LIFE IS RELATIONSHIPS.
Principles To Live By empowers and equips people, pastors, and churches. Our biblical resources, coaches, teachers, and counselors magnify God and ignite hope for better relationships, healthier Christians, thriving churches, and vibrant communities. We hope to reach hundreds and thousands of people with God's principles for transformational change.
We are made up of God-honoring coaches, counselors, and Bible teachers, who use their gifts and talents to declare, apply, and demonstrate God's unchanging principles for a healthy life. We want people to understand how to fulfill their unique purpose and fully express the good works that God has designed for them. We believe your greatest life is achieved when you have great relationships (Matthew 22:37-39). Our books, online courses, classes, and audio sermons are built around how to have the best possilbe life. We would be happy to come to your church or event to talk to your group or sit one-on-one as a pastoral mentor or counselor. Let us know how we can best serve you.
Principles To Live By relies heavily on donations from our friends, fans, and supporters. Without donations, we cannot do what we do. Find out more about the projects we have planned for this year by visiting our General Fund giving page. Please prayerfully consider how you might partner with us on a one-time or ongoing basis. Thank you!
PTLB is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. All donations are tax deductible.
Meet The Team
PTLB President & Coach
Dr. Gil Stieglitz
Dr. Gil is a catalyst for positive change both personally and organizationally. He excites, educates, and motivates pastors and individuals all over the world. His passion, humor, and wisdom are what set him apart in the minds and hearts of his audiences. He has led workshops in China, Europe, Canada, Mexico, and all over the United States. He has taught many, many students at several of the areas top Christian universities and seminaries, including Biola, William Jessup, and Western Seminary. He sits on the board of Courage Worldwide, an organization that builds homes to rescue children forced into sexual slavery. And, he is our fearless leader here at Principles To Live By, writing multiple books and speaking to thousands of people about God-honoring relationships and topics each year.
PTLB Coach
Pastor Michael Baggett
Michael is a true team builder who has led and developed adult ministries since 1993. With a primary gift of leadership, Michael enjoys developing people and has a fresh, authentic style of teaching that relates well to people who have experienced life in the real world.
He is also a very talented and in-demand consultant for many churches in the region. He has over 2 decades of assimilation, discipleship, leadership development, church leadership, strategic planning, and ministry expansion experience in large and mid-sized churches. Michael's passion is to drive life transformation, bringing unique insight and experience for developing a wide variety of ministries from married life discipleship groups to outdoor sports groups for relational evangelism.
From 2004 to 2014, Michael developed Men's, Married, and Single Adult Ministries at Bayside Church in Granite Bay, CA. Currently, he is the pastor and leader for Bridges Sacramento, a weekly gathering in a casual, friendly environment that encourages single adults to develop great friendships and healthy relationships. For more, click here.
PTLB Coach
Laurie Kelley
Laurie is passionate about helping churches build relational children’s ministry that both kids and volunteers love! From 1999-2016, Laurie used her leadership gifts as a retail district manager to develop and lead the children’s ministry at Adventure Church in Roseville, California, one of the most recognized and dynamic children’s programs in the country. She also created dynamic events that attracted thousands of kids and scores of volunteers year after year. Knowing that successful children’s ministries are vital to the church as a whole, Laurie influenced leaders and volunteers to invest in the spiritual and relational needs of kids. She has an excellent track record of developing leaders, building dynamic teams, and coaching other churches to build strong children’s ministries, having co-led the Sacramento Children’s Ministry Network, as well as coaching and mentoring several area kids pastors. Currently, Laurie manages a privately owned business and is responsible for hiring, training, and staff development, as well as increasing productivity and profitability.
PTLB Counselor
Holly Eaton
Holly is a Christian counselor, who is very gifted at helping people overcome fears, phobias, and the residual effects of abuse. She is passionate about bringing God’s healing to people who are in broken relationships and to those struggling with a wide variety of emotional and spiritual issues. She offers individual, pre-marital, marital, and family counseling.
Holly has served on the staff of numerous churches, Christian colleges, and para-church organizations for her entire adult life. She has worked extensively with children, as well as in the fields of adoption and theater. In 2000, she earned her MA in Clinical Pastoral Counseling from the MN Graduate School of Theology. In 2004 she moved from the Midwest to CA, where she served as a Clinical Pastoral Counselor on the staff of Bayside Church of Granite Bay. Now she is a counselor on staff at PTLB, helping whoever she can. For more about how to support Holly and about her wide range of gifts and experience, click here.
PTLB Coach/Counselor
Rick Hoppe
After battling the giants of peer pressure, underachievement, and negative voices, Rick was inspired by his family and faith to develop people and share the love of Christ. He has been a teacher and minister in Ohio, Michigan, and California over the past 20 years, is a USPTA Tennis Pro, and has a Black Belt in karate. Rick is married to his wonderful wife of 25 years, Nancy, and father of 4 active children. When he is not watching his children participate in sports, Rick is speaking and giving hope and encouragement to people. With over 20 years of speaking experience, both over the radio and in person, Rick continues to give spiritual, athletic, and coaching wisdom and inspiration to people of all ages. If you are interested in working with Rick as a Life Coach for yourself or your teen, or as a speaker or consultant for your group, email Rick at rick.hoppe@ptlb.com. For more about Rick and how to support him, click here.
PTLB Coach/Counselor
Johnny Lujan
Johnny’s favorite word in the dictionary is “action.” He has built and led ministries since 2002, and for the past 17 years, has been a motivator of people, churches, businesses, and organizations. His leadership skills are extensive, having led ministries, sales teams, and regions to dynamic growth through team-building strategies, strategic relationship principles, and character-building workshops. Johnny uses his primary gifts of evangelism, leadership, and service to encourage organizations and individuals to develop a new story.
He is the Lead Pastor at Thunder Road Church in Rancho Cordova, CA, and Roseville, CA, and helped launch Brisbane, Australia in 2015. Thunder Road Church is a strategic church reaching a demographic of people that some call the “least of these.” He is also the co-founder of “Unchained Men,” bringing authenticity, vulnerability, and truth through training and workshops to encourage men to break free! For more about Johnny and his services, click here.
Publishing & Marketing
Jennifer Edwards
Jennifer Edwards is PTLB's Marketing & Publishing Manager, as well as an editor and author. She manages the PTLB devotional blogs, social media, and promotion of PTLB books, classes, and consultants. Jennifer is also the one you'll talk to if you contact PTLB. She handles customer and donor relations and all fundraising campaigns. She also teaches "How to Be a Godly Wife" classes to women, as well as conducts workshops on Finding Balance and other topics.
Jennifer has a Bachelor's degree in Marketing and a Master’s degree in Biblical and Theological Studies from Western Seminary. She has found that PTLB is the perfect place to use her Bible expertise, writing/editing, leadership, and administrative skills.
Business & Tech Support
Kelly Stuber
Kelly is our tech guru and is also in charge of the business side of PTLB. With her extensive experience in software development, business operations, and ministry, Kelly provides PTLB with invaluable business, technical, and marketing support. She works hard to keep us relevant and accessible to our customers and readers in as many ways as she can. Her primary focus is leading PTLB's newest venture into video curriculum development to help make biblical truths accessible to more people, anytime, anywhere.
Balancing life as a mom of a young son, Kelly juggles many, many balls for us and is an invaluable member of the PTLB team.
WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING
"Michael, thanks for your counsel and godly insight. THANKS for being a part of our lives and being a godly influence on our son. We appreciate you!"
"Holly Eaton is an exceptional therapist. I really appreciate her delicate, authentic and truthful approach. And that she invites the Holy Spirit to lead the direction for the need of the day. Sometimes the need is digging in on an issue, calling out some disruptive beliefs or talking about a health issue that is causing depression. She sincerely cares about her clients for their good and welfare. Thank you Holly! —J.B."
"Gil, your book titled "Weapons of Righteousness: Spiritual Disciplines" has been life-changing for my prayer life. This book I keep near my bedside table. Blessings, Adele"
"If you have ever been frustrated that marriage didn't come with a manual, you just hit the jackpot! "Marital Intelligence" by Gil Stieglitz will provide you with a roadmap for increasing the health, stability, and foundations of your marriage. Gil's book is organized around the five problems in marriage; but rather than being a book about how to avoid or resolve conflicts alone, this book equips you to build a healthy marriage in each of the five problem areas. I strongly recommend the book for pastors, counselors, and anyone wanting to build or bless others with a strong marriage." —Dr. John Jackson, President of William Jessup University
"On behalf of the Board of Elders, the staff, and the members of First Baptist Church of Davis, I wanted to personally thank you for your steadfast and godly leadership in our search for a new senior pastor. You really kept us focused on God’s leading, and encouraged all of us to rely on the Spirit’s prompting as we looked at the daunting challenge of replacing our beloved Pastor Glen after 20 plus years, and to evaluate well over 100 applications. We all owe you a debt of gratitude for the time, prayer, and ideas you provided to us. I personally know that sometimes when it seemed overwhelming, you kept us looking to our Lord to guide the process. Your experience with other searches, principals of church leadership, and links with other resources, kept our eye on God’s kingdom and FBC’s role in bringing His glory to our world." —Rick Standiford Chair, Board of Elders, FBC of Davis
"Our church hired Laurie Kelley as a consultant to renew and refresh our ministry to families and children. Laurie has trained our volunteer leaders to develop clear goals and objectives to refocus our ministry for children. Laurie is also assisting us in our search for a staff person to lead this vital ministry. She has an energetic desire to serve the Lord and to reach people for Christ. Her unique skill set, along with the vast experience in working with leaders and volunteers, has been very helpful for our ministry teams. I wholeheartedly recommend to you Laurie Kelley!" —Pastor Bob Yule, Celtic Cross Presbyterian Church, Citrus Heights, CA
"I would highly recommend Laurie Kelley as a Ministry Consultant. She not only recommends for the Sunday Ministry but also for personal growth as a leader. I have since joined the Children’s Ministry Network of Sacrament and love it! This has been a great wealth of information and idea sharing! Laurie has the gift of leadership and training and has used it in many ways to help other Children’s Ministry Leaders. I was recently at her old church and you can still hear her praises and see the legacy she helped build." —Lovina Kirkpatrick, Antelope Springs Church, Children’s Ministry Director
"Michael, I just wanted to thank you again for meeting with us yesterday, and what you did for our family. Spiritual warfare is definitely out there, and after our meeting, I am more aware than ever. I am working on strengthening my faith within my family and myself. You are truly amazing at what you do, and I feel so blessed to have met with you. We will continue to practice the counsel you have given us."
"Gil, just wanted to let you know that I have really gotten a lot out of your Breakfast with Solomon Daily Devotionals. They have been an amazing addition to my morning time with God! I appreciate getting them! Thank you, Tim"
"Gil, I am so glad you have started this devotional series! I am looking forward to my coffee with Jesus every morning!" —Cindy