Search

Too often, the solution sought by many struggling churches is to make the homerun hire--to find the charismatic leader who will take them to the promised land of growth and vibrant ministry. While this strategy occasionally pays off, it has overwhelmingly failed as seen in the hundreds of churches across the United States that close their doors annually. Is it possible that there is another way forward for those seeking to lead local congregations into missionally vibrant ministry, especially those located in multiethnic urban areas? In Charismatic Leadership and Missional Change, one church's journey from a struggling, primarily Anglo congregation of less than 100 members to becoming a missionally vibrant, multiethnic church of more than 700 attendees with no clear ethnic majority documented. The charismatic leadership style that drove this change is discussed and critiqued, as well as the adaptive challenges that have arisen in the church because of it. An alternative approach--interpretive leadership--is proposed as a different pathway forward in response to these challenges. The result, the author suggests, will be to empower the diverse, everyday people of God to participate in God's mission in exciting and surprising new ways.

Written from a post-Christendom/emergent worldview, this books was born of a singular question asked in hundreds of ways:'What do we do to be faithful in this changed and changing reality?'Whether shaped by anxiety, a foretaste of coming changes, excitement, or energy at the prospects of witness and service the future holds, the question remains the same and the answers elusive. Part one addresses church functions under categories of governance, modeling, collaboration, champion, catalyst, mission, covenant, disciple, change and leadership. Part two offers further explication of the functions, including books recommended for in-depth study, application ideas, and further exploration of themes.

A new brand of apostolic ministry for today's world The Permanent Revolution is a work of theological re-imagination and re-construction that draws from biblical studies, theology, organizational theory, leadership studies, and key social sciences. The book elaborates on the apostolic role rooted in the five-fold ministry from Ephesians 4 (apostles, prophets, evangelists, shepherds, and teacher), and its significance for the missional movement. It explores how the apostolic ministry facilitates ongoing renewal in the life of the church and focuses on leadership in relation to missional innovation and entrepreneurship.The authors examine the nature of organization as reframed through the lens of apostolic ministry. Shows how to view the world through a biblical perspective and continue the'permanent revolution'that Jesus started Outlines the essential characteristics of apostolic movement and how to restructure the church and ministry to be more consistent with them Alan Hirsch is a leading voice in the missional movement of the Christian West This groundbreaking book integrates theology, sociology, and leadership to further define the apostolic movement.