Ministry Leadership

Beyond Integrity offers a balanced approach to a number of concrete ethical issues. Readings from a wide range of sources present competing perspectives on each issue, and real-life case studies further help the listener grapple with ethical dilemmas. The authors want to help the listener arrive at his or her own conclusions. To this end, they provide a decision-making model. They also present, in addition to several views on each topic, a distinctly Christian perspective on each issue under discussion.

Ruth Tucker recounts a harrowing story of abuse at the hands of her husband, a well-educated, charming preacher no less, in hope that her story will help other women caught in a cycle of domestic violence and offer a balanced biblical approach to counter such abuse for pastors and counselors.

In a world where crises are becoming more frequent and devastating, the Church has an unprecedented opportunity to partner with God and to be a beacon of light in every city around the world. In United in Crisis, Daniel Geraci shares gripping stories of God's miraculous power and provision working through a united network of churches in the Greater Austin area that grew to over two hundred churches in the midst of sixteen major disasters, demonstrating how God uses trained and prepared Christian volunteers to reveal the love and hope of Christ in the darkest storms.

As rural America continues to undergo massive economic and demographic shifts, rural churches are uniquely positioned to provide community leadership. Leading a rural congregation requires a deeper understanding of the challenges and opportunities facing these communities, as well as a strong theological and community-focused identity. Allen T. Stanton describes how in establishing this identity, rural leaders build a meaningful and vital ministry. Reclaiming Rural explores the myths and realities of rural places, and how those common narratives impact the leadership of rural churches.

I Sold My Soul on eBay tells the story of how and why Hemant Mehta, the nonbeliever who auctioned off the opportunity to send him to church, became an atheist and went on to attend a wide variety of church services. It also features his insightful critiques and observations of the churches he visited, including accounts of his visits to some of the best-known churches in the country.

Since the earliest days of the Church, the faithful have sought divine assistance through the use of the litany, which is an alternating form of prayer. The Litany of the Blessed Virgin Mary is a Marian litany originally approved in 1587 by Pope Sixtus V. It is also known as the Litany of Loreto from its place of origin, the Shrine of Our Lady of Loreto in Italy. Twelve invocations refer to Mary as Mother whilst six extoll her as Virgin. Thirteen titles are derived from the Old Testament, followed by four calling on her as helper and advocate. The last 13 name Mary as Queen.

In Steering Through Chaos, Pastor Scott Wilson helps church leaders plan for healthy changes by making strategic choices that please God and grow your ministry. Since challenges tend to multiply during times of transition, Wilson shares wise insight on building new facilities, changing staff structure, adding services, becoming a multisite ministry, and more. During the struggles of transition, doubts inevitably arise. At those moments, leaders need assurance that they have a real and authentic vision from God. Wilson encourages you to follow the call and to lead with confidence and courage.

In every position of power—from executives and world leaders to church elders and parents—lies the potential for life-giving leadership or destructive corruption. Driven by sinful pride or opportunism, many people abuse their God-given authority, harming the ones they're called to lead and contributing to a skeptical attitude toward leadership. The answer to bad authority, however, is not no authority, but good authority—the kind that, according to Scripture, causes those under it to flourish.

In this practical and inspiring book, Willow Creek Executive vice president and teaching pastor Nancy Beach speaks to women with God-given gifts of leading and teaching. Sharing from her thirty-year journey in a local church, Nancy offers guidance on such issues as: character development, earning respect, finding your voice, managing work and personal life, and forming an intentional support network.

Many pastors feel isolated and helpless, especially those beginning pastoral ministry. Phil Newton and Rich Shadden know what this road is like, and they want to share what they have gained from pastoral mentoring—Rich, a young pastor receiving support and guidance from Phil, an older, more experienced shepherd.

Despite its many crises, especially in Western Europe, there are still 1.2 billion Catholics in the world and the Church remains a powerful, controversial and defiantly archaic institution. After the French Revolution and the democratic rebellions of 1848, the Church retreated, especially under Pius IX, into a fortress of unreason, denouncing almost every aspect of modern life, including liberalism and socialism. In Losing a Kingdom, Gaining the World, Dr. Ambrogio A. Caiani narrates the epic, fascinating, entertaining and horrifying history of the Roman Catholic Church.

An essential guide for maintaining integrity and preserving the good standing of your church in the face of a crisis, Church on Trial will teach you how to maintain and earn congregational trust and unity; safeguard your church's reputation preemptively and proactively before it crashes and burns; implement best practices for crisis prevention and recovery; build relationships and collaborate with trusted legal advisors; and gracefully handle negative media attention and publicity.

A Giving Crisis can only be remedied by a Giving Generation. I believe we have everything we need to become that generation—to learn the upside-down world of Christ and become the most generous generation in human history, in addition to being the most wealthy. If you long for financial freedom, boundless joy, and deep satisfaction, join the Giving Generation!

For more than 20 years, Andrew Harvey has trained his fine scholar’s eye on sacred texts and mystical truths to illuminate the message of inspired activism that they hold. Today, we need this message more urgently than ever. In this new book, Andrew takes a fresh, impassioned look at the story of Mary Magdalene and Jesus to distill its meaning for our world and show us how to embody this truth in our own lives.

Every leader wants to finish well, but sometimes the challenges and discouragements in life become too much to handle. Overwhelmed, we settle for less than God's best. Whether you are just beginning your ministry journey or you are a seasoned veteran who is feeling tired, ineffective, or ready to quit...maybe it's time for a Leadership Awakening! Your life can be marked by God's goodness all the way to the finish line. Don't allow yourself to become a casualty on the battlefield of Christian leadership.

This book is NOT a How to Build a Big Church manual. It is a call to a more spiritually healthy church and Christian life. The author performs a spiritual autopsy from head to toe on an imaginary dead church. Hundreds of Bible verses are used as a sharp scalpel exposing potential killers of the contemporary church. Creative and challenging insights will help you and your church avoid the spiritual obituaries.

In The Shepherd Leader, pastor and professor Tim Witmer laid out seven elements of an effective shepherding plan, showing church leaders how to minister to their congregations in practical, pastoral ways. Now, in this stand-alone but complementary volume, he gathers seven church leaders to show how they and their churches have addressed specific shepherding challenges in innovative ways.

Let the gospel of Jesus and the example of Jesus motivate you to serve your church sacrificially. This book looks at the gospel of Jesus and the example of Jesus to motivate us to serve our church family sacrificially with our energy, time, and gifts. This is a great book for Christians who have grown weary over time, those who need help in identifying their gifts and gaining the confidence to offer them, and church members who are lacking the motivation to get started.

Jesús le dio un mandamiento a sus seguidores: “Síganme” Y una promesa: “Yo los equiparé para encontrar a otros para que me sigan.” Fuimos hechos para hacer discípulos. Diseñado para ser usado en relaciones de discipulado y otros escenarios enfocados, Multiplícate te equipará para llevar a cabo el ministerio de Jesús.

Your opportunity to stay in ministry and be effective is in direct proportion to several significant attitudes and actions. I am sure this list is not exhaustive but does reflect what we have observed. In writing this book we are not setting ourselves up as any sort of experts in ministry. In fact quite the opposite. Much of what we share here are lessons we've learned from our own mistakes. After 40+ years of local ministry each, we wanted to reveal a few things that we have observed and experienced that have helped us and others to have any degree of effectiveness.