Church Life
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Leading Life Changing Small Groups
$16.99Add to cartLike nothing else, small groups have the power to change lives. They’re the ideal route to discipleship-a place where the rubber of biblical truth meets the road of human relationships.
This updated and revised third edition of the bestselling Leading Life-Changing Small Groups handbook helps small group leaders learn the basics of leading a successful small group. Regardless of whether a person is leading for the first time or has been for years, this resource will help a small group leader more effectively facilitate group discussion and encourage and support group members in a way that leads to authentic and lasting life change.
The unique, ready-reference format highlights the requirements and responsibilities of a small group leader, gives helpful insight into the process of group formation and answers practical questions about meeting preparation and how to encourage group participation. It includes a model for discipleship within a small group and suggestions for dealing with some of the common roadblocks and struggles that most groups encounter.
This workbook can be used as a stand-alone resource to train coaches or partnered with the eight-session training videos taught by the author, available on the Equipping Life-Changing Small Groups DVD (sold separately). For those who want to lead small groups with excellence and truly witness life change in their small groups, this go-to guide offers practical answers and inspiring examples.
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Church Membership : How The World Knows Who Represents Jesus
$14.99Add to cartJonathan Leeman addresses the commonly asked (and often unanswered) question of, “Why should I join a church?” in a time when many are shunning the practice of organized religion. By offering a brief, straightforward explanation of what church membership is and why it’s important, Leeman gives the local church its proper due and builds a case for committing to the local body. Church Membership is a useful tool for churches to distribute en masse to new and potential members of their congregation.
This volume is part of the 9Marks: Building Healthy Churches series. Look for upcoming, quick-read formats of the following marks of a healthy church: expositional preaching, biblical theology, the gospel, conversion, evangelism, church discipline, discipleship and growth, and church leadership.
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10 Temptations Of Church
$17.99Add to cartChurch after church faces eventual death while helplessly lamenting its fate. What perversity is at work that causes those who sincerely love the church to become obstacles to growth? Like the apostle Paul, churches don’t always do the things they want, but instead they do the very thing they hate. Why? While the theological answer is sin at work in us, the organizational answer may just be that members of dying churches unconsciously find a payoff in the church’s decline. They are tempted by church.
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Juvenilization Of American Christianity
$29.99Add to cartPop worship music. Falling in love with Jesus. Mission trips. Wearing jeans and T-shirts to church. Spiritual searching and church hopping. Faith-based political activism. Seeker-sensitive outreach. These now-commonplace elements of American church life all began as innovative ways to reach young people, yet they have gradually become accepted as important parts of a spiritual ideal for all ages. What on earth has happened? In The Juvenilization of American Christianity Thomas Bergler traces the way in which, over seventy-five years, youth ministries have breathed new vitality into four major American church traditions – African American, Evangelical, Mainline Protestant, and Roman Catholic. Bergler shows too how this “juvenilization” of churches has led to widespread spiritual immaturity, consumerism, and self-centeredness, popularizing a feel-good faith with neither intergenerational community nor theological literacy. Bergler’s critique further offers constructive suggestions for taming juvenilization.
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Contagious Generosity : Creating A Culture Of Giving In Your Church
$22.99Add to cartWhat does it look like when pastors cultivate a culture of generosity in the church by actively teaching and mentoring people in the spiritual act of giving? It’s generosity that’s contagious.
A growing number of leaders are beginning to discover that there are key factors that make some churches thrive with abundant resources while others struggle with shrinking budgets.
Jim Sheppard and Chris Willard have spent years consulting with church leaders across a broad spectrum of church settings and have gathered their observations into this resource, part of the Leadership Network Innovations Series.
Contagious Generosity highlights the best practices gleaned from real-life church leadership situations and shows how church leaders can effectively cultivate a culture of generous giving in the local church. It explains why some churches are experiencing unexplainable ministry growth and unprecedented church funding … even in the midst of tough economic times.
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RetroChristianity : Reclaiming The Forgotten Faith
$21.99Add to cartAddresses the current exodus of Christians from evangelical churches and argues for a return to historical roots.
Evangelicalism is in trouble. Surveying the modern evangelical landscape, professor Michael Svigel asks, “Why does evangelicalism appear to be spinning out of control, losing appeal to younger generations, dwindling in numbers, or selling out to pop culture to muster a crowd?” He seeks to answer this question by looking to the past-to a Retro Christianity.
Calling for a return to evangelicalism’s historical and theological roots, Svigel begins by addressing some of present-day evangelicalism’s problems and explores what can be done to help churches regain a healthy perspective on doctrine. He then gives practical examples of what establishing a biblical, historical, and theologically sound foundation will mean for Christians as they think through aspects of church life and worship.As the numbers of those confused or disenchanted with evangelicalism continue to grow, Svigel’s book meets a timely need and will benefit many readers with his balanced argument for preserving the evangelical faith.
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Unlocking The Growth
$13.99Add to cartHow to use the power of invitation to double the size of your church This book teaches the power of invitation. It may sound simple, but we are so caught up in our busy church lives that we have missed it. In 2004 Michael Harvey gave up a high-flying job in London to teach church leaders to see new possibilities, using an approach that has quickly become established as Back to Church Sunday. Michael likes to challenge churches of all sizes to double their congregation in a day. The basics are simple: Invite your friends and become an inviting church. Develop a mind-set open to what God might do; work on creating a welcoming environment; learn from mistakes; help people to know God. “It takes a very brave person to walk into a church on their own nowadays,” says Michael, “but God is still speaking to them and all they need is a gentle invitation.”
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Gospel Coach : Shepherding Leaders To Glorify God
$22.99Add to cartMany ministry leaders serving in churches find themselves overwhelmed, disillusioned, and depressed by the enormous and challenging task of leading and serving others. When leaders aren’t healthy, the result is often an unhealthy church.
Leaders need someone to shepherd their soul so that they can then lead others to the Chief Shepherd, Jesus Christ. Every church leader—from fulltime ministers to volunteer leaders—needs a Gospel Coach who will come alongside them with words drawn from Scripture and godly wisdom, grounded in the gracious saving work of Jesus Christ, and presented in the context of a trusting relationship.
Gospel coaching is an intentional relationship of skillful caring for others based on four ancient shepherding principles: 1) Know the sheep 2) Feed the sheep 3) Lead the sheep 4) Protect the sheep
Gospel coaches inquire about the personal, spiritual, and missional aspects of a leader’s life in a loving yet focused manner, probing the heart for compulsive unbelief or selfish motivation, disobedience, and sin, leading them back to the Gospel through belief, repentance, and obedience.
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unChristian : What A New Generation Really Thinks About Christianity And Wh (Rep
$18.00Add to cartChristianity has an image problem. Christians are supposed to represent Christ to the world. But according to the latest report card, something has gone terribly wrong. Using descriptions like “hypocritical,” “insensitive,” and “judgmental,” young Americans share an impression of Christians that’s nothing short of . . . unChristian.
Groundbreaking research into the perceptions of people aged 16-29 reveals that Christians have taken several giant steps backward in one of their most important assignments. The surprising details of the study, commissioned by the Fermi Project and conducted by The Barna Group, are presented with uncompromising honesty in unChristian. Find out why these negative perceptions exist, learn how to reverse them in a Christlike manner, and discover practical examples of how Christians can positively contribute to culture.
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Church Actually : Rediscovering The Brillance Of God’s Plan
$13.99Add to cartAn exploration of the challenges of ‘being church’ in the 21st century.
Church attendance in the west has declined in recent years, but decline has been accompanied by growth in spiritual exploration, a desire for spirituality, faith, even Jesus – all without the church. Experience, history and the New Testament suggest this desire is ill-founded. It is through the church, the Bible suggests, that the Kingdom comes. How can we find a wider vision of the Kingdom and the church’s role? Kelly explores four of the ‘brilliant ideas’ inherent in God’s design of the church. God works through his people, and the church trains and equips; the church is Spirit-driven, and spiritual formation is central to God’s mission; the church’s task force transforms the world through acts of love and service; the church is the rainbow-clothed Bride of Christ, one global family, a reconciling model for the world. Can we break out of the greyness of our church experience to discover the riot of colour God intended? Is there a route back to the brilliance of God’s plan?
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Letters To The Seven Churches
$20.00Add to cartEach chapter begins with a brilliantly sketched account of the city in which the church addressed lived, followed by an exposition of the Letter to that church, concise, well-illustrated and written in an arresting style. His gift of bringing out the valuable meanings of Greek words is particularly helpful. This book will be a boon to teachers, preachers and Bible readers. Done with admirable clarity and most interestingly. It is just the kind of book to help anyone who wishes to lead a Bible Study Group. Dr Barclay brings to his task the experience of the tried preacher as well as the learning of the scholar. A direct and devotional commentary such as could be used in any parish group.
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Variegated Tapestries Of Ministry
$17.99Add to cartAmidst the postmodern technological explosion and the vexing complexities of our time, the church and its affiliate learning facilities need men and women thoroughly informed in theology, and well grounded in ministry to keep them afloat and make them the channels of hope, comfort, direction and leadership to a blind and dying world.In Variegated Tapestry of Ministry, P. Myles-Aikins puts into the hands of the clergy and seminary academics a premium text, and a profound lifelong material in ministry with a solid theological cornerstone to enhance the theological education and ministerial excellence.
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Becoming A Grand Champion Church
$11.95Add to cartThere are many ideas about how to increase the size of a church. But what if our vision is upside down? What if God’s desire is that we focus on being a quality church instead of simply a large church? The Bible envisions the church as a spotless bride, a vision of quality. Today’s church seems far from God’s vision of perfection, but that does not change the goals God has for His flock. Using Psalm 23 as a blueprint, Becoming a Grand Champion Church explores how Christ is shepherding His church toward maturity.
A gap exists between this age’s knowledge of sheep and shepherding that makes it difficult to grasp the fullness of Christ’s shepherding work in the church. The author seeks to fill that gap with homespun remembrances of raising sheep to be shown at the county fair. He then ties the shepherd’s duties with practical suggestions of how the whole body can work alongside the Good Shepherd toward Christ’s vision for His bride. The result of following God’s plan is a Grand Champion Church that reflects the qualities of Christ to the world.
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Fresh : An Introduction To Fresh Expressions Of Church And Pioneer Ministry
$35.99Add to cartFresh ! offers a strong rationale for fresh expressions and pioneer ministries rooted in scripture and in the breath of the Christian tradition. This is tested against the realities of contemporary British culture and critiques of the notion of Fresh Expressions. It offers practical guidance for starting and sustaining such ministries in the long term. It provides a survey of best practice within Fresh Expressions and pioneer ministry.Fresh ! comes out of the mature reflection of church leaders and theologians who have been active in such ministries over a number of years, showing how such ministries are integral to the work of the church both now and over the long term.This is combined with valuable practical advice – the best kind of practical theology.
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Staying Alive : Why The Conventional Wisdom About Traditional Churches Is W
$14.99Add to cartLucas Park Books
The conventional wisdom says it’s not possible to thrive today as a traditional congregation whether “traditional” means worship style or program structure. Staying Alive takes readers on a journey across America to look for best practices of thriving traditional congregations. -
Healthy Community : Moving Your Church Beyond Tunnel Vision
$15.99Add to cartChurches in America are dying. It s a sad reality, but statistics show that some 3,000 churches close their doors permanently every year. What does it take for a church today to remain healthy? How can pastors lead their churches into the future as strong, thriving communities?
In The Healthy Community, church leaders will be able to diagnose the problems that may exist in their own church and understand what it looks like when a church is lacking healthy essentials such as a doctrinal statement, grace, a mission, pastoral leadership, and discipled believers.
This book is an important first step for pastors who want to lead their churches towards health, and avoid becoming another statistic.
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Cultivating Sent Communities
$33.99Add to cartHow can pastors help to create missional faith communities that are willing to participate in God’s healing of the world? Cultivating Sent Communities reimagines spiritual formation through the lens of mission, covering such topics as the role of Scripture, congregational discernment, and short-term missions and drawing on case studies from diverse contexts including Ethiopia, England, Leipzig, and San Francisco. Full of rich practical, theological, and sociological insights into forming missional churches, this fourth volume in the Missional Church Series calls readers to deepen the core practices that have defined Christians for centuries — and to reclaim them within the context of cultural adaptation and innovation.
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Missional House Churches
$26.99Add to cartMissional House Churches examines the impact and effect that house churches are having in the United States in evangelizing, discipling, and church planting in local communities. Based on the author’s first-hand research and interviews with over thirty missional house churches as well as his own experiences, this insightful work offers an inside look at, and analysis of the workings of the missional house church.
Topics addressed include the recent growth in the popularity of house churches in the United States, what defines church, various characteristics of the house churches, methods of evangelism and leadership development which lead to growth, use of financial resources for missions and benevolence, future of house churches in North America and the relationship of church planting movements and house churches. The appendices describe the research methodology and surveys used in the study as well as characteristics of church planting movements.
This book will be of interest to church leaders, mission-minded thinkers, and students who wish to explore, understand, and participate in this phenomenon of the missional house church movement.
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Focus : The Real Challenges That Face The United Methodists Church
$14.99Add to cartFew would argue that many challenges face The United Methodist Church. But what are the core issues and concerns, the ones that must be addressed if the church is to follow God’s leading into the future? Laying aside what can be merely tweaked or adjusted, what must the UMC “reset” about itself? Lovett Weems, one of the most highly-respected interpreters of contemporary United Methodism, suggests that we start with the following:
– What will happen now that the increased giving that United Methodists have enjoyed (despite declining membership numbers) has reached a plateau and begun to decline?
– Why, with 34,000 congregations and $6.5 billion in annual giving, can’t United Methodists add a net increase of even 1 new disciple of Jesus Christ in a given year?
– Why are United Methodist clergy less concerned with reaching young adults than are laity? Why are laity unwilling to make the changes to worship and budgets required to attract these same young adults?
– If the percentage of married couples with young children has declined by half since the 1950s, why is that still the group we focus on reaching?
– Why are so many mid-sized churches on their way to becoming small-membership congregations?With insight, conviction, and calm resolve, Lovett Weems challenges United Methodists not only to ask these hard questions, but to face up to the difficult decisions they require of us as we continue to seek God’s will for our lives together.
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Stop The Churchs Revolving Door
$30.99Add to cartDoes your church have a revolving door? Most churches do not have a ministry to establish and maintain authentic personal relationships with inactive members, visitors, or prospective members. Before implementing this ministry, one church failed to stay relationally connected to its members. Is your church suffering from the same dilemma?
This new ministry empowered churches toward improving its church health, increasing service opportunities for laypeople, and establishing stronger personal relationships. It is possible in your church, too! This book provides a guide toward implementing this crucial ministry in your church. It is time to stop your church’s revolving door!
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Kingdom At War
$18.99Add to cartThe Kingdom at War is a prophetic view of the structure and power of the Church that will be given authority to overcome the enemy and see the establishment of the Kingdom of God in the last days. The book concentrates on establishing a “city church” that will reap the harvest, extend the Kingdom of God, overcome the kingdom of darkness, and bring glory to the King. Using prophetic Scriptures from the Old Testament, the author applies them to the New and the present Church, presenting a comprehensive picture of the glorious possibilities for today’s Church.
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Stop The Churchs Revolving Door
$13.99Add to cartDoes your church have a revolving door? Most churches do not have a ministry to establish and maintain authentic personal relationships with inactive members, visitors, or prospective members. Before implementing this ministry, one church failed to stay relationally connected to its members. Is your church suffering from the same dilemma?
This new ministry empowered churches toward improving its church health, increasing service opportunities for laypeople, and establishing stronger personal relationships. It is possible in your church, too! This book provides a guide toward implementing this crucial ministry in your church. It is time to stop your church’s revolving door!
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Widening The Circle
$14.99Add to cartForeword
Introduction
First Wave (1950s And ’60s)
Second Wave (1970s And ’80s)
Third Wave (1990s To Present)Additional Info
In the last half-century, a growing number of North Americans have been smitten with an Anabaptist-Mennonite vision of church and mission. Often coming from outside the Mennonite mainstream, they’ve formed communities with others of like mind and sought to live out their radical faith. But in the process, they often bump up against the institutional church that has housed the radical vision for generations. The stories and reflections offered in Widening the Circle explore that creative tension. The result is a rich showcase of Jesus-centered discipleship-windows into what the future church can look like.Contributing authors are Vincent Harding, Rosemarie Freeney Harding, Rachel Elizabeth Harding, Sally Schreiner Youngquist, Celina Varela, Regina Shands Stoltzfus, Hedy Sawadsky, AndrA(C) Gingerich Stoner, Peter Sprunger-Froese, Mary Sprunger-Froese, Dawn Longenecker, Tim Nafziger, James Nelson Gingerich, Sarah Thompson, Bert Newton, Mark Van Steenwyk, Andrea Ferich, Seth McCoy, Jamie Arpin-Ricci, Anton Flores-Maisonet, Calenthia S. Dowdy, Jesce Walz.
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Vision For The Aging Church
$28.99Add to cartJames M. Houston and Michael Parker believe now is the time for the church to offer ministry to its increasing numbers of seniors and to benefit from ministry they can offer. They issue an urgent call to reconceive the place and part of the elderly in the local congregation, showing that seniors aren’t the problem–they are the solution.
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Pattern : Churches Producing People Who Behave Like Jesus
$15.99Add to cartThere are some things God is not willing to leave to the mind of men, and building His Kingdom is certainly one of those things. God has always intended for HIS WORK to be done on HIS TERMS and by HIS STRATEGY. This book lifts from the word of God the pattern of ministry Jesus developed and presents it in a way that makes it clear, understandable, and compelling. What this can do for your church, regardless of size or circumstance, is only limited by how far you are willing to allow the Holy Spirit to take you. When Jesus developed His pattern of ministry He got it right the first time. What Jesus developed shares His characteristic of being timeless. Today, churches can realize their greatest potential when duplicating the pattern of ministry developed by Jesus.
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Why Men Hate Going To Church (Revised)
$18.99Add to cartReveals why men are the world’s largest unreached people group and what to do about it.
It’s Sunday morning. Where are all the men? Golfing? Playing softball? Watching the tube? Mowing the lawn? Sleeping? One place you won’t find them is in church. Less than 40 percent of adults in most churches are men, and 20 to 25 percent of married churchgoing women attend without their husbands. And why are the men who do go to church so bored? Why won’t they let God change their hearts? David Murrow’s groundbreaking book has been completely revised and updated, with eye-opening research and a persuasive grasp on the facts, to explain the problem and offer hope and encouragement to women, pastors, and men. Why Men Hate Going to Church does not call men back to the church-it calls the church back to men.
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To Life : Rediscovering Biblical Church
$14.99Add to cartAre you satisfied with your Christian life or do you get the feeling that something is missing, but you’re not sure what it is? Have you ever asked the question, where does the World end and the Church begin? Is the 21st Century Church truly the best it could possibly be? Are there forgotten places that we should be revisiting?
Dare we believe that we could return to the Biblical Church of the first apostles?
Some say we can’t, others have tried and failed. This author believes it’s worth trying again because it’s all a question of mindsets and this book will explain why, with the wit, wisdom and wonder that is the trademark of Steve Maltz’s writing.
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How The Church Lost The Truth
$14.99Add to cartIt should have been so simple. There was the Bible, God’s authoritative and complete word for mankind. His gift to us. One volume of sixty six books in all, from “In the beginning” to “amen”. One basic message. Choose Life, He said. So what did we do? We chose … denominations, 38,000 of them. One book, thousands of interpretations.
Snake handlers in Kansas, Prosperity teachers in Washington, Liberationists in El Salvador, Gay Bishops in New Hampshire, New Age rectors in London. They all claim the Bible as their inspiration and rulebook. Once this book is opened, why is it that folk seem to see different things? One book, one message, one Babel. How come? Where can the Truth be found or has the Church lost The Truth?
This explosive book tells the whole sad story of what actually happened to the Church over the last two thousand years and how it managed to lose its focus and take on so many ideas from Greek philosophy that Christianity has just become a melting point of truth mixed up with very strange ideas.
If Jesus were to return today, which Church – if any – could He call his own?
In this challenging, provocative but entertaining book the author examines what has happened to some key battlegrounds for Truth and asks, where did those ideas come from?
*How did God kick things off?
*How does He deal with His covenant people?
*Who does He let into heaven?
*What is Hell really like?
*How is He really going to wrap things up?Some of the answers will astound you and you may also be prompted to ask the question, how has the Church managed to lose so much Truth?
Prepare to be challenged to the very core of your faith.
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Think Christianly : Looking At The Intersection Of Faith And Culture
$26.99Add to cartThink Christianly is about seizing the opportunities we have every day to speak the life Jesus offers into our culture. Tragically, many such opportunities pass us by unclaimed—either because we don’t notice them or we have not prepared ourselves to enter into them. And those around us seem to grow increasingly unwilling to hear anything the church has to say.
Jonathan Morrow helps church leaders envision and implement ways for their congregations to ‘think Christianly’ about contemporary questions and to speak in informed, engaging ways. Morrow explores many of the important issues that Christians often hear raised with regard to faith—questions about who Jesus was, the good and bad of religion, pain and evil in the world, the reliability of the Bible, sexuality and intimate relationships, and hope for change, among others.The life and faith issues that Think Christianly addresses lead to cultural moments where Christianity and contemporary culture intersect. This book will help churches take vital steps toward cultivating compassion and competence in speaking faithfully to a questioning world.
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Prophetic Jesus Prophetic Church
$26.99Add to cartAsserting that believers chronically and desperately need prophecy, award-winning biblical scholar Johnson reveals the divine “ongoing call” in Luke and Acts. Presenting the books as a literary unit, he highlights Luke’s bold proclamation of God’s transforming vision—challenging Christians’ all-too-human tendency toward expediency and self interest. A startling portrait of Christ in Scripture.
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Dead Church Walking
$24.99Add to cartMost everyone recognizes that the traditional Western way of doing church is in deep trouble and has been struggling for years to survive. While the successful rise of some new, non-traditional churches often take the sting out of the demise of the average church, the truth is that God still can renew congregations that have a rich history but are struggling to adjust in today’s postmodern culture.
In his new book, Dead Church Walking, author Jimmy Dorrell offers both Biblical and social principles with clear suggestions for congregations willing to significantly change to become a body of believers that proclaims God’s kingdom on earth as it is in heaven. While there are no easy fixes, this book addresses underlying symptoms of broken models that often perpetuate terminal illness stopping the church from doing God’s work on earth.
Dorrell says our churches don’t need new missions statements or re-structuring but a fresh wind of God’s spirit. We don’t need charismatic leaders but compassionate, Christ centered leaders. He shows us how to embrace change, overcome the obstacles to change, and focus on kingdom growth instead of church growth. This book is hopeful and encouraging, bringing fresh ideas to ignite the fire of churches and put them on the road to recovery.
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Masters Plan : A Strategy For Making Disciples
$13.99Add to cart1. The Vision Of The Father
2. The Cali Story
3. What Is The Master’s Plan?
4. The Encounter Weekend Retreat
5. The Courses And Classes Of The Master’s Plan
6. Basic Principles Of Disciple-Making
7. The Two Types Of Small Groups In The Master’s Plan
8. The Journey Of “Joe Unbeliever” To “Joe Disciple-Maker”
9. The Next Steps
10. What God Is Doing In The Church Of The Nazarene Through The Master’s Plan In North AmericaAdditional Info
Pray. Disciple. Repeat.God has a vision, plan, and design for our lives and ministries. It is greater than we could ever imagine. By discovering and pursuing his design, we find our greatest joy and fulfillment. Fortunately, Jesus has already told us our mission: to partner with God and make disciples in all the nations.
In The Master’s Plan, Craig Wesley Rench unpacks a disciple-making strategy currently being used around the world. Learn about the 6 basic components of the method, study the principles and practices of spiritual multiplication, and discover why over 30,000 churches are using the Master’s Plan method of disciple-making.
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Living Church : Convictions Of A Lifelong Pastor
$22.99Add to cartPreface: “Emerging Churches”
The Postmodern World
Acknowledgments And Abbreviations
1. Essentials: God’s Vision For His Church
2. Worship: Glorying In God’s Holy Name
3. Evangelism: Mission Through The Local Church
4. Ministry: The Twelve And The Seven
5. Fellowship: The Implications Of Koinonia
6. Preaching: Five Paradoxes
7. Giving: Ten Principles
8. Impact: Salt And Light
Conclusion: Looking For Timothys In The 21st Century
HIstorical Appendix 1: Why I Am Still A Member Of The Church Of England
Historical Appendix 2: I Have A Dream Of A Living Church
Historical Appendis 3: Reflections Of An OctogenarianAdditional Info
John Stott describes the characteristics of an “authentic” or “living” church that conserves Scripture and radically combines tradition and that convention called “culture.” He presents the Bible’s wisdom with a teacher’s skill and applies it with a pastor’s heart. Stott shows that becoming a living church is not an impossible goal. -
You Cant Keep A Good Tune Down
$14.49Add to cartWarbling sopranos, bellowing basses, someone in the back row at least a line ahead of everyone else, fusty robes, intransigent organists and temperamental clergy – welcome to the world of the local church choir. There is no better observer of the volatile relations between the clergy, the choir, the organist and the congregation than Reg Frary who has seen it all in over seventy years’ first hand experience of sitting in the choir stalls Sunday by Sunday and at weddings, funerals, carol services, festivals and other occasions.
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How The Church Lost The Way
$14.99Add to cartTackling the ‘uncomfortable truth’ for the Church, this book packs a heavyweight punch in a lightweight package. With great clarity and style the author explains how the Church has been strangled by its past and how the faith in Jesus Christ was infiltrated by pagan ideas from Greek philosophy that have remained to this day. This book exposes and explains how this affects our understanding of the Bible, God, Church and everything in-between. In this provocative, entertaining and encouraging book, we will explore our true roots and discover practical keys to move forwards.
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Remixing The Church
$35.99Add to cartThe Emerging Church movement is a key part of the current landscape of Christianity.The term ’emerging church’ is not without its critics. It is used both by those who participate in new worship communities such as those represented at Greenbelt and by those who are suspicious of the claim that the emerging church presents something radically new. Doug Gay attempts to look beyond such polarization and to articulate a hermeneutical process of audit, retrieval, unbundling and remixing of key elements of traditional Christian practice.Remixing the Church has the potential to become a standard work on contemporary ecclesiology.
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Renovate Or Die
$16.99Add to cartBe the Church Jesus calls us to be.
Bob Farr asserts that to change the world, we must first change the Church. As Adam Hamilton says in the Foreword, “Read [this book] carefully with other leaders in your church…You’ll soon discover both a desire to renovate your church and the tools to effectively lead your church forward.” If we want to join Robert Schnase and claim radical hospitality, passionate worship, intentional faith development, risk-taking mission and service, and extravagant generosity, we must also engage pastors and motivate churches. We must renovate and overhaul our churches and not merely redecorate and tinker with our church structure.
With straight forward language and practical tips, this book will inspire and help you organize your church for new life on the mission field. Learn how to grow your church and discover the commitments that denominational leaders must make to guarantee the fruitfulness of local congregations.
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Renovation Of The Church
$24.99Add to cartCopastors Kent Carlson and Mike Lueken tell the story of how God took their thriving, consumer-oriented church and transformed it into a modest congregation of unformed believers committed to the growth of the spirit–even when it meant a decline in numbers.
As Kent and Mike found out, a decade of major change is not easy on a church. Oak Hills Church, from the pastoral staff to the congregation, had to confront addiction to personal ambition, resist consumerism and reorient their lives around the teachings of Jesus. Their renewed focus on spiritual formation over numerical growth triggered major changes in the content of their sermons, the tenor of their worship services, and the reason for their outreach. They lost members.
But the health and spiritual depth of their church today is a testimony of God’s transforming work and enduring faithfulness to the people he loves.
Honest and humble, this is Kent and Mike’s story of a church they love, written to inspire and challenge other churches to let God rewrite their stories as well. Read it for the church you love.
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Becoming An Anti Racist Church
$27.00Add to cartMartin Luther King’s observation that 11 a.m. on Sunday is the most segregated hour of the week remains all too true.
Christians addressing racism in American society must begin with a frank assessment of how race figures in the churches themselves, leading activist Joseph Barndt argues. This practical and important volume extends the insights of Barndt’s earlier, more general work to address the race situation in the churches and to equip people there to be agents for change in and beyond their church communities.
A hallmark of Barndt’s analysis is his keen grasp of the deep yet checkered legacy that American church and church bodies inherit on this question. Yet Barndt also lifts up the ways in which their prophetic work has proved a catalyst for progress in American race relations, and he clearly shows why and how churches can inculcate an anti-racist commitment into their collective lives.
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Jesus Salvation And The Jewish People
$29.99Add to cartThe Uniqueness of Christ for Salvation (Rolf Hille)
View of Salvation in Early Christianity and Early Judaism (Eckhard Schnabel)
John’s Gospel and Jewish Monotheism (Andreas Kostenberger)
Martin Luther and the Jewish People (Berthold Schwarz)
The Early Pietistic Movement and Jewish Evangelism (David Dowdey)
Urgent Issues in Jewish Evangelism Around 1900 (Kai Kjr-Hansen)
Germany’s Romantic Nationalism and Anti-Semitism (Mike McDuffee)
Messianic Jewish Reflections on the Holocaust (Michael Brown)
Two Covenant Theology and Jewish Missions (Henri Blocher)
Implicit ‘Universalism’ in Some Messianic Judaism (Richard Harvey)
Replacement Theology and its Implications (Darrell L. Bock)
Karl Barth, Mark Kinzer, and the Jewish People (Eckhard Schnabel)
Resources and Current Practices in Jewish Evangelism (Tuvya Zaretsky) -
Your Church In Rhythm
$30.00Add to cartBruce Miller debunks the idea of balance-basically trying to have it all, all the time. Most churches and their pastors try to do everything at once and feel guilty if any one aspect (worship, ministries, outreach, etc.) is neglected. He replaces the exhausting concept of balance with the idea of rhythm: churches, like people, need to give attention to different programs and ministries at different times, basically by attending to their seasons and cycles.
*Offers an innovative new model for church leaders
*Miller has been influential in the formation and promotion of “Church-Based Training” as in international movement
*Offers a proven method for avoiding burnout for church leaders and members by doing the right things at the right timeThe author offers much-need help to overwhelmed leaders and shows them how to apply Miller’s seasonal/cyclical approach to church life.
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Worship And Mission After Christendom
$29.99Add to cartToday, as Christendom weakens, worship and mission are poised to reunite after centuries of separation. But this requires the church to rethink both “mission” and “worship.” In post-Christendom mission, God is the main actor and God calls all Christians to participate. In post-Christendom worship, the church tells and celebrates the story of God, enabling members to live in hope and attract outsiders to its many tables of hospitality.
In this passionate and thoughtful study, Alan Kreider and Eleanor Kreider draw upon missiology, liturgiology, biblical studies, church history, and the vast experience of today’s global Christian church. Academically responsible but also practical and accessible, Worship and Mission After Christendom is a much-needed guide for people who take seriously God’s call to be the church in a world where institutional religion is no longer taken for granted.
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Global Church Planting (Reprinted)
$42.00Add to cartPrologue: The Parable Of The Apple Trees
Part 1: Biblical Foundation
Part 2: Strategic Considerations
Part 3: Development Phases
Part 4: Critical FactorsAdditional Info
With over forty years combined global church-planting experience, Craig Ott and Gene Wilson are well qualified to write a comprehensive, up-to-date guide for cross-cultural church planting. Combining substantive biblical principles and missiological understanding with practical insights, this book walks readers through the various models and development phases of church planting. Advocating methods that lead to church multiplication, the authors emphasize the role of the missionary church planter. They offer helpful reflection on current trends and provide best practices gathered from research and empirical findings around the globe. The book takes up a number of special issues not addressed in most church planting books, such as use of short-term teams, partnerships, and wise use of resources. Full of case studies and real examples from around the world, this practical text will benefit students, church planters, missionaries, and missional church readers. -
For The Communion Of The Churches
$33.99Add to cartEncourages Christians to work toward greater unity and fellowship
Founded by Abbe Paul Couturier in 1937, the Groupe des Dombes is a Protestant-Catholic coalition in French-speaking Europe uniting Reformed, Lutheran, and Catholic scholars in a common spirit of prayer, dialogue, and discernment; their pioneering work has influenced many other official ecumenical dialogues.
*Brings together an anthology of statements produced by the Group des Dombes from 1971 to 1991, appearing here together in English translation for the first time
*Expresses the Groupe’s keen insights into the renewal of theology and church life necessary for progress toward full ecclesial unity
*Invites churches today to strive for more fruitful dialogue and greater harmony -
Servanthood As Worship
$9.99Add to cartBrowse a Christian book website or bookstore and notice all there is for leaders and would-be leaders. There are studies of leaders, keys to leadership, and tips on becoming a leader. Books that promote servanthood tend to be about leadership. But how many books inspire us simply to serve one another? The appeal of leadership has hijacked the biblical call to servanthood. As a result, we major on a role that will only ever be held by a few, and we largely ignore a role that ought to be held by every Christian. Whatever happened to servanthood? Servanthood as Worship offers Christians a biblical understanding of their calling to serve in the church, motivated by the grace that is ours in the gospel. It has the potential to revitalize service teams in churches across the world, from church plants to established congregations.
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Leading The Congregation (Revised)
$34.99Add to cartLeading the Congregation is a complete and definitive guide to the practice of church leadership. The book describes essential paradigms for the leader that integrate spiritual integrity and service within a “systems” view of the congregation and its ministry.
This revised and updated version focuses on the challenges of congregational leadership in a culture that has fewer ties to Christian faith. The authors lay out the dual contexts in which church leaders must function-within the congregation, and as the congregation’s representative to the community-and they explain the very different skill sets required to flourish in each. Underlying the revised edition is an insistence on the congregational leader’s call from God, and cultivation of her or his relationship with God. Leadership is not the same thing as charisma, they explain; it is rather a set of attitudes and practices that each of us can and must master if we are to be worthy servants of Christ.
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Journey In The Wilderness
$18.99Add to cartThe last forty years have seen transitions in mainline churches that feel, for many, like a journey into the wilderness. Yet God is calling us in this moment, not to grieve over the changes we have experienced, but to hear the call to a new mission, and a new faithfulness. Gil Rendle draws on decades as a pastor and church consultant to point a way into a hopeful future. The key to embracing the wilderness is to learn new skills in leading change, to reach beyond a position of privilege and power to become churches that serve God’s hurting people.
Empowers readers to minister more faithfully, and joyfully, in a situation of congregational and denominational transition
A careful analysis of the changes that have taken place in mainline Protestant churches over the last decades.
Thorough review of the lessons learned, both inside and beyond the church, about leading organizations during times of social upheaval.
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Real Life Discipleship (Student/Study Guide)
$19.99Add to cartReal-Life Discipleship explains what should happen in the life of every Christian and in every small group so that the church becomes an army of believers dedicated to seeing the world saved. With the overriding goal to train disciples who know how to make more disciples, this book offers proven tools and strategies from Real Life Ministries, one of America’s fastest-growing churches. Discover what the Bible says about true and effective discipleship with these strategies and practices.
