Mike Mantel, the Chairman and CEO of Living Water International, is all about conversation - first with the Lord, then his wife, and then with others. According to Mike, conversation allows him to ask thoughtful questions and learn from the wisdom of others. This is his key to making good decisions as a leader – something we could all learn from!

As the head of a global initiative, Mike’s love for conversation and connection is critical. Living Water International brings together churches, communities, and individuals with extreme diversity both in wealth and geography in an effort to solve the water crisis. 

Mike’s core values start with a rock-solid belief that God is in control and that He is the Master Strategist. His book, Thirsting for Living Water: Finding Adventure and Purpose in God’s Redemption Story, shares of God’s faithfulness and an inspiring vision of a unified, global Church – in which each of us has a vital role to play!

Guests: Mike Mantel

Ministry/ Workplace: Living Water International

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Fun fact: Reverend Dr. Nicole Martin started annually reading through the Bible 20 years ago as a dare from a youth pastor, but it wasn’t until five years ago that she joined the team at American Bible Society. For years God was preparing her heart to love His Word and desire that others would also come to be, as she says, “a Bible nerd like her.” American Bible Society collaborates with other people and ministries to share the good news of the Gospel with the world! Currently, their goal is to reach 7.8 million people with God’s Word and help 100 million Americans engage with the Gospel! 

With God-sized goals like this, Nicole knows that communication is key. And bonus, God knows exactly how He has made her and every other person on the planet – so He knows how to communicate to them individually through His Word! Accordingly, Nicole also works hard to create a culture at American Bible Society that celebrates differences and allows people to feel valued for who God made them to be.  

Guests: Dr. Nicole Martin

Ministry/ Workplace: American Bible Society

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Mark Vincent is a leader who loves leaders that love leaders. His 4-year peer-based program, Maestro-level leaders, is all about supporting leaders in the "Third Turn," where they begin to craft their organization's long-term vision, legacy, and future value. After all, no leader can do it by themselves. We all need to learn from others, and the earlier we begin this process in our career, the better we become as leaders. This is the heart of Maestro-level leaders: community! 

Mark's people-centered posture is rooted in a daily habit of prayer and reading and a weekly worship routine. These spiritual practices allow him the opportunity to inhale and exhale from the chaos of the week and reset his mind on the things above. Plus, Mark talks with us about his new book Listening, Helping and Learning: The Core Competencies of Process Consulting.

Guests: Mark Vincent

Ministry/ Workplace: Maestro-level leaders

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Flipping around the microphones today, Tami Heim and Scott Brown of Christian Leadership Alliance interview your very own Jim and Martha Brangenberg of iWork4Him Ministries. In this special show, Jim and Martha share about leadership strategies and creating a culture of belonging at iWork4Him. 

The Brangenbergs have had a front-row seat to over 3,000 leaders through their podcast interviews on iWork4Him, iRetire4Him, and sheWorks4Him. This ministry has allowed them to highlight the stories of others, see God work mightily in the everyday, and make connections in the Kingdom that have an eternal impact. Learning from others, along with Scripture and prayer, are their keys to growing as leaders.

This interview reminds us of the importance of the Tapestry Project – to create and freely offer a database that will increase collaboration between ministries. Take a few minutes to learn more about the Tapestry Project.

Guests: Jim and Martha Brangenberg

Ministry/ Workplace: iWork4Him

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We consistently find that great leaders have spiritual disciplines to help them grow. Al Lopus, Co-Founder and CEO of Best Christian Workplaces Institute, is no different. He has daily prayer and devotional time, weekly Sabbath, quarterly spiritual days, and annual 3-day retreats to keep him grounded and growing in his faith. Al also implements personal disciplines to stay emotionally and physically fit. His drive for consistency and excellence is mirrored in the mission of Best Christian Workplaces Institute. Through their intentional connections with leadership and one-on-ones with supervisors, they're able to invest in every level of the organization.  

In today’s show, Al reminds us that you can’t give what you don’t have and that we shouldn’t ask others to do what we wouldn’t do ourselves. He makes it a point to talk last at meetings, so others’ voices are heard first. Plus, as a lifelong learner, Al is a reader and author, and his new book Road to Flourishing was voted Christian Leadership Alliance book of the Year 2022.    

Al is offering the first chapter of his new book, Road to Flourishing: Eight Keys to Boost Employee Engagement and Well-Being, for FREE at roadtoflourishing.com. He also has a free video course and free workplace diagnostic!

Guests: Al Lopus

Ministry/ Workplace: Best Christian Workplaces Institute

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The title “Chief People and Culture Officer” perfectly describes the work that Tom Beck does at Compassion International. With a global workforce in 26 countries, every day Tom tackles the challenge of creating an organizational culture of belonging for staff who live across the world. So, how does he do it? According to Tom, it starts with cultivating the spiritual habit of prayer and listening to the Holy Spirit. As an extremely early morning person, Tom begins his most productive part of the day in prayer and Bible reading. From this place he is able to focus on the people and workplace culture he stewards – one that is in line with Compassion’s brand promise “to be known, loved, and connected.”

Our last words of wisdom from Tom are based on his line, “teach what we know – replicate what we are.” These are just a few ways that Tom leads a culture of belonging at Compassion International!

Guests: Tom Beck

Ministry/ Workplace: Compassion International

YouTube Video

Margaret Fitzwater, the Executive Director of Training, Development, and Care for the Navigators, attributes her strong faith and Christ-centered leadership to having good life rhythms. Particularly daily time in the Word – journal and pen in hand – and observing a weekly Sabbath where she focuses on life-giving activities. This dedication to allowing the Word of God to be a part of her life (not just overlaying it) is Margaret’s key to leadership!

At Navigators, Margaret leads five teams that train over 2,700 staff. This means that creating a sense of belonging is mission-critical! Being virtual is a challenge for building that culture, but her teams have learned to invest the time and effort to make sure that every staff member feels seen and heard. Margaret shares so much wisdom with us in today’s show, but the bottom line is that following Jesus is a different way of life than the world’s way.

Guests: Margaret Fitzwater

Ministry/ Workplace: The Navigators

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Get ready to be drawn in by the gentle leadership of Beth Guckenberger! Right off the bat, Beth shares with us her keys to Christ-centered leadership: fellowship and accountability. And what do these two things have in common? They are a part of being in community... part of belonging. Beth and her husband have spent years traveling and learning about other cultures, but the Bible’s principles for belonging always apply no matter where they are.

Plus, we talk about Beth’s new book, Throw the First Punch, where she applies some great principles from 1 Peter 5 and Ephesians 6 on the issues of spiritual warfare. After all, why should we wait for Satan to attack?  We know he’s prowling around looking for something to devour, so be aggressive and put on the Full Armor of God and throw the first punch! Imagine the kind of impact that we could have in each of our areas of influence if we took this approach.

There are so many great nuggets in this episode - you might need to listen to it more than once!

Guests: Beth Guckenberger

Ministry/ Workplace:  Back2Back Ministries

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Nona Jones wears many leadership hats – from church to business to family – so she knows that thriving leadership requires personal growth. Being a college science major, she’s able to give some spot-on examples from nature about what’s needed for growth and what signs show healthy growth vs. withering away.

A leader’s health is oftentimes directly reflected in their team’s health. So, if there’s one thing that Nona has been learning lately, it’s the importance of pouring into the lives of her team members.

As a biblical example in the same plant-related realm, Nona notes the necessity that leaders have of both being pruned for continual growth and carefully pruning others to encourage them to thrive, too. That being said, with the last years of added stress and challenge, God has been pointing her towards compassion and sincere care for truly effective leadership. Since Nona has been an executive at Meta (formerly Facebook), this is something she wants to encourage ministries to focus on as they use social media – not just producing content but connecting with people where they are.

Two pieces of leadership advice to take away from this interview:

1 – The right answer matters more than being right. We must be humble to be good leaders!

2 – Strive for an “additive” leader mindset. As leaders, we should be adding to those on our team, not using them to get ahead.

Guests: Nona Jones

Ministry/ Workplace:  NonaJones.com

YouTube Video

Have you ever wanted to change the world? Join us to hear about a couple in Rogers, Arkansas, who started a family business: drive-through coffee… and are changing their part of the world, one coffee and one smile at a time.

If we have a creed, it would be to change the world with one smile and one act of kindness at a time. ~ Ron Crume

Changing the world. We all have that secret desire, don’t we?  Changing the world in Kingdom terms is not measured in the BIG, the BIGGER and the BIGGEST actions in our life and work.

It’s often the exact opposite. Changing the world happens, one person, one word and one action at a time. It can be as small as smile, a kind word or a self-less act of service. It’s counter-intuitive, just like the work of Christ. In this episode, we had the owners of Seven Brew Coffee, Ron and Lisa Crume, from Rogers Arkansas, share their story about how and why they believe God had them start a drive-through coffee-shop (now multiplied to 6-7 shops). Hear more about how Workmatters has helped them change lives - 45 seconds at a time!

So how about you?  Would you like to change the world? Would you be willing to start today, changing the corner of the world where God has placed YOU?  We invite you to start changing the world RIGHT NOW, with ONE smile, ONE kind word, and ONE kind action, right where you are now.

Featured Guests: Ron & Lisa Crume

Workplace / Ministry: Workmatters & 7 Brew Coffee