New Reading

Since the confluence of our A/C unit breaking down and the temperatures soaring into the 90s has rendered me unable to sleep, I decided it was a gift of God of a few more hours of productivity and prayer.  Tonight I started reading The Trellis and the Vine by Colin Marshall and Tony Payne.  The book has been recommended to me by church-planting friends and most recently by my senior pastor.  Sixty pages into it (through chapter four), it's pretty good.  Essentially, it's a manual on why and how churches should make the shift from ministry that is program-centered to ministry that is Spirit-empowered, gospel-proclamation-oriented and people-mobilizing.  So far, the biggest challenge for me personally is the emphasis on one-on-one, "speaking the truth in love" kind of ministry and on prioritizing people growth over tasks.  The tasks of ministry (e.g., planning, coordinating & executing Sunday worship services; preparing sermons; problem solving; administration; recruiting, scheduling & training volunteers) overwhelm us to the point that we neglect to actually pastor our individual leaders and volunteer staff.

I invite you to get your own copy and read along with me.  Please stop in (to this blog or even in person!) and share your insights, whether you're reading the book for the first time, read it previously, or simply have a reaction to my blog post.