BOOK COMMENTARY
October 1, 1980
Getting the Church on Target
by Lloyd M. Perry, Moody Press, $8.95
Reviewed by H. Benton Lutz Pastor, St. Stephen Lutheran Church, Williamsburg, Vir.
Here's one thought we can say yes to: "Today's minister is expected to do too much. Some of the many responsibilities include: worship, evangelism, missions, Christian education; study, devotions; visitation, counseling, and pastoral services to individuals. Under this kind of work load, some ministers of large churches cannot be shepherds-only ranchers."
Perry thus identifies perhaps the most common problem of ministers. How do you come to know your flock by name, instead of by a brand? This book, a gleaning of Perry's lectures at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, attempts to answer those questions from a church management perspective.
To get back to the business of shepherding instead of ranching, Perry sees the need for church revitalization. This would involve four steps:
¥ diagnosis of the church situation
¥ organization
¥ implementation
¥ assessment.
As managerial as this may sound, Perry does a good job of keeping a clear sense of spirituality and theological commitment. He says, "We are reminded that no rearrangement of bad eggs is going to make a good omelet. It's not the external circumstances, but the heart of man that really counts. In all these things seek God's will-not that you may look at it, but that you may do it."
He begins with a look at the pastor and the role he or she plays in the revitalization process. Perry's view of what a pastor should be would make most of us cringe for fear of not measuring up. But then, he is speaking of the ideal: an informed person who provides challenging leadership; who has a positive relationship with the denomination; who is alert ...
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