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PLI is devoted to empowering leaders for wider influence for the sake of the gospel in their communities and effective leadership in their ministries. Learn more about our vision and process here.
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We provide a number of resources and materials to educate both our participants and the general public on effective leadership principles.
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Blog
Prompting a New Paradigm
By: Jock Ficken
The catalyst for these comments: Lunch with a midwest LCMS district president and with a visionary pastor intent on seeing bunches of congregations more vibrant or vibrant again. The president recited a fairly long list of congregations that will not be able to afford a full time pastor when the current one (maybe poorly paid … Continue reading
Let Me Lead
By: Jock Ficken
It’s a bit hard to describe… A few weeks ago I started out the day with a clear sense that I was at the end of myself. I wasn’t desperate, or depressed, or disappointed. I was confident. But…empty. At the end of myself. The next few days would be big… A strategic collaboration with potential … Continue reading
Your Next Leadership Season Could Be Your Best
By: Jock Ficken
Remember when you… knew what you were passionate about? You’d give your life for it? Knew what you were good at? What gave you energy, even when you were tired? Knew the difference you could make? And then…something happened. Life… years… fuzzy focus… betrayal… bad experience. And as a result you find yourself… Not so … Continue reading
Outsourcing the Mission of God
By: Jock Ficken
Outsourcing. Lots of churches do it. PLI does it. Outsource certain functions to people or companies with greater expertise or specialization that can do a specific task in a better and usually more cost effective way. Bookkeeping, payroll, maintenance, branding, custodial services, printing, etc. Here’s an alarming reality: Most churches–most Christians–have outsourced the Mission of God! “We … Continue reading
Moses For President
By: Jock Ficken
The current political landscape takes me back to a book I read a few years ago: The Culture Code: An Ingenious Way to Understand Why People Around the World Buy and Live as They Do by Clotaire Rapaille. I found it fascinating as the author unlocked and explained the cultural code behind various dynamics within … Continue reading
The Disappointment Gap…Don’t Be a Settler
By: Jock Ficken
The Disappointment Gap…Don’t Be a Settler “Don’t be a Settler” commercials have been funny and frequent of late. Settling: The “other way” of dealing with the Disappointment Gap. Settling: The Lowering of Future Expectations to Match Past Experience. The Disappointment Gap evaporates when we artificially lower Expectations to match our Experience. It’s like the Good … Continue reading
Leading Through Disappointment
By: Jock Ficken
Leading Through Disappointment Gail and I are champions for celebration! We believe the church as a whole and leaders in particular wait too long to celebrate. Celebration is a PLI value. Today, however, I’d like to look at the other side of the coin. Men and women leading in the Mission of God need to … Continue reading
Venturing into the Muddled Middle Ground
By: Jock Ficken
Nestled stubbornly between necessary endings and the prospect of new beginnings is a muddled, clumsy, uncomfortable neutral zone. Theorists name it differently. It’s the middle ground where leaders navigate the closing of a season wrapped in its emotions and memories and unsettling disorientation along with the uncertainties and fears and anxieties of what comes next. If … Continue reading
Can you dare to dream again?
By: Jock Ficken
Can I challenge you? Today I’m not thinking about those who have the wind at their backs… I’m thinking of all the rest of us! I see marvelous examples all over the place. Oftentimes in the most difficult of circumstances and situations, somebody–usually the pastor and another leader or two–dared to dream again. For some … Continue reading
Some Thoughts on Gift Planning
By: Jock Ficken
People don’t realize that when they die they can pick two of three places to give their money. They can give it to The Government (taxes) Family Ministry or other charities Which two would you like to designate in your estate plans? Such was the introduction at a congregation that had capitalized on a congregation-wide … Continue reading
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