- Brian Croft and James B Carroll
- £10.99
- Evangelical Press
- 240
- ISBN: 9781783973088
"This is a handbook for a training course that should be done over 52 weekly sessions, but it is not a stand-alone resource. You will also need to buy ten other books, most of which are by Brian Croft and you will be able to access short videos which were not quite ready at the time of this review. It could be used as a reference guide for the topics which a pastor might need to know about and understand, but without the supplementary materials this does not approach the subject with sufficient rigour. You need to keep these things in mind as you read this review.
Who is this course for? If your training for pastoral ministry or eldership has not included some of the practicalities of ministry then this might be for you. It would be best pursued by a group of pastors or elders or potential elders and pastors so that there is plenty of opportunity for discussion. This book is not a replacement for a degree level theological understanding of pastoral theology and practise. Its focus is much more on the practicalities of ministry. The content is biblical and clear and the authors have a real heart for ministry.
I was pleased to note that it translates into a British context quite happily, and the principles apply in most pastoral situations. For the target audience I think it will be a very useful resource. If you are willing to commit yourself with a few others to following
this course, then I believe that would be a profitable thing to do."
Review by Paul Spear in The Evangelical Magazine