Presby-Musings

This past week I had the chance to attend the Newspring Leadership Conference at Newspring Church in Anderson, SC . One of the many speakers during the conference was Jud Whilhite, pastor of Central Christian Church in Las Vegas, NV . Jud shared with us some awesome advice on the seasons of ministry that I now commend to anyone who is in church leadership: 1.  Remember Tough Seasons Are Temporary God may just be getting you ready in this season for what is coming in the next, which might sound ominous, but it could also be awesome.  Jud told us that one of the most liberating things that he realized about his life in ministry is that he didn't have to survive it.   Dr. Andrew Purves has written about this extensively in The Crucifixion of Ministry , which I commend to you as well. 2.  Manage The Crazy Intentionally Sometimes the most devastating thing in our ministry is not to manage our "yes's very well.  It's easy to get overwhelmed with ever...

As promised, I'll be giving away another book today.  It's good to share.  Today's free book is one that pastors/preachers/ministry leaders should definitely read: The Crucifixion of Ministry: Surrendering Our Ambitions to the Service of Christ.  If you have been struggling in ministry, trying to do everything yourself, being so busy about the business of doing church, meeting expectations, trying to be an uber- pastor, youth leader, ministry leader... then you definitely need to check this book out. I will have the privilege of studying under Dr. Purves in January.  I did a short review of The Crucifixion of Ministry on this blog, which you can read here .  The first person to comment, gets this great book mailed to them! 

The Crucifixion of Ministry: Surrendering Our Ambitions to the Service of Christ by Andrew Purves (IVP Books, 2007) Before I review The Crucifixion of Ministry I need to offer some disclosure.  When I purchased this book and set out to read it, I did so based on the topic and where I was at the moment in terms of my own struggles in ministry.  I had no idea that Dr. Andrew Purves would be on the list of professors in my Doctor of Ministry program through Pittsburgh Theological Seminary where he teaches Pastoral Theology.  So, if I am raving about how awesome this book is (which I will be doing), don't discount my ravings later on when you discover that I am studying under Dr. Purves.  In other words, I am not sucking up. Purves begins The Crucifixion of Ministry with a provocative question: "Has God killed your ministry yet?"  For those who are serving in ministry--whether within or without the context of a church--this is more than just a provocative ...