Transforming Evangelism

Download or read book Transforming Evangelism written by David Gortner and published by Church Publishing, Inc.. This book was released on 2008-03 with total page 193 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Episcopalians are notoriously timid about evangelism, but author David Gortner helps us transform our hands-off attitudes and practices with a style of evangelical calling we can live with. It is spiritually enriching, approaches others not as proselytizer but as inquirer and pilgrim, and thus much more in keeping with the "seeker" mode of 21st century faith practice. Gortner explains the biblical and theological support for evangelism and uses anecdote and personal story. His approach will help all Episcopalians, ordained and lay, to reclaim this birthright and develop styles and practices of spirituality that will deepen our sense of evangelical calling in a multicultural and multifaith society. A conversational style and real life examples provide a lively and easy study tool for leadership.

Download or read book Transforming Evangelism written by Henry H. Knight III and published by Upper Room Books. This book was released on 2019-02-15 with total page 94 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Because of the more aggressive and confrontational tactics we hear about, evangelism has developed a bad connotation. Doors are shut hurriedly, phone calls end abruptly, and e-mails left unanswered. After all, isn't this a task better handled by the pastor? Perhaps it's time to reexamine John Wesley's model of evangelism as a full, natural circle—where it's a communal beginning point rather than a solitary end. The central motive of authentic evangelism is: Having received a message that's made all the difference in our lives, we desire to share that message with others in the hope that it will transform their lives as well. Wesley models an evangelism that reaches out and welcomes, invites, and nurtures, and speaks to both head and heart. "Evangelism is about relationship," the authors write. "How we are in relationship to God, who is able to transform us into new beings. How we are in relationship to our neighbor, whom we must love like ourselves." As one reviewer says, "Knight and Powe have given us a relational book. They describe the deep connection between John Wesley's thoughts, Charles Wesley's hymns, scholarly thinking about evangelism and biblical understandings of the gospel—all in relation to the needs, concerns, and hopes of everyday people." Learn on your own or as a congregational group from this practical study on living an evangelistic life that demonstrates the transforming power of loving God and neighbor.

Download or read book Transforming Evangelism written by David Gortner and published by Church Publishing, Inc.. This book was released on 2008-03-01 with total page 193 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An exploration of the Christian mission of Evangelism in the context of the Episcopal faith. At once “travel guide” and vision for the future, the Transformation series is good news for the Episcopal Church at a time of fast and furious demographic and social change. Series contributors - recognized experts in their fields - analyze our present plight, point to the seeds of change already at work transforming the church, and outline a positive new way forward. What kinds of churches are most ready for transformation? What are the essential tools? What will give us strength, direction, and purpose to the journey? Each volume of the series will: Explain why a changed vision is essential Give robust theological and biblical foundations Offer a guide to best practices and positive trends in churches large and small. Describe the necessary tools for change Imagine how transformation will look How can Episcopalians reclaim evangelism primarily as an enriching spiritual practice? How soon will we recognize that our traditional hands-off approach has led to a crisis of evangelism with our own children? How can we learn to practice evangelism in an multicultural and multifaith society ? and to what purpose? What styles and practices of spirituality do most to enrich our sense of evangelical calling? These are some of the questions David Gortner asks in this book on evangelism for clergy and congregational discussion. He delivers both good and bad news about Episcopalians and evangelism, and provides models and spiritual practices to feed the growing hunger in our churches for good news.

Download or read book No Longer Strangers written by Eugene Cho and published by Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing. This book was released on 2021-05-04 with total page 212 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What does evangelism look like at its best? Evangelism can hurt sometimes. Well-meaning Christians who welcome immigrants and refugees and share the gospel with them will often alienate the very people they are trying to serve through cultural misconceptions or insensitivity to their life experiences. In No Longer Strangers, diverse voices lay out a vision for a healthier evangelism that can honor the most vulnerable—many of whom have lived through trauma, oppression, persecution, and the effects of colonialism—while foregrounding the message of the gospel. With perspectives from immigrants and refugees, and pastors and theologians (some of whom are immigrants themselves), this book offers guidance for every church, missional institution, and individual Christian in navigating the power dynamics embedded in differences of culture, race, and language. Every contributor wholeheartedly affirms the goodness and importance of evangelism as part of Christian discipleship while guiding the reader away from the kind of evangelism that hurts, toward the kind of evangelism that heals.

Download or read book Transforming Conversion written by Gordon T. Smith and published by Baker Academic. This book was released on 2010-08-01 with total page 224 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This volume offers much-needed theological reflection on the phenomenon of conversion and transformation. Gordon Smith provides a robust evaluation that covers the broad range of thinking about conversion across Christian traditions and addresses global contexts. Smith contends that both in the church and in discussions about contemporary mission, the language of conversion inherited from revivalism is inadequate in helping to navigate the questions that shape how we do church, how we approach faith formation, how evangelism is integrated into congregational life, and how we witness to the faith in non-Christian environments. We must rethink the nature of the church in light of how people actually come to faith in Christ. After drawing on ancient and pre-revivalist wisdom on conversion, Smith delineates the contours of conversion and Christian initiation for today's church. He concludes by discussing the art of spiritual autobiography and what it means to be a congregation.

Download or read book Live to Tell written by Brad J. Kallenberg and published by Brazos Press. This book was released on 2002-11 with total page 144 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Emphasizes that, in light of postmodernity, evangelism should shift to a communal focus and invite people to a new way of life. Offers both theoretical training and practical strategies.

Download or read book Transforming Community written by Henry H. Knight III and published by Upper Room Books. This book was released on 2016-04-15 with total page 83 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Drawing from the strength of their previous book, Transforming Evangelism, Henry Knight and Douglas Powe show us a Wesleyan way to form missional communities and congregations. Drawing from John Wesley's own organizing abilities, this will better equip today's congregations to be more transfomational. Each chapter also has study questions.