I’d love to hear from other church leaders on this one. It asks nothing different in referential meaning than Shakespeare’s line, “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?” The second line, however, has a certain elegance and beauty while the first is just… complex. Don’t worry, this book does not give you yet one more thing to do…. Subscribe here for practical ministry how-to's and done-for-you resources. June 1st 2006 During his free time, Eric enjoys dating his wife, taking his daughters to the beach, and playing basketball. This updated edition includes a new chapter with further insights the authors have gained through hundreds of conversations with church leaders since this landmark book's original release. For most people it probably is really boring, but for me it's pretty exciting stuff. Francis cautions us that many people want to change the Church based on personal preference rather than biblical conviction. Conclusion. He is a 1977 graduate of the University of Alabama and earned his Master of Divinity and Ph.D. degrees from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. Third Missionary Journey – Part 2 – Strengthening the Pastors Chapter 20 68 22. But I decided to write a small smattering of my thoughts nonetheless, as I just finished it yesterday and so I figured it fitting to at least write of my first impressions. From the design of Apple products to Google's uncluttered homepage, simple ideas are changing the world. Prior to LifeWay, he served at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary for twelve years where he was the founding dean of the Billy Graham School of Missions and Evangelism. Thom Rainer and Eric Geiger’s book attempts to persuade the reader to contemplate church as “simple.” With the plethora of mission, vision, and strategic statements, the church leadership as well as the average parishioner can easily get lost in various messages in the church. But I decided to write a small smattering of my thoughts nonetheless, as I just finished it yesterday and so I figured it fitting to at least write of my first impressions. And churches with multiple campuses are absolutely not following the example of the church in Acts. Whatever the next few steps are (small groups, service teams, whatever) the idea is to encourage deeper and deeper commitment to Christ. The first says instructions on church order and pastoral responsibilities is the message of the letter. The big idea is to come up with a discipleship process for, Simple church as a fairly lengthy book about a simple process for the church. Part of me really does not like this book, and I struggle to know if that's my own contrary nature or not. This book revolutionized my view of church ministry! In this book, they have taken those results and have combined them into a process called Simple Church. The opening paragraphs were so awkward-a pastor so bummed he has to go to a prayer meeting. At one point I was out every night of the week with home groups, drama groups, prayer meetings, men’s breakfasts, outreach groups, worship practice, leaders meeting, youth meetings and so on and so on…. With insights based on case studies of 400 American churches, Thom Rainer and Eric Geiger prove the disciple-making process is often too complex. Instead, you can refer others to this site where they can sign up and download their own free copy of the book. This is a book I struggled with. Purpose. T he book of Jonah is an Old Testament story which tells about how the prophet Jonah refused to follow the Lord. “Does it fall within the domain of prescription for the first-person subject to analyze the relationship of similitude of the second-person object to a period of solar illumination occurring during a season between a solstice and the autumnal equinox?” In the linguistic sense of referential meaning, that sentence is poetry. It would be nice if we had no use for such works; but the fact is, we do. Of course, we are called to grow as believers, to mature and to become more like Christ. Get proven strategies and practical ministry how-to’s delivered straight to your inbox. In this book we see the first mention of the dispensation of the Holy Spirit and Jesus’ command to take His gospel to all the world. While I appreciate the concept of the book, it is self-defeating in its length. For a church to be "simple" it needs clarity, movement, alignment, and focus. "A simple church is a congregation designed around a straightforward and strategic process that moves people through the stages of spiritual growth." When a person comes into the church as a newcomer/guest, they should be able to figure out where the entry point into the church family is. While the book had good and valid points, I feel it could have been much shorter as there was lots of repetition. At the beginning of the book It is stated that this philosophy is not doctrinal by nature, that is, it does not directly influence doctrine. This book looks at the church as a business, hampering the movement of the Holy Spirit. This book will not just be another church leader or methodology book, it will challenge you to reconsider how you lead your church. Make a lasting difference as a Leader. They bring the reader through their research and at the end of their book provide a chapter to assist in developing a personal plan for writing a simplified ministry plan. There is one … Part of me really does not like this book, and I struggle to know if that's my own contrary nature or not. Although the book is not exegetically based, it does provide some extremely helpful observations on the success of disciple-making churches today. Just a moment while we sign you in to your Goodreads account. I'd rather be motivated to follow a discipleship pattern from Scripture than research. Really?) ;) It applies to non-profits and businesses. Our church's Senior Pastor and our Elders are reading this book, so I thought I would read it also to add to my own knowledge about the ways in which a church can thrive by reducing complexities and simplifying the process of Discipleship. Some of us cannot afford to multi-task.1”, Melissa Albert Recommends YA Tales Where the Real World Gets Real Magical. This book could have been a fourth as long and still just as effective because the message is very simple; every church should give some thought to a clearly defined and Christ-centered process of discipleship. Rainer and Geiger present their research, which is complex, in a simple way. They are honest about the challenges facing a church during a move towards simplicity. It is not that Rainer and Geiger have come up with something new, but rather, they have pinpointed a methodology that has consistently produced positive results in churches. I also appreciate how they eventually answered the questions their first several chapters illicit from me. No bells or whistles required. Thom S. Rainer and Eric Geiger, Simple Church – Returning to God’s Process for Making Disciples (Nashville, Broadman and Holman, 2006) 257pp. I did NOT like this book. That in and of itself is a trite takeaway, as I'm sure the authors would contend, but I still contend that reading and using this book as a church improvement guidebook won't do anything in and of itself. A simple church is designed around a straightforward and strategic process that moves people through the stages of spiritual growth. Introduction. The idea behind the simple church movement is to emulate the gatherings of Christ-followers in the book of Acts. Thom Rainer and Eric Geiger have collaborated to bring to us a work that is by no means earth-shattering, yet is somehow hitting a note that many of us miss. Great read, great for leadership discussion. The Simple Church Disciple-Making Process First, someone gets connected to God. I applied, this book will make your lives easier as you focus your efforts on your discipleship process meaning you work smarter instead of harder and get more done, making the most of your time and resources. According to the authors, a simple church is defined as “a congregation designed around a straightforward and strategic process that moves people through the stages of spiritual growth” (61). This allows us to keep track of the distribution of this book. By nature, that process must be theological... Also sanctification is not a mechanical one size fits all application, but requires the Holy Spirit and receptive, obedient hearts. Yuck! A SiMPLE CHURCH is a congregation designed around a straightforward and strategic process that moves people through the stages of spiritual growth (discipleship). Summary : In this "blueprint for survival," Christian sociologist George Barna evaluates the moral and spiritual decline of society and the corresponding stagnation within the Church. Simple Church, which is thicker than the title suggests, makes the case for a simplified approach to ministry based on the discipleship methods of Jesus. It's not all the time that you can read a "churchy" book and find processes and concepts that you start applying to work and home as well! Thom Rainer and Eric Geiger’s book attempts to persuade the reader to contemplate church as “simple.” With the plethora of mission, vision, and strategic statements, the church leadership as well as the average parishioner can easily get lost in various messages in the church. Themes in the Book of 1 Timothy . simple church returning to gods process for making ... book is at best a book focusing on leadership principles for leading a religious organization but the leadership principles advocated ... prove that the process for making disciples has quite often become too complex http wwwchristianbookmixcom this is the summary of simple church This book is in some ways highlighting the obvious and in others unveiling what we miss in all the clutter. The sum of the study: less is more when it comes to church programs. But I do believe there is a place for planning and organizing so perhaps it is my own fault (as someone who is not a church leader) for thinking ill of thinking critically about how our local church is organized. Rainer and Geiger present their research, which is complex, in a simple way. What did you think? The book is centered around these four points: Thom Rainer looks closely at each idea and shows you why it’s time to simplify and how to start. They call this a “ministry process” (91). that for your church to be healthy, it needs to be specifically and consciously organized around a simple process that moves people further and further along their walk with God. The Simple Church model reduces the clutter and increases the simplicity making it sharable and reproducible. This is the aim, I think, of most churches anyway, but the cluttered process of most churches prevents the members from truly grasping what is going on. Has some good things to think about, but this book is too rigid and obsessed with man made methods. Thom Rainer is the president and CEO of LifeWay Christian Resources. Each letter addresses an issue that your church may be facing. If there is complexity in the book, the complexity serves to make a life of vision simple in the end. Third Missionary Journey – First, Back to Ephesus Chapter 18:23-19:41 64 21. He was kind enough to look over the manuscript and make a number of suggestions and corrections. I think the basic idea presented (focus your church's ministry on the process of spiritual growth and get rid of the stuff that doesn't fit that focus) is fantastic and could help most churches if properly understood and applied. Book Summary While sleeping near a sycamore tree in the sacristy of an abandoned church, Santiago, a shepherd boy, has a recurring dream about a child who tells him that he will find a hidden treasure if he travels to the Egyptian pyramids. There are some good nuggets in here, but the book as a whole is weakened by the lack of theological insight Rainer and Geiger bring to the table. p.189 "If it is unclear how a ministry addition will move people through the simple process, do not launch it." They utilize two church scenarios to illustrate their point. the idea is simple enough, and there wasn't much profound here. I still am somewhat wary of the "conveyor belt" mentality that is conveyed. The book begins by contrasting two imaginary churches: "First Church" is a complex church - one that has many great programs, but without an overarching focus. The premise of this book is sound, and certainly one that all church leaders (clergy and laypeople alike) need to hear . If this book causes churches to reconsider ill-conceived church programs and an almost frantic culture of busyness, I suppose that is not a bad thing. This process is what the weight of the church and it ’ truly. 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