Shift: What it Takes to Reach Families Today
--A Book Review--
Shift: What it Takes to Reach Families Today, is a book about getting back to basics. It's about God's design for the family. It's about how parents and the church can partner together to introduce, grow and maintain their Christ-like journey. And for the church, it's about redefining and perhaps re-inventing, a successful ministry. Author Brian Haynes (left) writes what many are concluding today, "The church was never intended to be a substitute for the home." In other words, spiritual formation begins and continues in the home...and the church is here to help.
After a round of disturbing statistics about the state of the modern family, Haynes uses the Old Testament "Shema" (Deut. 6:4-7) to emphasize the parental role that God ordains for the spiriutal upbringing of their children. Then he introduces his readers to his seven milestones. I've characterized these milestones as "opportunities of continuing spiritual development that relate to our stations of life." for example, the first milestone begins with a new look at child dedication and ends with the last milestone for adults that focuses on discipleship, obedience and service.
My initial reaction to this book makes me think about the possibilities for partnering with families in our community and our churches. It would take a focused and determined effort for the implementation of these seven milestones in our churches (tweaked for each situation, of course), but the payoff would be substantial...for us and for the Kingdom. Do me a favor, take a moment, right now, to think about how this can make a difference in our communities and our churches! To get a better grasp of the book and it's possible ministry effects, you can "click to review" the book on www.amazon.com; just search for "Shift" and/or Brian Haynes". Or, better yet, order the book! You'll be glad you did.
Ed Satterley
Cherry Point Baptist Church
After a round of disturbing statistics about the state of the modern family, Haynes uses the Old Testament "Shema" (Deut. 6:4-7) to emphasize the parental role that God ordains for the spiriutal upbringing of their children. Then he introduces his readers to his seven milestones. I've characterized these milestones as "opportunities of continuing spiritual development that relate to our stations of life." for example, the first milestone begins with a new look at child dedication and ends with the last milestone for adults that focuses on discipleship, obedience and service.
My initial reaction to this book makes me think about the possibilities for partnering with families in our community and our churches. It would take a focused and determined effort for the implementation of these seven milestones in our churches (tweaked for each situation, of course), but the payoff would be substantial...for us and for the Kingdom. Do me a favor, take a moment, right now, to think about how this can make a difference in our communities and our churches! To get a better grasp of the book and it's possible ministry effects, you can "click to review" the book on www.amazon.com; just search for "Shift" and/or Brian Haynes". Or, better yet, order the book! You'll be glad you did.
Ed Satterley
Cherry Point Baptist Church
