Download or read book Why Cities Matter written by Stephen T. Um and published by Crossway. This book was released on 2013-03-31 with total page 178 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: We live in a unique moment in history. Right now, more people live in urban centers than ever before. This means that we have an unprecedented opportunity to influence the majority of the world through the church in the city. Helping us to make the most of this moment, urban pastors Justin Buzzard and Stephen Um lay out a compelling vision for cultural engagement and church planting in our world’s cities. If you’re looking for motivation to maintain a commitment to the city or for guidance as you consider going all in, this book provides a comprehensive analysis of urban life that informs, instructs, inspires, and answers questions including: Why cities are so important What the Bible says about cities How to overcome common issues and develop a plan for living missionally in the city Instead of retreating from or taking from our cities, here is a call to make the cities our home, to take good care of them, and to participate in God’s kingdom-building work in the urban centers of our world.
Download or read book To Transform a City written by Eric Swanson and published by Zondervan. This book was released on 2010 with total page 228 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: To Transform a City is a valuable guide for those who dream big about the spiritual and social changes possible for the cities and towns that surround their churches. Two visionary leaders examine the foundations, history, theology, and practical methods of community transformation.
Download or read book Church Leader in the Cities written by Alvin W. Skardon and published by University of Pennsylvania Press. This book was released on 2015-09-30 with total page 356 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book is a volume in the Penn Press Anniversary Collection. To mark its 125th anniversary in 2015, the University of Pennsylvania Press rereleased more than 1,100 titles from Penn Press's distinguished backlist from 1899-1999 that had fallen out of print. Spanning an entire century, the Anniversary Collection offers peer-reviewed scholarship in a wide range of subject areas.
Download or read book Center Church written by Timothy Keller and published by Zondervan. This book was released on 2012-09-04 with total page 400 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Practical and Gospel-centered thoughts on how to have a fruitful ministry by one of America's leading and most beloved pastor. Many church leaders are struggling to adapt to a culture that values individuality above loyalty to a group or institution. There have been so many "church growth" and "effective ministry" books in the past few decades that it's hard to know where to start or which ones will provide useful and honest insight. Based on over twenty years of ministry in New York City, Timothy Keller takes a unique approach that measures a ministry's success neither by numbers nor purely by the faithfulness of its leaders, but on the biblical grounds of fruitfulness. Center Church outlines a balanced theological vision for ministry organized around three core commitments: Gospel-centered: The gospel of grace in Jesus Christ changes everything, from our hearts to our community to the world. It completely reshapes the content, tone, and strategy of all that we do. City-centered: With a positive approach toward our culture, we learn to affirm that cities are wonderful, strategic, and under-served places for gospel ministry. Movement-centered: Instead of building our own tribe, we seek the prosperity and peace of our community as we are led by the Holy Spirit. "Between a pastor's doctrinal beliefs and ministry practices should be a well-conceived vision for how to bring the gospel to bear on the particular cultural setting and historical moment. This is something more practical than just doctrine but much more theological than "how-to steps" for carrying out a ministry. Once this vision is in place, it leads church leaders to make good decisions on how to worship, disciple, evangelize, serve, and engage culture in their field of ministry—whether in a city, suburb, or small town." — Tim Keller, Core Church
Download or read book The Honest Guide to Church Planting written by Tom Bennardo and published by Zondervan. This book was released on 2019-08-13 with total page 208 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Church planting has become a cottage industry. National conferences, hip planting organizations, and all-in-one resource kits celebrate the thrill of pioneering a church and inspire visions of glorious victories. Yet few who respond to the call are warned what they'll actually encounter: the relentless opposition they'll endure; the eventual scattering of their entire core group; the failure of their tried-and-true, field-tested system. Here's the dirty little secret of church planting: the roadside is strewn with casualties. Many have closed their churches. Some left ministry permanently. Others abandoned the faith altogether. Church planting is at once the greatest and most grueling ministry work on earth. This book is for those toiling in the trenches, those about to bail out, and those considering jumping in. It's for the church planters laboring and struggling, seeing little movement, and wondering what they're doing wrong or why God is failing them. It's also for mother churches, planting organizations, and denominations, as a challenge to rethink and re-calibrate the way they approach and measure planting endeavors. The Honest Guide to Church Planting is a fresh and candid conversation about the challenges and joys of planting new churches. Tom Bennardo speaks the truth so that those involved in church planting can embrace a more accurate and realistic picture of what planting a church is really like; one that not only enables them to survive, but to thrive in this wondrous work.
Download or read book Together for the City written by Neil Powell and published by InterVarsity Press. This book was released on 2019-08-27 with total page 245 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: We need a bigger vision for the city. Pastors Neil Powell and John James contend that to truly transform a city, the gospel compels us to create localized, collaborative church planting movements. The more willing we are to collaborate across denominations and networks, the more effectively we will reach our communities—whatever their size—for Jesus.
Download or read book A New Day in the City written by Donna Claycomb Sokol and published by Abingdon Press. This book was released on 2017-05-16 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Many urban congregations remember days of fame and fortune—days when their prominence downtown or in city neighborhoods mattered. Population shifts, the decline of congregations and neighborhoods, and demographic changes depleted the dreams of many urban churches. But not all churches gave up hope. Many congregations are struggling to survive, but thousands of urban churches are thriving again. Churches with revived hope learn to let go of nostalgic dreams and tired habits and to walk with God into a new day of vibrant mission and ministry. Donna Claycomb Sokol and Roger Owens share lessons they’ve learned on the job and from other urban pastors. Along the way, they challenge clichés about church leadership and strategic planning by showing what congregational renewal can look like and how it can become a reality. Each chapter features a set of practical guidelines for leading a congregation to address the questions that matter most. “The urban church can be quite a challenge. I know because I’ve served a couple. Now, two thoughtful pastors with actual urban church experience take an affectionate, positive, honest, and hopeful look at the urban church and give practical wisdom for the revival of languishing urban congregations. There’s a remarkable revival of the urban church in North America. Donna and Roger can help you be part of it!” —William H. Willimon, Professor of the Practice of Christian Ministry, Duke Divinity School, Duke University, Durham, NC; retired bishop, The United Methodist Church “Three things excite me most about this book: First, these two young pastors understand the strategic importance of urban ministry and are passionately committed to it. Second, they show that when you turn from tired ‘church growth’ and corporate paradigms, choosing rather to model your ministry on Jesus, new life happens. And third, they explain that transformation is about journeying faithfully with the questions rather than looking for quick-fix techniques. This book could change your ministry.” —Peter Storey, South African church leader; W. Ruth and A. Morris Williams Distinguished Professor Emeritus of the Practice of Christian Ministry, Duke Divinity School, Duke University, Durham, NC
Download or read book Urban Ministry written by Harvie M. Conn and published by InterVarsity Press. This book was released on 2010-02-26 with total page 528 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: No. 3 in the 2002 Academy of Parish Clergy Top Ten Books of the Year! Cities--the anvil of civilization, the center of power, the metaphor for society itself--have been with us for thousands of years. Here converge piety and trade, security and politics. Yet just two hundred years ago only 3 percent of the world's population lived in cities. Today half does. Despite this tremendous explosion of urban growth, the work of the church has generally lagged behind. The city presents serious challenges that cry out for answers: poverty, racism, human exploitation and government corruption. How can the church move ahead in the midst of these demands with the gospel of hope? Here, in one comprehensive volume, Harvie Conn and Manuel Ortiz, two noted scholars and proven practitioners of urban ministry, address the vital work of the church in the city. Their dual goal: to understand the city and God's work in it. Through four great waves of development, Conn and Ortiz trace the history of the city around the world. Then they tackle the critical issue of a biblical basis for urban mission. How does the Bible view the city? Are we closer to God in the country than the city? Does the Bible have an anti-urban bias? These questions are given a thorough analysis that unveils God's urban mandate as reflected in both Old and New Testaments. From this foundation the authors unpack the multifaceted nature of the city as place, as process, as center, as power, and as a place of change and stability. They move us beyond fragmented stereotypes to a new way of seeing that is holistic enough for a fully biblical ministry to develop. In addition, Conn and Ortiz lay out what the social sciences have to offer urban mission, including ethnographic and demographic studies. While showing how such studies have identified unreached cities and unreached groups within cities, they do not become captive to research but demonstrate how to keep kingdom priorities in view. Finally, Urban Ministry focuses on the essential element of leadership. While there are many books on the topic, little has been said about the particular issues and needs of urban leadership. Therefore, the authors give significant attention to developing and mentoring leaders while equipping the laity for ministry in the city. This is the essential text for bringing God's kingdom to the city through the people of God.
Download or read book For the City written by Matt Carter and published by Zondervan. This book was released on 2011-05-03 with total page 224 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What makes a healthy church? Specifically, what defines a successful church in heavily populated, richly diverse areas? This book will: Explore what it means to be a church for the city God has called you to engage. Help you learn from past success stories as well as past mistakes in urban ministry. Guide you in developing a philosophy of ministry that can lead to restoration and renewal in your city. According to the United States Census Bureau, over 80% of the population lives in urban areas. Churches in or near cities have to work hard to minister effectively to a diverse group of people, welcoming those of different backgrounds, engaging both the poor and marginalized as well as the wealthy and influential. Church-planters Matt Carter and Darrin Patrick explain the biblical, theological, and historical foundations of ministry within the urban core and how to plant churches where the gospel is faithfully shared and brings substantial benefits to those living in the community. For the City relates the wisdom gleaned from years of serving their cities for the sake of God's kingdom. Carter and Patrick practically equip church leaders and Christians to look at their city as a mission field where individuals and churches can faithfully proclaim the gospel and live out the reality of a community changed and transformed by its message.
Download or read book Prayer Revolution written by John Smed and published by Moody Publishers. This book was released on 2020-05-05 with total page 236 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Are you praying constricted prayers or disruptive ones? Most prayers are constricted ones. They’re prayers that only focus on one part of the Lord’s Prayer: “give us our daily bread.” They’re usually focused on self and envision God as a heavenly caretaker. Disruptive prayers, on the other hand, are powerful, uncommon, and deeply biblical. They focus on God rather than self, seek to advance the kingdom, and submit all things to God. They are also prayed with a profound belief that prayer actually accomplishes something. When we pray disruptive prayers, that’s when the revolution begins. This book shows you how to equip leaders, fuel kingdom movements, and do real damage to the powers of darkness in the here and now. But most of all, discover how your own heart will be transformed as you begin to see how much bigger prayer, and God, is than you ever thought possible.
Download or read book Why Cities Matter written by Stephen T. Um and published by Hodder Christian Books. This book was released on 2013 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Using sociological research and data, urban pastors Um and Buzzard lay out the vision and rationale for church planting, cultural engagement, and missionary impulses in our world's cities as they provide a solid theological foundation for making the city our home.
Download or read book Word Made Global written by Mark R. Gornik and published by Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing. This book was released on 2011-07-22 with total page 362 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A groundbreaking work of ethnography, urban studies, and theology, Mark Gornik's Word Made Global explores the recent development of African Christianity in New York City. Drawing especially on ten years of intensive research into three very different African immigrant churches, Gornik sheds light on the pastoral, spiritual, and missional dynamics of this exciting global, transnational Christian movement.
Download or read book City on a Hill written by Philip Graham Ryken and published by Moody Publishers. This book was released on 2003-03-01 with total page 210 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: We are now living in post-Christian times, when Christianity no longer is the prevailing influence on the mind and heart of our culture. But we cannot compromise. More than ever before, it is imperative that Christians understand and embrace the biblical pattern for the church. Philip Graham Ryken knows that the changing face of America makes the need for the church to remain steadfast even more important. City on a Hill will provide readers with a deeper understanding of how to live for Christ in the twenty-first century: go back to the model set out in the first century. Sure to be an encouragement and challenge to anyone concerned about the effectiveness of the church today.
Download or read book Scattered Servants written by Alan Scott and published by David C Cook. This book was released on 2018-11-01 with total page 199 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Alan Scott, a leader in the Vineyard Movement, draws upon his years of experience to share inspiring stories of cities transformed by scattered servants. He shares practical ways for church leaders to move beyond the building walls and take the kingdom to those who need it most. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, Scott argues that every believer, not just the leaders, can fill their city, workplace, and family with the beauty and power of Christ. When believers become scattered servants, the Holy Spirit will equip them to advance the kingdom and change lives through their hearts and hands.
Download or read book The Urban Church Imagined written by Jessica M. Barron and published by NYU Press. This book was released on 2017-11-28 with total page 203 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Explores the role of race and consumer culture in attracting urban congregants to an evangelical church The Urban Church Imagined illuminates the dynamics surrounding white urban evangelical congregations’ approaches to organizational vitality and diversifying membership. Many evangelical churches are moving to urban, downtown areas to build their congregations and attract younger, millennial members. The urban environment fosters two expectations. First, a deep familiarity and reverence for popular consumer culture, and second, the presence of racial diversity. Church leaders use these ideas when they imagine what a “city church” should look like, but they must balance that with what it actually takes to make this happen. In part, racial diversity is seen as key to urban churches presenting themselves as “in touch” and “authentic.” Yet, in an effort to seduce religious consumers, church leaders often and inadvertently end up reproducing racial and economic inequality, an unexpected contradiction to their goal of inclusivity. Drawing on several years of research, Jessica M. Barron and Rhys H. Williams explore the cultural contours of one such church in downtown Chicago. They show that church leaders and congregants’ understandings of the connections between race, consumer culture, and the city is a motivating factor for many members who value interracial interactions as a part of their worship experience. But these explorations often unintentionally exclude members along racial and classed lines. Indeed, religious organizations’ efforts to engage urban environments and foster integrated congregations produce complex and dynamic relationships between their racially diverse memberships and the cultivation of a safe haven in which white, middle-class leaders can feel as though they are being a positive force in the fight for religious vitality and racial diversity. The book adds to the growing constellation of studies on urban religious organizations, as well as emerging scholarship on intersectionality and congregational characteristics in American religious life. In so doing, it offers important insights into racially diverse congregations in urban areas, a growing trend among evangelical churches. This work is an important case study on the challenges faced by modern churches and urban institutions in general.
Download or read book On Being a Pastor written by Derek J. Prime and published by Moody Publishers. This book was released on 2013-09-17 with total page 266 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The ministry of pastors is not simply a job; it’s a vocation and a lifestyle. A pastor’s responsibilities are unique, demanding that he not only nurture his own spiritual life but also the lives of those in his care. What a challenge this can be! Derek Prime and Alistair Begg provide practical advice for both the spiritual and practical aspects of pastoral ministry. They delve deep into topics such as prayer, devotional habits, preaching, studying, and specific ministry duties. The result is an essential tool for those in pastoral ministry.
Download or read book City Changers written by Alan Platt and published by David C Cook. This book was released on 2018-01-01 with total page 202 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Bible is clear about God’s love for the city, be it Babylon,Nineveh, or Jerusalem. Thousands of years later, His lovehasn’t changed—and God still calls His people to speak truth to the cities of the world. In City Changers, Alan Platt shows how we need to be in the classrooms, boardrooms, and marketplaces of our communities, engaged with society and ready to offer hope to the broken. Alan gives practical answers and inspiration for influencing the spiritual, social, and cultural dimensions of where we live, as he tells his remarkable story of watching God’s church deeply affect cities around the world. Generations of changed lives tell us that Christianity can radically transform society, beginning with spiritual transformation in the lives of individual people. As Alan writes, the church is called as a missional presence to instill the character and presence of Christ into the core of the community.
