A friend gave me a copy of Simple Church by Thom Rainer and Eric Geiger and it was a good read. I didn’t like it as much as 7 practices of Effective Ministry, as it was along the same lines. But if you’re looking for a second book to compliment what the Northpoint guys have written, this is a good one. But I love the moral of the book: simplify your process. This has been a common theme for me as of late in my reading. I think someone is trying to get a message through to me 🙂 I … Read More

If there’s only one Ken Blanchard book you ever read, Leading at a Higher Level should be the one you pick. Basically, Ken and his team take just about every book he’s ever written, cut out all the fluff and give you the essential principles that each book contains. In each chapter it seems as though he’s moving through his catalog of writings and giving you the essence of what each book says. Here’s my only critique: it’s too long. Because he had several people working on the book, the writers stumble over each other in their ideas and repeat … Read More

I started and finished Overcoming Growth Barriers by Michael Fletcher today. This is what happens when you spend 3 hours in a waiting room to a Doctor’s office. Anyway, the book looked interesting so I picked it up. I didn’t like the title, because I think a lot of the church growth stuff is crap. It’s usually written by guys who’ve never lead, planted, or Pastored anything in their lives. So I’m a bit weary about books like this. Michael Fletcher on the other hand, is a practitioner who is reaching people in his area. What I liked most about … Read More

A friend recommended The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing by Al Ries and Jack Trout to me and I enjoyed it. It has gotten me thinking about the kind of perception that people have of church and what is needed to change the perception. Perhaps the reason why church plants tend to reach most unchurched people is because they’re able to start with a clean slate and don’t have the baggage that other churches might. Some are afraid of the word “marketing”. But every church markets themselves to one degree or another. A sign in front of your building is … Read More

I just finished The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding by Al and Laura Ries. It was very good. To me, the overarching theme was simple: narrow your focus. This is the theme of another Al Ries book, but it’s good advice. Narrowing your focus allows you to be known for something that you do well, rather than having a 100 things you’re mediocre at. Most churches try to do too much. Everyone says that, but no one pulls the plug on anything they’re already doing. We decided to narrow our focus a couple of years ago after being challenged by … Read More

I saw James Pilmore and Joe Pine, the authors of The Experience Economy at Catalyst in 2004 and I wasn’t impressed. However, I understand why the Catalyst guys invited them , because their book was fantastic. This is one of those books I’ve been meaning to read, but 2007 was the year I finally got around to it. A few great thoughts they had: – What would we do differently if we charged admission? – Focus on what people will remember – How does your process affect what you offer? – A brand must be tweaked every 5 years – … Read More

I picked up Delivering Knock your Socks off Service and honestly expected to be wowed.. I wasn’t. It’s not that the book was bad, it wasn’t. In fact, it was very good. But it just wasn’t anything new. If you’ve read stuff by Ken Blanchard, John Maxwell, Jim Collins, and a few others then you’ve heard most of this. There is one idea that stuck out (it should because it’s the whole premise of the book): it’s that you are the company. The CEO isn’t the company, you are no matter where you are in the organization. In fact, the … Read More

Here are the best books that I read in 2006: Best book on Christian Living: Chazown by Craig Groeschel Best book on Leadership: Spiritual Leadership by J. Oswald Sanders Best book that kept me up at night: The Last Word and the Word after That by Brian McLaren Best book on Church Ministry: The Radical Reformission by Mark Driscoll Best Sports book: Feeding the Monster by Seth Mookin Best book for the “Rain Man” in me: Getting Things Done by David Allen Best book for the communicator in me: Communicating for a Change by Andy Stanley Best Business Book: The … Read More

Erwin McManus never disappoints when there’s a book with his name on it and Soul Cravings is no exception! This book is absolutely phenomenal. I don’t know what it is about Erwin’s writings that just connect with me. I always have this sad feeling when I finish one of Erwin’s books – I can never read it again for the first time. It’s the same feeling I get when I see an amazing movie like Crash, The Usual Suspects, The Matrix, or Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. You’ll never have the feeling of experiencing it and not know … Read More

I just finished Jesus in the Margins by Rick McKinley. I enjoyed it. It’s a great book for those that feel marginalized in life or have had some traumatic experience and don’t feel like God can relate to them. The stories were fantastic. He seems to have a powerful ministry in Portland where they are reaching people just like those he mentions in the book. The book is a very easy read. I would recommend this book to anyone who doesn’t feel they can connect with God because of something that’s happened in their lives. We need books like this.