Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #274776 in Books
• Published on: 2008-12-08
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 144 pages

Customer Reviews

Great insight into a visitors view
Mark has done a great job of turning the tables on those of us that serve within the church and helping us to be mindful on how we are approaching those that are visiting our churches and meeting them right where they are at.

"These people don't want to be assimilated. Initially they may not care about our membership covenants, our small groups, or our Sunday school classes. What they do care about is whether we can help them address the issues right in front of them - the stuff that's affecting their quality of life, their sense of purpose and fulfillment"

It's about the relationships and allowing Christ to work in their lives.

I would highly recommend this book for anyone that desires to help those that cross our path's every Sunday morning so that we can meet them right where they are at!

Not just a book I can read, but a vehicle I can use.
The book reads like a conversation with Mark. I love that. I felt like I was sitting in the room next to him with a cup of coffee while he transparently shared things he's seen work and bomb in church efforts to connect people. Connections. It's so loaded. It affects everything.

"At Granger there are people serving on our traffic teams who are still fighting overwhelming addictions. There are women in Bible studies who don't know how to love their kids in a healthy manner. There are men in technical arts who aren't convinced Jesus is who he claims to be. Every weekend people who are cheating on their spouse, their taxes or their sales reports return to a service to hear how much they matter to God. They are where they are. We must meet them there."

There is no perfect answer or one plug and play solution for a church to address this reality. But there are great insights that apply to all of us, if we're open to keep watching and learning. To pull, not push. To create space, not invade space.

"We can easily make our approach--our programs, services, classes and groups--more important than the people we want to help. When we do, people feel disrespected, insulted and parented. We are not responsible for people but to them. Being responsible TO our people is quite different. And incredibly freeing."

This book covers everything from small groups, to weekend programming, to volunteer strategies, to web sites and more. I especially appreciated how each chapter ended with questions for my own personal reflection and action steps; for me as an individual and for my team.

This is great stuff.

Church Guru
Few people have as good a grip on the inner-workings of church as Mark Waltz. His writing is both practical and insightful.

One of my fears as a leader is becoming a closed-system. I try to remain an open-system by reading books that help me evaluate the things its easy to lose perspective on. This book is a priceless evaluation of the process of belonging to a church.