I’ve read several of Gary McIntosh’s books, but I found Biblical Church Growth very interesting. Mostly, because I was raised spiritually in a movement that tends to shy away from anything formulaic and seek to rely on the leading and power of the Holy Spirit. So a book even by this title would get the kind of treatment that the Book of Mormon would get 🙂 However, I found this book to be totally the opposite of my conceived notions. This book has a way of walking the line between recognizing that “useless the Lord builds the house, the laborers … Read More

The book could have been called “How to have a Work Ethic” or “How to Succeed in your line of Work”, but How to become CEO by Jeffrey Fox has a ton of practical wisdom in it. I normally write some of my favorite quotes on the first page (which is usually blank) of books that I read. This book is one of the few that I had to turn the page due to all the great stuff he had to say. A few favorite quotes: – “over-invest in people who have integrity, an ‘I can do it’ attitude, and … Read More

Casey Ross over at Catalyst Church reviewed my book “Watermark” on his blog. Enjoy!

My friend Nelson recommended this book and I am so glad I read it. Growing an Engaged Church by Albert Winseman is a really good read for many reasons, but here’s why I liked it the most: it challenged the church to get back to what’s most important – reaching people with the Gospel! He really drills down on why people attend church but never engage the church. He uses a set of 12 key points/ questions to push the idea home. It’s great stuff. The church exists to glorify God and our mission is to reach people with the … Read More

I know it’s weird for a guy who’s been married for over 10 years to read a book for engaged couples, but I’ve been looking for a book to give to our premarital counseling couples for a while and Saving Your Marriage before it Starts by Les and Leslie Parrott has won the honor! What a great book! Married couples can learn a lot from this book, but it is invaluable for couples that are about to be married. The book is built around 7 questions couples should ask about their future spouse and relationship. I underlined quite a bit … Read More

My good friend Jason Reviewed my book Watermark on his blog here. My original intent was just to write the book for our church and explain baptism in very simple terms. But what has been exciting is how many other churches are using it for those who want to be baptized. Shameless plug alert: If you want to order multiple copies, don’t pay Amazon.com prices. Email me and we’ll hook it up…

I just got send a manuscript from Nelson Searcy, Pastor of The Journey in NYC. He has a new book coming out called Fusion on the subject of assimilation and he asked if I’d write an endorsement for it (my first thought was, “I think he emailed the wrong person :). I’m a big fan of Nelson’s and have gotten to know him over the last year. I love his strategic thinking and passion for people far from God. Anyway, I read the book in just a couples of days and it’s fantastic! I sent in my endorsement, but I … Read More

The Unity Factor was recommended to me and I picked it up. I have heard a lot about what God is doing at North Coast, so I wanted to read something that Larry had written. The book wasn’t what I expected, but I still really enjoyed it. The book is about how to develop a board of directors primarily, but there are principles to leading a team that are useful in any context. I got a lot out of it from a team building perspective. I was encouraged and affirmed in that I am already doing much of this with … Read More

I’ve been in 3 bookstores in the last week and walked out empty handed. That’s a first for me. I’ve got 2 books in the pipeline, but after that… I’m out of bullets! I’ve got a gift certificate to Borders and Barnes and Noble and they’re burning a hole in my pocket!!! Are there no good books left, or have I simply hit a dry spell? We’ll see… (Maybe it’s time to re-read something)

There’s a new book by Andy Stanley called “Making Vision Stick”. That sentence alone should drive all of us to Amazon.com to buy it. Buy if that’s not enough, Andy Stanley has a new book out on the subject of vision. That should send it over the top 🙂 Here’s the deal: the book is great. It’s 75 pages long (Translated: you can read this in under an hour). It’s a subject that every Pastor needs to improve in. And Andy lays out the do’s and don’ts of casting and maintaining vision. It’s a must read!