|
<< Click to Display Table of Contents >> Navigation: The Ministerial Director > Resources/Books |
A wide array of books are available that are useful to increase your awareness and skills in areas that will benefit you in your ministry to your pastors. If you'd like to share a book or resource you've found helpful, please e-mail the information about it to Mic Thurber, the current manual editor at mic.thurber@maucsda.org. Please follow the general format you see below for any information you share about a book/resource.
Under the Unpredictable Plant, by Eugene Peterson. In this book, Peterson examines his own awakening that his pastoral work had drifted far from what he imagined and hoped it to be. He uses the story of Jonah to talk about when he "was thrown into the sea" while on his own journey to Tarshish so that God could help him find what true ministry is about.
Resilient Ministry: What Pastors Told Us About Surviving and Thriving, by Bob Burns, Tasha Chapman, and Donald C. Guthrie. Formed after a project funded by the Lily Foundation, the conveners meet with many groups of pastors over several years in multiple retreats to allow pastors to give voice to what the experience of pastoral ministry was really like. Each chapter details a different sort of challenge that pastors face along with many quotes from pastors telling about how the subject in the chapter impacts them. Each chapter also includes some ideas on how to mitigate the issues that were raised. Very helpful in understanding what pastors face and how they can be supported.
Dangerous Calling, by Paul David Tripp. A former pastor-turned-counselor and teacher, Tripp reminds us how important it is for pastors to understand their own spiritual needs. He posits that many pastors live above the churches they pastor, meaning they never really allow themselves to benefit from being a part of the body of Christ. This often happens because it feels too risky for the pastor. Tripp argues that the cost of not investing yourself in a local church that nourishes and protects you can have disasterous consequences.
Leading with a Limp, by Dan Allender. Think you are too weak, too insignificant, too wounded, or too ungifted to be useful in ministry? Allender explores what it means to "lead with a limp" and see what God is able to do through the weakest vessels. This is a book that frankly faces the challenges spiritual leaders face in a way that helps you realize you are not alone if you wonder if you are up to the task of leadership.
Strengthening the Soul of Your Leadership, by Ruth Haley Barton. This deeply spiritual book describes why spirituality must be at the core of every church leader's life. Drawing heavily from the story of Moses, Barton traces how God seeks to continually form us into His image, even when we are resistant. This powerful book will bring you deep personal refreshment for having read it.
The Making of a Leader: Recognizing the Lessons and Stages of Leadership Development, by J. Robert Clinton. In this classic book, now in its 2nd edition, Clinton traces God's hand in developing you as a leader. Convergence is a time he says that God brings all of your past experiences in line with your giftedness and creates an opportunity for you to function in full stride in what He has shaping you to do all your life.