I was given by Zondervan Publishers a copy of Charles Swindoll’s “Insights on John” in return for a honest review of what I thought about it.  I am not one to turn away a free book and give my opinion on something, so I gladly agreed.

Here are some strengths that I saw from this book…

• Good charts. Who doesn’t like a visual aid to assist you in studying?  I sure do.  This book has a bunch of them to help put the information in a visual form to easily understand.
• Very devotional. Swindoll’s use of the narrative is a style that does well in helping people understand the truth’s of God’s Word.  This style of writing helps the sometimes confusing language of interpretation more clear.
• Notes from the author’s journal. It was neat to see how different passages have spoken to Swindoll over the years.  It made the resource more personal and seem like you were sitting down to share thoughts on a passage together with a friend.
• Application sections. Having a little review at the end of each section helps to pull together the different points that you have studied.

I think that Swindoll’s work in Insights on John is a good tool to help people to get a better understanding of the Bible.  I don’t think that it should be the only tool that a person uses, but it is definitely a good one to use.

I received a copy of this book by Dave and Jon Ferguson from Zondervan in exchange for my honest thoughts about it.  Sweet deal, huh?  I thought so too… until I read this book.  It was then that I realized that it was a VERY sweet deal.  Dave and Jon Ferguson planted a church (Community Christian Church in Chicago), and it has quickly become one of the models for reproducing churches around the world.

In “Exponential”, Dave and Jon Ferguson lay out the principles that they have felt called to in forming reproducing fellowships of believers in Christ.  They break it down into four parts:

1. Movements Start With 1
2. Reproducing Tribes of 10-100
3. Reproducing Communities of 100-1,000
4. Reproducing Movements of 10,000s

I really enjoyed reading this book.  It was great to see the strategies laid out by these men in reproducing communities of faith.  What made it such an easy read was that it had the real-life experiences weaved through it from the life of Community Christian Church.  It’s nice to read something that not only sounds good on paper but comes from a source that has seen it work.

I would highly recommend this book to all leaders in Christian ministry.  This work does a great job of encouraging and challenging us to be faithful to reaching the nations with the Gospel.

Note: I would have had this blog post out a lot earlier, but the birth of our second child kind of took first place in my mind.

I recently received a copy of Scott Wilson’s new book, Steering Through Chaos: Mapping a Clear Direction for Your Church in the Midst of Transition and Change from Zondervan Publishers.  I was asked to give it a read and share my thoughts with everyone I knew.  That is what I look to do in this post.

Steering Through Chaos is a book for those in leadership positions in ministry who have to deal with the “chaos” of different seasons of ministry.  Whether you like it or not, in church-life, change is a part of life.  Seasons of change can be very scary and intimidating.  Wilson does a great job in sharing some of the wisdom that he has learned in his 20+ years of ministry.  He shares 9 key elements to steering through the chaos of changes in church-life: Vision, Timing Change for Growth, Authenticity, Corporate Prayer, Recognizing & Avoiding Obstacles, Celebration, Finding a Great Coach, Keeping the Vision Fresh, and Endurance.

Personally, I found the book a very good read.  It didn’t take me long at all to work my way through the entire book.  I really liked how he tied in personal stories to help illustrate points.  Another great feature that this book had was the questions at the end of each chapter.  These help to chew on the content of the chapter more and drive it home.  The articles from other church leaders in the trenches were scattered throughout and helpful.  The chapters on Celebration, Finding a Great Coach, and Endurance were the ones that stood out to me most because of where I am in ministry right now.

I would recommend this book to any person in ministry.  With “change” being a vital part of ministry, this book is a helpful tool to help “steer through the chaos” of that change.