-pressure sales pitches sandwiched between the celebrity presenters.

Speer and Cox, a married couple, accepted the pitch. But what resulted, they say, was not wealth but financial hardship, emotional stress, and a broken marriage.

“They manipulate and lie to you,” Cox said. “They make you believe that you’re going to be this millionaire — that this is God’s plan for you.”

Danielle Umpierre said she too was caught off guard by the financial presentations at a Life Surge conference she attended in 2023 in Los Angeles. But she said the stock-trading classes she took changed her life—not for the worse but for the better.

“In four months, even making mistakes, (my investment) more than doubled,” said Umpierre, a single mother of four children. “I paid back the class fee, and then I started a little savings for us.”

Praised by its fans as a trusted method to acquire wealth the Christian way — and despised by detractors for fleecing the faithful — Life Surge is a series of one-day Christian-themed seminars in major cities. Sports figures, reality TV stars, actors, and top authors who are part of a constellation of evangelical Christian stars are there to attract the crowds. 

El Informe Roys (TRR) spoke to more than 10 people who attended at least one Life Surge event and walked away with concerns. Some saw red flags and backed out before making a major investment, but others emptied retirement savings or went into significant debt to pay for programs they now feel are worthless.

TRR also interviewed three people who said the conference has led to financial freedom, as well as staff members who defend the program.

Life Surge, which bills itself as an education company, has held approximately 70 events since its first conference in 2021. More than 250,000 people have attended an event with an average of approximately 4,240 attendees per event in 2025. The company points to the many positive reviews online as evidence of its success and to the packed venues as a sign its reach is growing.

Moreover, a quote on Life Surge’s webpage by the Rev. Billy Graham implicitly suggests an endorsement by America’s best-known evangelical leader: “I believe one of the next great moves of God is going to be through the believers in the workplace,” the quote reads. (The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association told TRR it has not authorized use of the quote or Graham’s image posted on Life Surge’s website. The organization also said it declined a 2025 request from Life Surge to use photos and videos of Graham at its events.)

Life Surge’s mission, however, is more about “how to create and multiply financial resources” than transforming secular workplaces.

But what many attendees may not know is that Life Surge founder Joe Johnson has had ties to other organizations that have been accused of ethics violations, dishonesty, or questionable use of funds. Life Surge President Shawn Marcell, a former pastor, is also connected to at least one of those groups.

Although Life Surge officials rarely give interviews, it gave TRR access to a seminar in Grand Rapids, Michigan, on Sept. 13 and an opportunity to interview Johnson and Marcell backstage during the event. TRR also received a 30-page document in response to more questions we asked.

Here is what we learned.

‘A mis-marketed platform’? 

The celebrity speakers are definitely the draw for the Life Surge one-day conferences.

Former football star Tim Tebow, Christian author Priscilla Shirer, leadership coach John C. Maxwell, and musician David Crowder have been among top-billed celebrities at multiple Life Surge events.

Omaha resident and worship leader Rachel Scott, who works as a business development manager for a nonprofit, said she was impressed by the speaker lineup for the Life Surge conference she attended May 3 in Omaha, Nebraska.

Scott anticipated a day of encouragement, testimonies, and worship, and enjoyed listening to some of the speakers. However, she felt the event was “one big sales funnel” for $97 classes billed as typically costing $1,500.

“It’s a mis-marketed platform where people don’t really know what they’re getting themselves into,” Scott said. “There’s a fair amount of manipulation.”

Speer said he wanted to attend Life Surge to hear from Maxwell. But before Maxwell took the stage, Speer was intrigued by the $97 “Impact” classes pitched as an opportunity to advance God’s kingdom by using stock trading and real estate to build wealth.

David and Jason Benham, identical twins known as the Benham Brothers, frequently speak at Life Surge.

The former baseball players are now entrepreneurs after HGTV scrapped plans in 2014 for a real estate show they were set to appear in. Their presentation was about how God wants Christians to acquire and build wealth.

“Because it was in a church, and (the presenters were) talking about God, I was really enlightened about how they view money,” Speer said. “I wanted to learn more.”

Speer and Cox signed up for the Impact classes, where they learned that next steps included paying tens of thousands of dollars for two mentorship programs covering financial trading and real estate. That didn’t include ongoing costs to access the software and other related fees.

Cox felt uneasy about the programs, but Speer, who had recently been laid off, was convinced they were God’s will. He emptied more than $60,000 out of his 401(K) to cover the costs and began working through the training programs full time, turning down a high-paying job offer from an established company in the meantime. Meanwhile, both courses caused major strains in his marriage, as his decision to invest in the programs had been against his wife’s wishes.

Eventually, he concluded that the trading program may have been worth the cost had he just pursued that. He found the real estate training to be time-consuming and worthless, as the mentors didn’t provide as much support as he needed. He added that the pricey software provided information that could have been accessed elsewhere for less.

At Life Surge events, disclaimers briefly appear on screens in the venue alerting attendees that “you should assume that the average person may earn little to no money or could potentially lose money” and that “results vary wildly.”

For Speer, Life Surge not only wiped out his retirement savings, but “(My) marriage is very much on the fence, if not dead,” he said.

Cox said she was concerned the financial duress caused by Speer’s investment in Life Surge would continue to harm her financially, so the couple separated.

TRR also spoke to two women who said they are struggling to repay a $30,000 loan they took out together in 2022 to cover one of Life Surge’s financial training programs.

One woman, who is retired, said she felt Life Surge used spiritual manipulation to pitch their products.

“Even though I was getting suspicious, that was when they said Satan will intervene and try to make you doubt yourself,” she said. “Because it was a Christian event, I fell for that. As soon as they said, ‘You’ll start having doubts because Satan will come in,’ that’s when I thought, ‘No, Satan! I’m all in!’”

The women sent TRR a copy of their lending disclosure statement, which shows monthly payments of $666.01 for five years. With interest, the women are on the hook for nearly $56,000, and they have very little to show for it.

“We’ve invested enough to buy a car, but we have gotten zero out of it, because it’s overwhelming and it’s way more (complicated) than we anticipated,” the retiree said. “They made it sound too easy. We just feel like we’ve been left behind.”

Life Surge began running its educational programs in-house in the summer of 2024. Previously, it partnered with other providers.

Dewey Hammond, a business advisor who specializes in mergers and acquisitions, attended a Life Surge conference in April in Huntsville, Alabama. He told TRR he was stunned by the sudden switch from an emotional worship experience and inspirational talks to a software sales pitch.

Hammond said he immediately recognized “flashing red flags” as a speaker described the ease and simplicity of Life Surge’s stock trading software. His concern grew when he asked a Life Surge representative for more information about the program so he could review it. Hammond said the representative told him that wasn’t an option.

“I don’t think it’s inappropriate to mix spirituality and Christianity with business,” Hammond said. “It needs to be done with integrity, and the Christian way to do it is to be transparent and not try to use Christianity and faith to emotionally manipulate people. And that’s what’s happening.”

Umpierre, who did not have any formal financial training before attending Life Surge, disagrees. She declined to say how much money she has made trading stocks but said it has been more than enough to support her family of five.

“We have absolutely no debt,” Umpierre said. “I bought (my daughter) a car. I traded in my old van, and I bought a car for me. I don’t want to say it as bragging. Everything has been God opening the door for me.”

TRR reached out to more than a dozen Life Surge speakers, including Tebow, Shirer and Maxwell, but only author Lisa Bevere and musician Chandler Moore responded. Bevere and Moore both said they had appeared at only one Life Surge event and didn’t know much about the company.

“I wasn’t aware of any financial programs connected to the event, and I definitely hate to hear that people may have been negatively impacted,” Moore said. “That’s not something I’d ever want to be a part of.”

Criticism not a surprise to Life Surge founder

Criticism of Life Surge doesn’t come as a surprise to Johnson, the company’s founder and CEO. In written responses to questions from TRR, he said the company’s model — operating as an education business rather than a nonprofit ministry that promotes the Gospel — is unique.

“We recognize that what we’re doing is bold and innovative,” Johnson said. “We are also aware that anything this innovative and new can be misunderstood, especially when a business steps up unapologetically and leverages it for kingdom impact. But our commitment to seeing people’s lives transformed is greater than the fear of man’s criticism.”

Johnson pointed to several metrics as evidence of Life Surge’s Kingdom impact: nearly 20,000 people committing their lives to Jesus over the last year, 566,000 Bible apps sponsored in 2025, and high ratings and reviews on multiple online platforms.

In addition, Life Surge connected TRR to Aprille Balangue, who signed up for stock trading classes after attending a conference in the spring of 2024. The Seattle-area resident said she began making enough money trading for a couple of hours per day that she quit her job as president of an engineering firm.

Balangue said now that she isn’t working full-time, she volunteers more often at a nonprofit that serves at-risk teenagers and at her church. She said she also donates more of her resources.

During a backstage interview at the Grand Rapids event, Johnson said he was skeptical that those interviewed by TRR, who had lost substantial sums of money in the advanced training classes, had actually enrolled in the programs.

“I want everyone to prosper and to do well, but education—unlike any other product—requires two people,” Johnson said. “It requires the company, who’s training and who is equipped to do a good job. But it also requires the student to go apply (what has been learned).”

Johnson declined to reveal how much Life Surge speakers are paid, but he said many of them reduce their fees because “they believe in the mission” and some donate their fee to nonprofits.

According to the AAE Speakers Bureau, Maxwell and entrepreneur Marcus Lemonis, who has also spoken at Life Surge, charge $100,000 to $200,000 to appear at a live event. Motivational speaker Nick Vujicic, who frequently appears at Life Surge, charges $50,000 to $100,000.

Life Surge founder has faced several lawsuits

Life Surge claims to be transparent about its mission, according to Johnson, who points to information on the company’s website.

“At the end of the day, Life Surge delivers what it promises: an inspiring, practical, and Christ-centered experience that equips believers to worship deeply, live wisely, work with purpose, and steward their wealth for the glory of God,” Johnson wrote TRR.

While the website does state that Life Surge offers “ inspirational events,” “Educational Classes,” and “Advanced Training & Mentorship,” it includes very few details and does not clearly specify prices or risks.

What may be even less apparent to Life Surge clients is Johnson’s background and his multiple lawsuits.

The Welfont Group, a for-profit company founded by Johnson in 2014, was among defendants ordered by a federal judge on Sept. 10 to pay more than $7 million for negligence, fraud, and its role in a civil conspiracy. The default judgment occurred after Welfont and the other defendants failed to participate in the litigation.

According to the ruling, in 2018, Welfont worked with the owner of a building to sell a property to a nonprofit at what seemed to be a bargain price. This allowed the seller to receive a tax write-off for the difference between the sales price and appraised value.

The ruling states that Welfont introduced the seller to an appraiser, who claimed the worth of the property was $5.4 million. Then, “Unbeknownst to Plaintiff,” an “alter ego of Welfont” purchased the property from the charity on the same day for $2.7 million.

The following year, the IRS audited the seller’s tax return and found the appraisal was not a qualified appraisal and that the property had a fair market value of about half what the seller expected. This meant the seller owed an additional $572,000 in taxes and other costs. 

Other lawsuits outline similar transactions involving Welfont as a defendant. They led to the cancellation of millions of dollars in tax deductions for the plaintiffs.

When asked about the Sept. 10 ruling, Life Surge stated that because of the complexity of commercial real estate deals, companies that specialize in them frequently face lawsuits. It also stated that “someone unknown” was served with the suit, and that this unknown person did not alert Welfont of the matter.

Because Welfont wasn’t properly served and didn’t respond to the suit, the judge relied on legal precedent in her ruling that concluded Welfont admitted allegations in the complaint. Now that Welfont is aware, its legal counsel will appeal the ruling and is “confident they will prevail,” Life Surge stated.

The statement also claimed Welfont did not appraise the properties or select an appraiser and that neither Welfont nor Welfont’s clients directly benefited from the tax deduction.

Johnson left Welfont in 2019, but multiple lawsuits reference incidents that occurred during his time there. According to internet archives from earlier this year, Shawn Marcell, Life Surge president, was listed as the CEO of Welfont. As of June 4, the Welfont website had been taken offline.

Marcell did not directly respond to questions from TRR about Welfont.

Johnson said that any legal matters involving Welfont “are unrelated to Life Surge and have no bearing on our current leadership, mission, or operations.”

El dijo TRR any “serious serial entrepreneur” will experience success and failure, and he said he shares about some of his failed business ventures as part of his testimony at Life Surge events.

“Anyone who has engaged in this level of business volume has had lawsuits,” Johnson said. “Unfortunately, this is the litigious world we live in today.”

Johnson has also made headlines for questionable business practices with other ventures.

According to the Tampa Bay Times, Johnson served as the CEO of the Mercy Foundation Group, a nonprofit that spent more than $900,000—a majority of the funds it raised that year—on salaries and expenses. It only spent $70,000 on its mission, which was providing microloans to borrowers in impoverished areas.

The Times also reported that Seed America Foundation, another nonprofit led by Johnson, filed for bankruptcy in 2010 after it acquired more than $16 million in debt.

Johnson said the 2008 Great Recession led to Seed America Foundation’s financial problems. He acknowledged disputes among creditors over certain assets but said the organization cooperated fully and transparently.

Similar to Welfont, both nonprofits raised funds by fixing up vacant buildings they received at a bargain price from companies that received a tax write-off for donating the facilities to charity, according to the Times. Then, the nonprofit sold the renovated building at a higher price and kept the difference.

Lawsuit claims Life Surge exploits Christians

While many of the lawsuits against Johnson have been settled, dismissed, or adjudicated, in May, former Life Surge employee Brian McAdam sued the company for firing him. This was after he expressed concern about its “method of targeting vulnerable individuals through faith-based messaging,” as well as alleged religious discrimination.

According to the lawsuit, McAdam, a Utah resident, believes Life Surge’s practices are “unethical and potentially illegal, particularly the targeting of Christians for financial exploitation. This included “the sale of stocks and investments based on religious affiliation,” which he “reasonably believed violated federal securities laws and other regulations.”

“Plaintiff was troubled by the company’s method of targeting vulnerable individuals through faith-based messaging to sell investment opportunities and financial products under misleading pretenses of religious legitimacy,” the lawsuit states.

The suit also states that McAdam believes Life Surge uses “Christianity as a marketing tool” to create an environment where “attendees are manipulated into making financial investments under the guise of spiritual and moral duty.” This, the suit claimed, could constitute fraudulent or deceptive practices.

Shortly after expressing these concerns, Life Surge canceled McAdam’s bookings at events, even though he subsequently received positive feedback from his supervisor regarding his performance, the lawsuit states.

McAdam also claimed in the suit that Life Surge discriminated against him because he is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. He described Life Surge management as prioritizing religious conformity and “strict adherence to the company’s evangelical Christian values.”

The lawsuit states that McAdam’s termination was “based on religious discrimination and retaliation for Plaintiff’s refusal to disavow his beliefs.”

McAdam is seeking double back pay, reinstatement, special damages for emotional distress and reputation damage, and attorneys’ fees. He claims damages are between $475,000 and $550,000.

Johnson said that he strongly disagrees with McAdam’s narrative presented in the complaint and that McAdam has “decided not to pursue his original legal action.”

McAdam declined an interview with TRR, but he confirmed that he has not withdrawn nor significantly altered the lawsuit.

Life Surge founder, lender land in court

Before founding Life Surge, Johnson landed in court when a Florida woman sued him for failing to repay $12 million she loaned him to purchase a similar enterprise called Get Motivated. The suit eventually settled, but Amy Wolfe said she ultimately lost approximately $10 million in the deal.

Wolfe told TRR in a June interview that in 2011 she had attended a Get Motivated seminar—then owned by former evangelists Peter and Tamara Lowe—and signed up for a class advertised at the event to learn more about how to protect her financial assets. Like Life Surge, Get Motivated featured a lineup of celebrity speakers but had less emphasis on faith.

Wolfe said she connected with Johnson through the class. She said he told her about his intentions to purchase the Get Motivated seminar from the Lowes, who were divorcing, and convinced her to loan him the funds to make it happen.

At the time, Johnson was the owner of Wealthrock, a business that offered financial education and mentorship. Get Motivated seminars would funnel potential clients to Wealthrock, Wolfe said.

When Johnson failed to make a payment due in April 2012, Wolfe required him to personally guarantee $1 million before agreeing to extend the maturity date. At the same time, Johnson pledged all assets of the business to Wolfe as security.

Soon, a former competitor of Johnson’s approached Wolfe with a plan to assume control of the collateral and operate the businesses, so she called the loan. 

Initially, Wolfe planned to continue operating Wealthrock so that clients, including many who had paid $30,000 or more for mentorship, could continue using the service. But she soon discovered the company was broke and clients weren’t receiving services. She shut it down.

Wolfe said she is aware of several former Wealthrock clients who suffered long-term financial consequences after signing up for its services.

“(Clients) had to file for bankruptcy because of the mentor packages that they bought,” Wolfe said. “I have been so tempted to go to every Life Surge event with picket signs.”

Wolfe sued Johnson in 2013 to attempt to recover the funds she’d loaned him, and after two years of litigation they reached a settlement requiring Johnson to repay the $1 million he personally guaranteed.

Johnson, however, said he felt Wolfe was attempting to extort him, and when he wouldn’t agree to her demands, she filed the lawsuit and made “false statements and claims” in court, the media, and elsewhere. He said he suffered “sustained and significant reputational damage.”

Johnson repaid Wolfe $1 million over three years, but it fell short of the total she originally loaned him. Wolfe said she is troubled to see Johnson is still using conferences to promote financial schemes.

“It upsets me on a daily basis,” Wolfe said.

However, months after her initial interview with TRR, Wolfe sent a lengthy statement regarding her business relationship with Johnson. In it, she states that she has “come to better appreciate Joe’s side of the story.”

Wolfe stated that attempts by former Get Motivated executives to launch a competing venture made it difficult for Get Motivated to succeed, and she is “left to wonder if Joe could have made GMS work with more time.”

“I respect Joe’s commitment to overcoming adversity and honoring his obligations in the face of difficult circumstances,” Wolfe stated. “As Joe and I enter a new era, I’m excited to work with Joe again. I would not work with someone I did not trust that should tell you everything you need to know.”

Wolfe declined to comment on what led to her new perspective.

Johnson explained how he reconnected with Wolfe in a statement of his own. He said he reached out to Wolfe and her attorney to take legal action after she spoke to the Philadelphia Inquirer and made claims he found to be false and defaming.

“This time I had had enough and was going to finally hold her accountable, correct the record, and take legal action against her,” Johnson stated. “But in that process, God had other plans. He showed up. Instead of taking legal action against her, in a truly remarkable way, we not only worked through past hurts, forgave each other, and reconciled, but we also ended up working together again.”

Johnson did not respond to a request to clarify how he and Wolfe are “working together again” before publication of this story.

A lasting impact

For Umpierre, attending Life Surge was the first step on a journey she hopes will make a kingdom impact—well beyond her family.

Umpierre, who has a son with Down syndrome, is launching a nonprofit in California that will run a community center for adults with special needs. That wouldn’t have been possible without the financial freedom and flexible schedule she has as a stock trader, she said.

For others, experiences at Life Surge or with its founder have had other life-changing effects.

Wolfe, whose faith was shaken by her negative experiences with Johnson and other evangelicals, walked away from religion for a while. She has since become a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

Scott said her faith hasn’t been impacted by her experience at Life Surge, but she’s worried about how the event’s high-pressure, religion-soaked sales tactics might affect those without solid rooting in their beliefs.

“There are a lot of vulnerable people who are going to absorb that information who are not prepared to venture down the road that Life Surge is suggesting,” she said. “In my experience as a believer in Christ, Christ has the impact. It’s him through us, and there’s no gimmick. He can take two loaves of bread and five fish and feed 5,000 people. Some of the most amazing people I’ve known have not been people that had great wealth, but they’ve done amazing things.” 

Ann Marie Shambaugh has reported as a print journalist in multiple states, including currently in Carmel, Indiana.