From the Introduction (Page 12):
"Pastors of small congregations can make a transformative difference in economically distressed neighborhoods.  We can bear witness to the Kingdom of God on earth by reclaiming and restoring under-resourced communities.  Remember, without a vision, the people perish.  Our people have been perishing because of a lack of collaborative visionary leadership.  Has a vision for community transformation been growing in your spirit?  If so, don't let anybody discourage you from the work.  Don't let any obstacle impede you.  Don't let self-doubt consume you.  Don't let the apparent lack of resources depress you.  The power of God can work through you and your small congregation!  God can do much with little.  Consequently, it is my heartfelt prayer that this pastoral resource guide will provide some pasic practical assistance in equipping you to do community development ministry.  This is God's work!  It is evangelistic in the truest sense."

From Back Cover
Christian Education is vital to any church's growth.  Although a church may have a great pastor, a sould curriculum, and people willing to learn, without trained teachers effective communication of the Word will not occur and the church's growth can be stifled.

We have found at Mt. Zion Baptist Church of Kalamazoo, MI, that Christian Education is the lifeblood of our Church.  Christian Education undergirds everything that happens at our Church.  Dr. Addis Moore, the Pastor of Mt. Zion, has been personally training his teachers since 1995 and because of this, he has seen phenomenal growth in Sunday School from 100 in attendance to more than 700 weekly and still striving for more.

This manual has developed over the past 16 years to help train teachers and is in use at Mt. Zion.  Dr. Addis Moore and his son, Rev. Christopher M. Moore, Assistant to the Pastor of Mt. Zion, come together to give pastors and Christian Education leaders an effective resource for training Christian educators.  Students will not only become good teachers but better students of the Word of God.  This book is designed to achieve Kingdom results and church growth thorugh biblical application, using the Teaching Methods of Jesus.

At 78 Million strong, the Millennials--those born between 1980 and 2000--have surpassed Baby Boomers as the larger and more influential generation in the United States.  Now, as its members begin to reach a defining state of adulthood, best-selling research author Thom Rainer and his son Jess (a Millennial himself) present the first major investigative work on the Millennials from a Christian worldview perspective.

From the Back Cover:
How are we doing?  The church, that is.  And how are we doing it?  Congregations have long measured success by “bodies, budget, and buildings”—a certain record of attendance, the offering plate, and square footage.  But the scorecard can’t stop there.  When it does, the deeper emphasis on accountability, discipleship, and spiritual maturity is lost.  Ignoring these details, we see fewer lives transformed, Christian  influence wane, and churches thin out—a situation that is all too familiar across North America today.

It is time to take heart and rework the scorecard.

According to Ed Stetzer and Tom S. Rainer, the authors of Transformational Church, “Too often we’ve highlighted the negative realities of the declining American church but missed the opportunity to magnify the God of hope and transformation.”

Based on the most comprehensive study of its kind, including a survey of over 7,000 churches and hundreds of on-site interviews with pastors, Transformational Church takes us to the thriving congregations where truly changing lives is the norm.

Stetzer and Rainer clearly conform the importance of disciple-making through active biblical engagement and prayerful dependence on God alongside of ever-increasing, intentional participation in mission and ministry activities.  As the church engages these issues, the world will see the change.