Plan Your Personal Growth Strategy 2024 By Tami Heim

Five Ways to Ignite Your Personal Growth

As you plan for your personal growth in 2024, here are some ideas to help get you started. At Christian Leadership Alliance, we exist to provide and direct you to resources and experiences that will shape your character, build your professional competencies, and expand your leadership capacity. Here are five ways to ignite your growth in 2024 and some resources to help you get started.

(1) Get into the Word

It is a powerful practice to read through the bible every year. Finding a plan that works well for you is easy with some research. And every year, you can take a different approach. As with all life, the key is commitment and a consistent approach. As you commit to this daily practice, you will find that the Word will begin to read you! An added challenge is to memorize at least one scripture from each of the 66 books by the end of the year.

GET STARTED >>>

• Foundations: a 260–day Bible Reading Plan for Busy Believers
• One Year Chronological Bible – NIV
• The Power of Remember – Scripture Memorization that Works

(2) Practice Silence and Solitude

Even Jesus needed time to be alone with the Father. In a blog post by Ward Cushman, he identified that Jesus chose solitude over people six times.

• To prepare for a major task, Luke 4:1-2, 14-15. After Jesus was baptized, He spent 40 days praying in the wilderness. After this, He was tempted by Satan and then began His public ministry.
• To recharge after hard work, Mark 6:30-32. Jesus sent the 12 disciples out to do ministry. When they returned, He encouraged them to separate from the people following them to rest.
• To work through grief, Matthew 14:1-13. After Jesus learned that his cousin John the Baptist had been beheaded, He went away by Himself. Yes, even the Son of God grieves.
• Before making an important decision, Luke 6:12-13. Early in His ministry, Jesus spent the whole night alone in prayer. The next day, He chose his 12 disciples.
• In a time of distress, Luke 22:39-44. Hours before Jesus was arrested, He went to the Mt. of Olives, a short distance from His disciples, to pray. He was in great emotional agony, knowing what he was about to face.
• To focus on prayer, Luke 5:16. Many times in Jesus’ ministry, He spent time alone in prayer.

There is a Place for Solitude in All Our Lives, by Ward Cushman

If Jesus needed this time solitude and silence, how much more do we need it?

GET STARTED >>>

• Read An Invitation to Solitude and Silence: Experiencing God’s Transforming Presence by Ruth Haley Barton with a circle of close friends – and commit to practicing it daily.
• Faithfully Practice Sabbath.
• Intentionally plan for a rhythm of personal retreats.

(3) Keep a Running Reading List

We know that leaders are avid readers. They are intellectually curious and delight in having their current thinking challenged or finding new ways to do what they are called to do – better. The best way to go is to have a steady diet of reading or listening to books. It all comes down to deciding how you will make space and where you will go to find out what will feed your heart, mind, and soul!

GET STARTED >>>

• Check out the Quarterly Reading List recommendations in Outcomes magazine – 12 books featured in every issue!
• Check out the ECPA Bestseller list each month.
• Get an Audio Book App.

(4) Listen and Learn From Thought Leaders

Well – the latest stats from Social Shepherd indicate there are 4.25 million podcasts registered. That makes for many options for a leader to have their thinking influenced. At CLA, we want to simplify it and allow you to enjoy a video version of our podcasts. We also want to make sure you are aware of podcasts produced by members of the Alliance Community. Enjoy the sea of ideas with leaders who share your heart and passion for Christ-centered transformational thinking!

GET STARTED >>>

• CLA Podcasts – new episodes release on the first Tuesday of each month
• CLATV featuring CLA Member Organizations – see them on the main landing page
• CLATV and the broader Christian Network of podcasts

(5) Commit to Significant Shared Learning Experiences

Much is to be said about the shared experience and how it accelerates positive change and action. This is especially true when it happens among like-hearted leaders and teams. We’ve witnessed the power of this for almost five decades! We believe that iron sharpens iron, and in a shared experience, the outcomes can be extraordinary. So, if you want to accelerate your personal growth – create a shared experience and discover the difference it makes.

GET STARTED >>>

• Enroll in the Credentialed Christian Nonprofit Leader (CCNL) Program.
• Take an Outcomes Academy Online Course – that can happen as soon as January 8!
• Come with a Team to the Outcomes Conference 2024.

BONUS – Rule of Life

YES – you deserve a bonus. While there are only five ways to ignite your leadership, you must consider how to make it all work. That is where creating a Rule of Life helps you fit all the pieces together and ensure you make space and time for what truly matters most! Sacred Ordinary Days explains it in this way,

A rule of life is a commitment to live your life in a particular way. It is meant to be crafted with prayer and discernment, in partnership with God, as you consider how God made you and the values He has inscribed upon your heart. Once written, it serves as a tool that can help you make decisions for your life and determine how best to order your days.

Rule of Life by Sacred Ordinary Days

I crafted my first one several years ago, and now I can’t imagine life without one! It is one thing to list all the things you WANT to do and an entirely different activity to prioritize in the life God has called you to live.

GET STARTED >>>

• A Beginner’s Guide to a Rule of Life
• 10 Tips for Writing a Rule of Life

I pray that you will passionately seize the day and the year ahead, pursuing God’s best plans for your life!

Trust the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your understanding.

In all your ways, acknowledge him, and he will direct your paths.

~ Proverbs 3: 5,6

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Tami Heim is the president and CEO of Christian Leadership Alliance. She has served in this role since January 2012 and is grateful to witness God at work daily as Alliance leaders stand ready to invest their best in others for his highest purpose and most excellent glory.

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“Frank Markow connects the dots between complex organizational theory, practical application, and thoughtful theological perspective. As challenging as this is, he does it in a seamless style. From the first page, I was entirely engaged, as the book distinguishes itself as thought-provoking, witty, and always workable. The science and craft of leadership are shown to be achievable. Somehow, Markow intermingles organizations and the ever-present human mystery while being entertaining along the way. Think about it: how often have you been charmed to learn challenging and often perplexing lessons?”

Sam Rockwell, adjunct faculty, Pepperdine University; principal, Rockwell & Company

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