Growing the church in the power of the Holy Spirit - R. Brad Long

Is something crucial missing from your congregation's programs? Beneath the surface of churches' programs and activities lies the more fundamental question of how leaders and churches can be enabled to discern and obediently cooperate with the guidance and empowering of the Holy Spirit. Since the Kingdom of God is an active expression of His reign on earth, it is extended and realized as individuals and churches seek and submit to His will and purposes. Growing the Church in the Power of the Holy Spirit offers a practical guide for nurturing with churches the dynamic cooperative process, drawing on a breadth of experience from around the world. Many leaders overlook the necessary precondition of discerning and cooperating with the empowering will of the Holy Spirit before putting their plans into action. But how is this to be accomplished? Seven dynamics facilitate this process. These factors, advanced by the church leadership and brought into being by the Holy Spirit, help congregations undertake such crucial tasks as preaching/teaching, worship, healing, governance, making disciples of converts, and evangelism. As believers actively cooperate with the Holy Spirit, the church is strengthened in its role of being a foretaste of the Kingdom of God.