Books @ Leadership Network

Hear Scott Thumma and Dave Travis

Beyond Megachurch Myths explores the unique characteristics of today's megachurches and their influence on American religion. Authors Scott Thumma and Dave Travis reveal what these churches are and are not, why they're thriving and what they can teach smaller churches. Beyond Megachurch Myths is filled with practical insights for pastors and leaders of organizations of all sizes.

Click here to view this dynamic presentation featuring Scott Thumma and Dave Travis as they give an inside look into Beyond Megachurch Myths. Also, follow along at the Beyond Megachurch Myths book blog for questions & answers with the authors!

The Present Future still present

Now that Reggie McNeal is part of the Leadership Network team, it's exciting to see that his book published in 2003, The Present Future: Six tough questions for the Church, still connects with readers, even those across the "Pond", as they call it. One blogger in the United Kingdom, Gareth J M Saunders, began reading The Present Future, and echoed how valid McNeal's insights were for the UK as well as the US (and also included an excerpt from the book):

Wow! Well there’s an author who doesn’t miss with any of his punches! It’s a book written with courage, insight, humour, honesty, a passion for Jesus Christ and a desire to see the Church move beyond its seeming current obsession with preserving the current status quo and moving towards being a powerful missionary movement: to face the future with imagination and courage.

While his focus is on North America, I’m quite sure that the picture McNeal paints in broad brushstrokes about the “current church culture in North America” can equally be said about the church here in the UK, if I understand correctly what the likes of John Drane have been writing about the situation this side of the Atlantic.

New reality #1: The collapse of the Church culture

Here’s what McNeal says on page one of chapter one:

The current church culture in North America is on life support. It is living off the work, money, and energy of previous generations from a previous world order. The plug will be pulled either when the money runs out (80 percent of money given to congregations comes from people aged fifty-five and older) or when the remaining three-fourths of a generation who are institutional loyalists die off or both.

Please don’t hear what I am not saying. The death of the church culture as we know it will not be the death of the church. The church Jesus founded is good; it is right. The church established by Jesus will survive until he returns. The imminent demise under discussion is the collapse of the unique culture in North America that has come to be called “church.” This church culture has become confused with biblical Christianity, both inside the church and out. In reality, the church culture in North America is a vestige of the original movement, an institutional expression of religion that is in part a civil religion and in part a club where religious people can hang out with other people whose politics, worldview, and lifestyle match theirs. As he hung on the cross Jesus probably never thought the impact of his sacrifice be reduced to an invitation for people to join and to support an institution.

2nd Chance to Experience the Big Idea Webinar

Discover the benefits of creating The BIG IDEA in your own context. If you missed the first opportunity, we’re offering a second chance to join Dave Ferguson, Jon Ferguson and Eric Bramlett, authors of The Big Idea, as they discuss the ‘Genius of the AND’.

Be one of the first 99 people to register and voice your questions live on conference call. Also, receive a $20 registration discount on the brand new BIG IDEA Practicum at Community Christian Church on September 17-18, 2007.

This unique experience combines an online presentation with a live conference call. To participate you will need access to the Internet, as well as a telephone line. The Webinar takes place on Tuesday, August 21st at 10 am Central Standard Time. Register Now!

interview with Larry Osborne

Pastor Larry Osborne of North Coast Church had recently authored a new book titled A Contrarian's Guide to Knowing God: Spirituality for the Rest of Us. This book gives a fresh and liberating perspective on how to live for God without having to conform or perform traditional spiritual disciplines in a particular way.

In this interview with the author, we get a heartbeat for why this book was written and how it guides a regularly person to faithfully live out their God-given calling without feeling guilty for not being an introspective person or in a leadership position.

[Download MP3 audio of this interview] (5:37)

Plus, here are what other bloggers are saying about the book:

Chris Freeland shared some of his take-aways:

• We do people a disservice when we offer them one-size-fits-all approaches to discipleship.
• Most of our programs for discipleship are linear, but few of our own journeys followed the linear path we prescribe.
• Bible theology and knowledge are important, but they don't equal pleasing God.

Amber Herron wrote: "It helped me free up my mind and think clearly about how God made ME and what He wants me to do. This is not necessarily what my friend next to me is doing nor because it works for me should it be what the person down the line ought to do as well."

Nathan Yerrick wrote: "... he does challenge the thinking that everyone must grow in God by reading your Bible for 30 minutes each day, praying for 20, journaling consistently, having an accountability partner, etc (what did people do before Gutenberg, for instance?). Again, not that these things are wrong, but they don't all work for everyone. He claims they are tools, not rules."

Paul Schliep responded to the book with: "While it has been good to be in Bible studies that have given me some foundation of understanding who God is and what He has done and what He expects of His children, most of my spiritual growth has come during those need-to-grow and need-to-know times when what I thought was true about myself or God was challenged by the messy-ness of life. It was in those seasons I was able to move from a strictly cognitive understanding of God's truth to an experiential understanding of God's truth."

Book Debunks the Myths About Megachurches

Book Debunks the Myths About Megachurches

By ADELLE M. BANKS
Religion News Service

They're big, nondenominational, homogenous churches that are all show with little spiritual depth.

While that's what some might assume about the nation's megachurches, scholar Scott Thumma is out to bash the stereotypes and explain the churches' appeal.

“Everybody takes those general characteristics and applies them to all megachurches,” he said.

Yes, they're big, he says, but only 5 percent have 3,000 seats or more, and only two or three can seat 10,000 in one service. He and co-author Dave Travis have written “Beyond Megachurch Myths: What We Can Learn from America's Largest Churches” to reveal what research says about the 1,250 Protestant churches across the country that attract at least 2,000 worshippers each weekend.

Thumma's favorite myth is that the people sitting in megachurches tend to all be from the same racial, ethnic, political or economic group.

“One of the most fascinating things that I have always found about megachurches — and it's probably due to size — is that there's a tremendous amount of diversity in any congregation,” said Thumma, who teaches at Hartford Seminary in Connecticut.

“I think there's something about it being big that allows it to draw in all kinds of folks — some Democrats, a lot of Republicans, some impoverished people, but also (some) quite wealthy.”

... Thumma and Travis argue that much of what is working successfully in megachurches — using sermons to address contemporary issues and fostering small groups to encourage community service, for example — can help smaller congregations.

“We are absolutely convinced that these congregations are doing some things right, and it's not just related to their size,” said Thumma. “What they're doing as big churches can also be translated to smaller congregations.”

Read the full article at DallasNews Religion Blog >>