Review: Taking Your Church to the Next Level: What Got You Here Won't Get You There

Taking Your Church to the Next Level: What Got You Here Won't Get You There by Gary L. McIntosh
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

After having read the book, I felt like I had just stepped into a time warp machine and had journeyed with a small church plant all the way to when it became a decentralized church (McIntosh's preferred term to the more commonly used megachurch). Only a few pastors would have had the privilege to have embarked on that voyage, and so it was a very surreal experience for me.

While I'm no church pastor (I'm just a student in bible college), I found the book immensely helpful. McIntosh dedicates a chapter each to different sized churches, discussing the characteristics, key points of transition and proposed action plans to be considered. That's the second part of the book. The first part, was much gloomier, but oh so very necessary for the many stagnating churches who are oblivious that they may be soon die off. Part One dedicates entire chapters to each type of congregational life cycle of a church. The content is easy to comprehend and highly relatable - any church pastor (even member) should be able to identify which stage their church is presently in.

If I could borrow a star wars reference, I felt that McIntosh is like the wise Jedi Master - leaving us young padawans, as the new leaders of the next generation of the resistance, with this wonderful tome of knowledge. I thoroughly enjoyed the book and heartily recommend it to all pastors and lay believers who love their church.

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