Authentic Ministry Serving From The Heart

Where does authentic ministry lie? The answer of this book is: in the heart. Authentic ministry is not simply a matter of mastering professional skills or of endlessly pouring oneself out in works of service. Rather, it springs from joyful union with Christ. Authentic Ministry offers practical guidance and spiritual nourishment for all who serve the church. Each of the nine chapters orients readers to the "one thing [that] is necessary" (cf. Luke 10:42)-abiding in Christ-while asking and answering questions both simple and profound: What is prayer? How should I respond to suffering? Who is my friend? What is theology? What does it mean to love? This short volume originated as a series of talks delivered to various assemblies of students, pastors-in-training, and church leaders in the UK and beyond.

The Heart of a Great Pastor salutes pastors everywhere – those wanting to take a fresh look at their ministries, as well as those just starting out. As the baton is passed to the “new breed of pastors,” there is a great need to help them count the cost of serving Christ and equip them with the tools, wisdom and encouragement from those who have gone before them. H.B. London, Jr., and Neil B.Wiseman bring their experiences and heart to pastors for such a task. To the “new breed,” they ask: Do you have a mentor? Have you examined your unique call and place in society? Do you have buy-in from your spouse and children? Do you spend as much time in the Word and study as you do in the entrepreneurial pursuits of your ministry? Do you genuinely love people? Do you really understand how invested God is in you and how important it is for you to make it? Here is help for young pastors and their mentors to stay strong personally while taking churches to the edge of creative, imaginative newness for Christ while remaining safely anchored to the abiding and adventuresome gospel.

The information contained in this book is vital to those called to the Ministry of Helps. It is a valuable resource for individuals who desire to understand and apply the scriptural principles to the area of servanthood. It can be used as a guide for all denominational churches in teaching members and leaders how to develop a heart to serve the individual that God has set as the overseer of the church. In every church, God has appointed an individual to oversee the sheep, or to teach and train His people. Everyone else has been called within the ministry to fulfill the vision of the ministry.

Will Christianity survive in America? Is there a way to restore its impact on our culture? How can you can be a part of rebuilding the foundations of a Christian worldview in our churches and nation? Join Calvin Dollar in exploring the essentials of authentic Christian faith. Discover your part in reversing the current demise of Christianity in America. Allow yourself to be challenged by exploring a personal path of discipleship. Come, explore the concepts and evidence for Christianity. On your journey you will find a biblical pattern for restoring authentic Christianity in your personal life and in your church. If youre ready for adventure, grab your hiking boots or your kayak, and lets set out to explore together.

Merit winner in the 2006 Christianity Today Book Awards! "As the Father has sent me, so I send you." Those of us called to Christian ministry are commissioned and sent by Jesus, just as he himself was called and sent by the Father. Thus we naturally pattern our ministries after Christ's example. But distinctively Christian service involves the Spirit as well, just as Jesus himself accomplished his ministry in the power of the Spirit. Thus the whole Trinity--Father, Son and Holy Spirit--gives shape to truly authentic Christian ministry. Though as Christians we all affirm the doctrine of the Trinity, many of us might struggle to explain how understanding the Trinity could actually shape our ministry. Stephen Seamands demonstrates how a fully orbed theology of the Trinity transforms our perception and practice of vocational ministry. Theological concepts like relationality and perichoresis have direct relevance to pastoral life and work, especially in unfolding a trinitarian approach to relationships, service and mission. A thoroughly trinitarian outlook provides the fuel for our ministry "of Jesus Christ, to the Father, through the Holy Spirit, on behalf of the church and the world." Essential reading for pastors, parachurch workers, counselors, missionaries, youth ministers and all who are called to any vocation of Christian ministry.

Earl Buchan, a pastor and church planter, shares encouragement for all those looking around and saying to themselves “there must be more than this.” It all begins with a fearless searching of our hearts to rewild ministry from the inside-out. He looks to the Bible and over twenty years’ experience in the church to share from his own successes and failures sharing wisdom, warnings, and reminders of why we are meant to be in Christ. Earl shares that it all starts with us, live a life of openness and it will change the atmosphere in our churches and in our homes. As you read, you’ll get answers to questions such as: What can you really expect when you enter ministry? Why is it so important to be your authentic self in all circumstances? What are the costs to living His will, His way? How can we overcome ourselves so people see more of Jesus and less of us? This journey is not for the faint of heart, or those full of themselves. The author has been both, and he shares how the Lord rewilded his own heart in order to reveal the beauty of a called life.

Serving Up God was born out of a revelation that God was indeed doing powerful ministry right in the middle of the everyday hustle and bustle of my humble workplace. The realization that others struggled to accept the validity of God’s work in their secular work lives proved the necessity of a story-style documentation of that work. The simple concept of God’s desire to use every part of our lives—not just on Sundays—is laid out in a series of compelling stories and personal moments. Each relatable story reinforces this revolutionary yet Biblical idea that we are called to do God’s work in every place. What if we stop compartmentalizing our lives into secular and spiritual and just let God show up wherever he chose? What if Jesus’s command to go into the world and preach the gospel includes the place we spend most of our week? It’s a pretty safe bet that God intends us to live out the teachings of the New Testament in our workplaces and neighborhoods.