BOOKS ON SPRIRITUAL FORMATION
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BOOKS ON LEADERSHIP
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23 Responses to “Larry’s Books”
- 1 Trackback on April 16, 2010 at 8:29 pm
- 2 Trackback on January 24, 2012 at 8:53 am
- 3 Trackback on December 10, 2012 at 9:00 am
Reflections On Life, Leadership, & Spirituality
BOOKS ON SPRIRITUAL FORMATION
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BOOKS ON LEADERSHIP
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Was just wondering about The Unity Factor. I checked with a local bookstore and they were unable to find a copy for me and Amazon says that they are temporarily out of stock — is the book still in print and available or do I need to look for a used copy somewhere? Just wondering.
Thanks.
Another question: In the opening pages of The Unity Factor you said that it took 2.5 years to get to the point where you had a united leadership team. I was just wondering how many, if any, people you lost during that process? Were there any people that just refused to put in the time and work to create a united leadership team and walked away?
Just curious.
The Unity Factor is definately still in print.
Amazon must have just run out – they proabably had a run on them because we sent another shipment to them today. You can get copies from our website: http://www.northcoastchurch.com
Just click on resources for pastors.
Yes, a good number left during the process. We grew by only one person during the first three years – then things took off once we became healthy and unified from the top down.
Where do I go to get copies of “10 dumb things…” in Cape Town South Africa?
Larry,
We are taking our elders through The Unity Factor this fall. Do you have any study guides or questions that would help?
I have some questions that were put together by a DMin student a number of years ago – it was for the 2rd edition so it doesn’t include the What Game Are We Playing chapter that was added in the 3rd and 4th editions. I am also coming out with a new book in May called Sticky Teams that will focus on building a healthy board, staff, and congregational team. It will include questions that a board or staff can work through.
Hi Larry
Really enjoyed and impacted Sticky Church and am working at steering my own church in the direction you advocate. Just wondering how your church handles the issue of child care for the families with young children. Do they employ babysitters every week to look after their kids while they go to their small group? If so has that been a point of resistance for them i.e. the sheer economic cost of attending a small group regularly?
I can see this being a “sticking point” for numerous people in our church community. Would love to hear your thoughts and suggestions
thanks
Jamie
Some of the best advice I ever received concerning small groups was to “stay out fo the childcare business.” We ask people to get their own childcare. If they claim they can’t afford it – we ask them to take it out of their tithe. Why give us money so that we can hire babysitters? We also encourage groups that pool resources to have the kids at another house or locations. Why? Because when kids are in the house no one will ever be honest about issues in their marriage or their job.
Hi,
Just finished reading Sticky Church. All the leaders at my church have read the book. As a deacon I was asked to as well. Still trying to process your comments on Hyperspiritual God Talkers. My wife is a hyperspiritual God talker but after 15 years of marriage I know she’s the real deal not a pharisee. I’m concerned that you would say “Some will get hurt and angry. Some will leave. Let them go. You’ll be glad you did.” p127
I know my wife has been kept at arm’s length and she’s been deeply pained and she just couldn’t figure it out. Now we both know why and the kicker if we left, the church leaders will be glad or they should be, right?
John
The issue with a “God-talker” is not their “God-talk.” The issue is what their “God-talk” does to shut down other people who are intimidated by it. If a person who spouts “God-talk” and hyper-religious cliches on a regular basis can’t learn to tone it down (so that others are not shut down by it), they shouldn’t be allowed into leadership. My comment about letting them go was not that we should drive out. It was that if they get upset and leave because they aren’t allowed to lead and intimidate, it’s best to let them go.
Larry,
I went to amazon to see if I could get a ebook copy of “Sticky Church” to read. I discovered that I could easily find some used physical copies for $9+, and Amazon’s price was 12.91. However, the eBook edition was over $13? (price set by publisher). As a writer, I hope you have more “pull” than I do with zondervan to offer eBooks at a reasonable price. As it is, I would pay 4-5 bucks to buy my own ebook edition, but as the price is currently, I’m going to borrow it from a friend.
- Ken
Thanks for the heads up. I checked with the publisher and the price is being brought back down to the $9.99 price.
After reading through Spirituality for the rest of us, one question I have is how do you as a pastor encourage the people who don’t want to be leaders, with the idea that they don’t have to be? Do you think there will be a pendulum swing (since so much of our culture including christian literature has focused so much on being leaders and that everyone is one) back to the idea of following? Have you found different ways from the pulpit to endorse different ways to draw closer to God and grow?
Rather than emphasizing stepping out and leading or doing “great things” for God, I try to simply encourage people to obey Him – starting out with the things we already know. After all, isn’t that what Jesus said we would do if we loved Him? Teaching the simple and clear commands and doctrines of the Bible from the pulpit tends to alleviate the false guilt that modern-day pharisees and gift-projecting leaders heap on those who don’t share the same leadership gifts and calling that they have – while at the same time challenging everyone to live to what we know and what He asks.
Hello,
I am David from Bremen. Today I started to read the German version of “10 Dumb Things”. When I read the title of the book, I was immediately interested and bought it.
Having read the first chapter, I am asking myself a question:
In Matthew 17 the disciples tried to heal a boy but didn’t succeed and ask Jesus why they weren’t able to do so. Then he answers they don’t have enough faith. (just a mustard seed –> move mountains).
If faith, as I understand you, only means “doing what God wants us to”, the disciples should have been able to heal the boy, because they tried to.
Doesn’t that mean that Jesus must have meant faith in the sense of “positive thinking”? If they hadn’t doubted God’s power, they would have healed him.
? I am confused. How can this be answered?
David
I’m not exactly sure what Jesus meant when he told the disciples they didn’t have enough faith to heal the boy – but I do know that it’s not a reference to positive thinking because they were positive they could heal him. That’s why they were confused when they couldn’t. Plus in this very passage Jesus says that the only faith they needed was an amount equal to the smallest thing they knew of (a mustard seed). Perhaps they didn’t have the faith to keep at it (see the persistence teaching and reference to faith in Luke 18) or perhaps it was something else.
Sticky Church (and the conference) has dramatically change the way our youth ministry “does” small groups. We are sold out to the sermon aligned model. What I am finding is we are not very good at writing intriguing questions consistently. Any helpful further resource you recommend which can equip us?
I love the book “Spirituality for the rest of us”. But there is one glitch: Not necessarily 50% people are below average. 1+1+1+(-3)=0. Only one out of 4 numbers is below average.
You got me there – I’m not smart enough for such deep math – it makes my head hurt.