RENOVATION OF THE CHURCH: What Happens When a Seeker Church Discovers Spiritual Formation [Paperback]

Hey...okay, so I have known these guys for a while.

And they are the real deal - their story is one that will give you hope in the midst of the big pile of books out there today suggesting what might grow "your" church - so this book is not another "how to" but a faithful witness to what happens when a church team asks Jesus, not current religious culture, to be their teacher. And that same renovation can happen to your church too.

I first heard their story as part of a small group of church leadership teams that had been directly influenced by Dallas Willard and his teaching. Along with Kent and Mike's team, we were privileged to have Dallas with us in these meetings over several years and the story in this book is a invitation for your team to embark on that same journey. Although their journey is from a "Seeker" church beginning, our group of churches came from many different beginnings: "Recovery" church, "Traditional mainline", "Inner city-Justice", "Emergent" and "Bible" church types...and as this book will attest - without Jesus as teacher, and our church's "brand" as the attraction - church becomes more an extension of our egos and not so much Christ's Kingdom.

So no matter what kind of church you have, Mike and Kent's story is a map that leads any church from any background to the ONE CENTER of transformation in Jesus and life together in the Kingdom.

This book's account is important because it shows that there is a cost to intentional corporate discipleship and it is not about reading a few books by Dallas Willard or a formation sermon series or hiring a staff member to "do spiritual formation" for the church in a boutique program for a few. This book will show you what such a endeavor involves - a repentance or change of mind about everything the church is supposed to be about - God's Kingdom, not ours. But you will also find helpful examples of how God led them to invite their people into the life God was calling them to live together in their programs too - from how they did worship to sermons to small groups and even their leadership roles.

Mike and Kent's account is essential reading for any church or staff that would attempt such a renovation...which means you need to be willing to "lose one kind of corporate life together for another one" and be ready to admit your failures along the way and thank God for what succeeds. And that losing... of one corporate life for another, may and most likely will mean... 1) losing some people (this seems to happen and did to John the Baptist and Jesus, when people finally realize what such a life will cost) and 2) making some mistakes that reflect your own stumbling towards formation. But Kent and Mike's story and that of Oak Hills as well as other churches crazy enough to trust God and follow Him into his Kingdom dream for the church and the world is not so crazy once you live it.

It is life as God meant it to be and once you start on this journey, you can't go back. Thanks Mike and Kent for taking the trouble and time to write up what God has done in you and through you and your church.

This review was unsolicited by IVP or the authors,
Keith Meyer

(for more help in what it looks like for Jesus to be your church's teacher, see two books: The Kingdom Life: A Practical Theology of Discipleship and Spiritual Formation and Whole Life Transformation: Becoming the Change Your Church Needs)

This book showed up on my radar a few weeks back with an advanced reading copy (bound transcript form) from InterVarsity Press. At the time I had quite a few books that were on my "to read" least that preceded Renovation of the Church, so I skimmed it, made a few notes, and put it aside for later reading.

One of the reasons that I have "quite a few books" on my reading list is the season of my spiritual journey. The past couple of years have been rather intense with the direction that I have sensed God leading me, and my quest for answers and guidance has resulted in much reading, listening, and prayerful contemplation. Skimming through Renovation gave me the impression that I had already gleaned the information that it offered to me. That was presumptuous of me.

A couple days ago I saw a brief review on a popular blogsite I frequent of Carlson and Lueken's book and was reminded of my transcript copy. I went to my bookshelf and retrieved the book with the intentions of reading the highlighted chapters noted in the review. Coincidentally, a few hours later this same day, a fully edited copy of Renovation of the Church arrived on my doorstep for review. I thought; "Maybe I should read the whole book." I sat down this morning and read Renovation from cover to cover.
To say that this book was a timely read for me would be an understatement. As I mentioned earlier, I have been on a spiritual pilgrimage of sorts for the past couple of years (I am a pastor) trying to redefine the ministry of helping to "make disciples" as Jesus has instructed us. I resigned from my pastoral position almost a year ago because of a sense of disconnect over issues of spiritual formation in my local church setting; the subtitle of Renovation of the Church is "What happens when a seeker church discovers spiritual formation." It was with this frame of mind that I sat down read the book.

The first few chapters of the book provide some needed back-story, but transitions quickly to the meat of the story and the mission shift of Oak Hills Church. I found my own journey intersecting with the journeys of the authors repeatedly and received affirmation and encouragement in the direction and path I have taken in the past year or so. I needed this book.

I was also very encouraged with the transparency of the retelling of the Oak Hills transformation. The impression I got of the authors was one of humility and genuine love for the Church. I appreciated the honesty in the stories shared. Significant challenges were discussed and reviewed from a "real-time" perspective as well as reflective assessment. These challenges were the transition process itself, rethinking the gospel, and some of the logistical and organizational difficulties encountered in the existing structures and programs. Chapters nine through eleven discussed and shared some of the implementation and tangible practices the Oak Hills community experienced in pursuing their transformation from an attractional model church to a formational-missional community. These experiences were very insightful to me and will prove themselves to be invaluable I am sure. The final chapter, twelve, was a reflection of mistakes and "what we might have done better" review. This might be one of the most beneficial and humble expressions in the book. I found myself becoming convicted and exposed for making some of the same mistakes in dealing with people and transitional situations. I am hopeful that my heart might be healed and humbled to the same degree that I sense has occurred with the authors, Kent Carlson and Mike Lueken. I am thankful for the Oak Hills Church and their pastors for sharing this story. I am also thankful for the providence of being offered this book for review from the publicity department of IVP. This is an important book for the church in America at this moment. I am hopeful she will have ears to hear. My recommendation: a must read.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Intervarsity Press to read and post a review on my site. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255 "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Kent Carlson is the pastor of a very successful church. It was based on the Willow Creek model of creating Seeker Sensitive services. They had an attendance of 1,700 and ministry was taking place.

Then Carlson hired Mike Lueken, took his leadership team on a retreat and everything changed.

In Renovation of the Church, these pastors explain how they felt convicted to change the way they did church from focusing on seekers to growing in Christian Formation.

This change has come at a cost. Their attendance has dropped to 700. That's 1,000 people who have left. They have also lost staff members who weren't comfortable with the change.

All this and they still feel that God is moving them in the right direction.

Inside this book you will learn their mistakes, feel their heart's desire to pursue Christlikeness and God's kingdom.

With 12 chapters, you'll discover the hard years of the transition, the mistakes they made during the transition, you'll learn about their hatred for consumerism and how it has practically destroyed the Church. These pastor's talk about what it means to be the true church and then they dive into the areas of outreach and worship.

I particularly enjoyed reading their views on worship and how it needs to focus on the story of God and not on the specific style (think songs) that makes us "feel" good.

This is a book critiquing a model of doing mega-church that many in America are comfortable with. It may even challenge you.

This book was provided for review, at no cost, by IVP Publishing.

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