Visit the Sick: Ministering God's Grace in Times of Illness (Ministering the Master's Way) [Paperback]

Brian Croft (Author)

Book Description

Series: Ministering the Master's Way | Publication Date: December 1, 2008

The demands of the twenty-first-century have led to the neglect of certain essential responsibilities in the life of a Christian. One of those is the visitation and care of the sick in our congregations. This book is designed to instruct and motivate pastors, church leaders, and other care-giving Christians through the counsel of our heroes of church history, to recapture the practice of visiting the sick. This is accomplished by considering three specific areas. First, is our commitment to the theological as we consider how to most effectively care for their souls. Second, is our commitment to the pastoral, which instructs us how to proceed with wisdom and discernment in the variety of circumstances we will face. Third, is our commitment to the practical so that the manner in which we care for the sick will help, not hinder our effort to communicate biblical truth to them.

Editorial Reviews

Review

In this little volume, Brian helps us to think straightforwardly and faithfully about God s truth and God s people. His advice is as sound as it is simple. Some parts of this may be about matters you've already figured out. But isn't it better to be told something twice, than not at all? Let Brian's be that reinforcing voice. And don't be surprised if you read some things that you hadn't thought of before. Read this book, and let Brian help you in helping others. --Mark Dever, Senior Pastor, Capitol Hill Baptist Church, Washington, DC

What do pastors do when visiting the sick? Such visits are crucial both eternally and pastorally. Brian Croft has written a marvelous piece to assist us. His work is theologically grounded, gospel centered, and full of practical wisdom. I recommend it enthusiastically. --Thomas R. Schreiner, James Buchanan Harrison Professor of New Testament Interpretation, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Teaching Pastor, Clifton Baptist Church

I read Brian Croft's Visit the Sick with glad thanksgiving! Visitation is a timely and much-needed topic for pastors and Christians in our day. And Croft addresses it with sound thinking and very helpful suggestions. Visit the Sick sets out to provide sensitive, God-honoring, and gospel-driven counsel to pastors and Christians. And it hits the mark. If you re like me, someone who feels ill-equipped to say the right words or do the right things at someone's sick bed, you'll delight in this book and give God great praise for moving Brian Croft to write it. May the Lord be pleased to move us to visit our people and by that means awaken legions! --Thabiti Anyabwile, Senior Pastor, First Baptist Church, Grand Cayman Island, Author, The Faithful Preacher

About the Author

Brian Croft graduated from Indiana University in 1997 with a B. A. in Sociology and did some graduate work at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. He has served in pastoral ministry in some manner for over 12 years and is currently in his 5th year as Senior Pastor of Auburndale Baptist Church in Louisville, Kentucky, USA. He and his wife, Cara, have 4 children: Samuel, Abby, Isabelle and Claire. His hobbies include sports (golf, tennis, racketball), playing music (piano and guitar), reading (especially biographies and American history), teaching self-defense classes and teaching his children sports and music.

Product Details

• Paperback: 128 pages
• Publisher: DayOne Publications (December 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1846251435
• ISBN-13: 978-1846251436
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.3 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #244,009 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great for Pastoral Ministry, April 20, 2009

By 

B. D. Easler (North Carolina, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Visit the Sick: Ministering God's Grace in Times of Illness (Ministering the Master's Way) (Paperback)

I recently got a copy of Brian Croft's book that is entitled Visit the sick: Ministering God's grace in times of illness. The book is in the Ministering the Master's Way series, published by Day One Publications. Brian, a pastor himself, has written a concise, gospel centered book, that is both theologically rich and practically helpful.

At the beginning of his book, Croft quotes the seventeenth-century Puritan pastor, Richard Baxter, who wisely wrote, "We must be diligent in visiting the sick, and helping them to prepare either for a fruitful life, or a happy death" (14). The rest of the book is filled with wisdom to aid us in this part of pastoral ministry.

In chapter one, Croft delivers a concise biblical theology of sickness, disease, and suffering, in light of what the Bible teaches concerning Creation, the Fall, the person and work of Jesus Christ, the Church, and the New Creation. Chapter two is focused on theological considerations when we visit the sick or dying, so that our visits can honor God, point to Christ, and comfort the sick. Chapters three and four are filled with pastoral and practical considerations for making effective visits. In chapter five, Croft points to Charles Spurgeon as a faithful model of how pastors must make visiting the sick a priority.

Croft concludes his book with some practical advice on how to train not only other leaders, but also our church members how to make effective visits to the sick in our congregations. The first three short appendices include a visitation checklist, a couple of examples of spiritual conversations, and a helpful FAQ. The fourth and final appendix included, is an abridged version of `Sickness,' a challenging piece written by the great Anglican bishop of the nineteenth century, J.C. Ryle.

In his book, Brian Croft rightly points out that our "hearts are wired to forget that death and sickness can fall on each of us at any moment and will fall on all of us eventually. Through caring for the sick and afflicted, we are reminded of the fragility of life and our closeness to eternity" (46). If we are honest, visiting those who are sick or dying is not always the part of ministry that we enjoy most. However, God can and will use our efforts in this area of pastoral ministry, and Brian Croft's gospel centered book is a tool that will encourage and instruct us on how we can be more effective in this task.

We at Passion for Preaching (http://www.passionforpreaching.net) highly recommend this work to you and your ministry!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Theological and Practical, March 19, 2009

By 

James Drake "Pastor Jim" (WV) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Visit the Sick: Ministering God's Grace in Times of Illness (Ministering the Master's Way) (Paperback)

If you are looking for a concise, theologically grounded handbook on hospital visitation, this is the one. Unlike any pastoral "how-to" manual I have read, Croft begins by giving readers the proper foundation for visiting the sick. As a matter of fact, over half the book is spent dealing with biblical and theological considerations.

While task oriented people might be tempted to skim through those pages and get to the "practical" advice, by doing so, they would miss this book's richest value. So-called practical handbooks are plentiful, but a book that succinctly combines orthodoxy and orthopraxy in the specific area of hospital visitation is rare--so rare that I know of none besides this one.

Croft has created a doctrinally sound, intensely practical and wonderfully brief guide for pastors to train and equip their deacons or care teams in this important area of ministry.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very Helpful little book!, April 29, 2010

By 

R. Scott Van Neste (Frankfort, KY) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Visit the Sick: Ministering God's Grace in Times of Illness (Ministering the Master's Way) (Paperback)

In just 90 pages, Croft dispenses much wisdom. This book is very valuable to new ministers. There is so much practical wisdom contained in this book that many do not receive unless they have hands on training with more experienced, good Shepherds.