The challenge of ministering to the family is complex for children's ministers. And the more brilliant voices we have speaking into this topic, the closer we'll get to solutions. That's why we asked Henry Zonio to coordinate a Shift Blog Book Tour to create the dialogue around the ground-breaking book Brian Haynes has written: Shift: What it takes to finally reach families today.
Want to find out what some of the best minds think about Shift--and Brian's all-church strategy? Follow these blogs along the tour:
October 1 - Liz Perraud at http://thelogosministry.wordpress.com
October 2 - James Giroux at http://jamesgiroux.ca
October 3 - Lorraine Seaman http://www.rockrunner.blogs.com/al
October 4 - Larry Shallenberger http://childrensministryandculture.wordpress.com
October 5 - Tim Inman at http://blog.inmans.org/
October 6 - Joshua Simpson http://pjsperspective.wordpress.com
October 7 - Micah Foster http://micahfoster.wordpress.com
October 8 - Amy Dolan at http://lemonlimekids.wordpress.com
October 9 - Jesse Smith http://www.sillypuppies.com/bookwormand http://sp_jesse.livejournal.com
October 10 - Michael Chanley http://pureconnect.org
October 11 - Gina McClain at http://www.ginamcclain.com
October 12 - Henry Zonio at http://www.elementalcm.com
Thanks for posting this, I think a lot of people are asking the same question. I look forward to getting the book.
Posted by: Tony Kummer | October 02, 2009 at 10:52 AM
Seems like this book is crystalizing some of the many thought patterns about family ministry that have developed over the last five years into a cohesive strategy. I think there are some great examples of churches already doing and valuing this type of ministry but hopefully this will spure more to do so.
Here's a crazy thought/question...What if the churches most important mission above all others was to equip the next generation with faith? Rick Warren said in a recent podcast that he has stopped "meeting"/mentoring with people over a certain age (sorry I cannot remember the age, it was a catalyst podcast from the catalyst west cost series, you can find it on itunes) because he has realized that the only way to effect the future (and the church) is to build into the next generation. That belief therefore led him to change his habits. What if the church changed the its habits and childrens/youth ministry became the priority even over what happened in the "big room"? Is that even Biblical? Maybe, maybe not, but it sure would change the way churches operate...
Posted by: Bill Anderson | October 02, 2009 at 06:14 PM
Looks good and I look forward to seeing what is written.
Posted by: Todd McKeever | October 06, 2009 at 07:42 AM
Hi, it's Tim. Thanks for linking to the reviews. Mine's on my blog: http://blog.inmans.org, not http://KidBuilder.net, which is my site for kids.
Posted by: twitter.com/TimInman | October 06, 2009 at 09:21 AM