"Reaching, Teaching and Growing African-American Believers" promotes Christian education in all churches, particularly African-American churches, for adults, youth, and children. (Christian Education)

African American youth are looking for role models they can trust. The network of support is already in place. God has placed many of His most compassionate workers among today's African American young people. This book is written to help youth workers, pastors, parents, and others who care about reaching young people with the hope of the Gospel. The authors hope that this book will help in the task of "bringing permanent change to our community, which is full of promise and need." Written by many who are personally involved with youth, it explores how to: earn the trust of young people ; place youth in position to know the God who created them ; work with the community and family network ; allow young people to become a part of your life ; prepare young people for college ; balance spirituality and social justice ; counsel African American students in crisis. Our young people are worth the effort it takes to present them to God and to prepare them for a future bright with promise and hope. (Back cover).

Bishop Hilliard pinpoints the signs leaders should look for in knowing their churches are growing in a healthy manner, and includes a discussion of satellite churches, extension churches, and new church plants as signs of healthy growth.

Does God want us to be wealthy? Many people believe that God offers not only eternal joy in the hereafter but also material blessings in the here and now. Other Christians see this "prosperity theology," as nothing more than vulgar materialism, incompatible with orthodox Christianity. In Righteous Riches, Milmon F. Harrison examines the Word of Faith movement, an independent, non-denominational Christian movement that preaches the so-called "health and wealth gospel." The Word of Faith movement is an international network loosely bound by a basic doctrine called the "Faith Message," which teaches that it is God's will for Christians to be prosperous, successful, and healthy in the present life. Drawing on his personal experiences as a former insider and in-depth interviews with members, Harrison takes us inside the movement, revealing what it is like to belong, and how people accept, reject, and reshape Word of Faith doctrines to fit their own lives. Although the movement is not exclusively African American, many of its most prominent and recognized leaders are African American ministers with large congregations and national television audiences. Analyzing the movement's appeal to African Americans, Harrison argues that, because of their history of oppression and discrimination, African American religious institutions have always had to address the material--as well as spiritual--concerns of their members. The Word of Faith Movement, he says, is one of several prosperity movements that resonate strongly with African Americans. Situating the movement in the contexts of both contemporary American religion and the history of the Black Church, Righteous Riches offers a fascinating look at a quintessentially American phenomenon.

Children living in poverty have the same God-given potential as children in wealthier communities, but on average they achieve at significantly lower levels. Kids who both live in poverty and read below grade level by third grade are three times as likely not to graduate from high school as students who have never been poor. By the time children in low-income communities are in fourth grade, they're already three grade levels behind their peers in wealthier communities. More than half won't graduate from high school--and many that do graduate only perform at an eighth-grade level. Only one in ten will go on to graduate from college. These students have severely diminished opportunities for personal prosperity and professional success. It is clear that America's public schools do not provide a high quality public education for the sixteen million children growing up in poverty. Education expert Nicole Baker Fulgham explores what Christians can--and should--do to champion urgently needed reform and help improve our public schools. The book provides concrete action steps for working to ensure that all of God's children get the quality public education they deserve. It also features personal narratives from the author and other Christian public school teachers that demonstrate how the achievement gap in public education can be solved.

edited by Anne E. Streaty Wimberly A guide for pastors, church leaders, and all who help African Americans in their search for a meaningful Christian lifestyle. Forming Christians--leading fallen and flawed human beings into the path of discipleship to a crucified and risen Lord--is one of the central, if not the central, tasks of all Christian churches. It is a difficult enough task anywhere, but for African Americans, beset by racial conflict, personal crises, generational separation, and other concerns, it is especially so. African American churches must work particularly hard to counter the messages their members receive from the dominant and often unfriendly culture. This book employs the biblical text and African tradition to draw on the idea of the search for wisdom as a potent way to help African Americans in their pursuit of genuine Christian discipleship. Wisdom in African American tradition is not simply knowledge; rather, it is those insights, attitudes, beliefs, behaviors,and practices that create and sustain a life of hope and that produce an inherent sense of the worth of one's self. If their members are to engage in the search for wisdom, African American churches must build an intentional ministry of faith formation. Wisdom can be gained, the authors argue, when African Americans listen to the black oral tradition with its proverbial sayings, revered Bible stories, songs, and narratives from the lives of exemplary individuals. The book offers several similar avenues for the search for wisdom, including helpful models of black males mentoring younger black males, as a remedy to the destructive effects that contemporary culture has on this segment of the African American community.

"Evangelism In The African-American Community" offers a message of hope and a plan of action for those who are truly concerned about the future of the African-American church. It is written in a way that challenges mainline churches and their parishioners to confront and respond to the issues relevant to reaching a new generation of African-Americans. Dr. Jones' bold approach to evangelism is one that can be emulated by any person who has a desire to share his or her faith with others. This book will help you and your congregation successfully navigate change that will result in rewards which far exceed the risk.