Robert Lewis, Wayne Cordeiro, and Warren Bird, Culture-Shift: Transforming Your Church from the Inside Out. Jossey-Bass/Leadership Network, 2005.
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LifeandLeadership.com Summary
Most ministers have felt the frustration of attending a conference on church leadership, being informed and encouraged with ideas that have worked in other contexts, only to come home to a church that refuses to change. The authors argue that the main reason for this frustration stems from trying to take ideas that worked in one church and then externally imposing them on to their church, i.e. growing a church from the outside in. Their counter-proposal is for a congregation to birth its own culture that honors God’s unique imprint in them, practicing the ministry for which they are called and gifted, thus allowing the Holy Spirit to draw the people to them who need their special touch. This is also referred to as “organic,” in that the church grows naturally from the inside out based on its true “seed,” and thus grows the fruit (ministry and people impacted) that is natural to this identity. This is in contrast to the plug-n-play, one-size-fits-all approach, but to experience a culture-shift from deep within.
The book is divided into four parts. Parts One and Two describe the central concepts of awakening to culture and birthing a culture. Here the authors explain how three values intersect to form a congregational culture: God’s kingdom agenda, who you are, and your unique setting. Chapters four, five, and six instruct leaders in the process of identifying the culture of their church and then exploring the next specific transition steps that are needed. Each chapter includes a series of worksheets to guide the process. Parts Three and Four chronicle the story of two different churches that have followed this philosophy, one in Arkansas and the other in Hawaii.
This is a well-written guide to defining a congregation’s essential identity in partnership with God, and then seeking to align everything with this identity. It is one of several volumes that present the “organic” model.
From the Publisher
Change a church’s culture, and everything else changes, including its future. When you find the keys to advancing the “right” culture for your church, you will unlock the reality of a transformed and revitalized church.
Would you describe your church’s culture as thriving and irresistible? Are your church’s members confidently using their gifts, talents, passions, and energy to serve and advance the kingdom of God? If you hesitated in answering, Culture Shift is the hands-on resource that can help your church release its full potential as a force for good.
Culture Shift, written for church leaders, ministers, pastors, ministry teams, and lay leaders, leads you through the process of identifying your church’s distinctive culture, gives you practical tools to change it from the inside-out, and provides steps to keep your new culture aligned with your church’s mission. Real transformation is not about working harder at what you’re already doing or even copying another church’s approach but about changing church culture at a foundational level.
The good news is that you already have everything you need—but you must look within for radical, transformational power. Your job is to develop a healthy atmosphere and let the Holy Spirit do the work through you. Once this fundamental shift has occurred and the new habits and values become central to everything your church does, a healthy, energetic, God-honoring church will be unleashed into a world that is desperately crying out for it.
About the Authors
Robert Lewis is pastor at large of Fellowship Bible Church, a non-denominational church in Little Rock, Arkansas. He is also the chairman of the board of Fellowship Associates, a church consulting and leadership training organization.
Wayne Cordeiro is senior pastor of New Hope Christian Fellowship O’ahu in Honolulu, Hawaii. He is also the founder of Pacific Rim Bible College, an institution that trains, develops, and supports emerging leaders.
Warren Bird is an ordained minister on staff at a church in metro New York City. He is the winner of the Gold Medallion Award for religious publishing.
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