The Christian as Minister An Exploration Into The Meaning of God's Call

by Meg Lassiat (editor)

An introduction and explanation of the different types of ministry available for people considering God’s call to ministry in The United Methodist Church.

Genres: Faith, Christian, Nonfiction, Theology

102 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2013

Reviews

[Emily]

Step one done (no review since it’s a school read)

[Nina · Rating 2 out of 5]

It’s a well designed little book, serving to inspire and support members of the UMC in their search to serve. It’s not badly written, including some helpful real life anecdotes. That’s where the author tends to misstep. Blurred boundaries, particularly in the medical field, can do harm both to the people directly involved and to the voice of the church. While the author was careful to incorporate collaboration with other professionals in many of the anecdotes, the medical field stories missed those opportunities. It’s a common error, particularly in popular culture, but it would be great to improve that in the next revision.

[Kevin Casto · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting book on guiding you in ministry in the UMC. Seems like there should be a prequel on developing and understanding of a call to service. This book is more like a basic understanding of UMC terms and offices. It is worth the read.

[Olivia Ankrom · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very thought provoking.

[Abby Beers]

explorecalling.org

[Will Waller · Rating 2 out of 5]

could have been an email

[Pastor Benjamin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Lacked logical organization and necessity or importance to be read in the contents. Stick to reading the Bible. This is forced to be read as a profit grab.

[Greg D · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a new Methodist, and required reading for those entering the call of servant leadership within the United Methodist Church (UMC), I found this book to be quite enlightening. What this book brings to light is all of the various servant leadership roles and ministries that the UC is involved in, and how we can be a part of it. As a layman considering becoming a licensed local pastor within the UMC, this book was very helpful as it outlines the process, the qualifications, and the description of a local pastor. But, it also introduced a role I was unfamiliar with, the home missioner. The home missioner, associated with the Methodist Women, is someone who is endorsed by the UMC, but is involved in ministry specifically related to justice, compassion, and social service. This appeals to me and may give consideration to what this may look like for me personally. I highly recommend this book, especially to those who want to know more about the various ministries of the UMC and for those who are answering the call to full time ministry.

[Cathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an informative book about the many options of service to God through the United Methodist Church. It is not inspirational. It does contain some questions within each section, but would benefit from (I think) more questions for reflection. There are quotes from people in various roles. If each quote was followed by a question to guide reflection and multiple answers leading one to different paths, that might be an improvement. As it is now, it's a rather overwhelming list of possibilities.