From the Inside Flap
There are no sacred models of church, no specific molds into which God pours blessings, and no special leadership styles that are holier than others. Too often, though, church leaders attempt to pattern their ministries after either tradition or the successes of a few prominent trendsetting congregations.
In Church Turned Inside Out, Linda Bergquist and Allan Karr push back on the one-size-fits-all approach. They invite leaders of all kinds of churches—new and existing, megachurches and microchurches—to walk through an inside-out design process. Instead of starting with models and methods, they insist that every sphere of church life resonates with and communicates what you really believe.
As the book unfolds, it moves from abstract concepts toward concrete suggestions. It considers the uniqueness of individual leaders, their teams, and their particular communities, cultures, and contexts while taking seriously both spiritual and practical dimensions. This process results in more potent and effectively organized churches. Perhaps more important, it helps church leaders discover ways to live and work more wholly and faithfully, according to how God created them. It really is possible for a church to be so beautifully designed that every structure, program, and relationship reflects what it intends. Sometimes this requires a whole new design, and other times it only takes re-aligning or refining what already exists. This thoughtful and systemic approach opens a wider array of possible church paradigms than most people ever imagine, but the real goal is not innovation but transformation.
Using a blend of theology, biblical imagery, and metaphors from culture and creation, Church Turned Inside Out provides respectful ways to consider adaptation and change. It offers a hopeful vision of what the church can and must become. It not only positions the church for its future mission to the twenty-first century but offers timeless principles for the church of today.
From the Back Cover
Praise for Church Turned Inside Out
"What an extremely hopeful, heart-lifting, and practical book for anyone who loves the church. We must never be afraid to look at our church from the inside out as that is where true change will happen." —Dan Kimball author, They Like Jesus but Not the Church
"I think Linda and Allan do a great job of giving an overview of our world and context. They show the different approaches to church, but they don't stop there. Instead they deal with design and what it would look like! Every church is an original, and they show how yours can be, too." —Bob Roberts Jr. author, The Multiplying Church
"In this thought-provoking and insightful book, the authors . . .provide us with useful tools that help us think strategically. They examine how God is using people to design new models and refine or re-align existing models of church, and how, working together cooperatively, these churches can reach out to . . . diverse communities surrounding them. I recommend this book to anyone interested in a culturally relevant church in today's society." —Felicity Dale author, An Army of Ordinary People, coauthor, The Rabbit and the Elephant
"This book provides a savvy challenge for design work to be taken more seriously in the quest for fresh forms of the church. The call to embody and commend the gospel and the importance of people, place, and moment are held tightly together. Church planters as well as re-aligners and refiners will benefit immensely from this book!" —George Hunsberger coordinator, the Gospel and Our Culture Network in North America, and author, Bearing the Witness of the Spirit: Lesslie Newbigin's Theology of Cultural Plurality
