Resources

Books and Articles

The books listed here are either free to download or can be purchase by going to the link provided. All documents are free to download.
Click on the + sign next to the title to find the links to download or purchase.

Empowerment and Equipping Resources
Title & Author		Language	Links	Tags
MInistry by R. Paul Stevens From the Book of Everyday Christianity	Sample The word ministry is derived in both Greek and Hebrew from a word that simply means “service.” A Christian servant is someone who puts himself or herself at God’s disposal for the benefit of others and for the stewardship of God’s world. Christian service—commonly called ministry—accords with God’s purposes for people and the world and has the touch of God, often unknown to the servant. Christian service makes no distinction between the sacred and the secular. Washing dishes, designing a computer program, preaching a sermon and healing the sick are all one, as William Tyndale said so long ago, “as touching the deed to please God.” How far this is from contemporary thinking about ministry!	English	Download full article (pdf)
Laity by R. Paul Stevens From the Book of Everyday Christianity	Sample George Bernard Shaw once said that every profession is a conspiracy against the laity. But there is a problem with this cynical remark when it is applied to the church. It is pointless to launch a conspiracy against something that no longer exists. The New Testament does not reveal two peoples: the professional clergy (those who are superior, gifted and powerful) and the laity (those who are inferior, untrained and powerless). Rather there is one people: the laity (in Greek laos), which includes the leaders. Moreover the leaders, like the led, are first and foremost members of the laity and share the exquisite honor of the people of God (1 Peter 2:9-10). Indeed the cultivation of professionalism by leaders of the church is incongruous with the essentially amateur nature of all Christian ministry. It is the work of love (as the root meaning of amateur indicates). To recover a biblical perspective on the people of God, we may need to abolish the words laity and clergy. We may also need to reinvent a way of expressing the dignity and duty of the ordinary Christian. In preparation for this we must first examine the biblical data, then reflect theologically on the identity and vocation of the people of God and finally consider what this all means.	English	Download full article (pdf)

Joy at Work Resources
Title & Author		Language	Links	Tags
Joy at Work Bible Study Companion (Russian) by Anatoliy Glukhovskyy	Book Description: The Joy at Work Bible Study Companion by Raymond Bakke, William Hendricks, and Brad Smith has been translated to Russian by Dr Anatoliy Glukovskyy	Russian	Free to Download (1.6MB)
Joy at Work (Russian) by Anatoliy Glukhovskyy	Book Description: This is the e-book (pdf version) of Joy at Work by Dennis Bakke, translated into Russian by Anatole Glukhovskyy	Russian	Free to Download (1.5MB)
The Decision Maker by Dennis Bakke	Book Description: Who makes the important decisions in your organization? Strategy, product development, budgeting, compensation—such key decisions typically are made by company leaders. That’s what bosses are for, right? But maybe the boss isn’t the best person to make the call. That’s the conclusion Dennis Bakke came to, and he used it to build AES into a Fortune 200 global power company with 27,000 people in 27 countries. He used it again to create Imagine Schools, the largest non-profit charter-school network in the U.S. As a student at Harvard Business School, Bakke made hundreds of decisions using the case-study method. He realized two things: decision-making is the best way to develop people; and that shouldn't stop at business school. So Bakke spread decision-making throughout his organizations, fully engaging people at all levels. Today, Bakke has given thousands of people the freedom and responsibility to make decisions that matter. In The Decision Maker, a leadership fable loosely based on Bakke's experience, the New York Times bestselling author shows us how giving decisions to the people closest to the action can transform any organization. The idea is simple. The results are powerful. When leaders put real control into the hands of their people, they tap incalculable potential. The Decision Maker, destined to be a business classic, holds the key to unlocking the potential of every person in your organization.	English	Free to Download
Joy at Work Bible Study Companion by Brad Smith	Book Description: Back in the Garden, work was fun. Yet, in today’s fallen world, joy and work are rarely used in the same sentence. But God really does intend for us to find joy in our work. Join Raymond Bakke, Brad Smith, and Bill Hendricks as they explore what the Bible says about the purpose of business and our right to a joyful workplace. No matter where you spend those 50 or 60 hours during the week—whether it’s in business, government, or the nonprofit sector; in church, at home, or anywhere else—God intends for you to find joy in your work. This 10-week study accompanies Joy at Work, a book by Dennis W. Bakke, co-founder and CEO of AES, a worldwide energy giant with 40,000 employees in 31 countries. Shaped by his faith, Bakke recounts his quest to create the most fun workplace ever—using principles established in the Garden. This study provides the biblical map that he used as he charted and led that journey. Starting with the Genesis record of creation and moving through Revelation, this Bible study supplements Joy at Work with: Biblical readings that unveil the principles behind each chapter in Joy at Work A synthesis of theological principles Reflective questions to prepare readers for small-group discussion Questions for small-group discussion Guidelines for immediate and long-term application for business and nonprofit leaders at all levels of corporations and organizations. The Joy at Work experience has the power to profoundly change your workplace and your life.	English	Free to Download

Theology of The Womb Resources
Title & Author		Language	Links	Tags
Theology of The Child by Lena Crouso	pdf Document Description: This article is part of a paper for a BGU course in Manila by Rev. Dr. Lena Crouso SAMPLE: The Theology of “The Child” The Trinitarian Plan and Promise for Children: A Biblical Narrative Introductory Statement Children are a gift from God…this is the declarative truth put forth in Psalm 127:3. The specificity of this verse is not as a treatise to the actual procreation and reproduction, but rather as a reatise for why humanity comes into being only because of “multiplying” and that when babies are born, humanity is reflecting God’s good creation. This is further affirmed in the understanding that the Triune God’s intention has always been to grow through fruitful multiplication, His created beings, made in His image, over and over again as He declares in genesis, to make humans in “our image”, bearing out God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit.	English	Download full article (pdf)

Indigenous People Resources
Title & Author		Language	Links	Tags
God and Work - Theology of work - Marketplace Ministry 101 by John Fryters	Book Description: This is a curriculum of Theology of Work and Marketplace Ministry developed by Dr. John Fryters for the Indigenous People. ISBN # 9781626970267 This book is free to download. Comments from those who download would be appreciated. Pastor John Fryters can be reached at campus@inet2000.com	English	Download this curriculum

Pages