Pete Blackman was frustrated. His wife, Monica, was hurt and angry. Green Street Baptist was not a good place to work—full of contention and controversy. As he drove into the parking lot on his way to a church board meeting, Pete tried to figure out what to do.
To his surprise, one of his parishioners, Frank Sanders, was standing there in the cold waiting for him. Frank told Pete that the meeting had started an hour earlier—that they wanted a drastic change. Thankful for the heads-up, Pete headed to his office before entering the meeting, wondering if he indeed was the problem.
Then he remembered—he’d been at a church growth conference about two years before and remembered one of the speakers who’d seemed to be describing Pete’s church. Rummaging through the desk, he found the business card stuck to the back of a Post-It note. Marcus Cunningham—that was the consultant’s name. Grabbing his Bible, Pete stuck the card inside and headed off to the meeting.
So starts the saga of Green Street Baptist. After getting pummeled in the meeting, Pete remembers the card, thinks back through the past few years, hears clearly in his mind Marcus Cunningham’s speech, and says to the board, “Gentlemen, let me tell you a story.”
I had the privilege of being the editor for this book, and I do mean privilege. Green Street could be any church, any denomination, any place. The problems and situations described in the story are only too common. James Shupp, however, has written this story with believable characters and situations. You will be rooting for Pete and Monica and Marcus and the others as they go on a journey to rediscover what once made Green Street great.
Who Killed My Church? should be required reading for every pastor, every church staff member, every church board, and recommended strongly to the laity within. Although fiction, Who Killed My Church? lays out concrete methods for revitalizing a church as well as descriptions of how churches lose their way in the first place.
In today’s society, more important than ever is that our churches be strong, with parishioners energized and seeking to draw in and provide the environment where the lost can be drawn to the one true solution, Jesus Christ. Five stars!
Buy this book. Read the book yourself, then buy another for your pastor or give him/her your copy. Who Killed My Church? will change the way you view church—you’ll never quite see church the same again. Five stars!
Deb’s Dozen: Amazing what hope and healing occurs when God’s grace touches hurting hearts.
Deb’s Dozen: Canoeing for clarity. Lightning for light? Faith and family are everything!