Skip to main content

A Radical Idea

Radical. Do you remember when that used to be the word to use? I was so chest deep in this word that I can remember slowing it down and emphasizing each syllable. Rad-i-cal.

Cool wasn't cool enough and tubular was for wanna-be surfers. So if you wanted to express an idea as being worthy, radical was your word.

Now I don't know enough about David Platt to know if he feels the same way about radical, but he has used this idea in a series of books now. This one, A Radical Idea, is available as a 10-pack, for you and your 9 best friends. The subtitle explains more of Platt's focus; Unleashing the People of God for the Purpose of God.

At just over 50 pages, Platt doesn't waste anytime getting to the point. Writing from a pastor's perspective he wants to know one thing. "How can we in the church best unleash the people of God in the Spirit of God with the Word of God for the glory of God in the world?"

That's a great question.

Platt weaves in personal stories of tough decisions that his church made in order to ensure that they were making the most of all their opportunities in the community. He talks about not leaving ministry in the hands of the pastoral staff, but intentionally spreading the calling and the task of making disciples to all the people.

While Solomon's reminder that there is nothing new under the sun could be said about every book, I will say that this idea of pastors training others to do the discipling work is nothing new. Clearly, this was Jesus' plan when He started the Dozen on their tasks.

What makes this book appealing is its size. At 52 pages it can be read in one afternoon and still leave time for a nap. This would be a good read for church leaders as they talk and review purpose.

I received this 10-pack from from my good friends at Waterbrook Multnomah. They don't tell me what to say, but ask that I say something. In case you're wondering about those 9 other copies, I've got at least that many leaders at my church that I plan to share these with.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Facebook Maybe

Granted, I'm a pastor. I have Type-A tendencies. Ok, my tendencies border on freakish OCD behavior patterns, but... Few things bother me more than the Facebook 'maybe'. I suppose I could go on and on about the grey areas of our society and the refusal of people to accept absolute standards. I could discuss the great need of people to accept that what is wrong for one person is likely wrong for everyone. I should certainly be concerned about mentioning that someone might have sin in their life. But I don't believe the Facebook 'maybe' is quite sin. Perhaps if I were coming up with new sins, I would add this to the list. But alas... Some might think the Facebook 'maybe' did not exist prior to the Internet, but they would be wrong. When I was in high school and asked a girl out on a date, I would normally be told that if they had no other plans, if nobody else called them, if there was nothing good on television and their hair did not need washing, then per...
5 comments
Read more

Accountable

I recently officiated a wedding. The ceremony was simple, lovely, and ended with another couple professing to keep the covenant of marriage. But it all started with a clarification...from me. At our first premarital counseling session, as I have done with every couple I have agreed to marry, I clarified a couple of matters. First, I officiate Christian weddings, where both spouses-to-be are professing Christians. I firmly believe that marriage is difficult enough, without adding disagreements about God into the mix. Second, as a minister of Jesus Christ, I believe the pastor’s role in a wedding is to represent the blessing of God on that union. So we have several sessions of premarital counseling where we discuss married life. It’s not that I have this imaginary card in my head, with a picture of me on the front and my stats on the back. (You know, like a baseball card.) Ok, I do picture cards. Pastor cards! And being a competitive guy, I want my stats to look good. The number of coupl...
Post a Comment
Read more

Mom

I will travel this weekend to Georgia to celebrate the life of my mom, who passed away just before Christmas.  A Celebration of Life service. That’s what we’re calling it. Because that’s what my mom wanted. She was quite clear on this matter. She didn’t want a funeral. She didn’t want people mourning for her.  As a Christian, she was very certain on her eternal destination and she wanted everything, in her life and death, to reflect that. There will be music, people sharing tributes, and a message given by her pastor.  If that sounds similar to a funeral, I agree. But semantics aside, let me share with you a few more things about my mom. Along the way, you might learn a few things about why I function the way that I do. As I’ve considered my mom’s legacy, a few words have come to mind. Steadfast My mom knew what she believed, lived what she knew to be true, and didn’t really care what anyone else thought about it. I have no inclination to remember my mom as some perfect p...
2 comments
Read more