Cultivating Fruitfulness

Focus on the Five Practices: A Congregation-Wide Initiative Based on the book, Five Practices of a Fruitful Congregation by Bishop Robert Schnase Imagine a congregation-wide focus on these practices that includes a five week sermon series, five weeks with every household reading daily devotions and sharing prayers on these practices, five weeks of leadership teams and small groups stimulated to take new initiatives, five weeks of conversation and commitment focused on the mission of the church. These are the practices that lead to excellence and fruitfulness, and they can change your church. Imagine! Cultivating Fruitfulness is a congregational resource that inspires participants through 5 weeks of prayer and devotion. Each day includes a Scripture, a short story or concept from book, a personal question and a prayer. Click here to preview a sample devotion from Cultivating Fruitfulness. Download a brochure on all available Five Practices products. Other resources for the "Focus on the Five Practices: Congregation-Wide Initiative": Five Practices Leader Manual and Media A participant guide for group study on each of the Five Practices Five Practices — Radical Hospitality Five Practices — Passionate Worship Five Practices — Intentional Faith Development Five Practices — Risk-taking Mission and Service Five Practices — Extravagant Generosity Focus on the Five Practices - Complete Set Contains one of each of the above resources, including the original book by Bishop Schnase. For more information on the entire intiative, go to fivepractices.cokesbury.com.

What are the "Fruit of the Spirit" and why do they matter in the spiritual life of a Christian? This is an in-depth Bible Study workbook that examines each of the fruit individually. Each lesson opens with a lesson about a particular fruit and how Jesus displayed that fruit in His life. It also shows that what He taught His disciples still applies to our life today. This study requires the use of a Bible to answer questions. This workbook also includes many practical questions to closely examine our heart, thoughts and choices we prune, fertilize and breathe new life into our Christian walk, so that we can bear beautiful Fruit of the Spirit!

As a foreigner who crisscrossed Africa and Europe to arrive on the shores of New York in 2005, I could see the cold fangs of Europe's post-modern-day secularism clashing with the fires of revival from Africa in America's streets. America, a nation that sent out more missionaries than the rest of the world, is now an unreached nation. The Bible says in Luke 12:48 that "whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more." America has been given much by God, in terms of money, men, and materials, and much is required of her in the last days' harvest. This book challenges the American church to return to her roots and cultivate again her true foundations of evangelism, discipleship, and following Jesus to the ends of the earth.

Thousands of congregations are in serious trouble. Children are not being taught the faith. Disciples are not being made. Lives are not being transformed. The poor are not being blessed. Communities are not being redeemed. These congregations know something is terribly wrong. And in most cases, the problems have little to do with the pastor's prayer life or whether the pastor takes weekly Sabbath time. In fact, in many of these churches members deeply respect their pastors as sincerely spiritual people of utmost personal faith and integrity. But they need more from their pastoral leaders. They need leaders who define ministry in terms of fruitfulness as well as faithfulness. They need pastors and lay leaders who ask about the outcomes of any given ministry or program, not just its process. Mostly, they need a vision of ministry that focuses on changing people’s lives. Absent that vision, ministry will fail. In this helpful volume, Lovett Weems and Tom Berlin provide readers with the tools they need to assess the fruit their ministry bears in the lives of their congregations, their communities, and the world.

As a church leader, it’s easy to make the wrong move and find yourself in a bad position. “What to teach; How to teach; What to do,” were the three questions Wesley employed at his first conferences. In sixty previous books Will Willimon has worked the first two. This book is of the “What to do?” genre. Many believe the long decline of The United Methodist Church is a crisis of effective leadership. Willimon takes this problem on. As an improbable bishop, for the last eight years he has laid hands on heads, made ordinands promise to go where he sends them, overseen their ministries, and acted as if this were normal. Here is his account of what he has learned and – more important – what The United Methodist Church must do to have a future as a viable movement of the Holy Spirit.

Focus on the Five Practices: A Congregation-Wide Initiative Based on the book, Five Practices of a Fruitful Congregation by Bishop Robert Schnase Imagine a congregation-wide focus on these practices that includes a five week sermon series, five weeks with every household reading daily devotions and sharing prayers on these practices, five weeks of leadership teams and small groups stimulated to take new initiatives, five weeks of conversation and commitment focused on the mission of the church. These are the practices that lead to excellence and fruitfulness, and they can change your church. Imagine! Five Practices - Radical Hospitality is a planning workbook for use in group study. It helps lead the group to develop a plan to implement Radical Hospitality in your congregation. FREE TEACHING GUIDE! Click here to download the free Teaching Guide for "Radical Hospitality."

Focus on the Five Practices: A Congregation-Wide Initiative Based on the book, Five Practices of a Fruitful Congregation by Bishop Robert Schnase Imagine a congregation-wide focus on these practices that includes a five week sermon series, five weeks with every household reading daily devotions and sharing prayers on these practices, five weeks of leadership teams and small groups stimulated to take new initiatives, five weeks of conversation and commitment focused on the mission of the church. These are the practices that lead to excellence and fruitfulness, and they can change your church. Imagine! Five Practices - Passionate Worship is a planning workbook for use in group study. It helps lead the group to develop a plan to implement the practices of Passionate Worship in your congregation. FREE TEACHING GUIDE! Click here to download the free Teaching Guide for "Passionate Worship."

Help implant the heart of giving within a congregation.