I was perusing a bookstore the other day and came across a book entitled “Ten Stupid Things That Keep Churches From Growing – How Leaders Can Overcome Costly Mistakes.” I wasn’t planning on buying it, but several of the chapter titles really jumped out at me and I decided to buy it – and I’m thankful I did. Geoff Surratt is the Executive Pastor of Seacoast Church, a multisite congregation based in Charlestown, South Carolina and author of the previously mentioned book. Surratt writes in a winsome, personal, and comical way about some issues he has personally learned or some issues he has learned from watching at a distance (which is always more nice and less painful – at least in the short-run). The organization of each chapter is composed of Surratt spending several pages explicating the issue and then he spends several more pages interviewing a pastor and asking their perspective on the issue at hand. It makes for a very intriguing read. Without going into a lot of detail here are the chapter breakdowns:
- Pastor trying to do it all
- Establishing the Wrong Role for the Pastor’s Family
- Providing a Second-Rate Worship Experience
- Settling for Low Quality in Children’s Ministry
- Promoting Talent over Integrity
- Clinging to a Bad Location
- Copying Another Successful Church
- Favoring Discipline over Reconciliation
- Mixing Ministry and Business
- Letting Committees Steer the Ship
If you’re in the ministry or are planning to transition into a ministry position in the near-future I would strongly encourage you to pick up Geoff Surratt’s book – it was a highly enjoyable read and one I that I know will benefit me greatly in the years to come. In addition, you can go to Ed Stetzer’s blog, where he interacts with Geoff Surratt concerning his book (which gives you a pretty good overview of the book).
Theology Along the Way 