Church Administration
Showing all 79 resultsSorted by latest
-
Last Pastor : Faithfully Steering A Closing Church
$32.00Add to cartGail Cafferata was heartbroken when the church she pastored voted to close its doors. It may have been the right decision, but it led to a million questions in her mind about her call, leadership, and future. She began to think that other pastors who close churches perhaps go through this same experience. This led her to obtain a grant from the Louisville Institute to conduct a sociological study of over 130 pastors in five historically established denominations (Episcopal, Lutheran, United Methodist, Presbyterian, and United Church of Christ) who were called to serve churches that closed. This book tells the results of that study, which consisted of many interviews, and the hard-won lessons learned by these courageous pastors.
-
Evangelical Theological Method
$28.99Add to cartMethod In Systematic Theology: An Introduction-Stanley E. Porter And Steven M. Studebaker
Codifying God’s Word: Bible Doctrines/Conservative Theology-Sung Wook Chung
Living God’s Love: Missional Theology-John R. Franke
Framers And Painters: Interdisciplinary Theology-Telford C. Work
God In Human Context: Reflection On Theology’s Contextuality And Contextual Theology-Victor Ifeanyi Ezigbo
Confessing The Faith: A Trinitarian Method In Dogmatic Theology-Paul Louis MetzgerResponse To Other Contributors-Sung Wook Chung
Response To Other Contributors-John R. Franke
Response To Other Contributors-Telford C. Work
Response To Other Contributors-Victor Ifeanyi Ezigbo
Response To Other Contributors-Paul Louis MetzgerWhat Have We Learned Regarding Theological Method, And Where Do We Go From Here? Tentative Conclusions-Stanley E. Porter And Steven M. Studebaker
ContributorsAdditional Info
How should one approach the task of theology?The question of methodology is increasingly one of interest among theologians, who recognize that the very manner in which we approach theology informs both the questions we ask and the conclusions we reach. This volume in IVP’s Spectrum Multiview series brings together five evangelical theologians with distinctly different approaches to the theological task: Sung Wook ChungJohn R. FrankeTelford C. WorkVictor Ifeanyi EzigboPaul Louis MetzgerAfter presenting their own approach-which include appeals to Scripture, context, missions, interdisciplinary studies, and dogmatics-they respond to each of the other views. Emerging from this theological conversation is an awareness of our methodological commitments and the benefits that each can bring to the theological task. -
Come Let Us Eat Together
$30.99Add to cartAcknowledgments
Introduction
1. The Supper Of The Lord: Goodness And Grace In 1 Corinthians 11:17-34 (Amy Peeler)
2. Churches And The Politics Of The Sacraments: Rethinking “Unity Of The Church” (D. Zac Niringiye)
3. In Persona Christi: The Catholic Understanding Of The Ordained Priesthood In Relation To The Eucharist (Thomas G. Weinandy)
4. A Way Forward: A Catholic-Anabaptist Ecclesiology (D. Stephen Long)
5. Ascension, Communion, And The Hospitality Of The Priest-King (Cherith Fee Nordling)
6. The Gospel We Share And The Unity We Seek: An Orthodox Contribution (Bradley Nassif)
7. Christ The Ursakrament (Katherine Sonderegger)
8. Visual Ecumenism: The Coy Communion Of Art (Matthew J. Milliner)
9. The Eucharist, The Risen Lord, And The Road To Emmaus: A Road To Deeper Unity? (Matthew Levering)
10. The Eschatological Dimension Of Sacramental Unity: An Orthodox Christian View (Paul L. Gavrilyuk)
11. “For You Have Been Planted Together With Christ”: Sacraments And The Life Of The Church (George Kalantzis)
12. Who Invited The Baptist? The “Sacraments” And Free Church Theology (Marc Cortez)
13. Sacraments And (Dis-)Unity: A Constructive Ecumenical Proposal Toward Healing The Divisions And Facilitating Mutual Recognition (Veli-Matti Karkkainen)
Contributors
Author Index
Subject Index
Scripture IndexAdditional Info
As Christians, we are called to seek the unity of the one body of Christ.But when it comes to the sacraments, the church has often been-and remains-divided. What are we to do? Can we still gather together at the same table?
Based on the lectures from the 2017 Wheaton Theology Conference, this volume brings together the reflections of Protestant, Roman Catholic, and Eastern Orthodox theologians, who jointly consider what it means to proclaim the unity of the body of Christ in light of the sacraments.
Without avoiding or downplaying the genuine theological and sacramental differences that exist between Christian traditions, what emerges is a thoughtful consideration of what it means to live with the difficult, elusive command to be one as the Father and the Son are one.
-
Every Christians Call
$35.95Add to cart“Every Christian’s Call uses a God inspired vision to see us all, as one, just as Jesus prayed in John 17:21-23. The biblical plan for unity is simple and systematic. Every reader can understand their role and how they fit in God’s plan for true unity.”
-Pastor Randy V. Thomas
Lake Country Church, Ft. Worth, Tx
Unity and Purpose – A Match Made in Heaven
With the increasing turmoil in the world today it’s no wonder so many are talking about unity. In his new book, Every Christian’s Call, Vol. 1, Kevin Almond brings together the two hottest topics in Christianity today; Unity and Purpose. In John 17:21-23 Jesus prayed for His followers to be one. In that same prayer He also revealed that the very believe-ability of the Gospel to the world depends upon the unity of the Christian Church. He prayed, ..”.that they may be one as We are one…that the world may know that You have sent Me…” Not only is unity a crucial issue for the Church today but it also directly ties into God’s unique purpose for you. Every Christian’s Call reveals from a biblical perspective how the principles of unity are identical to God’s plan for your life.
In Every Christian’s Call you’ll find answers to questions like:
What are the biblical principles that reveal the path to fulfilling my destiny?
What is the primary Key to the Church becoming one as Jesus prayed?
How does this Key determine the success of every relationship I’ll ever be involved in?
How does answering Christ’s Call to Unity ensure that I will fulfill my God-given purpose and destiny?
Come and discover the answers to these and other questions that are directly related to the purpose God has designed specifically for you in, Every Christian’s Call. When you do, you’ll see that the biblical principles of unity are identical to the principles you must walk in if you are going to fulfill God’s great plan for your life. Any Christian that wants to know how to complete the destiny God has for them must first, answer the Call.
-
Every Christians Call
$19.95Add to cart“Every Christian’s Call uses a God inspired vision to see us all, as one, just as Jesus prayed in John 17:21-23. The biblical plan for unity is simple and systematic. Every reader can understand their role and how they fit in God’s plan for true unity.”
-Pastor Randy V. Thomas
Lake Country Church, Ft. Worth, Tx
Unity and Purpose – A Match Made in Heaven
With the increasing turmoil in the world today it’s no wonder so many are talking about unity. In his new book, Every Christian’s Call, Vol. 1, Kevin Almond brings together the two hottest topics in Christianity today; Unity and Purpose. In John 17:21-23 Jesus prayed for His followers to be one. In that same prayer He also revealed that the very believe-ability of the Gospel to the world depends upon the unity of the Christian Church. He prayed, ..”.that they may be one as We are one…that the world may know that You have sent Me…” Not only is unity a crucial issue for the Church today but it also directly ties into God’s unique purpose for you. Every Christian’s Call reveals from a biblical perspective how the principles of unity are identical to God’s plan for your life.
In Every Christian’s Call you’ll find answers to questions like:
What are the biblical principles that reveal the path to fulfilling my destiny?
What is the primary Key to the Church becoming one as Jesus prayed?
How does this Key determine the success of every relationship I’ll ever be involved in?
How does answering Christ’s Call to Unity ensure that I will fulfill my God-given purpose and destiny?
Come and discover the answers to these and other questions that are directly related to the purpose God has designed specifically for you in, Every Christian’s Call. When you do, you’ll see that the biblical principles of unity are identical to the principles you must walk in if you are going to fulfill God’s great plan for your life. Any Christian that wants to know how to complete the destiny God has for them must first, answer the Call.
-
Unboxed : Uncovering New Paradigms For Tomorrow’s Church
$18.99Add to cartWhy live like an artificial when you were designed to be an original? That’s the theme ministry leader entrepreneur Martijn van Tilborgh unpacks as he delivers this challenge for us to become “unboxed.” His premise? God is waiting to empower you to shed the shackles of personal limitations so you can become an authentic change-agent in this world.
-
That Deacon Book
$14.99Add to cartIn many churches today, finding true, faithful servants to the church can feel like hunting for unicorns. Lots of people say they want to be like Jesus, but too few are willing to serve like him. “That Deacon Book” was written for pastors, staff, and lay leaders in mind. It can be handed to literally anyone in the church to great benefit.
-
Shoulders And Shadows
$9.99Add to cartWe often follow a successful leader, and it is said we are “filling our predecessor’s shoes,” or we are “continuing a lasting legacy.” However, the truth is that although we are standing on their shoulders, we are often operating in their shadow. Shoulders and Shadows: Following Legendary Leaders helps new leaders succeed at succession.
-
United Methodist Church Membership Records Manual 2017-2020
$13.99Add to cartThe task of the church is to reach out to people and receive them in the name of Jesus Christ, to help them relate to God, to nurture and strengthen them in their journey of discipleship, and to send them into the world to live transformed and transforming lives. The United Methodist Membership Records System supports the pastoral concern for persons that is so important to this task. Using the forms and procedures described in this manual will enable your church to maintain excellent membership records, which will be the source of vital information used by pastors, witness ministry chairpersons, evangelism chairpersons, and other church leaders for effective ministries to make disciples. All the forms and procedures are ingredients in the pastoral care of the church. Because The United Methodist Church is a connectional church, we use a consistent approach to record keeping. Using these forms and procedures will help the pastor and staff meet the membership record-keeping and reporting requirements of The Book of Disciple. This manual includes: Background, purpose, and value for keeping membership records for care and outreach FAQs on records required ty The Book of Discipline 2016/li> Tips on how to close gaps in your membership records Sample of each membership record sheet with instructions Available online with purchase of this resource, includes: Searchable PDF of the Manual Templates for membership record sheets* Templates for 8.5″ x 11″ certificates for baptism, confirmation/reception, and membership in English, Korean, and Spanish Templates for additional forms, including Notification of Moved Members, Certificates of Transfer, and Verification of Baptism The United Methodist Financial Records Handbook 2017-2020 was developed by The General Council on Finance and Administration of The United Methodist Church. *Acid-Free archival paper is available from Cokesbury, so you can printout the forms for your permanent records.
-
Transcending Mission : The Eclipse Of A Modern Tradition
$40.99Add to cartPrologue
Acknowledgments
Introduction: The Enigma Of MissionPart I: Justifying Mission
1. Partisans And Apologists
2. Reading Scripture As Mission
3. Presenting History As Mission
4. Rhetoric And TropePart II: Innovating Mission
5. Holy Conquest
6. Latin Occupation
7. Mission Vow
8. Ignatian MissionPart III: Revising Mission
9. Protestant Reception
10. Missionary ProblemsEpilogue: Toward Pilgrim Witness
Abbreviations
Works CitedAdditional Info
Mission, missions, missional, and all its linguistic variations are part of the expanding vocabulary and rhetoric of the contemporary Christian missionary enterprise. Its language and assumptions are deeply ingrained in the thought and speech of the church today. Christianity is a missionary religion and faithful churches are mission-minded. What’s more, in telling the story of apostles and bishops and monks as missionaries, we think we have grasped the true thread of Christian history. But what about those odd shapes, those unsettling gaps and creases in the historical record? Is the language of mission so clearly evident across the broad reaches of time? Is the trajectory of mission really so explicit from the early church to the present? Or has the modern missionary enterprise distorted our view of the past? As with every reigning paradigm, there comes a point when enough questions surface to beg for a close and critical look, even when it may seem transgressive to do so. In this study of the language of mission-its origin, development, and application-Michael Stroope investigates how the modern church has come to understand, speak of, and engage in the global expansion of Christianity. There is both surprise and hope in this tale. And perhaps the beginnings of a new conversation. -
Pickled Priest And The Perishing Parish
$11.95Add to cartJust as baby boomers comprise the largest generation in America’s history, they also represent the largest percentage of current senior pastors in American churches. Boomer pastors all over the country are struggling to transition from their roots in twentieth-century church culture to ministry and leadership in our challenging twenty-first century–and this transition must take place for traditional churches to be a relevant factor in world redemption.
In The Pickled Priest and the Perishing Parish: Boomer Pastors Bouncing Back, Senior Pastor Hal West, himself a baby boomer, offers essential insights and words of inspiration for pastors, leaders, and Christians who desire to see renewal and transformation in their churches, in America, and in themselves.
The challenges facing traditional churches and the boomer pastors who lead them are many– not the least of which are pastors’ ensconced perspective of their own spiritual formation, theological training, and experience. In his unique, conversational, and at times humorous tone, Pastor Hal West first offers proof through his own -pickled- perspective and then explores, with help from the lessons of biblical prophets like Isaiah and Nehemiah, how boomer pastors can and must bounce back.
Change is challenging, but in our day of cultural conflict, political corruption, and spiritual crisis, change is imperative. It falls to church leaders, regardless of their decades of experience in ministry and leadership, to approach transformation with an open mind and provide guidance, vision, and restoration to their churches and the souls they serve. -
Tactful Advice For Calling Your Next Pastor
$10.99Add to cartA change of pastoral leadership creates a special kind of stress and strain on a congregation. Your church may prefer the more practical starting points, such as appointing a search team, getting assistance from a denomination, shoring up finances, addressing maintenance issues, and developing a quick timeline. Then there are the deeper matters: grief work, sober evaluation of effectiveness, prayer around core reasons for being, attending matters of the heart around communal healing and reconciliation, and authentic conversation about who we are called to be for the sake of the Gospel and the world around us.
Gary Straub articulates the dynamics of the pastoral search process from both sides of the equation. With more than 50 years of ministry experience-including calls to large congregations, interim positions, and coaching of pastoral candidates-Straub integrates practical advice with prayerful counsel. Healthy dialogue helps keep you passionately open to the Holy Spirit. Tactful Advice for Calling Your Next Pastor starts the dialogue and keeps it focused.
-
Longevity In Leadership
$15.99Add to cartEverybody knows that leading is challenging. Leaders are out front, showing people and organizations new places where they can and should go. They have to inspire people to challenge themselves to do more things or to increase their abilities in order to achieve specific goals.
-
Thoughts From My Journey
$9.99Add to cartWith Thoughts from My Journey, Seattle business leader Ralph Palmen has gifted his readers with simple and profound words of wisdom that have a direct bearing on how we can live godly lives. Stemming from an intimate relationship with God and decades of experience and success in the business world, these devotional gems offer practical advice on dynamic Christian living, biblical management, leadership, and organizational development, and how to gain the cultural high ground in order to impact the world for Christ. Ralph Palmen is founder and president of the Palmen Institute, Inc. and co-founder of Express Employment Professionals.
-
Vulnerable Pastor : How Human Limitations Empower Our Ministry
$22.99Add to cartForeword
Introduction: God Is An Odd LeaderPart I: Getting Over Ourselves: Vulnerability With God
1. Filled With Emptiness
2. What Makes Us Feel Weak. And What Doesn’t: A Confession
3. Save Me! Vulnerability And Salvation
4. Feeling Exposed: How Vulnerable Pastors Handle Emotions
5. I Need You! How Vulnerable Pastors Pray
6. Letting The Bible Read Us: How Vulnerable Pastors Read The BiblePart II: Being True To Ourselves: Vulnerability Behind The Scenes
7. Learning To Like The Mess: How Vulnerable Pastors Create Culture
8. Changing The Mold: How Vulnerable Pastors Recognize And Develop Leaders
9. Taking Our Own Sweet Time: How Vulnerable Pastors Use Their Time And Energy
10. Thriving For Others: How Vulnerable Pastors Measure SuccessPart III: Practicing In Public: Vulnerability With An Audience
11. Welcome To The Process: How Vulnerable Pastors Teach And Preach
12. The Right Kind Of Desperate: How Vulnerable Pastors Engage With The WorldEpilogue: Unfading Treasure In Jars Of Clay
Discussion Guide
Acknowledgments
NotesAdditional Info
Often pastors feel like we need to project strength and competency in order to minister effectively. That’s why we go to conferences and emulate the latest superstars. But we know we can never live up to those images. Deep down, we know our own limitations, our weaknesses, our faults. We fear that if people knew who we really are, we’d be disqualified from ministry. Not so. Mandy Smith unpacks the biblical paradox that God’s strength is revealed through our human weakness. Transparently describing her pastoral journey, Smith shows how vulnerability shapes ministry, through our spiritual practices and relationships, influencing our preaching, teaching and even the nuts and bolts of the daily schedule. Understanding our human constraints makes our ministry more sustainable and guards us against disillusionment and burnout. We don’t have to have it all together. Recognizing our weakness makes us rely on God, so our weakness can become a ministry resource. God has called you to lead not as a demigod, but as a human, so the world can see that the church is a place for humans like them. -
Radical Sending : Go To Love And Serve
$23.95Add to cartForeword by Stephanie Spellers
* Core resource for discernment in living out baptismal promises
* Empowers the laity for their ministries beyond the church doors
* Study questions for small group discussion or individual reflectionAs congregations explore their emerging visions, they need support in “equipping the saints” for their day-to-day lives and ministries beyond the doors of the building. The Dismissal – “go in peace, to love and serve the Lord” – becomes as important as the Eucharist in feeding the people for the journey. But churches often fail to focus on this baptismal calling to “go” into the worlds of work, family, and community. This book fills that void, focusing on how the baptized become “go-ers,” providing practical and tested ways of fulfilling that calling.
Go to Love and Serve builds on and complements the work of Stephanie Spellers’ Radical Welcome, which called congregations to move beyond diversity and inclusion to be places where the transforming gifts, voices, and power of marginalized cultures and groups bring new life to the mainline church. Each chapter is followed by discussion questions for use with small groups or for personal reflection.
For lay and ordained church leaders, adult formation groups.
-
Focusing Your Church Board
$11.99Add to cartChurch boards are often the scene of confusion, conflict, and chaos. What’s the job of a board? What’s the role of the pastor in relation to the board? Should there be an elder board and an administrative board? Ted Hull’s use of illustrations and analogies bring these questions-and answers-into focus.
Ted first looks at the foundation of governance, both from a biblical and historic perspective. Then he introduces Policy Governance(R), often referred to as the Carver model, and confronts questions regarding whether this secular model can work in the church, or if it should even be allowed. He even argues for why a church board may not want to use Policy Governance.
When you’re done reading, you’ll never look at the role of a church board in the same way again. In fact, whether you’re a member of your church board or the board of any charity, you’ll find yourself reaching for this book more than once.
-
Help It Still Hurts
$23.99Add to cartWhen the relationship between the pastor and the congregation is good, the hope of the congregation is that the pastor never leaves from serving the church. The reality of the Scripture and life reveals that serving a church forever is not possible. Transition is an inevitable phenomenon.
Cynthia Hinson Graham remembers being sad as a child when her pastor did not return to church after his illness. She recalls, “The church never came together as a family to talk about what happened or how they felt.” Forty years later, the senior pastor at her church announced his retirement, but offered no guidance “for the church family to come together and process their reactions or responses to the impending transition.”
In this study, Hinson Graham examines how a congregation deals spiritually and emotionally with the loss of its long-time pastor, as well as how the exiting pastor should prepare for his or her departure. She focuses on five independent African-American churches, which are significant because they were led by a single senior pastor, rather than by a board of governance or denominational order.
During her research, Hinson Graham explored the answers to four core questions: What were the spiritual and emotional responses to the transition of a long-term pastor? How were congregants able to express these feelings? What mindsets were most common when faced with the transition? And what, if any, processes were followed to ease the transition for the church body?
The author acknowledges the logical concern with the reasons for the current pastor’s departure and the uncertainty concerning the incoming pastor, but these are before and after issues. The emotional and spiritual well-being of church members during the transition, however, is of concern here. In a clear and approachable voice, Hinson Graham cites extensive biblical precedents for managing such matters.
-
Effective Staffing For Vital Churches (Reprinted)
$19.00Add to cartWell-staffed churches grow. But how do churches staff for growth in these rapidly changing times when budgets are tight, mission opportunities abound, and there is a growing shortage of qualified pastors, staff members, and church leaders? Two veteran pastors and church growth consultants offer workable solutions that focus on the four core processes vital to church health and growth: bringing people to Christ and the church, retaining them, discipling them, and sending them back out into the world. They also show pastors how to navigate the leadership transitions they must make to become increasingly effective as the church grows. Pastors will learn how to be leaders who multiply leaders and develop a mission-minded staff that does the same. Foreward by Ed Stetzer.
-
They Smell Like Sheep Volume 2
$17.99Add to cartSpiritual sheep, stray sheep, and searching sheep aren’t nearly as concerned about the knowledge and skill of the shepherd as they are about his heart. When finding their way — at weddings, at funerals, during family crises, and in the hospital — sheep go to a shepherd in whom they discern God’s own heart, like King David of old.
Jesus said sheep would know their shepherd’s voice and be drawn to it. It is the heart behind the voice that soothes and comforts God’s people.How do you measure the influence of a godly shepherd? Without doubt, it’s the heart of the shepherd that most powerfully shapes lives and souls in our flocks.
If you want your own heart shaped and molded into the likeness of Christ, this book is an excellent place to begin.“Be shepherds of God’s flock under your care… as God wants you to be.”
Heeding the call to be a leader is an awesome responsibility. Whether you have been called to serve as a minister or you’re teaching an adult Bible study group or you’re a teen leading the youth group in song, most assuredly from time to time you question your abilities and look for support and example.Author Lynn Anderson addresses the starting and ending place of true leadership among God’s people: the heart of a shepherd. He presents Jesus, the Head Shepherd, as our only reliable model of godly leadership; he guides us through the Scriptures and gives us practical exercises to strengthen our hearts as we do the difficult yet rewarding work of shepherding people of God with love and grace.
Enter the book’s pages with the confidence that you are being led by someone who has the heart of a shepherd and who sees himself first as a smelly sheep, dearly loved and led by the Good Shepherd.“And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory. — 1 Peter 5:4”
-
Church Administration And Management
$34.99Add to cart* Achieving excellence in church management * Vital information on proper, ethical conduct for God’s servants * Clear information on achieving the frugal use of resources * A valuable and timely resume of the full-time ministry * Takes you beyond mediocrity in church administration One night while studying in a remove town of Ghana, God miraculously anointed Dag Heward-Mills as he waited upon the Lord. He supernaturally heard the words, “From now on you can teach…” This supernatural call is what has ushered him into a worldwide ministry. Today, his Healing Jesus Crusades are conducted throughout the world with thousands in attendance and many accompanying miracles. These phenomenal miracles, attested to by medical doctors have included the opening of the eyes of the blind, the restoring of hearing to the deaf, the emptying of wheel chairs and even the raising of the dead. Dag Heward-Mills, an author of several bestselling books also founded the Lighthouse Chapel International has become a worldwide denomination. His radio, TV and internet programs reach millions around the world.
-
How To Search For A Pastor In Todays Church
$13.49Add to cartHow To Search For A Pastor In Today’s Church is a work that will help any church, regardless of size, to examine and improve the way they search for their next pastor. This book contains advice, strategies and warnings that have been gleaned from numerous search committee members as well as pastors who have dealt with them. Even church members that do not serve on your Pastor Search Committee will benefit from the common sense counsel found in this volume.
-
Crucified Church : Leading Your Church Through Death & Rebirth
$15.99Add to cartWarning: The Church is Dying…and She Should! The Church is losing ground in America. In The Crucified Church: Leading Your Church through Death & Rebirth, seasoned pastor and church planting expert, Joel Rissinger insightfully and candidly shows that revival or renewal of an impotent, biblically deprived church are simply not enough. With great love for the Bride of Christ, Rissinger shows why the death of a church is often its biblical pathway to life. In The Crucified Church! you will be equipped to: * Explore the biblical foundation for church death and rebirth * Crucify unbiblical doctrine, to ensure our gospel is everything Jesus is, was, taught, lived, did, and will do in the future. * Crucify church structure, to ensure our churches are led more as a theocracy than a democracy. * Crucify church vision, to ensure it is based on the Great Commandment and the Great Commission. * Crucify missions, to ensure they center on church planting and multiplication. And much more!
-
Foundations Of Church Administration
$34.99Add to cartChurch leadership is a demanding and challenging role. There are many responsibilities involved in leading a church, which can be difficult to maneuver without the proper tools and resources.
Written with Bible-based truths and helpful insights, Foundations of Church Administration is both an exploration of those responsibilities and a practical guide to navigating through them. Each chapter is authored by a notable expert in the field who, with sound experience and effective steps, helps church leaders efficiently succeed in the many facets of their responsibilities.
In this honest exploration, church leaders will find a new perspective on church administration that will help them dig deeper and develop a long-lasting and effective practice of leading and administrating a church.
-
Many Parts One Body
$28.95Add to cartProperty issues will be major topic of debate at 2009 Episcopal General Convention
Clear, concise information on the legal structure and governance of the Episcopal Church
Debunks misinformation about Episcopal governance promulgated on conservative blogs and publications
-
Fly In The Ointment
$25.95Add to cartAn ecumenical resource that helps churches and church leaders begin to think about how to transform themselves into vital, flourishing organizations-transformation that requires deep, systemic change on the part of the bodies that are meant to help congregations live into their mission in the world.
-
Leadership Handbook Of Management And Administration (Revised)
$33.00Add to cartThis substantial resource offers pastors and church leaders practical insight into the daily issues of running a church. Conceived and compiled by the editors of Leadership journal, this book covers the full spectrum of ministry practice. Readers will learn about perennial topics such as time management, negotiating the terms of a call, handling crisis and conflict, hiring and managing staff, conducting special fund drives, spending church money, and dealing with tax and law considerations.
This revised and expanded edition of a proven ministry resource contains new contributions from prominent ministry leaders. Contributors include Leith Anderson, Rick Warren, Brian McLaren, Luis Palau, John Ortberg, Aubrey Malphurs, and many others.
-
When Moses Meets Aaron
$34.00Add to cartWith the number of large congregations rising in the U.S., these congregations are increasingly dependent upon a greater number of staff to meet the needs of their diverse collection of members. As leaders of multi-staff teams, senior clergy must play the dual role of both Moses and Aaron-both visionary and detail-oriented leader-in order for their large congregations to thrive. They need to be skilled with the tools of human resource management, while at the same time setting a vision and inspiring both staff and congregation.
Unfortunately, until now there have been few resources for senior clergy who lead multi-staff teams. Working without adequate models and tools, senior clergy of large congregations often find themselves with passionate, dedicated staff members who are moving in different directions, competing over limited resources and attention. They end up with questions of how to evaluate the performance of staff and direct their efforts. They find themselves using time, attention, and resources to care for staff rather than using staff as a resource to care for the mission of the congregation.
Alban senior consultants Susan Beaumont and Gil Rendle have developed When Moses Meets Aaron to help clergy responsible for several-member staff teams navigate these unknown waters. They have taken the best of corporate human resource tools and immersed them in a congregational context, providing a comprehensive manual for supervising, motivating, and coordinating staff teams. Rendle and Beaumont give both detailed and big picture guidance on hiring, job descriptions, supervision, performance evaluation, staff-team design, difficult staff behavior, and more. Their combined experience in consulting and training with staff and leaders of large congregations proves invaluable in this manual for today’s leadership demands.
-
Beyond The First Visit (Reprinted)
$20.00Add to cartA complete guide to new member assimilation-the best ways to invite, greet, and follow-up on guests to a church.
Does your church put out the “Welcome” mat or the “Do not disturb” sign?
We all like to think that our church is the friendliest one in town. But do visitors see it that way? Church consultant Gary L. McIntosh invites you to take another look at your church through the eyes of a first-time guest to identify the things that might be holding them back from a second visit.This very practical book offers sound advice on assessing and improving the ways in which your church attracts people, welcomes them, does follow-up, and brings them into the church family. More than simply offering mere techniques, it gives suggestions for making a welcoming attitude part of the very fabric of your church.
-
Communicating For A Change
$19.99Add to cartSpeakers and preachers—follow this instructive parable to keep your message alive and your audience alert! By knowing your destination before you leave (identifying the major premise you want to communicate), using your turn signals (transition ahead!), and employing five other practical points, you’ll be on the road to success—and drive your message home!
-
Ministry Staff Member
$19.99Add to cartThis comprehensive resource provides counsel and direction for associate staff members. It can be used to train new staff members, for orientation with seminary interns, for in-service training in church staff meetings, or as a reference tool to consult if facing staff tensions and challenges. Topics covered include knowing your job, embracing your role as a servant leader, serving responsibly, getting along with others, living a balanced life, and avoiding things that get in the way.
-
Basic Business Principles For Growing Churches
$10.95Add to cartPastors are schooled in theology and ministry, but few receive training in the fine points of church administration. Learning how to handle a congregation’s finances “on the job” can be a harrowing experience. Yet efficiently managing your church’s business affairs is a key element in keeping current members satisfied with their pastoral leadership — and in attracting the new members you need for your church to grow in size and influence.
In Basic Business Principles For Growing Churches, Arnold Cirtin shares expertise gained from more than four decades of corporate and academic experience. He provides a clear and helpful primer for pastors with limited training in business administration on such practical topics as accounting, fiscal management, and marketing.
This is an indispensable book for pastors of small- and medium-sized churches (who typically are also their congregations’ principal financial officers), as well as for church treasurers, trustees, and other financial board members. When you follow the guidelines in Basic Business Principles For Growing Churches, your church will be fiscally responsible, managed efficiently, and able to maximize its growing stewardship of God’s resources.
-
Great Giveaway : Reclaiming The Mission Of The Church (Reprinted)
$22.00Add to cartHas the North American church relinquished her God-given mission to parachurch organizations, psychotherapy, and consumer capitalism? Warning that postmodern evangelicals are increasingly modeling their ministries after secular sciences and “farming out” church functions in the name of efficiency, Fitch challenges believers to reclaim the lost practices of evangelism, physical healing, and spiritual formation.
-
Church After Christendom
$29.99Add to cartHow will the western church negotiate the demise of Christendom? Can it rediscover its primary calling, recover its authentic ethos and regain its nerve?If churches are to thrive-or even survive-disturbing questions need to be confronted and answered. In conversation with Christians who have left the church and with those who are experimenting with fresh expressions of church, Stuart Murray explores both the emerging and inherited church scenes and makes proposals for the development of a way of being church suitable for a post-denominational, post-commitment and post-Christendom era. With chapters on mission, community and worship, Church After Christendom offers a vision of church life that is healthy, sustainable, liberating, peaceful and missional.
-
Leading Leaders : Empowering Church Boards For Ministry Excellence (Reprinted)
$20.00Add to cartThe key to effective leadership in the vast majority of today’s churches lies as much with their governing boards as it does with their pastor. But many churches are lead by those who volunteer to chair committees because there is a need, yet they have no leadership training to speak of. How well-meaning but sometimes ill-prepared lay people guide the path of a church body? The secret lies in offering effective, practical training. Leadership expert Aubrey Malphurs provides this in Leading Leaders. Filling a gaping hole in leadership literature, Malphurs offers workable strategies to train laypeople to successfully lead their churches.
-
Change Of Pastors (Revised)
$23.00Add to cartRevised Edition Of Critical Moment Of Ministry: Change Of Pastors
Twenty years after Critical Moment of Ministry was first published, Loren Mead returns to his groundbreaking work on one of the most important times in a congregation’s life-the time between one pastor’s leaving and another’s arrival. In this revised edition, A Change of Pastors, Mead shares the wisdom he gained from 35 years of studying congregations, wisdom that he hopes will allow congregations to take full advantage of this “extraordinarily pregnant moment” during which incredible congregational change can happen.With the voice of an old friend and trusted counselor, Mead leads his readers through the challenges of forming committees, negotiating denominational relations, and managing the search process. He describes in detail the seven sequential steps congregations ought to take to ensure a smooth transition: termination, direction finding, self-study, search, decision/negotiation, installation, and start-up. Additionally, Mead devotes a chapter to nonsequential developmental tasks, tasks that should take place throughout the transition and into the congregation’s future: coming to terms with the past, discovering a new identity, allowing for needed leadership changes, rediscovering the denomination, and commitment to new directions in ministry. Performing these developmental tasks in concert with the seven sequential steps allows congregations to take full advantage of this fertile time for change in the congregation, this “critical moment of ministry.”
A revised text and introduction, an updated bibliography, and a new preface and afterword make A Change of Pastors crucial for any congregation undergoing or about to undergo a change of pastors. In the midst of this transition, there is no doubt that your congregation will find a new pastor. But this book will help you to do more than merely find a hired hand to manage the preaching and the worship. You will discover what God wants you to be and do. You will find a new commitment to ministry. And you will find the pastor who will help make that ministry happen.
Loren B. Mead is president emeritus of the Alban Institute, which he founded in 1974. Since his retirement in 1993, he has continued to consult with congregations, lecture, and write. He has written many books, including The Once and Future Church: Reinventing the Church for a New Mission Frontier (Alban, 1991).
-
Evaluating The Church Growth Movement
$26.99Add to cart“The church growth movement (CGM) has stirred debate ever since it was first introduced by Donald McGavran in the 1960s. By the 1980s it attracted enough attention to merit the publication of around 580 church growth books. Many churches experienced significant growth applying these principles. But during the 1990s critics questioned the movement and its theological underpinnings. Nevertheless, interest in the movement continues in the 21st century. It’s a movement that can’t be ignored. This Counterpoints Church Life book presents five viewpoints on the CGM from national church leaders from a diverse denominational, theological, and geographical representation. The five perspectives include: * Effective evangelism view: Church growth effectively confronts the culture (Elmer Towns) * Gospel in our culture view: Church growth does not effectively engage the culture (Craig Van Gelder) * Centrist view: Church growth has been culturally insightful but theologically superficial (Charles Van Engen) * Reformist view: Church growth has not developed a balanced intertwining of theological reflection, cultural analysis, historical perspective, and practical strategy (Gailyn Van Rheenan) * Renewal view: Church growth must come from the inside out being a community of faith focusing on kingdom issues (Howard Snyder) Not only do the five main contributors respond to each other’s positions, but another chapter gives the responses and views of three nationally known pastors for whom church growth is not an academic discipline but a matter of hands-on daily involvement. The book intends to make a valuable contribution to the church by bringing together conflicting views so all perspectives are heard and readers can make their own informed conclusions. The book’s introduction by Gary McIntosh shows why this is a movement that can’t be ignored. He gives a helpful brief overview of the history of this movement that celebrates its fiftieth anniversary in 2005. Each chapter includes discussion questions enabling readers to use this book in small group and classroom settings.”
-
Who Runs The Church
$24.99Add to cart“Many Protestants, individually and denominationally, are divided by differences regarding the form of church government. While these differences are not necessarily as divisive as theological and doctrinal issues, they are significant to churches and church leaders and affect the way Christians do God’s work. This book in the highly acclaimed Counterpoints series offers insights and contrasts into four kinds of church government: (1) episcopalianism (hierarchical, with priests, bishops, and archbishops), (2) presbyterianism (a representative form at multiple levels-church, classis/presbytery, synod/general assembly), (3) single-elder congregationalism (pastor-led local autonomy), and (4) plural-elder congregationalism (another form of local autonomy). Each form of government is explored through (1) description, (2) historical development, (3) hermeneutical assumptions, (4) biblical and theological foundations, (5) an understanding of the nature, number, and relationship of church officers, (6) the practical implications. The contributors are Peter Toon of the Anglican Church (episcopalianism), L. Roy Taylor of the Presbyterian Church in America (presbyterianism), Paige Patterson of the Southern Baptist Convention (single-elder congregationalism), and Samuel E. Waldron of the Reformed Baptist Church (plural-elder congregationalism).” EDITOR: Cowan, Steven B.
-
Making Disciples Making Leaders
$27.00Add to cartThis book offers a model for selecting and training church officers that is grounded in spiritual discernment and development. The book begins with a biblical understanding of leadership, moves into consideration for how to train a Nominating Committee to select leaders according to the biblical vision, and then offers a step-by-step plan for a training event with three components. The training plan is designed to build up the church leaders spiritually and to set their work in the context of discipleship, as well as to teach them some of the fundamentals of the rules of governance of their denomination. The book ends with concrete suggestions for how future work of the church board can be structured to reflect the emphases highlighted in the training session.
-
Bivocational Pastor : Two Jobs One Ministry
$15.99Add to cartSucceed in bi-vocational ministry. Bi-vocational ministers face unique challenges. Often times, you are called to lead smaller churches with few resources, many of which have plateaued or are in decline is looked at by some as a “second-class” ministry performed by people who do not have the opportunity to serve a larger church. Along with your family and church responsibilities, your second job also requires a large amount of time each week.
But you have a special calling, as both of your jobs can provide opportunities for ministry. In his new book, Dennis Bickers provides solid advice to help you succeed in bi-vocational ministry. You’ll learn how to:
*Manage time wisely
*Define success on your own terms
*Develop a vision for your church
*Maintain a passion for the ministry
*And much more! -
Choosing Church
$50.00Add to cartWidely known theological educator and sociologist Carol Lytch presents this well-researched study of what attracts teenagers to the church and what keeps them there. The cogent research includes interviews of a number of teenagers and their parents from mainline Protestant, evangelical, and Roman Catholic congregations. Groundbreaking and fascinating, Choosing Church ultimately serves as a highly useful description of the most effective ways that congregations and parents can foster faith in early teenagers that will help them value the church as a place to obtain identity, belonging, and growth.
-
Ushers In Ministry
$13.49Add to cartBiblical Perspectives and Personal Reflections for Ushers, Greeters, and Lay Ministry These writings are not simply lists of ironclad duties and actions that need to be taken by ushers or those in lay ministry. Rather, they are a product of biblical understandings and personal reflections of the author, having evolved from hundreds of hours of consideration and experiences on the essentials of what would make the ministry of ushering more effective. Anyone engaged in the ministry of ushering or greeting should find much of value in these writings, as one will be exposed to biblical perspectives regarding these ministries. Overseers of these ministries should find their workload lightened by using these writings as a framework for providing direction to those who are so serving, since time for meetings and training sessions is always in short supply. Any of these essays may also be used effectively in group discussions and should result in a higher level of attainment.
-
Pastors Guide To Growing A Christlike Church
$14.99Add to cartIn The pastor’s Guide To Growing A Christlike Church, you’ll discover the keys to creating a vibrant, biblical, spiritually healthy church. William Willimon, Kennon Callahan, George Hunter III, and other well-known church leaders will teach you how to:
*Develop servant leaders among the laity
*Get laity involved in serving the community
*Nurture healthy spirituality in the church
*Develop authentic Christian community and fellowship
*Plan worship services that bind church members together
*Cast a vision for the future of the church
*And much more! -
Getting The Word Out
$32.00Add to cartHigh quality publications and public relations will enhance a congregation’s overall ministry by promoting strong stewardship, effective evangelism, and exciting parish education. Getting the Word Out provides all the tools congregations need to create attention-grabbing, informative, and inspiring communications.
Frederick H. Gonnerman shows readers how to assess their audience and the competition for the audience’s attention; identify a publication’s purpose; and create useful, readable, and attractive publications-whether print or online, for the congregation or a broader community. One chapter deals with the role of publications in the celebration of special events.
Approaching the parish communications task as a team effort-one that might include pastors; a volunteer or paid editor; and secretaries, other paid staff, and lay leaders-Gonnerman shares the experience and expertise of professional journalists, graphic designers and artists, photographers, and public relations personnel. Getting the Word Out will teach every member of the team how to produce the most effective and highest quality publications possible. Foreword by Martin E. Marty.
-
On Purpose Leadership
$15.99Add to cart22 Chapters
Additional Info
After 20 books and three decades of developing innovative, need-meeting ministries, Galloway is recognized as one who trains the leaders of leaders of leaders. Now he offers the best of his best on multiplying your effectiveness through others. Building on Christ’s own model, he offers powerful insights for encouraging, equipping, and reproducing lay leadership. -
So The Vicars Leaving
$14.00Add to cartAn essential handbook for churchwardens, PCC’s and all with responsibility during this crucial time in the life of a church. This comprehensive guide offers practical advice on preparing for an interregnum, arranging for continuing worship and pastoral care, keeping church administration going, meeting legal responsibilities, finding a new priest and laying a good foundation for future ministry between priest and people.
-
Starting A Non Profit At Your Church
$26.00Add to cartA large and growing number of congregations are setting up church-based nonprofit organizations in order to operate community development or educational programs. Once formed, the nonprofit structure allows for new opportunities for accessing additional funding and drawing new collaborative partners and volunteers into the ministry. Joy Skjegstad outlines the step-by-step procedures for setting up a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization connected to a congregation using simple, easy-to-understand terminology and plenty of examples from churches that have already taken on this task.
In addition to accessible and specific information on the legal aspects of a church-based nonprofit, topics include:
Why set up a nonprofit?
Advantages and disadvantages to setting up a nonprofit
Assessing readiness for the challenge
Defining the nonprofit’s mission and niche
Accountability and control
Establishing a board structure and defining board roles
Maintaining a positive relationship with the congregation
Personnel issues
Developing a fundraising plan
Ongoing evaluation
Whether a congregation is setting up new program or has an established nonprofit that needs to be restructured or redefined, congregations will find helpful guidance in this practical, experience-based book. Foreword by Mary Nelson, President, Bethel New Life, Inc., Chicago. -
Pastors Guide To Effective Ministry
$14.99Add to cart12 Chapters
Additional Info
Systematic theology. . . Philosophy of religion. . . Old Testament exegesis. Just about every seminary-trained pastor is educated in these areas. But how about nurturing the congregation? Don’t forget administration of the church and pastoral counseling. And on a more personal note, they must keep their family life in shape, care for their own physical and emotional health, manage their finances, and maintain a pure life and witness.Larry Burkett, Dallas Willard, William Willimon, and Dale Galloway, along with other well-known church leaders, provide solid advice for the personal and professional development of pastors. This book will be a desktop companion for pastors who are in the trenches and facing the day-to-day challenges of ministry.
-
Jesus Ejecutivo – (Spanish)
$14.99Add to cartMany have written about Jesus as a preacher, teacher and other important aspects from his personality. Not to many have discover that he is a Jesus management, administrative leader that new how to recruit, inspire, motivate and guide a team of twelve men that base on his influence and according to his plans they conquer the world for his cause.
-
Ideal Seminary
$29.95Add to cartSamuel Calian hopes to create a shared vision of ownership of theological education. Addressing those who have a stake in theological schools and education, he encourages them to think both theologically and organizationally about the aim of theological schools in order to enhance the role and influence of these schools among their churches and communities. Calian ends each chapter with an issue for discussion intended to encourage conversation and action among all people interested in theological education.
-
Searching For A Pastor The Presbyterian Way
$24.00Add to cart1. What Lies Ahead?
2. “Decently And In Order”: Calling Pastoral Leadership The Presbyterian Way
3. Getting Organized
4. Remebering Your Story
5. Going Fishing: Net-Working For Candidates
6. It’s Time To Talk: Insights On Interviewing
7. The Big Decision
8. ClosureAdditional Info
When a Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) congregation searches for a new pastor or associate pastor, there are many official guidelines to follow. This step-by-step guide for nominating committees not only makes these procedures clear and understandable, but it goes behind the rules and regulations to the deeper theological and practical concerns. Foose explains how to get organized, how to compose the Congregational Information materials, how to compile a list of good candidates, what kinds of questions to ask in an interview, and other essential tips and tactics to call a suitable pastor. Drawing upon years of experience working with pastors, candidates, and congregations, Foose tells the “inside story” on how to find just the right pastor and how to allow the search process to be a time of spiritual discernment and growth in faith. -
Feeding And Leading (Reprinted)
$33.00Add to cartEvery church and Christian organization has a leadership and administrative team. But how well is that team functioning? Feeding and Leading, now available in paperback, addresses this key component to effective ministry.
Kenneth O. Gangel begins with the foundations of the administrative process and then focuses on the vocational Christian leader–pastor, president, principal, mission executive–targeting such issues as spiritual leadership, style, organization of work, goal setting, and long-range planning. The book also covers topics such as:– recruiting and training volunteers
– motivating workers
– delegating responsibility
– making decisions
– building good working relationships
– communicating
– chairing business meetings
Feeding and Leading contains over forty figures that illustrate the practical principles outlined by the author. Self-evaluation questions, sample job descriptions, and other helpful tools for Christian administrators are also included.
-
Grace Full Leadership
$16.99Add to cart20 Chapters
Additional Info
Leadership goes beyond just acting as a figurehead or simply filling a political position-leadership is all about being. A true leader si undoubtedly an influence in the hearts and minds of his or her follwers. But it is the Christian leader who is given the most transforming opportunity for influence be being Christ.And that means servanthood.
More than elegance or social accomplishment, servant-leadership is all about grace. A true Christian leader is full of grace that extends to each point of influence. Christ’s personal example of love, wisdom, and knowledge is reflected through the life of service.
Join author John Bowling as he gives insight and perspective into following the call to grace-fullness. You’ll find the heart of Christian leadership takes you far beyond seven steps to worldly success to an ever-deepening desire for integrity and excellence.
-
Women In The Church
$35.99Add to cartThis painstaking work will enlighten people on all sides of the issue, though Stanley Grenz makes no secret of his bold conclusion. Historical, bibical, and theoological considerations, he writes, converge not only in allowing, but also in insisting, that women serve as full partners with men in the work of the church.
-
Women In Ministry
$28.99Add to cartMay women teach or exercise authority over men? Should they be ordained? Questions like these rage in the debate over women in ministry. Four committed evangelicals, Robert Culver, Susan Foh, Alvera Mickelsen, and Walter Liefeld, explain their positions and respond to the others, making for a lively exchange of ideas.
-
Making Your Church More Inviting
$23.00Add to cartIf you’ve read the book or viewed the course, now lead your church in study with this workbook approach to Alban’s Inviting Church materials. Its fifteen sessions are designed to help clergy or lay leaders guide committees or study groups through a dynamic exploration of their congregation’s IQ (invitation quotient). Discover how well you invite, welcome, and incorporate new members. As participants uncover the inviting elements of your church, they develop a personal witness style that emerges comfortably from their individual gifts.
-
Nailing Down A Board
$15.99Add to cartBased on his many years of experience serving on boards of churches, ministries, and charities, noted theologian Charles Ryrie offers practical advice applicable to a wide variety of organizations and ministries. Learn how to secure board members, train others to serve effectively, and make the most of meeting times
-
Church Communications Handbook
$22.99Add to cartPrint on Demand Title
An experienced speaker and author on communication issues, Wanda Vassallo provides a comprehensive look at structuring all forms of communication in the local church. She stresses the importance of and shows how to develop an overall communications plan. She discusses issues such as how to advertise, how to talk with the media to get out your message, how to communicate effectively with church members, and how best to utilize technology.
This new resource incorporates the developments of recent technology into a practical reference tool for pastors, parachurch ministry heads, church secrectaries, and other church staff members. Helpful forms, checklists for planning and tracking progress, and examples of materials from cutting-edge churches make this an invaluable addition to your library. -
Clergy Killers : Guidance For Pastors And Congregation Under Attack
$30.00Add to cartIn a startling survey by Leadership, it was discovered that 23 percent of Protestant clergy have been fired at least once, and, even more significantly, 41 percent of congregations have fired at least two pastors. Rediger offers conflict management tactics for these “abusive” congregations.
-
Good Time To Be The Church
$10.00Add to cart“A good time to be the church is right now,” declares Bishop H. George Anderson. Rather than lamenting the lost influence of the church or dreaming of some golden age, Christians can see the spiritual hunger of our time as a special opportunity to speak and act boldly. Solidly grounded in the Bible and Christian history, and keenly aware of contemporary issues, the Lutheran bishop identifies Christian truths that are especially needed in our time. He recalls his own spiritual journey and encourages readers to tell their faith stories. In an engaging question-and- answer format, Anderson helps readers clarify their own beliefs and discover ways to share the Christian faith with others. With questions for reflection and discussion, along with suggested prayers and hymns, this book is a stimulating study guide for congregations, church councils, evangelism committees, and other Christian groups.
-
Diezmo Y Bendiciones – (Spanish)
$8.99Add to cartBased on the Bible and the experience of many who tithe regularly, the author of this book deals with topics such as main objections against tithing, the tithing and the second coming, tithing is contrary to human nature, we only return what came from God.
-
Ministry And The American Legal System
$49.00Add to cartIn today’s litigious society, pastors, trustees, lay leaders, and committee members need a basic understanding of America’s legal system. Couser—an attorney and member of the Christian Legal Society—offers an overview of the U.S. Constitution; reviews specifics of law, including torts, contracts, copyrights, and more; and addresses “risk management” for churches, clergy, and congregations.
-
David Wilkerson Exhorta A La I – (Spanish)
$15.99Add to cartIn this book the well-known speaker and writer David Wilkerson exposes the diverse aspects of the church. This is a call to search for the presence of God, for forgiveness and for humility. This is a message for all believers that find themselves in a dying church to seek new pastures and stop following false pastors.
-
Planning The Church Year
$17.95Add to cartThis guide for clergy, parish musicians, lay readers, and congregational representatives covers all the stages of organizing worship services for the entire year. Using The Book of Common Prayer and Hymnal 1982 as primary resources, it explores the rich variety of options-both time-honored traditions and accepted innovations. Times and seasons covered in depth include Advent, the Twelve Days of Christmas, Lent and Holy Week, Easter and the Great Fifty Days, and the Sundays after Epiphany and Pentecost. Planning the Church Year explains the preparations that make for meaningful holy days and special occasions, such as Lesser Feasts, Thanksgiving Day, Vigils, Michaelmas, All Saints’ Day, the bishop’s visitation, the Patronal and Dedication Festivals. Even summer Sundays can become “liturgical opportunities.” Details such as liturgical colors, music, and church decorations for each season and occasion make this the most complete handbook for those called to be at the heart of parish life and worship. Leonel L. Mitchell is an Episcopal priest and retired professor of Liturgics at Seabury-Western Seminary. He is the author of several books including Praying Shapes Believing, and The Meaning of Ritual, both available from Morehouse Publishing.
-
Ethics In Ministry
$29.00Add to cart1991 Academy of Parish Clergy Book Award recipient. ”Deserves commendation and a large readership. The authors have touched sensitively on a wide range of issues with a wisdom that is practiced and practical.”—Christian Ministry. Deals with truth-telling, authority, salary, burnout, confidentiality, and more.
-
Church Leadership : Following The Example Of Christ
$32.99Add to cartAs the body of Christ, the church is basically an organism, not an organization. This fact is full of implications for the way the church organizes itself and the way leadership functions in the church. No book on church leadership has become as controversial as this one. Nor is there a book that spells out so clearly the scriptural implications of the present rule of Christ in the church and the calling of church leaders to be, first of all, servants. This is must reading for pastors, elders, church staff members, and students preparing for ministry in the church.
-
How To Mobilize Church Volunteers
$14.99Add to cartThis insightul, practical book by Marlene Wilson , and international authority on volunteerism, will help you answer questions about volunteers in the church. This new book for all churches points out common problems, establishes management principles, answers questions, and offers a plan to turn the volunteer challenge into a reality.
-
Foundations For Purposeful Church Administration
$33.99Add to cartHighly acclaimed and widely used, this text shows what church tasks must be undertaken, why they are important, and the guiding theological principles required to achieve them.
Alvin J. Lindgren clarifies the present confusion about what church administration is and what its place in the church should be. He provides a concept of church administration for the student of theology, and a new, more effective overview for the working pastor frustrated by current demands and procedures.