Fruitful Leaders

How can you be an effective leader-maker/leader-making church? There s a critical need right now for new leaders in churches - this should never be the preserve of the elite few. This book will help you identify, encourage and keep new leaders, planning for maximum effectiveness in the long-term future.

Extract from Chapter 1

1. GOD LOVES YOUR CHURCH

Main principle: God wants to build up your local church, and he provides gifts of spiritual leadership to help the flock grow.

Communities of Christians come in many shapes, sizes and flavours. God is using large and small churches, multicultural and mono-cultural churches, churches with lively worship styles that appeal to the young, and churches that prefer solid older hymns, to witness to neighbourhoods and to the world. Bible-believing churches may exhibit many surface differences, but one thing is true of them all: God loves local churches. He wants to see them built up and flourishing.

Local churches are God's idea, not human institutions. The Bible describes them as the household of God. It says that God lives in the middle of these communities of disciples, through the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 2:22). Jesus revealed just how important churches are to God. He promised God's spiritual provision and protection as we participate in God s plans and purposes when he said, I will build my church, and the gates of hell will not overcome it (Matthew 16:18).

Jesus is committed to building his church around the world. And in case you are still in any doubt about how valuable churches are to God, he says in Ephesians 1 that he has made Jesus head over everything in the whole universe for the church. Just imagine that - Jesus is exerting his ruling power in heaven for the good of your church here on earth. Maybe you are part of a church where this reality feels a long way from your current experience, but that doesn't mean it isn't true. God wants your church to thrive. That might not mean spectacular growth in numbers, but it will mean all the believers knowing and enjoying God and falling deeper and deeper in love with Jesus Christ.