From Our Doorsteps: Developing a Ministry Plan That Makes Sense

Rick Morse
Chalice Press, $45.95

They say that it is an exercise in futility to do the same thing but expect a different result.

From our Doorsteps is a “must read” as it opens the door for congregations and those in ministry (lay and ordained) to start on a way to renew how they go about living out their call as the Church and find different ways to engage their local communities as they seek to witness to the love and grace of God.

This book is well set out and contains some extremely helpful information to help congregations attend to and minister more effectively with their communities.

One part of the book I found particularly insightful puts a name to why we have an absence of younger generations in many of our churches. It does not do this in a critical manner but simply lays out some of the differences and why different generations may not connect well in particular forms of church activities.

It is a shame the book is not written from an Australian context as there is a danger that many will be able to write off what Rick Morse is saying as not applying to us because he is American. However, this is a very detailed and practical approach to exploring what ministry might look like in our local area.

The rigour of what Rick Morse sets out may be too much for many congregations but, in a church that recognises that it has congregations which are, if not declining, then aging and struggling to be sustainable, this is a book that leaders should give serious attention to.

Jon Humphries