Books

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Rick Cogbill on January 28, 2011 at 4:59pm

Hey, that is a great little book, Nathan. Thanks for reminding me of it. I'll have to reread it soon! Something a little tougher to go through, but full of great wisdom is Good to Great by Jim Collins.

Permalink Reply by Tony Chung on January 28, 2011 at 8:12pm

Nathan, your post is the first in a long while that inspired me to log in just to respond. At a previous church the pastor put Raving Fans on the mandatory reading list, along with out bibles and devotional aids. By directing our efforts to serve the "customer" (read congregants, visitors, leadership team) we are actually serving God. We have a ministry to reconcile others to God (through our thoughts, words, and actions.) Worship ministry is especially prone to selfish expression and a desire to show off. Thinking about how we serve "them" keeps our focus on God's purpose.

Permalink Reply by Nathan Lawrenson on January 29, 2011 at 4:07pm

The next book on my list is "Radical" by David Platt.  I'll be sure to post my thoughts here as well.  Anyone else care to share a review of a ministry related book you're read recently?

 

Nate

Permalink Reply by Nathan Lawrenson on January 31, 2011 at 3:18am

Just finished "Raving Fans".  Very easy read, maybe took me three hours total, but that was with highlighting and re-reading a bunch of stuff.  I'd highly recommend it to any church leader who's concerned about serving guests at church and serving the community outside of the church.  I'd also recommend it to any business owner/manager.  I'll post a few more things that jumped out at me ASAP.

 

Next up for me, "Radical" by David Platt.  This one is going to take longer than three hours, if for no other reason that it's going to challenge my way of thinking about a lot of things.

 

Do we have no other readers here who want to post a review?

Permalink Reply by Rick Cogbill on January 31, 2011 at 3:14pm

I'd recommend The Power of a Whisper by Bill Hybels. A good challenge to follow those still, small voice promptings of the Holy Spirit.

Permalink Reply by Nathan Lawrenson on February 1, 2011 at 2:10am

I haven't read any Hybels stuff in a while...I might have to check it out.

Permalink Reply by Rick Cogbill on February 1, 2011 at 3:48pm

My favorite Hybels book of all time is Courageous Leadership, but this one has some good stuff in it as well.

Permalink Reply by Alicia Miller on August 19, 2011 at 4:15am

I was very challenged by "For the Audience of One: Worshiping the One and Only in Everything You Do" by Mike Pilavachi.  Great insight through Scriptural examples.

Permalink Reply by Greg Moore on August 20, 2011 at 7:05am

"Jesus for President" (Zondervan, Shaine Claiborne & Chris Haw) gives additional insight into understanding and creating true service.  My son gave this to me for my birthday.  Its cover and pages and general style are retro-1969, Wittenburg-doorish, but the authors have been quite involved with the subject they write about.

My Minit-Mart makes me a raving fan when they give me the penny on uneven change.  A small detail that customers find very satisfying.  A contemporary worship leader who's not too haughty to sing a hymn - a small thing that both young and old appreciate.  A person in a church who stops what they are fussing around about (equipment, bulletins, etc.) to talk with a person who seems to want to talk - usually a small thing, but huge.

At first, when I looked at your subject and the "customer service" model, I was suspicious.  Sometimes a church will target a certain group at the expense of everyone else.  But the line "...create a vision of perfection centered on the customer."  All strangers, all poor or needy, all walking in darkness, all who dream of a church lifestyle better than hypocrisy, all of these, according to the Word, are Jesus -- your Customer.  When we focus our service on people rather than on making a cool scene for ourselves, we are serving the Customer of Customers and Lord of Lords.