Book Review: Shannon O’Dell, Transforming Church in Rural America, (New Leaf Publishing Group, 2010).

Churches in rural areas tend to have few people attending and little money. But your church’s small size doesn’t have to limit its potential to impact the world in big ways. If you simply settle for the status quo, your rural church could die from isolation. But if you’re willing to make changes, you’ll connect your small church to God’s bigger work throughout the world.

Here’s how you can use your small rural church to do something big:

Ask God to give you a vision for your church’s future, and believe it. Ask God boldly to help your church fulfill His potential for it. Pray for a vision of where God wants to lead your church so you can clearly understand His plans for your congregation. Pray also for the faith you need to believe that God will truly use your small church to join Him in work that makes a big impact on the world.

Then proclaim the vision and join others in your church to pray together in agreement for God’s will to be done.

Have the courage to change. Realize that a collective church attitude of doing things the way they’ve always been done for the sake of tradition blocks your church’s ability to truly preach the Gospel, because the Gospel’s message is one of life transformation – which requires constant change to follow wherever God leads.

Read More: http://www.crosswalk.com/pastors/11634909/