Review of “Firestorm”
Another book, another book about church fights. At this point in the reading for the Doctorate class, I am hoping for some happy endings to all of the church fights that I am reading about. Firestorm is another excellent book concerning the process that takes place during church fights. The book has an great case study with notes at the end details the stage of the conflict. It provides warning signs and advice on helping a congregation through that stage to a healthy resolution. The book gives advice on helping a congregation overcome a fight or a major split, a preacher overcome wrongful dismissals and hurtful members, and causes of major conflicts in congregations. It is really sad that churches are some of the most likely organizations to have major fights. I guess this is because of the high emotions surrounding churches, but really churches should be able to handle conflict better in the future. This is a good book, not the best one so far.
Related posts:
- Review of “Managing Transitions”
- Review of “Hitting the Bullseye”
- Review “Review of “Effectiveness by Numbers”
- Review of “Managing Congregational Conflict”
- Review of “The Pastor”
About The Author
I forgot to mention that the Preacher’s wife’s outlook in conflict is also given.
If there is a church fight, it means there is a passion for something about that church. Perhaps the passion is misguided and for sure the fighting is wrong. The hopeful side wishes to help channel the right passion in the right direction.
-Rex
Rex good thought
You are right Rex, people care, it is just not expressing it in the right way. As one book stated, all people fight or have conflict but do we handle it as Christian conflict or worldly conflict.
I have observed several church fights and tried to mediate a few. I hate to say it but in many of these rank heathens act better than some of those professing to be Christians. I have often wondered why that’s the case.
Yes, sometimes professing Christians act in any way but Christian. When my wife was a child, she watch one elder and the preacher get into a fist fight in the pulpit that required the local police to come and intervene.
-Rex
a fist fight ?
LOL
i can’t idmagine sutch a thing in the church….
.
i seen almost everything,… but that
the everything elese i seen has been handeld with proper love and respect for the word.
i could only idmagine what kind of problems the apostles faced in the churches they established. or the members of those churchs ?
NicE.
Sadly, this is not the only instance in which I have heard of the police being needed to resolve a violent situation in a church. I will say that for every example of wrongness such as this, there are many more examples of goodness. When my wife and I lived in Memphis, we attended the Highland CoC for two years before I accepted a p/t ministry with another local church. At the Highland congregation, there had never been any major conflict that led to any split or major defaction among a group of members in all of their existence which was well over 50 years. Anyone who has been around a church knows that in 50 years, there has been conflicts. So to not have any split or major defaction is a testimony to the results of what happens when conflict is managed in a healthy, Christ-like manner.
Grace and peace,
Rex