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Renovation of the Church: What Happens When a Seeker Church Discovers Spiritual Formation
Copastors Kent Carlson and Mike Lueken tell the story of how God took their thriving, consumer-oriented church and transformed it into a modest congregation of unformed believers committed to the growth of the spirit--even when it meant a decline in numbers.As Kent and Mike found out, a decade of major change is not easy on a church. Oak Hills Church, from the pastoral sta...more
Paperback, 185 pages
Published
April 5th 2011
by IVP Books
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I recently finished reading Renovation of the Church: What Happens When A Seeker Church Discovers Spiritual Formation by Ken Carlson & Mike Lueken, with the staff at our church, and it was an outstanding read.
The book is about a church that is in the process of continual evolution coming out of the 90′s where many churches took on a similar model of ministry based on the strategies and values of Willow Creek. What I appreciated about the authors, is that they didn’t knock Willow Creek or any...more
The book is about a church that is in the process of continual evolution coming out of the 90′s where many churches took on a similar model of ministry based on the strategies and values of Willow Creek. What I appreciated about the authors, is that they didn’t knock Willow Creek or any...more
Carlson and Lueken are courageous pastors to be so transparent about their decade-long journey of finding the balance between pastoring beleivers and reaching the lost. Every question they wrestled with was grounds for deep reflection within my own heart, and as I would often find myself discouraged by the instricacies of this balance, I would again be encouraged by their journey. They don't claim to have all the answers. In fact, they are very humble in their claim to any sort of knowledge. The...more
I read this one because Jim Herrington recommended it. In some ways I wish he hadn't. It cuts a little too deep for some of us "lifers" who have spent our entire lives doing church to try to get more people "in the door". (Which, by the way, was never something Jesus actually did. He had a funny way of having "membership drives" - that is, sending many pretend-followers away in favor of sinners who were drawn to his deeply passionate message of Grace and a new way of living called The Kingdom li...more
Carlson and Lueken are highly successful mega-church pastors who find themselves in the rat race of church success. The demands of feeding the weekly performance monster is sucking the life out of them.
In one characteristically transparent passage they write about a conversation following a Sunday morning service. From a performance perspective, we had put together a first rate product. The artistic elements were very compelling and technically excellent. There were times when people were laughi...more
In one characteristically transparent passage they write about a conversation following a Sunday morning service. From a performance perspective, we had put together a first rate product. The artistic elements were very compelling and technically excellent. There were times when people were laughi...more
Excellent story of the intentional vision shift from being a seeker driven church to being a spiritual formation focused church. The authors graciously did so without bashing their seeker targeted heritage of their congregation. The authors honestly share both their successes and their foibles. I do wonder if they could have done more to provide spiritual formation for new believers at the level and in a form that they can digest it, if the congregation would not have lost as many invested peopl...more
"What Happens When a Seeker Church Discovers Spiritual Formation" is the by line. This is the story by two pastors of a Sacramento CA church that decided to intentionally move in this direction. Moving from 'consumerism' approach to programing they now emphasize thoughtful programing that helps disciples become more 'apprenticed to Jesus'.
Attendance dwindled from 1400 to 500 but the core is larger and more focused on the advancement of the kingdom of God where the disciples are. No more feeding...more
Attendance dwindled from 1400 to 500 but the core is larger and more focused on the advancement of the kingdom of God where the disciples are. No more feeding...more
What does it look like to turn a megachurch into something smaller, slower, and more quiet? Kent Carlson and Mike Lueken show us in their book Renovation of the Church. They relate the story of Oak Hills Church in Folsom, California. As the pastors at Oak Hills, they resided over the growth of one of the fastest growing churches in the region. But it wasn't long before they felt God was leading them in another, smaller direction.
Their book explains the ups and downs that Oak Hills went through w...more
Their book explains the ups and downs that Oak Hills went through w...more
I am (was) a member of the Oak Hills Church which these two pastors call home. I saw this transformation and while I can certainly understand their reasonings for it and even appreciate the need for some change as a Christian, I am more and more drawn to the realization that they have missed the mark entirely.
Throughout the book they preach the need to look inside and find spiritual formation; to fight against the consumerism of the modern church. And while I can applaud their words, the fact of...more
Throughout the book they preach the need to look inside and find spiritual formation; to fight against the consumerism of the modern church. And while I can applaud their words, the fact of...more
This quick book tells the story of two pastors who led a growing mega-church in California, only to realize that they were not seeing people (including themselves) become more Christlike. Over the course of a decade, they shifted the focus of the church to one of spiritual formation rather than a seeker-sensitive model. This books captures their story--both the successes and failures--as they moved through this decade long transition, and it gives the reader insights for how local congregations...more
This book is a combination of hit and miss. On the positive side, the authors have wonderful and welcome insights into the differences between a body of believers centered on formation and one centered on an "attractional model" of congregational life, as well as honest and genuine offerings of the messy transition from one to the other. On the other hand, the authors both seem to display a sense of faith formation that is young and at times immature and their hierarchical, top-down approach to...more
I had planned a hiatus from reading recent books about church life as I was finding most to be recycled ideas in new wrapping paper. Then recently I was given a copy of this book about a church I am somewhat familiar with. One of the authors is a long time acquaintance and in their early years the church did support us as missionaries in the Philippines. I knew some of their story but not in detail. They offer a bold deconstruction of consumerist Christianity but tell their own confrontation of...more
I read Renovation Of The Church against the backdrop of resigning as pastor of my church. Kent Carlson and Mike Lueken brought me to much introspection and healing, in the face of that transition, with their theology of church. I identified with their struggles and could feel the pain of their transition. A few times their words stopped me in my tracks and brought tears to my eyes as they spoke straight to the wounds in my heart.
After eight years at our church it was becoming clear that our visi...more
After eight years at our church it was becoming clear that our visi...more
This is a very interesting book. A complete indictment of much of mainstream, contemporary Christianity and call to greater discipleship. I like the theology of vocation and they certainly support that. At times I felt they had a reverse theology of the cross - "we are growing smaller so we must be more faithful than those large, worldly churches. The smaller we are, the more faithful we are." I don't know what denomination the authors were, and having no foundation is a danger for a non-denomin...more
Two pastors talk about their movement from a seeker-sensitive church model to a church model of spiritual formation and discipleship. The book is clearly written and the author's discussion is done humbly, acknowledging their mistakes along the way, with some good insight into the success-by-flash and numbers pastor and the consumer-driven model of many American church-goers. The book is long on diagnosis, I needed less convincing than they provided, and is briefer on cure. I liked their hints a...more
Kent Carson and Mike Lueken (co-pastors of Oak Hills Community Church in Sacramento) tell the story of their congregation's move from "seeker" to "spiritual formation." It hasn't been easy, but it's been good.
Loved this book. Didn't agree with all the ideas, but loved the authors' courage and honesty. They have a lot of important things to say to us about consumerism in the church. The first 100 pages are fantastic the last 80 don't hold up as well.
Gives honest testimony of how difficult it is to change the culture of an established church.
I heard the story from the mouths of the authors and still enjoyed reading the book. I recommend for pastors to read chapter 12 and the epilogue first, then chapters 1-11, and then re-read chapter 12 and the epilogue.
Aug 07, 2012
Charles
added it
excellent important book read it
Compelling. Food for thought.
honest and forthcoming story, good tidbits of information. the church transition process is very similar to our own current experience.
May 17, 2013
Kasane Teto
marked it as to-read
May 08, 2013
Mary catherine
marked it as to-read
Apr 18, 2013
Desalegn Wolde
marked it as to-read
Apr 08, 2013
Scottreads
added it
Apr 08, 2013
Sam
marked it as to-read
Mar 12, 2013
Keith Brooks
marked it as to-read
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