A trustworthy and respected guide for pastors and church leadership in the post-quarantine world, providing hope and vision for the future of your congregation. From thousands of surveys of church leaders and in-person consultations, Thom Rainer and his Church Answers team have gathered the essential wisdom you will need to face the challenges and opportunities that the quarantine crisis creates for the local church, including: New and better ways to lead the gathered church A wide-open door for growing the digital church A moment to rethink the facilities New strategies for church growth . . . and much more! This book is, in effect, your personal church consultant, helping you plan and prepare for the future. In the midst of heartbreak, tragedy, and struggle due to Covid-19, here’s hope, wisdom, encouragement and vision. This book is valuable for those looking for local church and pastor resources to enhance church leadership, grow your church, and serve digital and online church communities in the post-quarantine world. As a former pastor and founder of Church Answers, Thom S. Rainer is intimately familiar with the ever-present demands that pastors face. He has spent a lifetime committed to the growth and health of the local church.

Opportunity is born out of crisis. The global pandemic has been horrific. No one could have predicted such chaos to occur for so long. Yet, there is opportunity, the proverbial silver lining. Crisis is an accelerator. The church was catapulted into the digital future. Some churches had no choice but to embrace technology they once refused. The church learned there are more ways to offer worship than we had previously imagined. We learned it is possible to engage people in online ministry that might never become involved in on-site ministry. The church learned that it could change, and it changed quickly. During a pandemic period, when everything seems to have turned upside down, there is an opportunity to stop some things that had not been working anyway, eliminate some things that were seemingly impossible in "normal" times, and start new things that might have been hard to imagine in the past.As some churches began to resume on-site worship, another quandary came into being. How many of our folks will return? What does social distancing look like in a sanctuary with pews? How do we handle singing? What about the choir? Masks or no masks? What about our meet and greet time? How do we collect the offering?As the church begins to emerge from the pandemic, our role is changing. It was already changing pre-pandemic, but the change is sure to escalate drastically post-pandemic. This resource is designed to serve as a guide to what conversations might be helpful for you and your church's leadership. This book is to be used as a tool, not an instrument of judgement or criticism. This resource was created out of a heart full of love for the local church and the hope it will be helpful in finding our next faithful steps to being the vital church in the post-pandemic world.

Now in paperback, this multi-awarded national best seller shares a clear message from case studies of 400 North American congregations: church is done best when it's kept simple.

The African Church and COVID-19: Human Security, the Church, and Society in Kenya is a bold and incisive look at the African Church in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. Throughout the book, contributors explore how the COVID-19 pandemic exposed the fragilities of African society as well as the weaknesses in the Church’s role in helping and serving African communities. The African Church and COVID-19 analyzes the question of how the Church in Kenya should move forward in a post-COVID-19 era to address the vulnerabilities of socio-economic and political structures in Africa.

The Church in America was already experiencing an unprecedented decline before the COVID -19 pandemic. The effects of the pandemic upon church attendances have been far-reaching, and long lasting. Recent research has revealed that one in five churches in America will perinatally close because of COVID-19's effect on already declining churches. How can the church, across denominational lines in North America get in the middle of this digressing trend, and stem the tide of systemic church decline? The Post COVID Church leverages decades of empirical ecclesial work with the fresh perspective of strategic leadership and empower leadership to: Understand causality of a plateau and decline through the lens of the post-modern and post COVID landscape, Recognize the type of new change that proliferates health and growth, Make strategic transformations without losing those who have held the church together for years. Through organizational strategy, understanding values, design thinking, leadership development and strategic foresight, The Post COVID Church provides a road map and "Socratic" process to help the reader leverage creativity and innovation to build momentum and lead the church to prosperity. PRAISE FOR THE BOOK: "Dr. Chris Foster offers timely and critical strategies for embracing and flourishing through change in The Post COVID Church. Dr. Foster's writing style and the power of his personal story combine to create a work that is not only academic but a delight to read. This important work has the potential to prepare leaders to turn obstacles into opportunities in advancing the mission of Christ." —Dr. Kimberly Jones, Vice President of Southwestern Assemblies of God University "The Post COVID Church is an essential resource for leaders desiring to recover from the destructive force of a pandemic and successfully refocus on the mission Jesus left for all His followers. Dr. Chris Foster skillfully compares lessons he learned during his personal health journey to principles he found successful in equipping a church to reach its full Kingdom potential. I took copious notes for my personal files, and I suspect you will too. This book will not be one you read only once. It will become a treasured resource regardless of the organization you lead." —Alton Garrison, Executive Director, Acts 2 Journey "Dr. Chris Foster is a man of passion, purpose and brings significant insight and research into the current situation of the church in America. This book is pregnant with information, truth, and insight that brings a healthy insight into our circumstances and gives us light to live through it and actually achieve what others have given up on. The man is a friend; the book is incredible; and the only thing missing is those who would lift their lid by diving in." — Maury Davis, author of Hindsight 20/20 ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Chris, a Texas native, received his undergraduate degree from Southwestern University, his Master's from Southeastern University, and his Doctorate in Strategic Leadership from Regent University, School of Business and Leadership. With over 31 years of ministry experience, Dr. Foster is an engaging communicator of the gospel, with a church that grew by as much as 400% during the pandemic. Additionally, he serves as a Doctoral Chair and Professor at Southeastern University. He is a father of three, Kash, Cruz, and Eden.

"This book is both timely and needed. Provocative, yes, because the message is essential at this decisive 'hinge moment' in time." -- Philip Yancey, Author, Vanishing Grace "The Way Back is the way forward." -- Erwin Raphael McManus, Founder of Mosaic, and Author, The Last Arrow On a dusty hilltop, Jesus once kickstarted His church with a ragtag group of fishermen who called themselves "The Way." Truth be told, the builders of Christianity were a bunch of nobodies. Like us, they were powerless and flawed and sometimes petty. But they were committed. They were all-in. Within a remarkably short time, The Way became the world's most influential religious faith -- a force in culture, politics, literature, science, philanthropy, and the arts. Against impossible odds, that group of nobodies astonished the world. Two thousand years later -- by any measure -- Christianity is retreating on all fronts. The Way has lost its way. In The Way Back, media and marketing experts Phil Cooke and Jonathan Bock take a hard look at Christians today and reveal that we, as a salesforce, have lost our faith in our product. Where's the passion, the excitement, and the commitment that two thousand years ago made such improbable and staggering growth possible? The Way Back will inspire and equip you to learn from that wonderful group of nobodies, so that you too can astonish the world once more.