Christian ministries increasingly prioritize urban areas—big cities and suburbs are considered more strategic, more influential, and more desirable places to live and work. As a ministry strategy, focusing on big places makes sense. But the gospel of Jesus is often unstrategic. Pastor Stephen Witmer, using helpful stories and practical advice, lays out an integrated theological vision for small-place ministry today.
The #MeToo movement has revealed sexual abuse in every sphere of society, including the church. But all too often, churches have been complicit in protecting abusers, reinforcing patriarchal power dynamics, and creating cultures of secrecy, shame, and silence. Disclosing candid stories of abuse, pastor and survivor Ruth Everhart offers God's hope to survivors while shining a light on the prevalence of sexual misconduct within faith communities.
How can church planters and their congregations flourish for the long haul? Written by a diverse team of scholar-practitioners and filled with real-world insights, stories, and questions for reflection and discussion, this guide gives church planters and their teams the tools to be theologically reflective, spiritually grounded, and missionally agile.
How can Christians effectively engage today's world while staying true to Scripture? Calling us to listen well to both the Word and the world, John Stott shows how Christianity can preserve its authentic identity and remain relevant to current realities. In this practical book, Stott presents a biblical portrait of the church as a covenant community at the center of God's purposes.
How do we understand Jesus' present activity in a challenging, post-Christian context? Leading thinkers in pastoral theology, homiletics, liturgical theology, and missiology consider how to recognize the divine presence and join in what God is already doing in all areas of church ministry. With deep theological reflection, personal stories, and practical suggestions, this is a compelling interdisciplinary conversation.
We need a bigger vision for the city. Pastors Neil Powell and John James contend that to truly transform a city, the gospel compels us to create localized, collaborative church planting movements. The more willing we are to collaborate across denominations and networks, the more effectively we will reach our communities—whatever their size—for Jesus.
Young adult ministry can scare us, but what if it's not as enigmatic as we've been led to believe? Full of practical advice from their own experience (and a wealth of additional resources), this book from Scott Pontier and Mark DeVries explores six common mistakes churches make in their efforts to reach young adults, offering six paradoxes that return us to a simpler, more biblical ministry model.
Around 56 AD, the apostle Paul wrote to the church in Rome. He entrusted this letter to Phoebe, whom he describes as the deacon of the church at Cenchreae and a patron of many. But who was this remarkable woman? Biblical scholar and popular author and speaker Paula Gooder imagines Phoebe's story—who she was, the life she lived, and her first-century faith—and in doing so opens up Paul's world.
Is a church just something we create to serve our purposes or to maintain old traditions? Or is it something more vital, more meaningful, and more powerful? In this introduction to the nature of the local church, historian and missionary Scott Sunquist brings us a portrait of the church in motion, clarifying the two primary purposes of the church: worship and witness.
Pastor Jeff Tacklind knows that the spiritual journey can be winding and halting rather than a constant ascent of growth—full of paradox, tension, and surprises. Drawing from the natural world and following guides such as C. S. Lewis, Henri Nouwen, and Søren Kierkegaard, Tacklind's honest and meditative account will inspire those on the winding path of following God.