Mike Fichter's blog

Sooner or later, every ministry leader feels the pressure to do more. More of something. More of anything. More for the sake of doing more.

Sometimes the pressure comes from others, but more often than not it comes from within ourselves. We end up on some unseen treadmill feeling guilty knowing that we could have added one more event to an already crowded schedule.

Activity is all about keeping busy. Anyone can keep busy – it’s not that hard in an attention-deficit world. If leaders and organizations were judged based on activity alone, some of the least productive among us would rank highest on the list.

Productivity is a different story. The classic management definition of productivity is the measure of output as a result of input. When it comes to leadership in the life movement, our measure of productivity is the measure if results we achieve in return for the leadership we apply.

How many children’s lives are we impacting because of our efforts? How many women have we helped to choose healthy alternatives to abortion? How many broken lives have we presented with the healing that is found in Christ alone? These are our ultimate measures of productivity.

It may just be that the most productive thing you can do this week is to take an afternoon off and do nothing but strategically set your goals for the next 30 days. It may also be that you finally say no to recurring activities or events that no longer serve a productive purpose – even if it’s an event that your organization has “always” done.

Activity is a stealer of time and energy. Productivity is the proof of your worth.

Today most of the sports world is talking it up about Brett Favre’s ill-fated throw that ended the Minnesota Vikings’ quest for a Super Bowl. If we dig a little deeper, we might just realize that what was likely to be Favre’s last game in the NFL was a masterful leadership lesson for anyone who bears the burden of leadership.

1. Leaders are calm under pressure. Favre faced the pressure of the playoffs, the pressure of age, and the pressure of expectations that he was the missing piece to the Minnesota puzzle. You never would have known it. From the pre-game to the last snap, Favre’s expression rarely changed except for the occassional grimace of pain. Leaders know all about what it means to have a game face on.

2. Leaders coach others. Minnesota was plagued by turnovers throughout the game, but Favre was first on the scene to calm down players nearly half his age, letting them know that they had to forget the fumbles and move on. Leaders understand what others are going through when things go bad and come alongside to help.

3. Leaders take the hits and get back up. Favre was pounded in the second half. Really pounded. At one point, no one thought he would get up from the carpet. But when the time came, he answered the call. As he limped onto the field for one more set of downs, it wasn’t about impressing himself. It was about showing his teammates that leadership means getting back up again. And again. And again.

4. Leaders don’t blame others. Most folks will take the easy way out and blame Favre’s late interception for the Vikings’ loss. In his post game press conference, he could have pointed the finger at any one of a dozen players for blowing the game. But he took it head-on. Leaders know that leading comes with all of the blame as well as all of the glory, and they take it in stride.

5. Leaders show character. In the minutes following a numbing loss, Favre was on the field shaking hands, giving hugs, and showing the world what it means to have character. Lesser guys would have sprinted to the locker room, sat with their head buried in their hands, or gruffly stormed through the after game frenzy. Leaders know the world is watching, and leaders aren’t afraid to put character on display.

6. Leaders lead. Why did the Vikings come so close to the Super Bowl? Why did Favre bring so much to the team? After all, aren’t there scores of QBs in the NFL with all of the skills to do what he does? Maybe. But the intangibles of leadership is what sets Favre apart from the crowd. He made others believe. He made others better. And when he stepped onto the field, he made those around him walk with just a little bit more bounce in their steps.

Thanks, Brett Favre, for taking a simple game and making it a leadership lesson for all of us who take the time to watch and listen and learn.

Last week, a thousand folks in Southwest Indiana enjoyed the sidesplitting comedy of comedian Tim Hawkins. They sang along with the FreeCreditReport.com song. They heard an outrageous parody of Prince’s “Purple Rain”. They even rolled along with the good-natured shots at small town Indiana.

Most folks would never have guessed the evening was about abortion. Not in a million years.

But by the end of the evening, one local ministry had successfully raised almost $15,000 to support free, pro-life pregnancy care services in the community. And they had a great time doing it.

Laugh for Life breaks all of the stereotypes for what a pro-life event should look like. No protest signs. No petitions. I don’t even think there was a politician in sight (try duplicating that with a crowd of 1,000-plus!). But the message came through loud and clear.

In fact, the show-stopping part of the evening didn’t come in the roar of laughter. It came in an audible gasp – that then turned into a rippling cheer — when the opening act made his big move on screen. It was a live ultrasound image of a baby turning flips, kicking his tiny legs, and basically saying, “here I am world – isn’t life great”.

Yeah, life is great. Great enough to loosen up and laugh. And to show our communities that it’s not about what we are against – it’s about what we are FOR. We are for Life.

Democratic Senator Ben Nelson’s disastrous cave-in on the Senate health bill carries with it the opportunity for the life movement to adopt what we should call the “Nelson Rule”. What does it mean? That we come to grips with the political reality that ostensibly pro-life Democrats continually enable abortion power brokers to retain power in Washington.

The Nelson Rule means no political endorsements for Democratic candidates as long as their party embraces abortion on demand.

The Nelson Rule means that leadership matters. You can’t uphold the value of life by supporting a Speaker of the House whose agenda includes undercutting the very value you profess to support.

The Nelson Rule means that you can’t belong to a political party that has as one of its core planks the denial of the right to life of unborn children.

The Nelson Rule means that the life movement is finally growing up and realizing that bipartisanship for the sake of bipartisanship is a romantic notion of the past.

The Nelson Rule means that the quickest way to reform the Democratic Party platform is for every pro-life voter to withhold his or her vote for Democratic candidates at all levels of government as a sign of solidarity against the party’s abortion agenda. The only exception? When a Democratic candidate squares off against a pro-abortion Republican.

The Nelson Rule means the life movement is tired of counting on ostensibly pro-life Democrats to stave off disaster, never to actually advance a pro-life agenda.

Some may argue that the current health care fight in Washington and our dependence on Blue Dogs to hold firm is exactly why we need to keep supporting Democrats.

But the reality is that we would never be in this dire situation except for the leadership that those same Blue Dogs support and empower.

That’s the Nelson Rule, as best as I can state it.

2010 is the year GE’s smartphone-sized ultrasound Vscan hits the market. The breakthrough device brings the power of ultrasound imaging to an incredibly convenient level that some are calling “the stethoscope of the 21st century”.

Watch a video demonstrating the Vscan

What remains to be seen is how this miracle of science can be leveraged to bring ultrasound imaging directly to women. The leading edge is waiting to be explored by the most creative minds and ministries in the life movement.

One thing is for certain – the Vscan untethers the world of ultrasound from the physical office and opens a limitless horizon.

Vscan is here. How will we tap into the power it brings to the table?