Book Review of Coach Your Champions

Coach Your Champions by Eric Foley is a great book on fundraising. I work for a ministry in which I have to raise my own support, so finding ways that build a partner base is crucial for me. This book helped me to see that people don't want to just be ATM machines but want to feel a part of the ministry. This book is not just great for missionaries, not-for-profits and fundraisers but also for churches and their leaders. I highly recommend this book.

The first thing that I learned (actually relearned) and I think Christianity needs to be reminded of is that Giving is learned, not latent (Loc 85 in Kindle). I have become more and more aware of this as I have talked with younger adults who have no concept that God's Word speaks to the invitation that every follower of Jesus is called to give of their time, money, possessions and talents. The church has spoken well of the talents part but we have lost the rest. Scripture shows us that we need to disciple people into the joy of giving and teach them what Scriptures teaches on the subject.

As the book unfolds in a parable, it helps shows that more and more people don't want to sit in the stands and cheer. As well, people don't give so that we can run our ministries/organizations (i.e. pay the bills and get paychecks which they know that is what the money may go to) but to reach the people or solve the problems our ministries/organizations were created to do. People want to be a part of the ministry.

To help understand that last part more the author sets out to show that fundraising is more than just raising funds but raising up and equipping others to be apart/catch the vision of the ministry/organization. It is our job to stop seeing people only for their money but to see how each potential donor can bring something to the ministry/organization. Instead of using the word donor is better to see people as partners. The author asks this question on page 63 (Kindle), "What if donors are categorized by their involvement and ownership of the ministry, rather than the number of zeros on their check?" The answer to this question could revolutionize the way we think about funding our ministry.

The last striking thing I want to share from this book is that "Raising money God's way is about growing the donor, not the bank account." (page 104, Kindle version) God wants us in ministry and He will provide. We need to believe that!

I encourage you to read this book as it will definitely challenge you about how you raise up partners and may even challenge you in your own giving.

"Speaking of Jesus: The Art of Not-Evangelism" Review

Carl Medearis' book Speaking of Jesus: The Art of Not-Evangelism  (pick it up here on Amazon.com) was a fresh look at how to talk about Jesus to non-followers of Jesus. This book challenged me to rethink how I talk to people about Jesus and if the ways I had done evangelism were even effective. The first thing that Medearis does is to challenge the us verses them mentality that many Christians have. He says, "What if I told you that this 'us verses them' model of Christianity also misses the point? And that when you speak of Jesus from that paradigm, you are not only ineffective--you will also lose the game?" These two questions set me on the journey through this book that has changed the way I look at evangelism.

What I liked about the book: This book is straight to the point and an easy read. Some evangelism books are so technical that I wonder if it is useful in helping a Christian share Jesus with anyone. Medearis also points out in this book that the gospel is not an idea, a what or a how. The gospel is a Who. The author helps the reader get reconnected with the fact that the gospel is about Jesus not some model of how to share the gospel.

Probably the biggest thing I liked about this book is that it showed that evangelism is not a single or once in awhile action that Christians do but is a lifestyle that we live. Medearis says, "...because evangelism is an -ism, it encourages people to think of it as a philosophy or methodology as opposed to a lifestyle." Instead Medearis is calling us to make disciples (for a great book on that see this post.)

What I didn't like about the book: The first thing that almost turned me off from the book was on page 20 (Kindle version) when Medearis writes, "The problem was, after He [Jesus] moved in, He started throwing some of my stuff out, and I had pretty neat stuff. I had a college degree, I had a ministry, and I had a whole bunch of really valuable Christian things. Solid doctrines, good theology, and a vision for the lost. And He threw them out." I understand that he was trying to make a powerful illustration about how often Jesus is removed from salvation and these other things are put in its place, but these things are still valuable and there could have been another way to make his point.

In the end this is a great book and a good read. I encourage you to take the time to pick this book up and read.

"Real Life: A Christianity Worth Living Out" Overview

James Choung's book Real Life: A Christianity Worth Living Out is a great read and has been one of my favorite books read this year. Not only is it a great read but a great practical book that helps Christians understand the connection between evangelism and discipleship as not two distinct activities but are actually closely connected (if not the same activity).

Choung lays out in this book a discipleship/disciplemaking plan that he personally has been working on for some time. He calls it the Real Life Continuum and I think that it sums up how as Christians we can help disciple a person from being a non-Christian into being what Choung calls a world changer. Choung says this about it, "The Real Life Continuum is an offering of what a box top for discipleship might look like. It's an attempt to make sense out of the various pieces of discipleship, pulling it together in some simple and coherent form without losing some oft-neglected pieces."Below is the Real Life Continuum as presented in the book and I will just briefly talk through the parts.

First, discipleship needs to happen in community (that doesn't mean one-on-one shouldn't happen and isn't beneficial) but well rounded discipleship happens in community. Second, every believer is called to make disciples, so no matter where a believer is personally at on the continuum (follower, leader or world changer) they are called to disciplemaking. 

Discipling others happens when we hear-respond-debrief. First, we need to hear what God is calling us and our communities to. Next, we must respond and lastly it is important to debrief. As Jesus shows us in Luke 10 debriefing is encouraging and correcting. Those we are discipling need to hear encouragement but also correction so that they know they are on the right track.

Thirdly it is important to understand that none of this process happens without God, specifically the Holy Spirit.

Briefly here are the stages a disciple goes through.  A skeptic is someone who doesn't trust Christians. The job of the disciplemaker here is to build trust with the person. The seeker is someone who trusts Christians and is wanting to explore their faith and how it is relevant to their life. The job of the disciplemaker here is to challenge them to the next step, eventually challenging them to make a decision about Jesus Christ. A follower is someone who has "pledged allegiance to Jesus and his kingdom." The job of the disciplemaker here is to help the follower learn to recognize God's voice and follow it. As the follower learns to obey Jesus and align their lives after him the follower can follow God's leading into becoming someone who influences others. As a follower becomes a leader it is the job of the disciplemaker to help the new leader gain resources (power) and authority. A good disciplemaker will help a new leader grow in their leadership. Lastly, as a leader begins to understand that they not only can influence their Christian community but the larger world (world here is any area of influence a person has) they become a world changer. The disciplemaker helps the person understand how to impact their world and be a blessing. A disciplemaker does this by helping world changers develop a vision of their calling for this season.

This is a just a brief overview of the book and I hope it is enough to wet your appetite to get the book and read it. It is a fast read, in my opinion. It will challenge you to think about how to disciple others and if you are in a position like me to challenge others in their discipleship.