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Notes on two books I’ve read recently:

Homosexuality and the Christian:
A Guide for Parents, Pastors, and Friends

Mark A. Yarhouse
Bethany House, 2009
240 pp., $16.99

As debates about homosexuality rage in political and religious circles, Christians struggling with same-sex attraction often suffer silently. The gay community hands those with same-sex attraction a “script” that collapses sexual attraction, behavior, and identity into one label.

Yarhouse challenges the church to provide an alternative script, one that makes identity in Christ central, and therefore carefully distinguishes between temptation, behavior, and the center of one’s identity. By taking into consideration those with same-sex attraction who nevertheless reject the gay identity, Yarhouse shifts the conversation from the causes of homosexuality to the choices one makes regarding the will of God.

The Strategically Small Church:
Intimate, Nimble, Authentic, and Effective

Brandon J. O’Brien
Bethany House, August 2010
171 pp., $10.99

Brandon O’Brien thinks the small church’s biggest disadvantage is an underlying inferiority complex driven largely by megachurch ministry’s definition of success. Seeking to renew the imagination of small-church pastors, O’Brien points to the small church’s unique gifts for carrying out God’s mission: simplicity, authenticity, participation, and a family-like environment.

This book is helpful for small-church pastors looking to develop small-church strengths, and for big-church leaders who seek to emulate small-church gifts.

(Both these books were originally reviewed in Christianity Today, August-September 2010 issues.)

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