Leadership today is no easy task. Christian leaders called to shepherd others get caught in power struggles and are tempted to abuse their pastoral authority. Pastors feel that they must project strength and certainty in order to preach and minister credibly. Too often our models of leadership are shaped more by culture than by Christ. John Stott offers an alternative vision in this biblical approach to servant leadership, exemplified by the apostle Paul in his ministry to the church in Corinth. Above all, Stott reassures us that God is at work even in the midst of our human weakness. "God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong." 1 Corinthians 1:27 A clear articulation of the nature of leadership as well as the thoughtful study of Scripture we have come to expect from John Stott, this exposition of 1 Corinthians 1--4 offers us a model of ministry surprisingly relevant twenty centuries later: leadership rooted in humility and grace, serving the church with the love of Christ. Study guide included.

Over the Past few decades mainline Protestant congregations have not easily embraced the notion of spirituality. As much as any aspect of church life, spirituality has been misunderstood, misused, and resisted by both clergy and laity. Yet times are changing. Today many people feel a deep spiritual hunger and are out looking for fulfillment in a wide variety of settings. In this new context, mainline congregations need to awaken to the presence of the Spirit in their midst and equip leaders to nurture both the personal and corporate spirituality of their congregations. Beyond the Ordinary is explicitly written to help church leaders who have had no formal training in spiritual formation. Drawing from years of experience teaching Christian spirituality, Ben Campbell Johnson and Andrew Dreitcer explore the spiritual dimensions of leadership, looking in depth at the meaning of spirituality as it relates to the tasks of ministry. This friendly, inspiring book will enable readers to erase the negative stereotypes of spirituality and develop vital models and practices for the church today. The book introduces a faithful understanding and practice of the spiritual life to those who have not yet dipped into the well that is Christian spirituality. For those who have already tasted this water and still thirst, it offers a way to dip even more deeply. Chapters discuss the issues surrounding a meaningful spirituality for our changing times, the importance of holding prayer and mission in tension, and the crucial role of Scripture in the formation of our lives. The authors also underscore the importance of vision, myth, and discernment in the spiritual life of the church. And they discuss the power of spiritual practices like discernment and visioning for enhancing the spirituality of congregations and helping them become agents of social transformation. Intended for personal and group use by pastors, elders, other church leaders, and those preparing for service in the church, the book includes questions for reflection and discussion as well as journaling exercises to encourage learning and growth.

TTraining the next generation of leaders is crucial to spreading the gospel, yet most churches have no formal way of doing this. Why? Tight budgets, small staffs, and a lack of know how are just a few reasons suggested by church consultants Aubrey Malphurs and William Mancini in this groundbreaking book. Building Leaders provides reallife examples of ways churches can unleash their true ministry potential by training staff members and laypeople to lead. With step by step instructions that can be applied to any church or parachurch ministry, Building Leaders shows readers how to: empower, not just train, leaders overcome obstacles to developing leaders identify emerging leaders use biblical models for training leaders form a leadership training program to fit any size or budget Packed with surveys, discussion questions, and a leadership development guide, Building Leaders will encourage leaders to "duplicate themselves" in order to see their ministry grow. It is a perfect resource for ministry students, church leaders, and pastors.

The bedrock grounding of church leaders is in God. This grounding comes through deliberate and explicit attention to God through prayer and self-reflection. Leadership as vocation, Christian leadership, begins with self-leadership, clarifying one's own heart, one's whole being, and one's mind in order to find and show that one's most basic identity and deepest and most concrete security lie in God--not in success or in pleasing someone else or in being seen as a good person or being loved by a congregation or the faith community we lead.

Contents includes:

The Vocation of Leadership

The Shape of Our Vocation

Lessons From the Saints

What is Good Ministry?

The Persons We Are and the Institutions We Serve

The Preacher and Preaching

Taking Care of Ourselves in the Everyday

Time: It's Ours to Receive, Use, and Manage

Staying Alive All Our Ministry Life

From Dagwood to Dilbert, the past fifty years haven't seen muchevolution in our attitudes toward work. Too many of us stillbelieve that our work selves and our real selves, our professionaland personal lives, are separate entities. This book is about howthat concept is slowly, but surely, changing. It is about why it ischanging. And, most important, it is about why it must change. C.Michael Thompson takes a compelling look at the connection betweenour inner lives and our work lives and shows how the development ofthe individual spirit can trigger not just personal fulfillment, but much-needed organizational change.

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