Untapped Church: Discovering the Potential Hidden in Your Congregation


Book Description

The greatest untapped resource in today's church is high capacity volunteer leaders. Many people in many churches are largely untapped which means available but not used. In 2011, the pastoral staff at Grace Church in Erie, Pennsylvania began inviting additional leaders from within the congregation to become staff members without pay. These voluntary leaders were given job descriptions, business cards, problems to solve, and people to lead. They were given responsibility that matched their capacity, and Grace Church created a culture where volunteer leaders had the potential to rise to every level of leadership within the organization. In Untapped Church, Pastor Derek Sanford explores this exciting new approach to church. The book is structured into two main parts. The first part tells the story of the church's journey toward volunteer leadership. It explores biblical foundations, philosophical shifts, and real-life stories of leaders who have been tapped for kingdom impact. The second part of the book is much more practical in nature. It has the feel of a how-to manual. Beyond that, Derek hopes other pastors will take his idea further and make it better than he ever dreamed it could be! Untapped Church will inspire you to discover the potential hidden in your own congregation.




Beautiful Resistance


Book Description

In a time of compromise and disillusionment, God is calling his people to a movement of beautiful resistance. We live in a time when our culture is becoming increasingly shallow, coarse, and empty. Radical shifts in the areas of sexuality, ethics, technology, secular ideologies, and religion have caused the once-familiar landscape of a generation ago to be virtually unrecognizable. Yet rather than shine as a beacon of light, the church often is silent or accommodating. This isn’t a new phenomenon. During World War II, pastor and theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer was deeply troubled by the compromise in the German church. Their capitulation to the Nazi party brought shame and dishonor to the gospel. In response, he helped create an underground movement of churches that trained disciples and ultimately sought to renew the church and culture of the day. In our compromised church, we need new underground movements of discipleship and resistance. Widely respected New York pastor Jon Tyson unveils a revived vision for faithful discipleship—one that dares to renew culture, restore credibility, and replace compromise with conviction. For all who have felt this conflict in the soul between who we are and who God calls us to be, Beautiful Resistance is a bold invitation to reclaim what’s been lost—regardless of the cost. Praise for Beautiful Resistance “Beautiful Resistance is one of the most compelling and defiant books I’ve read in a long time. I love Jon’s radical, no-messing vision of the church as a prophetic community. This is a wake-up call for us all from the heart of a man who lives his message, loves his city, and serves his Lord with a passion and intelligence destined to become less rare.”—Pete Greig, founder of the 24-7 Prayer movement




BLESS


Book Description

What If You Could Change the World without Changing Your Daily Routine? When you’ve been transformed by God’s love, you can’t help but want others to experience the same grace and freedom. But how do you share it without scaring them away or offending them? For most Christians, “evangelism” is an intimidating word that suggests handing out tracts to strangers or doing other awkward things. But what if there was a more organic, more authentic way to share your faith with your friends, neighbors, and coworkers? Dave and Jon Ferguson have found five simple, straightforward practices that will allow any believer to do just that. And by consistently living them out, you can affect not just individual lives but your entire neighborhood and community—one person at a time.




Discover the Power Within You


Book Description

The fortieth anniversary edition of the inspirational classic—with a foreword by Maya Angelou. “This book changed my perspective on life and religion.” —Oprah Winfrey In the newest edition of Eric Butterworth’s inspiring tour de force, the author shares the greatest discovery of all time: the ability to see the divine within us all. Jesus saw this divine dimension in every human being, and Butterworth reveals this hidden and untapped resource to be a source of limitless abundance. Exploring this “depth potential,” Butterworth outlines ways in which we can release the power locked within us for better health, greater confidence, increased success, and inspired openness to let our “light shine” forth for others. “A wonderful book . . . truly a life-changer, as many readers know. This book really does release the power within us all.” —Norman Vincent Peale “For many, this book will be an answer in itself. For many more, it will open doors to ever-richer depths.” —Ira Progoff, Founder, Intensive Journal Program for Self Development




Digging the Wells of Revival


Book Description

“This book will challenge you to lay ahold of God at a whole new level.” - John Arnott, founder of Catch the Fire Toronto You are destined to bring revival! The same God who invaded the upper room on Pentecost, revived a nation during America’s Great Awakenings, saved 100,000 souls in the Welsh Revival, and...







Maximizing Your Potential


Book Description

Are you bored with your latest success? Maybe you're frustrated at the prospect of retirement. This book will retire your passion for living! Dr. Myles Munroe, international teacher, speaker, evangelist, and president of Bahamas Faith Ministries International, shares some practical yet penetrating concepts for maximizing the God-given potential lying dormant inside you. Go for the max -- die empty!




Workship


Book Description

“The Hebrew root word for ‘work’ is also the root word for ‘service’, particularly service to God in worship. By combining the two English words, ‘work’ and ‘worship’, I hope to challenge people to integrate their faith and work. Work does not just refer to what is done in paid employment. I believe God sees work as any purposeful activity requiring focus and effort. It could be housework, schoolwork, caring for children or parents, study, paid work, voluntary work, etc.” — Kara Martin In her book, Kara explores the biblical view of work, provides six spiritual disciplines to integrate faith and work, shares practical wisdom on how to make a difference in the workplace, and offers ideas to help churches better equip their congregations to live out their faith at work.




Liquid Church


Book Description

In today's fluid culture, many churches are adrift--longing to reach spiritually thirsty people, but failing to make an impact. Have you noticed? Congregations are stuck or declining. Millennials and Gen Z are walking away. Volunteers and their generosity are drying up. Is your city, town, or neighborhood spiritually dry? Do you long to see more of the living water of Jesus flowing freely through your community, generating a fresh wave of ministry momentum? Buckle up: you're in for a whitewater ride! Liquid Church tells the fascinating story of a New Jersey church that began "on accident" and grew into one of America's 100 Fastest-Growing Churches, with over 5,000 in weekly attendance and more than 2,400 baptisms to date. Their secret? They harnessed the power of six powerful ministry currents sweeping across North America including: special needs, creative communication, ministry mergers, compassionate cause, radical generosity, and leadership development. With powerful stories and scriptural insights, backed by national research, Tim Lucas and Warren Bird describe dozens of fresh ideas, new ministry wineskins, and hard-won leadership learnings that resonate with rising generations in today's "show-then-tell" culture. Each chapter includes practical tools, real-life examples, and links to "Other Churches Making Waves" with cutting-edge ministry ideas designed to help saturate your city for Christ. Ready to dive deeper? Whether you serve a brand-new church plant, fast-growing congregation, or an aging ministry ready for reinvention, Liquid Church is an inspiring and practical guide for leaders ready to reach their spiritually thirsty neighbors--those who have given up on church, but haven't given up on God.




Stop Waiting for Permission


Book Description

ECPA BESTSELLER • From the pastor of one of America’s fastest-growing churches, this bold, inspiring manifesto will show you how to dream, plan, and ultimately achieve your great calling in life. “If you’re tired of hitting roadblocks and want to dig deep to achieve your God-given potential, today is the day.”—New York Times bestselling author Craig Groeschel, pastor of Life.Church We each have a unique purpose in this life, one embedded within us by the Creator of the universe before time began. Yet we rarely experience this greatness because the glory of God within us is still waiting to be uncovered. So we spend our lives running after the wrong goals. Eventually we burn out and stop believing that God has any bigger plans for us in light of our past failures and false starts. However, Stephen Chandler believes God created everyone, including you, for greatness . . . and doesn’t want anything to get in the way of that destiny. In Stop Waiting for Permission, you’ll discover the keys to unlock your unique calling and activate your innate, God-given strengths by • identifying what’s holding you back • discovering your unique genius • maximizing your God-given greatness • living in your purpose with perseverance The time to act is now! Stop waiting for permission.