I just finished Shannon O’Dell’s book, Transforming Church in Rural America. There are two things I love about this book. First, he includes links to videos where you can actually see the churches and places he is talking about and secondly, he removes a lot of the excuses for why rural churches aren’t growing. It is a challenging and eye opening book about how God is using Brand New Church to reach beyond the borders of it’s town of under 100 people. I will be giving away 4 copies of this book. All you have to do is
1. Leave a comment on this post about why this book would benefit you.
2. Tweet the following: @chaseurlion is giving away 4 copies of @shannonodell book. Check out http://www.chaseyourlion.com to find out how to win!
I will draw 4 names from all of the entries on Monday, May 31. This is just a small token of my appreciation for the great book, the work done by rural pastors, and the loyal supporters of Chase Your Lion.
I also came across Grounded in the Gospel: Building Believers the Old Fashioned Way. This book from J.I. Packer and Gary Parrett challenges churches to return to the proven ways of teaching children and adults the foundations of the faith. Christianity Today has an article and excerpt here. It is on my summer reading list.
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Transforming Church in Rural America: Breaking All the Rurals
Small church buildings dotting the countryside are home to ministries that often struggle with limited attendance, no money, and little expectation that change can revitalize their future. In Transforming Church in Rural America, Pastor Shannon O’Dell shares a powerful vision of relevance, possibility, and excellence for these small churches, or for any ministry that is stuck in a “rural state of mind.” The book reveals:
Focusing on vision, attitude, leadership, and innovation, you can learn the practical strategies and biblical guidance that helped to grow a church of 31 into a multi-campus church of several thousand, with a national and global outreach. Discover effective structure and ways to cast God-given vision so others can follow and make an impact. Experience the blueprint for transforming into effective, dynamic, and thriving churches- no matter where the location or how small it may be. |
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Grounded in the Gospel: Building Believers the Old-Fashioned Way
Historically, the church’s ministry of grounding new believers in the essentials of the faith has been known as catechesis–systematic instruction in faith foundations, including what we believe, how we pray and worship, and how we conduct our lives. For most evangelicals today, however, this very idea is an alien concept. Packer and Parrett, concerned for the state of the church, seek to inspire a much needed evangelical course correction. This new book makes the case for a recovery of significant catechesis as a nonnegotiable practice, urging evangelical churches to undertake this biblical ministry for the sake of their spiritual health and vitality. |
The book sounds like it might be beneficial to myself and our leaders as we seek to transform our small community for Christ. The material appears to cover some of the things that I anticipate covering during our leadership training moments with the local board in the coming months.
I live, work and minister in a smaller town (Less than 25,000) with several small and rural towns surrounding our church. We pull our attendance from most of these smaller towns and I think this would be a great book to help me understand the culture here.