Resources | Books

The Good City:

Transformed Lives Transforming Communities

By Glenn Barth

The point of view expressed throughout this book is that cities are powerful shapers of culture. Because of this, people of faith and people of good will can work together to improve peoples’ lives and exert a positive influence on the direction of cultural change.

Both the Christian and the person who may not consider him or herself a follower of Christ have a vision of a better world. These visions are often similar enough that collaboration will bring shared visions into reality.

This is a book that offers exciting new approaches to encourage people who want to have a positive impact and ally themselves with others who care about the same issues. This book will help leaders empower people to pursue their passion and calling in life by recognizing opportunities in the decentralized, postmodern context in which we live and work.

Glenn Barth is recognized as one of the top leaders who brings people of faith together with people of good will for the good of cities and communities.

The Good City: Study Guide

The companion study guide for “The Good City”

This is a book that offers exciting new approaches to encourage people who want to have a positive impact and ally themselves with others who care about the same issues. This study guide will help leaders empower people to pursue their passion and calling in life by recognizing opportunities in the decentralized, postmodern context in which we live and work.

Kingdom Collaborators:

Eight Signature Practices of Leaders Who Turn the World Upside Down

By Reggie McNeal (2018)

“These who have turned the world upside down have come here too,” (Acts 17:6, NKJV). When Paul and Silas came to Thessalonica, they changed the community. How? By collaborating with God to bring his kingdom on earth. Will you collaborate on God’s kingdom work in your community? If you’re ready to see God move in all areas―business, education, media, arts, healthcare, spiritual growth, and more―this is the book for you. Leadership expert Reggie McNeal offers eight signature practices for leaders who want to partner with God and others for kingdom growth. Readers will gain practical advice to help people experience life as God intends.

Kingdom Come:

Why We Must Give Up Our Obsession with Fixing the Church–and What We Should Do Instead

By Reggie McNeal (2015)

There’s a reason Jesus taught us to pray “Thy Kingdom come . . .” and not “Thy church come.” The church clearly plays an important role in God’s plans. It was established by Christ, and he is its Head. But have we put too much emphasis on the church? Have we confused a means of participating in God’s Kingdom with the Kingdom itself?

In Kingdom Come, church ministry consultant Reggie McNeal reveals why it’s crucial to realign the church’s mission with God’s ultimate Kingdom agenda. You’ll discover how you can get in on―and help lead―the Kingdom movement currently underway.

Join the mission to help the Kingdom break into our hearts . . . and break out into the world.

Get Off Your Donkey!

Help Somebody and Help Yourself

By Reggie McNeal (2013)

Bestselling author provocatively calls readers to move beyond themselves, serve with purpose, and ultimately play a part in redeeming our world.

The Present Future:

Six Tough Questions for the Church

By Reggie McNeal (2011)

In this provocative book, author, consultant, and church leadership developer Reggie McNeal debunks these and other old assumptions and provides an overall strategy to help church leaders move forward in an entirely different and much more effective way. In The Present Future, McNeal identifies the six most important realities that church leaders must address including: recapturing the spirit of Christianity and replacing “church growth” with a wider vision of kingdom growth; developing disciples instead of church members; fostering the rise of a new apostolic leadership; focusing on spiritual formation rather than church programs; and shifting from prediction and planning to preparation for the challenges of an uncertain world. McNeal contends that by changing the questions church leaders ask themselves about their congregations and their plans, they can frame the core issues and approach the future with new eyes, new purpose, and new ideas.

Missional Renaissance:

Changing the Scorecard for the Church

By Reggie McNeal (2009)

Reggie McNeal’s bestseller The Present Future is the definitive work on the “missional movement,” i.e., the widespread movement among Protestant churches to be less inwardly focused and more oriented toward the culture and community around them. In that book he asked the tough questions that churches needed to entertain to begin to think about who they are and what they are doing; in Missional Renaissance, he shows them the three significant shifts in their thinking and behavior that they need to make that will allow leaders to chart a course toward being missional: (1) from an internal to an external focus, ending the church as exclusive social club model; (2) from running programs and ministries to developing people as its core activity; and (3) from professional leadership to leadership that is shared by everyone in the community. With in-depth discussions of the “what” and the “how” of transitioning to being a missional church, readers will be equipped to move into what McNeal sees as the most viable future for Christianity. For all those thousands of churches who are asking about what to do next after reading The Present Future, Missional Renaissance will provide the answer.

Missional Communities:

The Rise of the Post-Congregational Church

By Reggie McNeal (2003)

The third book in the trilogy that explores the popular missional movement

From Reggie McNeal, the bestselling author of The Present Future and Missional Renaissance, comes the third book in the series that helps to define and illuminate the popular missional movement. This newest book in the trilogy examines a natural outgrowth of the move toward a missional orientation: the deconstruction of congregations into very small Christian communities. For all those thousands of churches and leaders who have followed Reggie McNeal’s bold lead, this book details the rise of a new life form in churches.

  • Discusses how to move a church from an internal to an external ministry focus
  • Reggie McNeal is a recognized leader in the missional movement
  • Outlines an alternative to the program church model that is focused on the projects and passions of the congregants

This book draws on McNeal’s twenty years of leadership roles in local congregations and his work over the last decade with thousands of clergy and church leaders.