Deepening Your Effectiveness: Restructuring the Local Church for Life Transformation (Paperback)

~ Dan Glover (Author), Claudia Lavy (Author)
Key Phrases: discipleship pathway, rededicated believers, feet come off the bottom, Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ, Grand Rapids (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Is your goal to build great churches or make great disciples? Is your congregation full of professing-only Christians?

Becoming a Christian disciple is supposed to be life-altering, a process of maturation and transformation. The church is to intentionally support that development both individually and corporately. Sometimes, though, pitfalls and barriers in life and even within the church itself can damage the committed but unequipped follower.

Proposing a "deep-sea change" from the typical church plan, Glover and Lavy offer experienced coaching in how to systematize disciple-making in a congregation.

"As people of the Great Commission, we have only one job: to fill our churches with people who can say... 'I really know Jesus,'" writes Glover and Lavy. "When this happens, the world will not be able to contain the church. We will be everywhere, serving everyone and lifting the name of Jesus as our motivation. Jesus, who is Truth, would not have sent us to go and make disciples of all nations if we weren't actually able to accomplish the mission."

Framing their very workable ideas in a seashore analogy, the authors explain how to identify the stages of spiritual development from skeptical seekers to authentically functional disciples. Each aspect is supported with examples of both ministry successes and failures.

Every church understands its mandate to "Go and make disciples," but not every church has a plan to make it happen. Deepening Your Effectiveness is the template you've been looking for to attract new believers and move them toward Christian maturity.

With Glover and Lavy as your guides, you'll transform your congregation's mandate to "Go and make mature and committed disciples!"

A Facilitator's CD is also available for church leaders.

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Discipleship Resources (August 1, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0881774758
• ISBN-13: 978-0881774757
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #660,673 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Your Spiritual Journey, January 4, 2007

By	William Walker "Bill Walker" (Trussville, AL United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I have known Dan Glover for over 10 years. I have watched him develop this idea of the ocean diagram and teach it from when he drew it on a white board. The Lord has worked on his heart and refined his idea and vision. He brought Claudia into his life to put a process in place to implement his vision of the ocean diagram.

I have taught this book with Dan before it was a book, and on my own since I purchased it. This is the most effective method of describing where you are on your Spiritual journey I have seen. You will begin to recognize yourself as you read this book and you will recognize others in your life. But the most important thing you will get out of this book is how to progress to the next step on your journey. As you begin to understand the vision of starting your journey unchurched and ending your journey as a sold out disciple of Jesus Christ, you also understand that there will be ebbs and flows to your journey (just like the waves washing up on a shore). This is not a constant journey in a forward direction. Why do you seem to backslide? What can you do about it? How can you reach others who are on their journey? What ministries will reach you best? Dan and Claudia answer all these questions and more.

This book is becoming a part of our curriculum for Adult Bible Leader development. It is helping our leaders learn how to teach to people with different levels of spiritual maturity. Dan, Claudia, and this book have helped focus my life and I am grateful for that focus.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Becoming intentional about Real life transformation, September 13, 2006

By	---- Susan W. Helms "'real life ministry'" (Cincy OH USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is a remarkable book...Glover and Lavy draw a clear and powerful picture that truthfully shows the path people walk as they enter the doors of any church...and how we as believers can help (or hinder) them as they journey into a real life, transforming relationship with Jesus Christ.

We fall into the pattern the Israelites did - wandering around the mountain for 40 years, focusing on anything and everything but the real goal - getting to the promised land...
Jesus promised us a real relationship - living, transformational, powerful at levels the new age faiths can only begin to conceive of...What if we as believers became intentional about getting to this very real Promised Land within our spirits ?

Dan Glover and Claudia Lavy bring a much needed `Big Picture" strategy and intentionality to ministry, with clear 'how to' steps for creating a pathway into deeper levels of personal and corporate spiritual growth. A must read for all who work or volunteer in ministry, or are just on the journey and want the path to be clearer.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Clearly Written and Utterly Applicable, July 31, 2008

By	Dean J. Libby "new pastor" (Wichita Falls, TX USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Deepening Your Effectiveness is changing the way that I am leading my church from now on. The Ocean Diagram and the Discipleship Pathway make great sense, are very intuitive, and provide the reader with easy access to a tool that will help churches make disciples for Christ.

I am going to use this book as a guide for designing and implementing a plan for discipleship in my congregation. I can not wait to see what God will do through this book and through the congregations that choose to implement the tools that Glover and Lavy have offered up.