Sunday, July 11, 2010

Turning the Ship (a book review)


Dustin Guidry has written a book that I could not put down. Turning the Ship tells the story of a journey that Ridgewood Church has faithfully embarked upon. Simply put, the journey has them moving from a man-made model of ministry to clinging to the supremacy of scripture for every directional and operational decision.
Dustin does a good job of sharing a brief background to the battle today’s church is facing. Prime among the embedded enemies of the church is the subtle workings of pragmatism. This is a powerful section of the book, as he lays bare the loss of distinction between the operations of the church and the rest of the world.
From there, the book is a back and forth between the significance of holding the Bible as the final word on matters of the church and the remarkable story of how God lead the staff and church to become broken-hearted over the program-driven church that they were and how God has brought about remarkable changes.
The most significant of the changes was the move from an age-segregated Sunday School to an age-integrated ministry. “But how do you do that?” I’m glad you asked! Read the book. Dustin has an entire chapter dedicated to the buts that most people present at the thought of moving toward age-integration.
Turning the Ship was a quick read. It has humor injected throughout. Most importantly, though, Dustin shares his heart in a way that both challenges and encourages the reader. Thank you, Dustin, for sharing your story!