Highlight from The Worship Pastor

Zac Hicks proposes the use of the term "church lover" instead of "churchman" to describe a faithful person who stays on a church despites the many painful experiences in between. He goes on to list a few characteristics of such a person; one of which struck right in my heart and is quoted below. It is helpful to remember not to take such attacks personally but to ask for God's love to minister to these wounding people...

From The Worship Pastor: A Call to Ministry for Worship Leaders and Teams

A church lover willingly enters into their church's wounded and wounding nature. As worship leaders [ministers also], we are ever tempted to wander into the temporary comforts of bitterness to cope with the perpetual pain the church inflicts on us. The criticisms are endless-from sound levels to song selection, from intolerable theology to inappropriate outfits. Our church is always wounding us. Many a wise counsellor has said, "Hurt people hurt people." ...The wounds that the church inflicts on you can become the very vehicle for your ministry to her woundedness. A pastorally oriented worship leader embraces this counterintuitive dynamic out of raw, Spirit-borne, gospel-rooted love for the church.

Review: Replant: How a Dying Church Can Grow Again

Replant: How a Dying Church Can Grow Again by Darrin Patrick
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Overall, the book is great. While there are sections I felt that too much information was provided, at the end I can conclude that it was superbly edited, with as little narration provided as necessary to allow readers to understand the unfolding journey. The story is highly engaging and I managed to read it cover to cover in about three short sittings, all within the same day. That illustrates that it provided an interesting read.

However, as many other reviewers have pointed out, the narrative/content is actually different from the title. If you can get past the misleading title, I nevertheless still would recommend this title. It is useful for a leader/pastor of a deceased/dying church, because of many principles and journey that are highly applicable to their situation, even if the desired end result is not a merger/takeover by a larger church. Quoting from the authors' desired outcome of the book:

We hope to inspire you to take risks for God's glory, to raise your gaze to what's possible, to challenge what is comfortable, so that God's plan A-the local church-advances.

My takeaway was how even if the situation was terribly bleak and the nails were in the coffin for the dying church, the steely resolve and wise leading of the interim pastor was deeply rooted in seeking God's direction, and eventually seeing the church rise from the ashes and thrive even more than it had been throughout any time of its 150 year history.

The authors also recommended a few other books that I would like to include here and will review some of these in due time:
1. Comeback Churches: How 300 Churches Turned Around and Yours Can, Too (Stetzer and Dodson)
2. Better Together: Making Church Mergers Work (Tomberlin and Bird)
3. Vital Merger: A New Church Start Approach that Joins Church Families Together (Elliot)

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Review: Who Runs the Church?: 4 Views on Church Government

Who Runs the Church?: 4 Views on Church Government by Steven B. Cowan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book was helpful in my going from zero knowledge to a little knowledge about the different types of church government. It would be helpful to have a sheet of paper stating the authors' names with their respective views, especially when they engage one another in the response sections. I did not give it 5 stars because many times the authors misunderstood each other's positions and were attacking strawmen arguments. I would definitely welcome a more heavy editing hand to remove all these misguided engagements that would confuse many first time readers (to the topic).

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Review: If You Bite & Devour One Another: Biblical Principles for Handling Conflict

If You Bite & Devour One Another: Biblical Principles for Handling Conflict by Alexander Strauch
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Strauch writes in an exciting, engaging and informed manner on a topic that naturally would crush the pastoral heart of the Christian reader. I enjoyed the concise nature of and how accessible/easily comprehensible the text was. His real-life re-enactments, anecdotal illustrations and quotations of notable theologians/practitioners are spot-on, providing clarity and exemplification of the substantives.

I appreciated how the content was grounded in and with constant reference to Scripture; other well-meaning authors who base their material on their wisdom and experience, unfortunately, cannot provide the godly encouragement and direction that God's Word can. I thoroughly enjoyed and was so enriched by this book (that I borrowed from my school library) - I bought one copy to keep on my bookshelf of 6-star books.

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Review: The Peacemaking Pastor: A Biblical Guide to Resolving Church Conflict

The Peacemaking Pastor: A Biblical Guide to Resolving Church Conflict by Alfred Poirier
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

For readers who have read his colleague Ken Sande's The Peacemaker, this book's formatting would be bizarrely similar; they are after all president and chairman of Peacemaker Ministries. I respect Poirier's brave confession that his pastoral ministry "has been shaped by reformation theology and Presbyterian ecclesiology" and therefore cannot claim to write from a "broadly evangelical, much less ecumenical, perspective"(p15). I appreciate how in spite of his clear experience in the field of peacemaking and church conflict resolution, Poirier writes with a refreshing humble stroke of his pen.

Why the book overall is informative, I felt that a heavy dose of brevity would do it much good - cutting maybe 50-100 pages with better editing and removing repetitive content could make it a masterpiece in the church conflict/resolution category. Often I felt that going through the content was a chore and I struggled to remain engaged in the material. Maybe the content would work better in the form of a week-long seminar, but presented in its current textual form, it needs to be made far more concise and captivating.

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Review: Managing Conflict in the Church

Managing Conflict in the Church by David W. Kale
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book is well-researched and packed with information that is sometimes cited from other authors in the Church Conflict circles. Kale and McCullough make an attempt to provide reenactments of real-life church conflicts to illustrate the substantives but often fall short of the believability factor that Dan Allender, for example, is a master of. Sometimes, the stories drag on for way too long; a dose of brevity would be much welcomed. Each chapter closes with a short story in a segment titled "from the pastor's desk" that is similarly unimpressive. One such uninspiring example would be Chapter 8's mentioning of Charles Swindoll's irritation with an unruly cow that led him to threaten to sell her to a Presbyterian who could strike her (he as a Quaker apparently could not) but then it did not lead well into the substantive thereafter.

The content is relatively insightful, although the book's formatting made it lose some lustre in terms of readability. Much can also be improved with regards to how engaging the material is - avoiding walls after walls of text by providing quotation blocks of notable concepts and by adding pictures/comics. Overall the book is so-so - it has some sparks of great content but other times the material is clearly off the mark. For readers who would like to learn more about manging church conflict, I'd instead recommend the excellent If You Bite & Devour One Another: Biblical Principles for Handling Conflict by Alexander Strauch (https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2619174098).

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Review: Pastors at Greater Risk

Pastors at Greater Risk by H.B. London Jr.
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The book is written in an engaging, authentic manner. London and Wiseman display their immense experience and also tap on the insight of leaders from other like-minded organisations that care for pastors (through Q&A/interview sessions at the end of most chapters) to lay out the unique challenges of being a pastor. I'd imagine that their wise (preemptive) recommendations and (reactionary) interventions would be thoroughly insightful to practising ministers. Indeed it’s much better to learn from the mistakes of others rather than making them yourself. Its best use perhaps is as a reality check to pastors - STOP running yourself dry and take the necessary measures to not crash and burn!

I appreciated how in including letters from pastors and their family members to illustrate specific topics, London and Wiseman do not sugarcoat the crushing toll of pastoral ministry and opt to publish it in its raw form. Also great was the highlighting of key principles by featuring them as block quotations, which broke up the monotony of walls of text. If I could feature a paradigm-shifting principle I learnt from this book, it would be the advice to avoid having monday as an off day - read Chapter 7 for the full scoop!

Even at 300 plus pages, it did not feel that long because the content was accessible and topics discussed were highly relevant. What keeps this book from being rated a full five stars would be the tone of the book - I felt the full weight of the gloom and doom that would befall the lives and families of the pastors. My impression was that it would be better to avoid ministry rather than to have to struggle unsuccessfully against the insurmountable odds placed on a pastor; I felt rather depressed and helpless when I saw how much I had to do in my own strength to not destroy my family and my ministry. My guess is that the authors' target audience would be Arminian-leaning pastors and so the slant of works (pursuit of holiness; not overworking etc) and practical step-by-step applications would resonate deeply with them.

How is a pastor ever going to survive? I'd rather have wished for London and Wiseman to remind us of the supernatural life-changing power and the blessed everlasting hope of the Gospel. Practical advice is great, but we ministers need to be captured and consumed before imparting a love of Christ to their families and flock.

Nevertheless, because this title is so exhaustive in its sweep and extremely helpful in its depth of suggested interventions, it would still be an invaluable resource in any pastor's library (even for the slightly reformed ones like myself). Just be sure to read Edmund Clowney's inspiring Called to Ministry alongside this to catch a glimpse of Clowney’s enrapturing love for his Saviour and great awe and joy of being in his service.

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Review: Pastors Are People Too: What They Won't Tell You but You Need to Know

Pastors Are People Too: What They Won't Tell You but You Need to Know by Jimmy Dodd
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Dodd and Magnuson couldn't be boring even if they tried - the content was engaging, captivating and highly relatable. I've had the privilege of spending five years studying in bible school, and have interacted with many pastors. They are dedicated to the Lord's work, their hearts beat for their sheep and yet I sense the toll of ministry on the well-being of themselves and their families.

This book is targeted at all Christians, and especially elders and board members. My heart broke many times as I read the regrettably lamentable real-life accounts of the pain and carnage that pastors and their families have been put through. Dodd and Magnuson both lead (two different) organisations that care for pastors, and with their vast insight and experience, provide a glimpse into the struggles, expectations and risks of pastoral ministry. They also provide useful practical guidelines and suggestions to care for the well-being of the pastoral staff, both in the form of pre-emptive measures and also resolutions for ministry workers who have flagged problems with their personal and family lives. Even if you arent in a position to influence church policy, there are still many viable suggestions for an ordinary church member to bless, love and care for their pastors.

I enjoyed the read so much that I bought 8 copies to give away; it's an easy 6 star rating for me! I heartily recommend and endorse this title!

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Review: Am I Called?: The Summons to Pastoral Ministry

Am I Called?: The Summons to Pastoral Ministry by Dave Harvey
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

The content is relatively engaging and he quotes from theologians like Sinclair Ferguson and Charles Spurgeon. Especially insightful and inspiring would be the small excerpt of the struggles/journey of a minister at the end of each chapter. Also great would be the recommendations for further reading, also found at the tail of the chapters. Harvey's illustrations are so-so, but not as gripping as Duane Elmer, Sherwood Lingenfelter or Dan Allender's. There is, however, a critical and unnecessary flaw in the book.

While I appreciated how concise and accessible the content was, I felt that it was a great pity that Harvey started the book by being divisive with his proclamation of complementarianism on Pg 19 "I believe the Bible clearly teaches that the call to pastoral ministry is only for Christian men." Well, that is his interpretation of what the bible says, and to claim that it is the clear teaching of Scripture is a bold but unfortunately misinformed assertion. To make such a definitive claim (on what to me is a non-dogma issue) leads me to be concerned about Harvey's submission to the authority of Scripture of whether he is making Scripture affirm his theological positions. Hence, I'd recommend Edmund Clowney's excellent title Called to Ministry (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5...) instead for readers seeking direction on this topic.

I hope that Harvey would heed the advice of his fellow complementarian and bible scholar Thomas Scholar on this matter to “bend over backward to love those with whom we disagree, and to assure them that we hope and pray that God will bless their ministries, even though we believe that it is a mistake for women to take on a pastoral role.” (P85-86 from Women in the Church: An Analysis and Application of 1 Timothy 2:9-15 by Kostenberger and Schreiner, 2nd Edition, http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25...).

For readers wondering what this matter is about, the most helpful title on Women in Ministry would be Zondervan's 2005 Counterpoints title Two Views on Women in Ministry (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...). I affirm the co-editor's position on this doctrine; Craig Blomberg “modified hierarchicalism” makes a full egalitarian argument with the exception of the senior pastor role being reserved for males only (p326). I also uphold Craig Keener’s advice to “give the ‘benefit of the doubt’ to who claim that God called them and who evidence that call in their lives, rather than passing judgment on them.” (p113 from Paul, Women & Wives: Marriage and Women's Ministry in the Letters of Paul).

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Review: Portraits of a Pastor: The 9 Essential Roles of a Church Leader

Portraits of a Pastor: The 9 Essential Roles of a Church Leader by Jason K. Allen
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I realised that these compilation/collaborative essay type of type of theological titles tend to be of very high quality. Because, perhaps for the purposes of brevity, each contribution is essentially a summary that brings out the cream of the subject matter. Often a single author, when given about 200 pages, tend to not be as succinct as when they are given only tens of pages to convey that same message.

While not all volumes were as well written or engaging as the others (possibly because the topic assigned was not their subject specialisation or interest), they were the minority amongst many very well-written essays. As a whole, the essays laid out what is demanded and how daunting the role of the pastor is. And yet strangely at the end of my read, I was encouraged and heartened not because I knew I was able to meet every single criterion, but because I was in awe of the beauty and wonder of how a godly pastor would be like. Furthermore, the propositions and substantive matter were grounded in Scripture (in contrast to airy-fairy opinions) and peppered with illustrations aplenty. Significantly for me also, I'd imagine that other readers who are unsure of their call, would be more clear if they were called to pastoral ministry or not, once having read the job description of a church leader.

I received this book from Moody Publishers for the purposes of providing an unbiased review. All views are my own.

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Review: Discerning Your Call to Ministry: How to Know for Sure and What to Do about It

Discerning Your Call to Ministry: How to Know for Sure and What to Do about It by Jason K. Allen
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Allen has given us a most outstanding, engaging, practical and useful book, especially if you feel called to full time paid ministry in Christ's service, and yet you feel a little bit unsure of taking the big leap. The book was pregnant with wise nuggets of truth and character piercing propositions/questions/thoughts that assisted in my evaluation and discerning of where I stood in reality.

And yet for a book that I feel is almost invaluable, it is truly a pity that I cannot give it the 6 stars (yep more than 5 stars!) it so truly deserves. But if perhaps you would find the read so much more enjoyable if your theological position (like Allen) is that of a partial Cessationist ("the office of apostle and prophet as reserved for the first century, ceasing to exist with the death of the apostles and the completion of the New Testament," p21), and an extreme Complementarian ("the office and function of the pastor/elder are biblically reserved for qualified men," p37).

For those who are curious, I too hold a partial Cessationist and a partial Complementarian view. However I found that I had to keep reminding myself to look above my horror (at Allen's lack of Eccumenicalism) and try to savour and digest the larger message he was attempting to convey. That was indeed quite a challenge and I so very much wished Allen did not alienate so many readers from the get go - in very first two chapters!

In my opinion, these are secondary theological issues, but after reading how Allen was inspired by Spurgeon's unwavering stance in the downgrade controversy (Chapter 9), I understood that he too was a man who stood by and would defend his convictions strongly - which necessitated that he did what he did - Allen would not have been at peace with himself if he did not pen down what he believed in. And for that, I respect his decision - an author who advocated complete inclusion of everyone and anyone would come up with a useless piece of literature with impotent advice. Nevertheless, I still affirm that the book would be of immense value even if you hold a Continuationist (that the office of the Apostle/Prophet, miracles and speaking of tongues have not ceased) or an Egalitarian (that women can take on any office, even the senior pastor role) position.

A title more theologically neutral - yet equally Scripturally faithful and perhaps even more inspirational- I would recommend would be Edmund Clowney's Called to the Ministry; these two titles would be great companions both distinct and overlapping fields of discussion. A quick search on amazon pulled up a handful of books on this same topic; I'll update this review again in future when I have evaluated a couple of the counterparts to find out the most useful.

I received this book from the Moody Publishers Newsroom program for the purposes of providing an unbiased review. All views are my own.

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Review: After 50 Years of Ministry: 7 Things I'd Do Differently and 7 Things I'd Do the Same

After 50 Years of Ministry: 7 Things I'd Do Differently and 7 Things I'd Do the Same by Bob Russell
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I requested for a review copy as I had read Russell's excellent "When God Builds a Church" - if you have yet to read it, I'd highly recommend it! However, I had half expected that as with most megachurch pastors, Russell could only have authored only one good book (with the others being of a so-so standard). I am most happy to admit that I could not be more wrong, this book has very much cemented its place on the rare never-to-be-sold-away 6 star (out of 5) gem.

As a senior minister/preacher who has retired for slightly over a decade, Russell writes earnestly, honestly and authentically; I did not send that he had anything to prove nor axe to grind - he simply wanted to bless the next generation of pastors/preachers. What with? With the vastamount of wisdom and experience he had accumulated - which often shared with an engaging, self-depreciating sense of humour. The appeal of and winsomeness of the illustrations alone would be worth the price of the book's retail value; I found myself to be genuinely interested whenever a real-world example was coming up and savoured every bite of it! I'd be hard pressed to pick which section of the book I preferred; I found both his regrets and best practices to be immensely handy.

As a seminary student with little ministry experience, this most wonderful labour of love has provided me with a glimpse of what forty years of faithful service would look like - warts and all - and provide endless food for thought! I could possibly spend a couple of months journeying a chapter of two on a weekly basis with a trusted friend in reflection, making plans and self-evaluation, and perhaps 5 years later, look back at this book and still find that it is still going to be incredibly useful! What I found exceptionally helpful was how Russell often shared about the temptation for self-glorification and how he sought to combat it - for good measure, Russell would add in a humourous story of how ordinary (or second rate) he truly was in reality when compared to his compatriots and staff.

In summary, this book was incredibly practical, highly inspirational and very realistic. I did not close the covers with a sense of how great a man Russell was - I went away with a sense of awe for the God Russell lovingly served for four decades. That perhaps, if a guy as ordinary and oddball as Russell could go the distance in the Lord's service, maybe I too, can also!

I received this book from the Moody Publishers Newsroom program for the purposes of providing an unbiased review. All views are my own.

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Review: Proclaiming a Cross-Centered Theology

Proclaiming a Cross-Centered Theology by Mark Dever
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I thoroughly enjoyed the read and was astounded to find that almost every chapter was outstandingly well written, engaging and thought-provoking (well except R C Sproul's which I found to be rather mediocre). Perhaps the fact that the origin of this book was a series of conference messages makes is so exceptional. While bible scholars may be prone to drifting toward excessively complex (or convoluted) theological messages when writing an article, book or thesis, having to present that same work at a conference often warrants summarising the content to its creme de la creme.

Although I find that I resonate more with Arminian and Charismatic scholars than I do with their Calvinist counterparts, I have often found that these Reformed theologians continually astonish and encourage me with their passion for sound doctrine (and therefore sound theology), orthodoxy and most importantly, a cross-centered Gospel. I am so thankful that the fruit of that conference a decade ago lives on through this book, and that so many more readers can be blessed.

The editors did not leave the readers with just a mountain of hard hitting theology too high for the average pastor to scale - C J Mahaney's penultimate chapter compelled the budding bible teacher to engage in (i) a deep reflection to seek the Lord for a (pardon the Charismatic terminology) greater measure of faith and gratitude and (ii) a renewed desire to be a joyful minister in his service amidst our often humble circumstances.

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Review: The Vulnerable Pastor: How Human Limitations Empower Our Ministry

The Vulnerable Pastor: How Human Limitations Empower Our Ministry by Mandy Smith
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

The tone and vocabulary of the book are spot on for the target audience; pastors, even those without a theological education, would fine it easy to follow Smith's train of thoughts. In the opening chapter of the book, Smith states that she did not want the book to seem to be centered on her, and that it not be simply a book for women pastors. Unfortunately those are two attributes that I feel would aptly describe the book. This is not to say that it is entirely not useful to non-women pastors/ministers, but it would appeal to better to women pastors, especially those from a charismatic/pentecostal background. Indeed, if there was a woman lead pastor I wanted to bless, this book would be high on my list of books to consider as gifts.

Having read to the end of the book, I was disappointed that the authentic-oozing title (which was what prompted me to request this title for review) did not quite aptly describe the contents. Other issues I have with the book would be her scarce quotation of Scripture, and when she did, it was usually with the eisegetical lenses (i.e. putting a meaning contrary to what the original biblical author had intended). An example of Smith's eisegesis would be the application of Revelation 3 on page 190.

A suggestion of improvement (which would persuade me to give it 4 stars) would be to reword the book's title to something along the lines of "The Woman Pastor" or "A Woman in God's Service" and to market it for the charismatic/pentecostal audience (not just woman lead pastors, but women serving in their local churches). For readers looking for a book on the topic of serving in ministry (especially pastoring) through great difficulty/feelings of inadequacy/hurts, see Gary Preston's Pastors in Pain, which is out of print (you can try finding a copy on bookfinder dot com).

I received this book from InterVarsity Press for the purposes of providing an unbiased review. All views are my own.

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Review: Oversee God's People: Shepherding the Flock Through Administration and Delegation

Oversee God's People: Shepherding the Flock Through Administration and Delegation by Brian Croft
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I found the book to be a rather enjoyable read! I felt the love the authors had for the sheep and the shepherds (in contrast to other authors' love for their pockets in their writing of yet another useless self-justifying book of their opinionated practices). The content was easily comprehensible and engaging enough to read large chunks at a go. The references were Scripture were helpful and I did not find myself being jolted by any weird out of context citing that typically plagues books on practical ministry. The latter part of the book had many beneficial practical frameworks that any lead pastor would find useful to consider implementation (or the refining of existing procedures).

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Review: Five Ministry Killers and How to Defeat Them: Help for Frustrated Pastors--Including New Research from the Barna Group

Five Ministry Killers and How to Defeat Them: Help for Frustrated Pastors--Including New Research from the Barna Group by Charles Austin Stone
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

While the thesis of this book is not one I am necessarily drawn to (I'd prefer meaty biblical theology and a macro picture of seeing how our work is all for the glory of God), I did find that I quite like this book. For the purposes of research for a paper on church growth, I sped through about 25 books, many of which grieved me so very much because they actually were written by authors who hated the church (and wanted to justify their own version of church by quoting Scripture out of context).

I felt that Stone genuinely cared for his fellow pastors but what I really appreciated was the amount of research he did in preparation for this book. Not only does he routinely refer to large surveys and studies conducted by the Barna Group and Lifeway, he repeatedly references the most salient points from veterans in the field. And boy were many of these so very really impactful - they made me feel like actually going to look up these secondary sources in future.

In a world with too many opinioned authors who are very happy to give their two cents worth on how to run God's church, Stone's masterpiece of a meta-analysis was a very welcome breath of fresh air. His passion, personal brokenness and rigour research have come together to create this encouraging read.

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Review: Becoming a Pastor Theologian: New Possibilities for Church Leadership

Becoming a Pastor Theologian: New Possibilities for Church Leadership by Todd Wilson
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I requested for a review of this book because I had read "The Pastor as Public Theologian" (Eds. Vanhoozer & Strachan). As a final year seminary student, this title appealed to me, for it is something I believe in passionately.

As indicated by the title, this book is targeted at pastors who have already been convinced that being pastor-theologians is something that they want to strive toward, and the many chapters essentially provide the characteristics and the historical examples of what that looks like.

The challenge with books that are made up of compilations by various scholars is putting together a seamless flow of thought, which I'd imagine that the editors have attempted to do. I felt that because of the sake of brevity, many of the articles from the contributing theologians were so dense and rich that I had difficulty absorbing the ideas and substantives.

For me, the mark of a 5 star book would be the communication of complex ideas in a manner that the reader can easily comprehend, be inspired by, and apply. And unfortunately, I do not feel that this book meets this criteria.

I received this book from IVP Academic for the purposes of providing an unbiased review. All views are my own.

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Review: Jesus Called – He Wants His Church Back: What Christians and the American Church are Missing

Jesus Called – He Wants His Church Back: What Christians and the American Church are Missing by Ray Johnston
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Johnson's book came with an intimidating, seemingly endless list of endorsements in the first few pages. The book provided an enjoyable and easy read. There was not too deep or complicated theological concepts being discussed, but rather, he takes us through a journey where I found myself agreeing with many diagnostics of the health of the church. Although primarily written to an Amercian Christian audience, it should be highly applicable to believers in other Western liberal democracies. Johnson's strength lies in his lively citations of other authors and great Christians who have lived before us. The anecdotes were almost always spot on in helping to draw a parallel to a principle he was attempting to illustrate.

If you are looking for an author who bashes the church and find yet another reason to live an anti-church Christianity, this is not the book for you. Johnston affirms his love for the church repeatedly throughout the book, and yet longs for the day the church lives up to the standard to which all believers are called to (but yet give ourselves much reason to ignore or justify a half-hearted surrender of one's will to Christ). I don't think it is possible to read this book and not engage in some serious reflection of our Christian walk thereafter...

I received this book from the Harpercollins’ Booklook Bloggers Program in exchange for this review.

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Review: Renovation of the Church: What Happens When a Seeker Church Discovers Spiritual Formation

Renovation of the Church: What Happens When a Seeker Church Discovers Spiritual Formation by Kent Carlson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The first thing that caught my attention was how nice the material of the back cover feels to the touch... Okay, onto the review proper! =D

Dallas Willard in the forward makes the observation that "we [in the dominant form of church life today] have trained Christians to be demanding consumers, not disciples... it was this issue of consumerism that brought the conflicting values of external success and authentic spiritual formation into such sharp contrast." (p9) and how they sought instead for "disciples of Jesus, not just avid consumers of religious goods and services." (p10-11).

From the get go, I appreciated the humility of the authors in admitting that they did not have their act all together and did not fall into the trap of over promising success by following an x-number point plan. With Ecclesiology being my second most favourite topic in theology (first being biblical theology), it was surreal to agree emphatically with the authors page after page after page (even though the church context I have been observing and reflecting about in far away Singapore). I too long for the day that my church would seek to grow spiritually formed Christians, rather than consumers addicted to week after week of worshiptainment. That powerful encounters at the altar would translate into lives forever changed by the Gospel, so much that believers cannot live in their old sinful ways. Their authenticity kept me constantly engaged, because their ten year or so struggle to transit from Willow's seeker friend model to one whereby the unchurched are faced with the invitation to repent rather than receive countless blessings upon blessings.

If you enjoy books by established church consultants like Gary McIntosh or Aubrey Malphurs, this book complements them so very well! The authors do not just know ecclesiological theories or doctrinal philosophies, as co-pastors they have sought to put many of these into real life application. On the topic of co-pastoring, this is the first time I have heard of such a notion, but it seems to be a really great idea (having considered their reflection of the pros and cons of it).

I heartily recommend this book, especially if you are a pastor frustrated with your congregation's distinterest in missions, evangelism, social justice, christian education etc. I would imagine how very useful it would be for the key decision makers on elder board/pastoral staff to have read and reflected upon relevance of what was discussed in the book for your church.

I received this book from InterVarsity Press for the purposes of providing an unbiased review. All views are my own.

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Review: The Pastor's Book: A Comprehensive and Practical Guide to Pastoral Ministry

The Pastor's Book: A Comprehensive and Practical Guide to Pastoral Ministry by R. Kent Hughes
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I would imagine that this book especially if you are (or know someone who is or is going to be) a relatively new pastor that has just gone into ministry. Many of the chapters alone would make the US$30 seem like a serious bargain (like the ones on weddings, funerals, prayers, pastoral counselling); each of these chapters highlighted in parentheses are, in my opinion, worth the price of the book. The authors hail from a more conservative and liturgical background, but have countless insights, suggestions and advice that even more "modern" and less-liturgical people like me will find timelessly helpful.

My guess (and what I have been told) is that Bible School would prepare one to be relatively adept at interpreting (and hopefully preaching) Holy Scripture. But we are still novice apprentices when it comes to various aspects of pastoral ministry: sunday worship services, annual services, weddings, funerals, public prayers, creeds, hymns/songs, baptism, communion, pastoral counselling, hospital visitation (the chapters run in that order). After reading through the whole book, I felt that I had just graduated from the pastor-jedi academy, quite skilled but yet still an apprentice.

I am astounded by the Appendix. What a labour of love to compile sample wedding services from Anglican, Baptist, Lutheran, Presbyterian traditions! I was thoroughly blessed. If I could highlight the chapter I enjoyed the most, it would be Robert W. Evan's Chapter 11 on Pastoral Counselling. It is a tour de force that packed page after page of timelessly helpful and valuable advice. I heartily recommend this book!

I received this book from the Crossway's Beyond the Page Program in exchange for this review.

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