Get Understanding

We would be wise to heed the Biblical proverb, "Though it cost all you have, get understanding."

I will be quick to tell you that there are many things that I do not understand. When I was in elementary school, some of the hardest things for me to grasp were the concepts of color and taste. I don't mean the difference between yellow and blue or between sweet and sour. My parents were great teachers when I was pre-school age, so I had that part down already. What I did not understand was how color and taste were functions of my brain. I thought that a stop sign was actually red and that chicken tasted like, well, chicken. But I digress...

As I said, there are many things I do not understand. If you would like a better understanding of something, have a conversation about it with someone smarter than you, or read a book.

Here are three books that have my attention this week.

 

Church Diversity by Scott Williams (center) former campus pastor of LifeChurch.tv
All through the planning and planting stages of Transformation House, we have prayed that God would save us from being a segregated fellowship. We feel strongly that on Sundays the church should resemble the church Jesus died to build. Church Diversity is a tool that helps keep us on track.

Destined to Reign by Joseph Prince (left) pastor of New Creation Church, Singapore
God has given me an opportunity to live in grace and to help others find accept the grace God offers them. I do not believe that grace needs a balance. Grace is balanced all by itself. To call grace unbalanced is to call God unbalanced. Destined to Reign is the best book I have read on a biblical approach to grace.

The Necessity of an Enemy by Ron Carpenter Jr. (right) pastor of Redemption World Outreach Center, Greenville, SC
Our family attended RWOC for 13 months before planting Transformation House, so I have heard Pastor Ron powerfully preach some of these concepts. I am just two chapters into this book and I have found many great statements. For instance, he says that all battles pertain to our future, never our past or present. Lord, help me remember that. I will allow the struggles of this day to keep me from my destiny, or I will allow them to propel me toward it. We often ask, "Why do bad things happen to good people?"  This books explains that some bad things are good things in disguise.

These books are helping me be a better pastor and a better person. I am thankful that there are resources and people who can help educate me and help raise my level of understanding. Grab a book. Let's read.

Sun Stand Still

Steven Furtick gave us a copy of his book last week.  What a dude!  This is not a book review, because I have not finished reading Sun Stand Still yet.  I want to encourage you to order your copy today.  I've just started and already think everybody should read it.

Early in the book, I read this: This book is not a snuggie.  The words on these pages will not go down like Ambien.  I'm not writing to calm or coddle you.  With God's help, I intend to incite a riot in your mind.

I thought you would want to know about it.

Steering through Chaos

I have always been fascinated by the intricate details that you can find by reading a map or an encyclopedia. Even as a child, I would pull maps from the glove box to follow a vacation route or sit for hours on a rainy day with the SA-ST volume of the encyclopedia. Now, the age of digital information has me hooked. This may be part of the reason I was originally drawn to Steering through Chaos, a new book by Scott Wilson. After all, the cover pictures a paper map and a GPS!

Based on the subtitle, Mapping a Clear Direction for your Church in the Midst of Transition and Change, I expected to find information that I would shelve until sometime later. I am currently in the initial stages of planting a church, and I was pretty sure that wasn’t the kind of transition he was talking about. However, the stated purpose is this: “We’re addressing God-sized visions, kingdom purposes, and major transitions that shape the future and effectiveness of our churches.” While the book is primarily addressed to leaders of growing churches, I also found that there is so much in these pages that I need right now. I believe I can be a more effective church planter by addressing these issues in the beginning stages.  Rather than steering clear of chaos, I've learned that chaos can be a good thing.

I like to take notes as I read a new book, and I found myself wanting to write everything I read. I ended up with notes from about every page. Here are just a few of my scribbles:

p. 22 Change required hard decisions that would create tremendous pain.

p. 25 The effectiveness of the church’s ministry depends on an accurate analysis of the community.

p. 31 Leading transitions isn’t about changing the direction of the church or changing the staff. It’s about God changing me as a leader.

p. 50 Get solid leadership in place, then be ready for something new.

p. 52 Vision isn’t something I determine, it’s something I discover.

p. 69 Vision atrophies in people’s hearts.

p. 71 Vision is rock solid; strategy is flexible.

I could go on and on. There are lists, questions, examples, stories and so much that I have now included in my planning for Transformation House.

Besides being a map that I can easily follow, Scott, who pastors The Oaks in Dallas, also created a small encyclopedia of church growth. I’ve tried to figure out what he omitted, but I’m pretty sure everything is included. I expected topics such as Vision, Values and Goals, but I’ve never picked up a book that included those while also challenging me in areas of prayer, accountability, story-telling, honesty and multi-tasking. This book does just that – and more.

I would encourage ministry leaders to add this book from Zondervan to their libraries. I bet you’ll find it helpful too.