Want to read more about adaptive leadership, transforming congregational culture, and other topics discussed in 74:1 Quarterly articles? We asked regional directors of congregational vitality what books & websites have proven valuable in their work. The following lists are gathered from their recommendations. [Editor’s note: additional recommendations, drawn from certificate in congregational vitality bibliographies, added March 31, 2016.]
Recommended websites
- Lewis Center for Church Leadership
- Emotionally Healthy Spirituality (Peter Scazzero’s organization)
- The Exchange (blog by Ed Stetzer, Christianity Today)
- The Leadership Stool (Dave Olson)
- Blogs and podcasts from Thom S. Rainer and Mike Bonem
Recommended books
- Samuel Chand, Cracking Your Church’s Culture: Seven Keys to Unleashing Vision and Inspiration (Jossey-Bass, 2010)
- Edwin Friedman, A Failure of Nerve: Leadership in the Age of the Quick Fix (Seabury Books, 2007)
- David Hansen, The Power of Loving Your Church: Leading through Acceptance and Grace (Bethany House Publishers, 1998)
- Ronald Heifetz, Alexander Grashow & Martin Linsky, The Practice of Adaptive Leadership: Tools and Tactics for Changing Your Organization and the World (Harvard Business Press, 2009)
- Ronald Heifitz & Martin Linsky, Leadership on the Line: Staying Alive through the Dangers of Leading (Harvard Business Review Press, 2002)
- Patrick Lencioni, The Advantage: Why Organizational Health Trumps Everything Else in Business (Jossey-Bass, 2012)
- Larry Osborn, Sticky Teams: Keeping Your Leadership Team and Staff on the Same Page (Zondervan, 2010); Sticky Church (Zondervan, 2008)
- Eugene Peterson, The Pastor: A Memoir (HarperOne, reprint, 2012)
- Gilbert Rendle, Behavioral Covenants for Congregations: A Handbook for Honoring Differences (Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 1998)
- Peter Senge, The Fifth Discipline: The Art and Practice of the Learning Organization (Doubleday, rev. edn., 2006)
[additional resources from congregational vitality certificate bibliography; added March 31, 2016]
- Mark Branson & Juan F. Martínez, Churches, Cultures and Leadership: A Practical Theology of Congregations and Ethnicity (IVP Academic, 2011)
- Tara Barthel and David Edling, Redeeming Church Conflicts: Turning Crisis into Compassion and Care (Baker, 2012)
- Peter Cha, Steve Kang, and Helen Lee, eds., Growing Healthy Asian-American Churches: Ministry Insights from Groundbreaking Congregations (InterVarsity Press, 2006)
- Duane Elmer, Cross Cultural Conflict: Building Relationships for Effective Ministry (IVP Academic, 1993)
- D. Darrell Griffen, Navigating Pastoral Leadership in the Transition Zone (MMGI Books, 2012)
- Aubrey Malphurs, Advanced Strategic Planning: A 21st Century Model for Church and Ministry Leaders, 3rd edn (Baker Books, 2013); Look Before You Lead: How to Discern and Shape Your Church Culture (Baker Books, 2013)
- Manuel Ortiz, One New People: Models for Developing a Multiethnic Church (InterVarsity Press, 1996)
- Soong-Chan Rah, Many Colors: Cultural Intelligence for a Changing Church (Moody Publishers, 2010)
- James E. Plueddemann, Leading Across Cultures: Effective Mission & Ministry in the Global Church (IVP Academic, 2009)
- Efrem Smith, Post-Black and Post-White Church: Becoming the Beloved Community in a Multi-Ethnic World (Jossey-Bass, 2012)
- Margaret J. Wheatley, Turning to One Another: Simple Conversations to Restore Hope to the Future (Berrett-Koehler Publishers, 2002)
What resources have shaped your pastoral leadership? Share these in the comments section.