"More Ready Than You Realize"

I recently finished this book by Brian McLaren. I've been on a bit of an "evangelism" binge in reading - partly because our Presbytery has recognized that we've got a lot of dying churches and we need to somehow be intentional. I've also started realizing that while Liberty continues to "grow" (over 100 New Members joined from Sept '07 - June '08) - we are not particularly intentional about this either. We just happen to have a wonderful & unique building (Amish barn), a relaxed atmosphere where you can feel comfortable in jeans & a t-shirt, an amazing music program and wonderful children's education. These are great aspects, but there's not really a push (that I get any sense of) that the church is about reaching out and developing relationships with the world. I guess that's where I come in, as a pastor and all.

Anyway, I got reading this book partly because of that. And I loved it. It's easy to read - it follows a real conversation that Brian had with a young woman, mostly via e-mail, and how a "spiritual friendship" was created, fostered and where it lead for this woman. It also includes a Bible Study on Disciple-Making at the end. I'm hoping that I can find a group to re-read this with and possibly even do that study. One of the things I appreciate most about Brian, is that he makes me uncomfortable, makes me think - it's not all me agreeing with him (although there's a lot of that) - there's also times that makes me go "uhh..." and I think that's good. So, if you're up for a quick read (less than 200pgs, book is about as big as my hand) - I'd highly recommend this book...