The purpose of this book is to provide a fresh, biblical basis for the role of pastors in a changing North American context and to encourage a compelling vision for how those called to serve as pastor might live that out in the context of local congregations.Foundational to this book is a conviction about the importance of the local church. Ministry is practiced in the local, the concrete, the ordinary, and the routine. Pastors serve in this embedded space—working to form a people ...

For those who are called to it, pastoral ministry can be a source of deep joy. But there are also challenges. An increasing number of pastors seem to be burning out under the load. Congregations may not be aware of the many and conflicting demands placed on a pastor's time and energies, nor the pastor's need for rest and personal support. That Their Work Will Be a Joy was written to encourage mutual understanding between pastors and congregations about the stresses of ministry. The authors...

We know that the goal of the Christian life is to glorify God and to enjoy him forever. While this is God's ultimate plan, does he have a particular purpose for the cell-based church? I've been wrestling with this question for the past twenty-two years. This question confronts me every time I coach a pastor or pastors. In preparation for coaching, I ask myself, "What is my principal objective in helping this pastor?" "Where am I guiding this church?" "What am I trying to do?" I've come to ...

Read table of contents, intro, first chapter, second chapter, and press release here: http://www.joelcomiskeygroup.com/relational.htmlYou can also call: 1-888-344-2355 (Joel Comiskey Group).Jesus lived with His disciples for three years and taught them essential life lessons as a group. After three years, he commanded them to go and do likewise (Matthew 28:18-20). Jesus discipled His followers through relationships and He wants us to do the same.We in the west, on t...

Christ commanded the church to make disciples, to produce people who love and obey God, bear fruit, and live with joy. The crisis at the heart of the church is that we often pay lip service to making disciples, but we seldom put much effort behind doing it. For the pastor who is ready to put words into action, The Disciple-Making Pastor offers the inspiration and practical know-how to do so. Bill Hull shows pastors the obstacles they will face, what disciples really look like, the pastor's...

Christianity Today 2019 Book Award Winner (Spiritual Formation) and Award of Merit for CT**'s Beautiful Orthodoxy Book of the Year**Outreach 2019****Recommended Resource of the Year (Spiritual Growth)We live in a 24/7 culture of endless productivity, workaholism, distraction, burnout, and anxiety--a way of life to which we've sadly grown accustomed. This tired syst...

Why cell church? Is it because David Cho's church, the largest church in the history of Christianity, is a cell church? Is it because someone said the number twelve will bring blessings and growth? Is it because cell church is the strategy that many "great" churches are using? Ralph Neighbour repeatedly says, “Theology must breed methodology.” This book sets forth the biblical theology for cell based ministry. Without biblical truth, we don’t have a firm under-pinning upon which we can han...

Small groups are a great place to connect with other churchgoers, but many wonder, is this all there is? Is sitting in a living room, talking about a book or watching a video the extent of what we can do together? Isn't being a Christian community about something more than this?Pastor and author Scott Boren thinks so. In this latest release from missional thinktank Allelon, Boren gives leaders and members of small groups the tools they need to make an impact on their communities. B...

Every pastor wants the sermon to be an important tool for maturing those listening in the pews. Having a preaching plan is an essential part of this process. If a preacher's messages are scattered, unrelated to one another, or haphazardly prepared, it can be difficult for those in the congregation to make connections to aid their spiritual growth.Preaching with a Plan encourages and equips pastors to develop a cohesive preaching plan to guide their choice of Scripture, topi...

Scripture places high priority on the disciplemaking capacity of the church, This book shows how to accomplish it. Foreword by Howard Ball.

Discipleship occurs when someone answers the call to learn from Jesus how to live his or her life as though Jesus were living it. The end result is that the disciple becomes the kind of person who naturally does what Jesus did.How the church understands salvation and the gospel is the key to recovering a biblical theology of discipleship. Our doctrines of grace and salvation, in some cases, actually prevent us from creating an expectation that we are to be disciples of Jes...

The modern chasm between "secular" work and "sacred" worship has had a devastating impact on Western Christianity.Drawing on years of research, ministry, and leadership experience, Kaemingk and Willson explain why Sunday morning worship and Monday morning work desperately need to inform and impact one another. Together they engage in a rich biblical, theological, and historical exploration of the deep and life-giving connections between labor and liturgy. In so doing, Kaemingk and ...