7 Family Ministry Essentials
The
ultimate guide to family ministry for today’s generation
Experts
offer fresh perspective to help stem the
tide of youth departing from the
church
It’s a question church experts are desperate
to answer: Why are so many young people leaving the church after high school?
More importantly, what can be done to stop it? Michelle
Anthony and Megan Marshman write
in their new book, 7 Family Ministry Essentials: A Strategy for
Culture Change in Children’s and Student Ministries (David C Cook/June 1, 2015/ISBN: 978-0781412971 /$15.99), that ministry
leaders must discuss the critical role of family in the formation of faith that
will transcend childhood beliefs.
While
youth spend the vast majority of their free time with their family rather than
the four walls of the church, parents often feel stymied by the distractions
and busyness of life and ill-equipped to disciple their children during their
formative years. 7 Family Ministry Essentials
asserts this is where the church comes in. “While parents are the primary
nurturers of their children’s faith, the church plays an essential supportive role to this endeavor,”
Marshman explains. “The church can help awaken parents to their God-given
roles, helping them see spiritual vitality is
the most important aspect of their life and their child’s life.”
With
decades of experience in
Christian education and ministry, Anthony and Marshman capture the seven
guiding essentials of family ministry that will transform lives, the church and
the world:
1. Empowering
families to take spiritual leadership in the home
2. Forming
lifetime faith that transcends childhood beliefs
3. Teaching
Scripture as the ultimate authority of truth
4. Understanding
the role of the Holy Spirit to teach and transform
5. Engaging every
generation in the gospel of God’s redemptive story
6. Making God
central in every biblical narrative and daily living
7. Participating
in community with like-minded ministry leaders
7 Family Ministry Essentials is for any leader who wants to see true spiritual formation happen within
families of their church but isn’t quite sure where to start. Offering practical
steps and inspirational stories, this strategic guide will help leaders equip parents
in their congregation to be a vital part of knowing and modeling faith at home
and hopefully stop the steady flow of young adults out the church doors. As
Anthony says, “To invest in parents is to invest in the lives of young people
far beyond the access we will have to influence them.”
In
a culture inundated with consumerism Christianity, this handbook offers a new
measuring stick to gauge effectiveness in ministry and will be an invaluable resource for pastors and
teachers who want to see true spiritual transformation in the next generation.
Learn
more about more about 7 Family Ministry Essentials and
other ministry resources from the authors at www.davidccook.com.
Advanced
Praise
“In
this book, Michelle and Megan offer practical advice to help ministry leaders
shape growing ministries and develop amazing leaders. I can guarantee you will
be challenged and stretched!”
~
Ryan Frank, CEO of KidzMatter
“There
has been no shortage of descriptions of why the church is failing the family,
but rarely do we find prescriptions that help a pastoral staff do anything to
change it. Michelle Anthony and Megan Marshman will not only make you aware of
the challenges we face, but inspire you to equip and empower families for
lifelong discipleship. I can’t wait to have my staff and seminary students
interact with their ideas.”
~
Bill Staffieri, senior pastor, Beachpoint Church, and adjunct professor, Talbot
Seminary
“I
spent years in ministry trying to be the surrogate family for my students. This
book eloquently displays the biblical need of supporting and making the family
the central foundation in a student’s life. Megan and Michelle lay an
unshakeable, biblical foundation of how to strengthen the families in your
ministry.”
~ Evan Liewer,
director of youth and young adults, Forest Home Christian Camp and Conference
Centers
About
the authors
Dr.
Michelle Anthony is
the vice president and publisher of learning resources at David C Cook and a
popular speaker in the area of family ministry. She is the author of Spiritual
Parenting, The Big God Story and Becoming a Spiritually Healthy
Family.
Anthony
has graduate degrees in Christian education, Bible and theology, as well as more
than 25 years of family ministry experience. Anthony and her husband, Michael,
are the parents of two adult children and live in Colorado.
Learn more
about Michelle Anthony at www.michelleanthony.org, on Facebook or by following her on Twitter.
Megan
Marshman is
the director of student resources and production for David C Cook and has led
and challenged thousands of students in their faith at Hume Lake Christian
Camps.
With
a master’s degree in organizational leadership from Azusa Pacific University, Marshman
speaks nationally at churches, conferences and university chapels. She and her
husband, Randy, live in Long Beach, California.
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