Preaching Magazine online has added the following excerpt from Church Unique to its Ministry Resources. 

Unwrapping the Bad Rap

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Unwrapping the Bad Rap

By Will Mancini

An idol is anything we add to Jesus in order to make life work. The irony is that in the call to preach the gospel many ministers fail to apply the gospel personally in ways that free their heart from a performance trap. This performance, of course, is measured most easily by church attendance; so the temptation to compare is always as close as our heartbeat. For some, the competition nurtured through sports fanaticism or market indicators magnifies the intensity of having to grow. When it’s time to attend a pastor’s gathering, deep emotions are connected to how the church is doing. If it’s growing, we can’t wait to find subtle ways to tell our ministry colleagues. If it’s not, we hope no one asks (or we just don’t attend the group). One of my closest friends in ministry confessed to me that the worst year of his life was the first year his church did not grow. Addicted to a track record of 15 percent growth over 10 years, he saw the first year of attendance plateau, hitting him like the black plague.

Show Me the Bigger Box!  

Read the entire resource article at Preaching Online

We are excited to see Church Unique listed in Leadership Journal's"Golden Canon." The article opening begins with a quote from Spurgeon: "A student will find that his mental constitution is more affected by one good book thoroughly mastered than by twenty books merely skimmed." Therefore Leadership Journal created a list "presenting the ten books of 2008 deemed most valuable." Here is the list: 

The Leader's Outer World

The Reason for God, by Tim Keller (Winner)

Culture Making, by Andy Crouch 

Axiom, by Bill Hybels

 Consuming Jesus, by Paul Louis Metzger

Church Unique, by Will Mancini 

The Leader's Inner World

Surprised by Hope, by N.T. Wright (Winner)

The Jesus Way, by Eugene Peterson

The Attentive Life, by Leighton Ford

Life with God, by Richard Foster

Memoirs of an Ordinary Pastor, by D.A. Carson 

Many thanks to Marshall Shelley and all the folks at Leadership Journal who continue to bring a strong kingdom resource to leaders. Their purpose is to serve church leaders by offering spiritual wisdom and practical tools for faithfully proclaiming and effectively living the gospel.