Top 5 Book List - Church Culture

"If you're a serious minded leader, you will read.  You will read all you can.  You will read when you feel like it, and you will read when you don't.  You will do whatever you have to do to increase your leadership input, because you know as well as I do that it will make you better." 

Bill Hybels, Axiom:  Powerful Leadership Proverbs

Here are my Top 5 books on Church Culture (in no particular order)...

An Unstoppable Force - Erwin Raphael McManus

Erwin McManus has an unusually perceptive grasp of the ethos of the church and inspires Christ followers to become the church God intended - a creative force that really can change the world!  He describes himself as a cultural architect, which captures well the role of church leaders to not just respond to the culture but to shape it according to God's pattern. 

Culture Shift - Robert Lewis & Wayne Cordeiro

Based on their experience at New Hope Church in O'ahu, Lewis and Cordeiro describes how to transform your church from the inside out by creating a values driven culture.  The authors help you to identify your current culture and provide practical tools to transform it by bringing it into alignment with your mission.

IT - Craig Groeshel

Have you ever noticed how some churches have that almost indefinable culture that makes them stand out from the rest?  It has little to do with structure or style, but a life-changing force or presence that can only be defined as "it".  Groeshel helps you to identify what "it" is, how to get "it" and how to keep "it".

Natural Church Development - Christian A. Schwarz

Christian Schwarz describes churches as organisms rather than organisations and identifies the eight quality characteristics that are essential for the culture of any healthy church.  He teaches the "all by itself" principle from Mark 4:26-29 that generates organic growth from a healthy environment by releasing the divine growth automatisms  by which God Himself grows His church.

No Perfect People Allowed - John Burke

This book shows you how to deconstruct the barriers that stand between emerging generations and your church by creating a 'come as you are' culture.  John Burke helps us to learn how to welcome and embrace spiritually curious 'imperfect people' by casting a powerful vision of the potential of the body of Christ to transform lives in a post-modern world.