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Eleven Innovations in the Local Church
by Elmer Towns, Ed Stetzer and Warren Bird
This easy-reading book walks church leaders through eleven emphases seen in today's churches, offering pros and cons to each. The recovery ministry chapter looks at churches that place heavy emphasis on Christ-centered recovery. The house church chapter explores the different ways churches approach home-based groups. The multi-site chapter reviews the movement of becoming one church in many locations. |
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Direct Hit
by Paul Borden
Paul Borden is a consultant with an amazing record of helping churches turn around from maintenance to mission and ministry. He writes as someone who understands long-term, deep set problems in churches, but also offers hope: "Healthy congregations are defined by sacrifice," he says. "They exist more for those who are currently not part of the group than for those who comprise the current congregation." |
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A Contrarian's Guide to Knowing God
by Larry Osborne
Osborne, veteran pastor of North Coast Church, is a pioneer in such movements as multi-site and sermon-based small groups. He is a contrarian because he is good at asking, "Is it really true?" He challenges a one-size-fits-all spirituality, asking what actually produces spirituality. He appeals to those whose deepest desire is to know God more and to avoid cookie-cutter answers. |
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God's Continent: Christianity, Islam, and Europe's Religious Crisis
by Philip Jenkins
Will Islam dominate Europe in the coming years? Jenkins offers a qualified "no." He observes that independent congregations are mushrooming and a sizable proportion of new immigrants are Christian. He is a readable scholar whose two previous books ( New Faces of Global Christianity, 2006, and The Next Christendom, 2002) present the idea that Christianity is growing today on every continent except North America. |
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The Forgotten Ways
by Alan Hirsch
Alan Hirsch is convinced that the inherited formulas for growing the Body of Christ do not work anymore. Rather than relying on slightly revised solutions from the past, he sees a vision of the future growth of the church coming about by harnessing the power of the early church--the forgotten, apostolic-era ways of passion, prayer, and incarnational practice. |
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Giving as an Act of Worship
by Michael Milton
The author, a U.S. Army reserve chaplain and pastor of First Presbyterian Church in Chattanooga, TN, makes the case that God doesn't need our money, but rather we should give because it is an act of worship. It is both practical and biblical. As we respond gratefully to His provision in our lives, God chooses to use our gifts to advance His kingdom so that we may know more deeply his gracious gift of salvation in Christ. |
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Velvet Elvis
by Rob Bell
The author pastors one of the fast-growing churches in America. He is a strong communicator to post-modern people, with a major emphasis on Bible teaching, and this creative book offers a fresh look at how the gospel can be best communicated today. He begins with the assertion that Jesus wanted to "call people to live in tune with reality" and that he "had no use for religion." |
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The Boomer Century
by Richard Croker
This research-rich book can inspire Baby Boomer-aged Americans to think more positively about aging. In the third of three sections, Croker's experts speculate about how boomers will change our notions of retirement and old age. They show how Boomers have lots of capacity to make a difference with their lives, and often have an untapped desire to give back to their communities. |
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Words That Work
Frank Luntz
With a subtitle of It's Not What You Say It's What People Hear, the business consultant author has much to say that's directly relevant to pastors and teachers in the church. He shows the power of the words chosen for vision casting and interpersonal communication. He also shows what we do that backfires without our awareness. |
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The Culturally Savvy Christian
by Dick Staub
Cultural commentator and radio personality Staub asks how the culture of the church should influence popular culture. His answer is that followers of Christ should not cocoon, combat or conform in relation to popular culture, but transform it. His model of what a culturally savvy Christian should be is C.S. Lewis, who "enriched culture by countering culture, communicating within it, and also creating it." |
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Change Your Church for Good: the Art of Sacred Cow Tipping
by Brad Powell
The author is pastor of Northridge Church, and he argues that it is possible for a church to transition from non-relevant to culturally relevant without compromising Scripture. Because every church struggles with transition, every church leader can learn something from Powell's hope-filled insight on how all churches can and should be transitioned to a new life. |
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Facing Your Giants
by Max Lucado
What reading list today would be complete without a title by America's best-selling pastor? The idea here is simple: When David focused on God instead of the "giants," he won. But when he fixed on the "giant," he fell. Lucado's words, written to all followers of Christ, encourage us to focus on God. He is the victor! |
