Gutsy: (Mis)Adventures in Canadian Church Planting

by Jared Siebert

In the last two decades a gutsy group of Canadian church planters have taken the plunge. They are not content to simply plant churches—they want to plant new kinds of churches. Churches that are responsive to the Canada that will be—not just the Canada that was. Joe Manafo, in his documentary “One Size Fits All?” sought to capture this movement and understand it. He filmed 19 Christian communities that represent a brave exploration of new and evolving forms of church in Canada. This book picks up where that documentary left off. In these pages you’ll hear the unvarnished truth about what it’s like to pioneer over the long haul. You’ll read both the good and the bad. The adventures and misadventures. In these pages are the seeds of our future and the principles we’ll need to get there. If you're connected with or have ever considered planting a new kind of church in the Canadian context this book is for you.

166 pages, Paperback

Published September 26, 2016

Reviews

[Marnie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good resource for anyone attending or thinking about starting a Church plant in Canada.

[Jeffrey Webb · Rating 4 out of 5]

As someone who has been involved in church planting in the Canadian context, I found this book to be very refreshing. So much of the conversation around planting is focused south of the border but Canada is a profoundly different context than anywhere in the United States.

It’s clear from his writing that Siebert has a heart for the Church in Canada and for planters! The book paints a realistic image of the challenges and beauty or church planting and offers meaningful insights for anyone currently involved in a plan or feeling called into the work of planting. There were certainly ways that the findings of Siebert’s research surprised and challenged me in my own dreams for returning to planting someday.

I was also personally encouraged by his chapter “God Ain’t Done With You Yet” where he talks about healing from failure in church planting and the gifts that non-continuing plants have to bring. I’m glad that he was able to avoid the results bias and lean into the stories of failure to help ensure valuable lessons don’t go to waste.

I would call this required reading for anyone looking to plant a church in Canada!

Would recommend.

[Tim Good · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent resource for anyone thinking about getting involved in a church plant.