Interview: Phil Miglioratti with Dave Ferguson, Author of Multiplier
Phil: If becoming a “Multiplier” is the answer, what’s the question?
Dave:
The question my book Multiplier: How Healthy Leaders Create Lasting Impact answers is this: “How do I stay healthy as a leader for the long haul and still make an impact with my one and only life?”
This is a very personal question for me. For several years, I was in a small group with pastors from some of the largest churches in Chicagoland. You would know all their names. I loved those guys. I learned from them. They were incredibly gifted leaders. But if I tried to reassemble that same group today, half the seats would be empty. Some burned out. Some drifted. Several were disqualified. Each of them could have finished strong—but they didn’t. That was devastating.
It forced me to ask: what does it take not just to make an impact, but to sustain that impact over time?
That’s really what Multiplier is about. It’s not just about doing more—it’s about becoming the kind of leader who can go the distance. Practically, that means paying attention to your internal health—your relational, physical, mental, and spiritual gauges—because you will reproduce who you are. It means building rhythms and habits that keep you aligned with Jesus. It also means shifting your focus from doing ministry to multiplying it—developing others so the impact doesn’t depend on you alone.
Going the distance and making an impact are not separate goals. When you lead from a place of health and reproduction, you create a kind of impact that actually endures.
Phil: Your big idea is that a movement exists inside of each of us. Where should I look in my own story to uncover that?
Dave:
I’d start by paying attention to what’s already there. If you’re following Jesus, the Spirit of Jesus already lives inside you. And if Jesus lives inside you, that means movement-making potential already exists in you. That is true for every Christ follower—we start there.
From there, you begin to discover your unique calling. Your story—your experiences, your passions, even your pain—are often the very clues God uses to reveal it. What burdens won’t leave you alone? What people do you naturally move toward? What problems do you feel compelled to solve? Where have you already seen God use you?
Multipliers don’t begin by asking, “What should I do?” They recognize, “What has God already put in me?”
Phil: You say healthy leaders create impact. Thought-provoke us about that.
Dave:
Here is both an exciting and sobering truth: you will reproduce who you are more than what you say.
If you want the people around you to be generous, you need to be generous. If you want them to have great marriages and be good parents, they need to see you striving to be a great spouse and parent. You will reproduce who you are and what you do—not what you say.
That’s why I talk about the four internal gauges: relational, physical, mental, and spiritual. I call them the RPMS. If we’re not paying attention to those gauges, we will drift into unhealth. And here’s the sobering reminder: unhealth in you reproduces unhealth in others.
The drift toward unhealth is subtle. It happens slowly, over time. So the real question is not just, “Are you leading?” but “What kind of leader are you becoming?”
Phil: This book feels like more than information—it feels like an invitation to transformation. Why did you take that approach?
Dave:
You are 100% correct. The goal of this book is not just insight—it’s transformation. And transformation almost always happens best in community.
So my encouragement is this: don’t just read Multiplier. Work through it with others. Gather some friends. Take your staff or team through it. Begin to practice it together.
That’s why there are discussion questions in the book, along with videos that accompany it. I didn’t want this to be a book people simply read—I wanted it to be something they process. Reflect on it. Talk about it. Act on it.
Phil: What are the first signs that a leader or church is drifting—and how do we get back on track?
Dave:
Drift is dangerous because you don’t notice it at first. Some early signs are when you’re busy but not fruitful, when you’re leading but not developing others, when you’re gathering people but not sending them. You start making decisions based on pressure instead of prayer.
The way back isn’t adding something new—it’s realignment.
To prevent drift, I encourage leaders to take just four minutes a day to prayerfully check their four RPMS gauges: relational, physical, mental, and spiritual. Return to simple obedience—hear from God and do what He says in those areas. If a leader will dedicate just four minutes a day to prayerfully reflect on these gauges, it can prevent drift.
Phil: Is this book really just for church leaders?
Dave:
Not at all. While I wrote it with leaders in mind, this is really for every follower of Jesus. Staying healthy for the long haul matters for all of us. And making a lasting impact is part of God’s intention for every Christ follower.
Being a Multiplier isn’t a role—it’s an identity. This applies to pastors, but also to business leaders, parents, students—anyone who wants to live on mission. This book is designed to equip everyday people to become healthy disciple-making leaders who champion reproduction.
Phil: In a sentence or two, what’s the difference between making a disciple and making disciple-makers?
Dave:
Making a disciple is helping someone learn how to follow Jesus. Making disciple-makers is helping someone learn how to teach others to follow Jesus. One adds. The other multiplies.
Phil: What does a church actually do to form disciple-makers?
Dave:
It starts with a clear, simple definition of a disciple. I define a disciple as “a follower of Jesus who hears from God and does what He says.” Once you have that definition, you can build a disciple-making culture around it.
You create that culture in three ways: values, narrative, and behaviors. The values come straight from Scripture—teaching passages like Matthew 28:19–20 that reinforce that disciple-making is Jesus’ idea. The narrative comes through storytelling—sharing real stories of people growing and living this out in everyday life. And the behaviors center on obedience—hearing from God and doing what He says.
This must be modeled by leadership. It starts with senior leaders, but it must be lived out by everyone. When you have clarity in definition, you can build a culture where disciple-making actually happens.
Phil: You emphasize collaboration. What would you say to leaders who feel hesitant about that?
Dave:
I understand the hesitation. But God is interested in building His Kingdom—not in us building our own castles. The Kingdom of God is bigger than any one church.
Collaboration isn’t just a strategy—it’s an act of obedience. When churches move toward one another instead of competing, trust grows, resources multiply, and impact expands. It reflects the heart of Jesus’ prayer in John 17.
Phil: One more thing we need to hear?
Dave:
Yes—just remember this: you will reproduce who you are and what you do. That’s not a possibility—it’s already happening.
The question is: what are you currently reproducing?
Multiplier: How Healthy Leaders Create Lasting Impact will help you become intentional about what you are reproducing—and help you do it for the next 5, 10, 30 years, or more.
Phil: Would you close with a prayer?
Dave:
Lord, thank You for inviting us into Your mission. Thank You that Your Spirit lives in us. Would You awaken the movement You’ve already placed inside each of us? Help us become the kind of people who reproduce—disciples who make disciples, leaders who raise up leaders, and churches that plant new churches. Not for our sake, but for Your Kingdom. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Permission granted to post, publicize, print with attribution and without revisions.
© Reimagine.Network / Phil Miglioratti
BONUS Content >>>SCROLL for RELATED COMMENTARY by GUEST-POSTERS + FEATURED CONTRIBUTORS
What season are you in right now?
Most of us don’t take much time to ask that question.
We just keep going.
Leading. Serving. Carrying responsibility.
But every season is shaping something in us.
And sometimes what we need most isn’t another strategy—it’s clarity.
Clarity about where we are… and what God might be forming in us right now.
The Making of a Multiplier was written with that in mind.
It’s an invitation to slow down long enough to recognize your current season, understand what it holds, and consider how your leadership can grow in a way that lasts.
Not just for this year.
But for the long run.
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