As a senior pastor and former deacon, Dr. James H. Taylor, III, has many years of experience with the "grain of tradition" paradigm of rural ministry. His passion to make a contribution to the betterment of rural ministry through the equipping of laity for servant leadership and excellence in ministry, lies within this vital resource. This book, which is part research project and part servant leadership resource equipping guide, provides the theological foundation, state of the art in servant leadership and step by step training modules for equipping the laity for the role of servant leader.. This book explores basic leadership principles and contrasts leadership and servant leadership and its intricate and important role in excellence in ministry. The ten module training guide systematically unfolds laity's spiritual undergirding in preparation for embracing the ranks of servant leadership, specifically the diaconate. This resource will benefit any church who desire to better equip its laity for servant leadership and strive for excellence in ministry. Dr. James H. Taylor, III is the senior pastor of the Race Street Baptist church in historic Farmville, VA. He is a graduate of the Samuel DeWitt Proctor School of Theology in Richmond, Virginia. and the United Theological Seminary in Dayton, Ohio.

"God calls you to a life of servanthood as a disciple of Jesus Christ. …Lay Servant Ministries is the first step for many laypersons toward their faith journey as they strive for a closer relationship with the Lord," the authors write in the introduction. The Lay Servant Ministries Basic Course is a foundational course designed to equip new church leaders and renew current leaders in The United Methodist Church. It explores personal spiritual gifts servant leadership each leader's role in developing future leaders the importance of consistent spiritual practices the core ministries of Leading, Caring, and Communicating and much more. The Basic Course can be used for both adults and youth. Consisting of five two-hour sessions, it may serve as a short-term study for small groups, Sunday school classes, and new member classes. NOTE: This book replaces the Lay Speaking Ministries Basic Course, DR551. The Leader's Guide is also available here.

As a senior pastor and former deacon, Dr. James H. Taylor, III, has many years of experience with the "grain of tradition" paradigm of rural ministry. His passion to make a contribution to the betterment of rural ministry through the equipping of laity for servant leadership and excellence in ministry, lies within this vital resource. This book, which is part research project and part servant leadership resource equipping guide, provides the theological foundation, state of the art in servant leadership and step by step training modules for equipping the laity for the role of servant leader.. This book explores basic leadership principles and contrasts leadership and servant leadership and its intricate and important role in excellence in ministry. The ten module training guide systematically unfolds laity's spiritual undergirding in preparation for embracing the ranks of servant leadership, specifically the diaconate. This resource will benefit any church who desire to better equip its laity for servant leadership and strive for excellence in ministry. Dr. James H. Taylor, III is the senior pastor of the Race Street Baptist church in historic Farmville, VA. He is a graduate of the Samuel DeWitt Proctor School of Theology in Richmond, Virginia. And the United Theological Seminary in Dayton, Ohio.

Ingenuity introduces a theology and practice of preaching that emerges from the faith and wisdom of black women. Preaching has been resourced and taught from a narrow field of cultural or gendered experiences, historically. Without much support from established channels, black women are left to “figure it out” on their own, and others discern how to preach from a limiting scope. The best preachers understand their own voices and the voices of others. They stretch and grow, and this enables them to preach more effectively. Ingenuity equips readers to negotiate tradition, life experiences, and theological conviction in the creative work that makes way for sacred speech. With Ingenuity, Lisa Thompson offers deep insights for anyone seeking to enlarge their understanding, their language, and their sense of lived experiences, and offers practical help through “In Practice” segments for those who preach. "Written from the deep well of the spirituality of Black women, Thompson has given us a remarkable guide for what preaching should be and must be for the times we are in. Accessible, thoughtful, probing, pastoral, prophetic—all come together in this text. A must read for anyone committed to faithful excellence in proclaiming the word." -Emilie M. Townes, Dean and E. Rhodes and Leona B. Carpenter Professor of Womanist Ethics and Society, Vanderbilt University Divinity School

This book discusses how these lay persons are inspired to lead, serve, and nurture congregations. Using the model which Jesus taught on servant leadership – “the son of man came to serve and not to be served” (Matt 20:28; Mk 10:45), an exploration is conducted on the concept of servant leadership, the characteristics and behaviors of sacrificial servant leaders, and the environmental factors that motivate sacrificial servant leaders to be effective in the Church. The purpose of this book is to encourage and motivate leaders to be sacrificial servant leaders and to enhance an effective church ministry. In this contemporary era and more than ever before, there is a need for sacrificial servant leadership and team-work to cope with the needs of the congregation. However, I approach sacrificial Servant leadership as the process of serving followers towards growth through sacrificial and selfless stewardship based on the example of Jesus Christ viewed within the Christian faith. In essence, the concepts of “sacrificial”, “selflessness”, and “stewardship” are foundational and define the larger facets of sacrificial servant leadership.

Servant-leadership may be the answer to the current demand for a more ethical, people-centred leadership where humility, servitude and contribution are key elements. The purpose of this book is to provide an overview of current thinking and empirical research of the determinants, underlying processes and consequences of servant leadership.

Missiologist and church planter JR Woodward offers a blueprint for the missional church--not small adjustments around the periphery of the infrastructure but a radical revisioning of how a church ought to look that entails changing how we think about leadership and what we expect out of discipleship.