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The Family Life of a Christian Leader
Anyone involved in Christian ministry knows how challenging it is to balance ministry and family responsibilities. Many demands pull leaders in different directions―making it easy to neglect one or the other, often without even realizing it. Writing from decades of counseling and personal ministry experience, Ajith Fernando points Christian leaders back to the most important aspect of their their relationship with God. He then offers practical guidance for responding to real-life situations in the home, including disciplining children, dealing with disappointment, loving one’s spouse, and pursuing joy. This book presents Christian leaders with a healthy and God-centered understanding of family that leads to a flourishing home.
224 pages, Paperback
First published July 1, 2016
43 people are currently reading
221 people want to read
About the author
Ajith Fernando
70 books21 followersAjith Fernando serves as Teaching Director of Youth for Christ in Sri Lanka after being National Director for 35 years. Ajith is a visiting lecturer and Council President of Colombo Theological Seminary and also serves as Visiting Scholar at Tyndale University College and Seminary in Toronto. He has written 15 books and his books have been published in 19 different languages. The Call to Joy and Pain was awarded the Christianity Today Book of the Year Award for church and pastoral leadership.
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Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
January 20, 2017
This might be the most legalistic book I've ever read. The WHOLE thing is "do this, do that." "Good Christian leaders do this; bad Christian leaders do that." There are some great applications of truth here, especially if one were looking for inspiration for that portion of a sermon, but as a standalone work this book is a travesty. Legalism is already rampant in the worldwide church, and I don't understand why our friend from Sri Lanka has exacerbated the problem. He never roots his teaching in the gospel, never reflects on the character of the Chief Shepherd, never shows the grace that is necessary for any of these imperatives to make any sense or have any power. A real shame.
September 5, 2018
A solid book full of much wisdom and practical application. Fernando gives biblical counsel concerning a variety of things in the family, from being a better parent and spouse, to how to develop love, fun, and traditions, to how to persevere in suffering.
The table of contents itself is a good outline of the book. One can look there to see what he mainly speaks about. Each chapter consists of insight from his many years in ministry, and then biblical support.
But my favorite quote was when he was talking about money and the home. He writes, “Happiness is the real wealth of a home” (80). He explains what he means by this, but it has stuck with me. He’s right, and this is what spouses and kids care about: happiness is what matters, it’s the real wealth. So, as he argues, take time to foster delight in the home. This alone is worth the book.
The title is specifically toward Christian leaders, but I think his main aim was just a family book in general. Some applications (a handful at most in the whole book) are about the Christian church leader in general, but most of it is just family insights and biblical ideas.
Worth reading. I’ll refer to it again.
The table of contents itself is a good outline of the book. One can look there to see what he mainly speaks about. Each chapter consists of insight from his many years in ministry, and then biblical support.
But my favorite quote was when he was talking about money and the home. He writes, “Happiness is the real wealth of a home” (80). He explains what he means by this, but it has stuck with me. He’s right, and this is what spouses and kids care about: happiness is what matters, it’s the real wealth. So, as he argues, take time to foster delight in the home. This alone is worth the book.
The title is specifically toward Christian leaders, but I think his main aim was just a family book in general. Some applications (a handful at most in the whole book) are about the Christian church leader in general, but most of it is just family insights and biblical ideas.
Worth reading. I’ll refer to it again.
December 30, 2023
I think there was a lot of excellent wisdom in this book regarding practical ideas and even mindsets regarding family life from a Christian perspective; especially concerning the family life of someone highly engaged in Christian ministry. I also particularly appreciate Fernando’s global perspective as a Sri Lankan. But the points he makes that I disagree with and some of the sources he draws from make me pause before recommending it. I think I would recommend it so long as it is one of multiple sources on the topic the reader is drawing from; especially if they are looking for a non-western perspective.
August 29, 2016
The family of a leader is perhaps one of the most underappreciated, misunderstood, and even neglected in the world at large. Leaders are being pulled in so many directions and by so many people That it becomes easy to neglect their own family. It can be hard to strike a balance between leading the people outside and inside your home. But this is not an issue that only leaders in the workplace face. Christian leaders face the same struggles with their families. For many of them their jobs consist of ministering to a multitude of families other than their own.
In my pastoral theology class my professor told us that the old adage that some pastors in the ministry followed was, “Take care of God’s people and God will take care of your family.” The understanding behind this (horrible!) advice was that ministry leaders, especially pastors, didn’t have time to minister to and lead the family in their own house because they had to spend their time ministering to and leading the families God gave them in his house – their local church. The fallout from that advice is disastrous and unbiblical at best.
Taking a biblical approach to advising ministry leaders on how to balance ministry and family life Ajith Fernando has written The Family Life of a Christian Leader (Crossway, 2016). A Christian ministry leader himself, Ajith serves as the teaching director of Youth for Christ in Sri Lanka has had a successful writing ministry with seventeen books published in nineteen languages. Ajith’s advice and wisdom is geared towards men in Christian ministry as heads of their household.
Putting Family First
Telling Christian leaders that God will take care of their family for them overlooks the biblical teaching that a man’s first responsibility, whether a Christian leader or not, is to the family God has given him in his own house. He is the means through which God will care for his family. If God doesn’t want spouses to divide their marriage (Matt. 19:6) then men must not do things that will tear them apart.
Ajith wisely notes, “When leaders practice Christianity in their homes, this brings credibility to their leadership and ministry.” (24) Practicing Christianity rightly in your home will result in putting your family’s needs first. In his list of qualifications for pastors, Paul tells Timothy that, “he must manage his own household well, with all dignity keeping his children submissive, for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God’s church?” (I Tim. 3:4-5, italics mine) It is a clear requirement of pastors, and should be for all Christian leaders, to care for their families first in order to qualify themselves for taking care of God’s church. We must not get this backwards.
In his chapter God’s Beautiful Plan, Ajith describes what can happen when Christian leaders neglect their families for the church
When his wife complains about his neglect of the home, he tells her that he must follow God’s call. The wife, being a devout Christian, chooses not to “fight God” and bears with her husband’s neglect of the home. After some years, however, the wife realizes that this neglect was not God’s will but the result of her husband’s lack of discipline. The consequence may be unpleasant confrontations at home. The guilt-ridden husband, by now suffering something close to burnout as a result of his poor discipline, goes to the other extreme. He drops out of ministry or takes a job that brings material comfort to the home but takes him away from his call-or keeps his positions in ministry without properly fulfilling his responsibilities. (60)
The list can go on and on as to the consequences of Christian leaders neglecting their families. When Christian leaders minister to their families first then they are truly free and equipped to properly minister to those in their care.
Taking Care of Family
Much of the advice and wisdom Ajith gives boils down to good parenting as applied to some of the specific challenges Christian ministry leaders face. There is advice on the proper balance between delighting in and disciplining your children, growing your marriage, knowing when to take time off, planning your schedule, dealing with pain and ministry disappointment, and prioritizing the needs of your children at each stage of their lives.
Perhaps one of the most neglected areas of focus within families is that of joy. Happiness comes and goes but joy is what sustains a family in the good and bad. When joy fills a home there is very little that can destroy it. Spouses and children who have been filled with joy from the leader of the home are better equipped to handle tough situations brought on by the ministry and they are better able to handle the sometimes extended absences of the husband/father when he has to leave and serve others. If the joy of the Lord is our strength as believers, then it is for believing families as well (Neh. 8:10).
Conclusion
In the adoption and foster care classes my wife and I took we were given a lot of training on how to parent kids who have come from backgrounds with abuse and neglect. I remember thinking to myself that the tools and advice they were giving us boiled down to solid parenting skills as applied to the special parenting situations we would encounter with these children. The Family Life of a Christian Leader is not unlike that. Ajith gives a swath of advice and wisdom for ministry leaders to lead and care for their families better in the midst of the demands of ministry. It is good parenting and spouse advice as applied to the unique situations families find themselves in when in ministry.
I received this book for free from Crossway for this review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
In my pastoral theology class my professor told us that the old adage that some pastors in the ministry followed was, “Take care of God’s people and God will take care of your family.” The understanding behind this (horrible!) advice was that ministry leaders, especially pastors, didn’t have time to minister to and lead the family in their own house because they had to spend their time ministering to and leading the families God gave them in his house – their local church. The fallout from that advice is disastrous and unbiblical at best.
Taking a biblical approach to advising ministry leaders on how to balance ministry and family life Ajith Fernando has written The Family Life of a Christian Leader (Crossway, 2016). A Christian ministry leader himself, Ajith serves as the teaching director of Youth for Christ in Sri Lanka has had a successful writing ministry with seventeen books published in nineteen languages. Ajith’s advice and wisdom is geared towards men in Christian ministry as heads of their household.
Putting Family First
Telling Christian leaders that God will take care of their family for them overlooks the biblical teaching that a man’s first responsibility, whether a Christian leader or not, is to the family God has given him in his own house. He is the means through which God will care for his family. If God doesn’t want spouses to divide their marriage (Matt. 19:6) then men must not do things that will tear them apart.
Ajith wisely notes, “When leaders practice Christianity in their homes, this brings credibility to their leadership and ministry.” (24) Practicing Christianity rightly in your home will result in putting your family’s needs first. In his list of qualifications for pastors, Paul tells Timothy that, “he must manage his own household well, with all dignity keeping his children submissive, for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God’s church?” (I Tim. 3:4-5, italics mine) It is a clear requirement of pastors, and should be for all Christian leaders, to care for their families first in order to qualify themselves for taking care of God’s church. We must not get this backwards.
In his chapter God’s Beautiful Plan, Ajith describes what can happen when Christian leaders neglect their families for the church
When his wife complains about his neglect of the home, he tells her that he must follow God’s call. The wife, being a devout Christian, chooses not to “fight God” and bears with her husband’s neglect of the home. After some years, however, the wife realizes that this neglect was not God’s will but the result of her husband’s lack of discipline. The consequence may be unpleasant confrontations at home. The guilt-ridden husband, by now suffering something close to burnout as a result of his poor discipline, goes to the other extreme. He drops out of ministry or takes a job that brings material comfort to the home but takes him away from his call-or keeps his positions in ministry without properly fulfilling his responsibilities. (60)
The list can go on and on as to the consequences of Christian leaders neglecting their families. When Christian leaders minister to their families first then they are truly free and equipped to properly minister to those in their care.
Taking Care of Family
Much of the advice and wisdom Ajith gives boils down to good parenting as applied to some of the specific challenges Christian ministry leaders face. There is advice on the proper balance between delighting in and disciplining your children, growing your marriage, knowing when to take time off, planning your schedule, dealing with pain and ministry disappointment, and prioritizing the needs of your children at each stage of their lives.
Perhaps one of the most neglected areas of focus within families is that of joy. Happiness comes and goes but joy is what sustains a family in the good and bad. When joy fills a home there is very little that can destroy it. Spouses and children who have been filled with joy from the leader of the home are better equipped to handle tough situations brought on by the ministry and they are better able to handle the sometimes extended absences of the husband/father when he has to leave and serve others. If the joy of the Lord is our strength as believers, then it is for believing families as well (Neh. 8:10).
Conclusion
In the adoption and foster care classes my wife and I took we were given a lot of training on how to parent kids who have come from backgrounds with abuse and neglect. I remember thinking to myself that the tools and advice they were giving us boiled down to solid parenting skills as applied to the special parenting situations we would encounter with these children. The Family Life of a Christian Leader is not unlike that. Ajith gives a swath of advice and wisdom for ministry leaders to lead and care for their families better in the midst of the demands of ministry. It is good parenting and spouse advice as applied to the unique situations families find themselves in when in ministry.
I received this book for free from Crossway for this review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
October 5, 2017
Nothing groundbreaking here, but solid teaching on how to care well your family as a Christian leader. - Although I'm not sure why the title restricts itself to leaders and not just fathers in general. Anyways, I did appreciate the chapters on delighting in your children and communicating that delight to them verbally. I also liked the emphasis on having fun and creating an atmosphere of play and joy in your home. Those chapters were the reason I bought the book and they gave the book its distinctive place on the subject. It also touched on marriage and unity in the household, as well as discipline and instructing children in the faith. Fernando is from Sri Lanka, so I was definitely curious to see how his own cultural upbringing shaped his approach. There were definitely a few insights to be found there. Got this copy on sale for $5 at WTS books. Was worth it.
March 1, 2025
Every person who is a believer should read.
What I love most about this book is that while it needs to speak to a Christian leader it speaks to everyone who called themselves a Christian. This is important because everyone who sees leadership within the church should first start within the leadership of their home. While there is importance and a need for titles and positions, it should not be the driving force for us to be better. Character and personal responsibility for one’s family is the highest calling one could have. So if you seek to have a family or already have one, then you should be reading this book. It’s our first task as leaders should be and always is to lead our family well.
What I love most about this book is that while it needs to speak to a Christian leader it speaks to everyone who called themselves a Christian. This is important because everyone who sees leadership within the church should first start within the leadership of their home. While there is importance and a need for titles and positions, it should not be the driving force for us to be better. Character and personal responsibility for one’s family is the highest calling one could have. So if you seek to have a family or already have one, then you should be reading this book. It’s our first task as leaders should be and always is to lead our family well.
August 5, 2020
A book of reminders of how we as fathers and mothers should lead our families by the Word of God and in the power of His Holy Spirit. Focusing on all aspects of the family life, the book dwells deep into aspects of marriage and relationships with one’s spouse and the leading of children into a life dedicated to Christ. A book that should be read by all getting into marriage and starting a family.
June 20, 2017
This is a solid, scripturally sound collection of advice for Christian parents on building a home and raising children. But it speaks very little about leadership, and that is disappointing. Perhaps the problem is as simple as the title, but as a professor of leadership I was hoping for better truth in advertising. It is an excellent review of the biblical essentials of family life, however.
August 23, 2017
This is a solid, scripturally sound collection of advice for Christian parents on building a home and raising children. But it speaks very little about leadership, and that is disappointing. Perhaps the problem is as simple as the title, but as a professor of leadership I was hoping for better truth in advertising. It is an excellent review of the biblical essentials of family life, however.
December 20, 2018
A relatively simple read.
What he says makes sense. His chapters at the latter part of the book are better. For example, love fights. And chapters on how to deal with kids.
This book is not strictly for church leaders. Everyone with a family/spouse/kids will learn something.
The book is worth a re-read for the latter portions
What he says makes sense. His chapters at the latter part of the book are better. For example, love fights. And chapters on how to deal with kids.
This book is not strictly for church leaders. Everyone with a family/spouse/kids will learn something.
The book is worth a re-read for the latter portions
January 21, 2019
Very Biblical and gave practical advice for leading a family. One thing that I found interesting was that the author lives in Sri Lanka so he often explained how leading a Christian family is different than that in Sri Lanka.
April 4, 2023
Ajith offer a different perspective since he is a missionary in Indonesia (I think). It is practical. I didn't find anything surprisingly different but it offers good content relating to parenting as a Christian leader.
January 14, 2018
I appreciate the author's effort and intentions in this book. However, it comes across often as proof-texted opinions.
January 20, 2018
Lots of practical relationship wisdom.
May 29, 2019
A Manual for Family Life in Christ
This book is probably the most practical book I have read. Really a good guide for any person that wants their family to live and honor Christ.
This book is probably the most practical book I have read. Really a good guide for any person that wants their family to live and honor Christ.
March 14, 2020
Quite simply - one of the most practical and helpful books for a Christian pastor/leader on how they ought to serve their family.
August 7, 2021
Intensely practical and helpful in this day and age.
September 5, 2022
There are a number of shortcomings, but I am thankful for Fernando's perspective.
December 20, 2025
I loved how applicable this was.
July 14, 2022
Helpful collection of practical wisdom in parenting and marriage. Really useful to have biblically grounded counsel, but coming from a slightly different cultural context. It's not that anything Fernando is totally different from someone writing from a Western context, it's that the things that run counter-culture are just a bit different. It's helpful to look at biblical truth from a slightly different profile.
Contrary to the title, not a lot in here about family life in relation to the work of leadership itself (other than the importance of not letting ministry out of the home obscure your ministry inside the home). I wish there had been more on how family life informs and even helps the work of a Christian leader.
Contrary to the title, not a lot in here about family life in relation to the work of leadership itself (other than the importance of not letting ministry out of the home obscure your ministry inside the home). I wish there had been more on how family life informs and even helps the work of a Christian leader.
December 7, 2016
The family lives of Christian leaders are of profound importance for the church.
Consider Paul’s qualifications for elders in 1 Timothy 3:1–7. An elder must be a “husband of one wife” and one who manages “his own household well”, for if someone can’t manage his own house well, why would God trust him to lead His church?
Ajith Fernando, president of Youth For Christ Sri Lanka, knows this well from several decades of leading ministries and his own family. The contents of this book were forged in the caldron of ministry adversity, providing timeless and life-tested truths from the Scriptures to guide Christian leaders toward faithful family lives.
Fernando skillfully combines a theology of the family and of leadership and also equips readers practically with a well-rounded crash course on the most important topics relating to Christian leaders leading their families. A few of the most helpful portions (and reminders) for me include:
—Seeking first Kingdom individually and as family. Consider how Fernando applies this with prayer, “I believe praying is the most important thing we do on earth. Our children recognize this when they observe the seriousness with which we approach the task of praying. This encourages them to respect and honor God.”
—Living selflessly and bearing my cross as a husband and father (the opposite of our nature and culture). Fernando writes, “In a Christian marriage or church, when there is conflict or disagreement, the end we desire is not victory but unity under the will of God.”
—Practical guidelines for disciplining and instructing children. One such guideline: “We must not forget that discipline is actually an expression of love, and that fact must sine through in our discipline.”
—The importance of prioritizing family fun and traditions for children. Fernando suggests pursuing “holy fun” as a family, side-stepping how sin has hijacked what many consider fun, and pursuing relationship-building activities that faithfully enjoy God’s many good gifts in life. This “holy fun” can also be a great avenue for evangelism and discipleship by inviting others into family activity to model how believers can truly enjoy life and each other without swerving into sinful activity.
—Other topics include: Sexual Love, Joy, Disappointment and Pain, Unity, and guidelines for fighting well.
I enjoyed seeing how Fernando applies biblical truth in the Sri Lankan context through various stories and illustrations and was reminded of the challenge of biblically leading family in any culture. His writing is clear, immensely practical, and filled with real-life situations and illustrations to drive home Scriptural truths.
Although my wife and I do not yet have children, I read this book for biblical grounding in what will (Lord willing) be my most vital leadership role: the leader of a family.
I highly recommend this book for every Christian leader, whether a pastor, non-profit ministry leader like Fernando, and even Sunday school teachers. The family plays a vital role in advancing the gospel, and we would all be wise to think through family opportunities and issues in biblically-shaped and gospel-centered ways.
I suspect this book would be most helpful for Christian leaders who didn’t have the best family life growing up. If this is you, instead of defaulting to what your parents did, let Fernando mentor you in leading a godly family. The importance of leading your family well cannot be overstated.
Consider Paul’s qualifications for elders in 1 Timothy 3:1–7. An elder must be a “husband of one wife” and one who manages “his own household well”, for if someone can’t manage his own house well, why would God trust him to lead His church?
Ajith Fernando, president of Youth For Christ Sri Lanka, knows this well from several decades of leading ministries and his own family. The contents of this book were forged in the caldron of ministry adversity, providing timeless and life-tested truths from the Scriptures to guide Christian leaders toward faithful family lives.
Fernando skillfully combines a theology of the family and of leadership and also equips readers practically with a well-rounded crash course on the most important topics relating to Christian leaders leading their families. A few of the most helpful portions (and reminders) for me include:
—Seeking first Kingdom individually and as family. Consider how Fernando applies this with prayer, “I believe praying is the most important thing we do on earth. Our children recognize this when they observe the seriousness with which we approach the task of praying. This encourages them to respect and honor God.”
—Living selflessly and bearing my cross as a husband and father (the opposite of our nature and culture). Fernando writes, “In a Christian marriage or church, when there is conflict or disagreement, the end we desire is not victory but unity under the will of God.”
—Practical guidelines for disciplining and instructing children. One such guideline: “We must not forget that discipline is actually an expression of love, and that fact must sine through in our discipline.”
—The importance of prioritizing family fun and traditions for children. Fernando suggests pursuing “holy fun” as a family, side-stepping how sin has hijacked what many consider fun, and pursuing relationship-building activities that faithfully enjoy God’s many good gifts in life. This “holy fun” can also be a great avenue for evangelism and discipleship by inviting others into family activity to model how believers can truly enjoy life and each other without swerving into sinful activity.
—Other topics include: Sexual Love, Joy, Disappointment and Pain, Unity, and guidelines for fighting well.
I enjoyed seeing how Fernando applies biblical truth in the Sri Lankan context through various stories and illustrations and was reminded of the challenge of biblically leading family in any culture. His writing is clear, immensely practical, and filled with real-life situations and illustrations to drive home Scriptural truths.
Although my wife and I do not yet have children, I read this book for biblical grounding in what will (Lord willing) be my most vital leadership role: the leader of a family.
I highly recommend this book for every Christian leader, whether a pastor, non-profit ministry leader like Fernando, and even Sunday school teachers. The family plays a vital role in advancing the gospel, and we would all be wise to think through family opportunities and issues in biblically-shaped and gospel-centered ways.
I suspect this book would be most helpful for Christian leaders who didn’t have the best family life growing up. If this is you, instead of defaulting to what your parents did, let Fernando mentor you in leading a godly family. The importance of leading your family well cannot be overstated.
January 17, 2017
The Family Life of a Christian Leader by Ajith Fernando is a resource that provides a biblical understanding of every aspect family life. While the title may direct it towards Christian leaders, it should be beneficial for any Christian whether they view themselves as a leader or not.
Fernando begins with the foundational truths of family life as they are built on the reality of God. He reminds that family is not a human institution but one divinely ordained. This truth and the fact that God desires to uphold our families is a good incentive to prayer. In the second chapter points to the importance of dying to self in our family relationships. Chapter three provides a biblical understanding of the love we are to have in our families, not the love of the world which is self-serving but the others-focused love which the New Testament calls us to. Chapters four and five focus in on the nature of marriage and the marriage bed. He moves on to address the fact that there is both joy in the family as well as pain and disappointment in the family. The importance of unity and the how to handle conflict in a way that promotes unity is explored. The closing chapters of the book address children in the life of the family.
There are some aspects of this book that are geared specifically for Christian leaders, however most of the instruction found is applicable and needed in the larger Christian culture. Fernando is able to address a wide range of issues in the family in a way that is both encouraging and convicting at times. In my reading I can't remember a single book that addresses all the areas of family life as well as this one does. I would commend this book to any Christian seeking to understand what the Bible says about our family life as this work reflect a depth of biblical wisdom needed in order to address the issues facing families today.
Disclosure: I received an ecopy of the book from the publisher for the purpose of reviewing it. The opinions I have expressed are my own, and I was not required to write a positive review.
Fernando begins with the foundational truths of family life as they are built on the reality of God. He reminds that family is not a human institution but one divinely ordained. This truth and the fact that God desires to uphold our families is a good incentive to prayer. In the second chapter points to the importance of dying to self in our family relationships. Chapter three provides a biblical understanding of the love we are to have in our families, not the love of the world which is self-serving but the others-focused love which the New Testament calls us to. Chapters four and five focus in on the nature of marriage and the marriage bed. He moves on to address the fact that there is both joy in the family as well as pain and disappointment in the family. The importance of unity and the how to handle conflict in a way that promotes unity is explored. The closing chapters of the book address children in the life of the family.
There are some aspects of this book that are geared specifically for Christian leaders, however most of the instruction found is applicable and needed in the larger Christian culture. Fernando is able to address a wide range of issues in the family in a way that is both encouraging and convicting at times. In my reading I can't remember a single book that addresses all the areas of family life as well as this one does. I would commend this book to any Christian seeking to understand what the Bible says about our family life as this work reflect a depth of biblical wisdom needed in order to address the issues facing families today.
Disclosure: I received an ecopy of the book from the publisher for the purpose of reviewing it. The opinions I have expressed are my own, and I was not required to write a positive review.
August 7, 2016
Living your faith in the context of your family is difficult for anyone. It is the dirty secret (perhaps a poorly kept secret) of those in Christian leadership that we struggle in this area too. That is why this book is so important. It speaks truth directly and unashamedly to those who exist in the leadership of churches and ministries about their family life. When every poll you see speaks to the pressure felt by the families of pastors and other Christian leaders this book is timely and helpful. This book would be helpful for all Christians seeking to lead their families well, but is a unique gift to those in leadership. Read this book for yourself, then give it to your pastor.
February 7, 2017
Such an important book. Families are a gift and a treasure. This book gives biblical and practical wisdom in how to bring joy into the home.
April 10, 2017
I feel it's a little presumptuous of me to have decided a book written to christian leaders would be "for me" as I am not a man/leader in the church nor is my husband in a prominent leadership position. But, I have a curious appetite for self improvement/christian interest books and figured advice on home life given to church leaders has to be pretty potent stuff. Some of the best philosophies/concepts about marriage and family life I have adopted have come from well written, christian books. So knowing this to be a tried and true strategy I jumped into The Family Life of a Christian Leader by Ajith Fernando. Ajith is a director of the Youth for Christ program in Sri Lanka and has been in leadership for 35 years. He is a well respected voice in the christian counseling and ministry world and seems to have the real life witness to qualify him as an excellent author for this genre of book.
I found the perspectives and stories from Ajith's differing culture very interesting and yet still extremely pertinent to any family situation. He does a great job of striking a very challenging, yet applicable balance between scripture and real life strategies to apply. He also does a wonderful job of painting a very true to life yet inspiring picture of both the struggles of family life, especially with a ministry career, and also inspiring readers to see what a witness and blessing a harmonious home could be. Each chapter that addresses a "hard" issue has a corresponding encouraging one. I really appreciate Ajith's diligence to help build up Christian leaders to the biblical qualifications of church leadership while also strongly exhorting them to cherish and care for their wife and children. My family has been involved in part time ministries through the years and also have been close to families in full time ministry and know the great burden and challenge that lifestyle can be for a family. I feel this book does a great job of exhorting the importance of this grand calling while also offering very compassionate advice on lightening the load for a ministry family.
I received this book in exchange for my honest review thanks to Crossway Publishing.
I found the perspectives and stories from Ajith's differing culture very interesting and yet still extremely pertinent to any family situation. He does a great job of striking a very challenging, yet applicable balance between scripture and real life strategies to apply. He also does a wonderful job of painting a very true to life yet inspiring picture of both the struggles of family life, especially with a ministry career, and also inspiring readers to see what a witness and blessing a harmonious home could be. Each chapter that addresses a "hard" issue has a corresponding encouraging one. I really appreciate Ajith's diligence to help build up Christian leaders to the biblical qualifications of church leadership while also strongly exhorting them to cherish and care for their wife and children. My family has been involved in part time ministries through the years and also have been close to families in full time ministry and know the great burden and challenge that lifestyle can be for a family. I feel this book does a great job of exhorting the importance of this grand calling while also offering very compassionate advice on lightening the load for a ministry family.
I received this book in exchange for my honest review thanks to Crossway Publishing.
April 25, 2017
Ajith Fernando is a ministry leader from Sri Lanka who writes humbly from a Biblical basis and his own experience and mistakes.
I was challenged repeatedly throughout the book and paused to consider how I was doing in loving and leading my own family while balancing ministry. He walks through how we can love our spouses and children well with plenty of scriptural backing and personal examples. Along the way he provides practical prescription to avoid and rectify our inevitable shortcomings.
Because Fernando is straddling his own culture and the one he is writing to (Western/American Christians) examples at times feel out of place. I understand (it's his own culture), but the cultures seem so different, even amongst Christians, that of some of his examples felt foreign and hard to imagine. In some ways the book feels like it was written in the 90s instead of today based on examples he gives.
There are also times he doesn't use strong enough language to condemn heinous sin (e.g. adultery, abuse), but by no means condones it either.
Overall a helpful and instructive book for Christian leaders in how to love the Lord and their families well in an often hectic lifestyle.
I was challenged repeatedly throughout the book and paused to consider how I was doing in loving and leading my own family while balancing ministry. He walks through how we can love our spouses and children well with plenty of scriptural backing and personal examples. Along the way he provides practical prescription to avoid and rectify our inevitable shortcomings.
Because Fernando is straddling his own culture and the one he is writing to (Western/American Christians) examples at times feel out of place. I understand (it's his own culture), but the cultures seem so different, even amongst Christians, that of some of his examples felt foreign and hard to imagine. In some ways the book feels like it was written in the 90s instead of today based on examples he gives.
There are also times he doesn't use strong enough language to condemn heinous sin (e.g. adultery, abuse), but by no means condones it either.
Overall a helpful and instructive book for Christian leaders in how to love the Lord and their families well in an often hectic lifestyle.
January 30, 2018
Good overall family life book written from a Biblical perspective. The first two-third of the book deal with marriage, and the final third with parenting. Any Christian in a marriage would find this book helpful, there are only a few points that apply exclusively to those in ministry.
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