Thom S. Rainer - I Will: Nine Traits of the Outwardly Focused Christian

Other Books by Thom S. Rainer

Autopsy of a Deceased Church

I Am a Church Member

The Millennials (coauthor)

Transformational Church (coauthor)

Simple Life (coauthor)

Essential Church (coauthor)

Vibrant Church (coauthor)

Raising Dad (coauthor)

Simple Church (coauthor)

The Unexpected Journey

The Unchurched Next Door

Surprising Insights from the Unchurched

Eating the Elephant (revised edition) (coauthor)

High Expectations

The Every Church Guide to Growth (coauthor)

The Bridger Generation

Effective Evangelistic Churches

The Church Growth Encyclopedia (coeditor)

Experiencing Personal Revival (coauthor)

Giant Awakenings

Biblical Standards for Evangelists (coauthor)

Eating the Elephant

The Book of Church Growth

Evangelism in the Twenty-first Century (editor)

Acknowledgments

I love local churches.

I know. There are no perfect local churches, pastors, church staff, or laypersons. But I am so grateful for all those who serve in these congregations. They are the mission points God has given us to share the gospel.

So I write this book with deep gratitude to and acknowledgment of those who are serving on these front lines of ministry. Many people complain about whats wrong with our churches. These men and women labor day by day for the gospel. They are whats right with our churches.

Thank you Team Rainer for all you do to make my world of ministry a joy. You threeAmy Jordan, Jonathan Howe, and Amy Thompsonare among the hardest workers I know. You do it with joy and gratitude. My life is richer because of you.

I stand amazed at the B&H Publishing team. B&H has been under the incredible leadership of Selma Wilson and Cossy Pachares for several years. It has been amazing to see God use these leaders to transform an organization. Both have been promoted to other leadership positions at LifeWay. Their promotions are past due and well deserved. A huge thanks as well to Jennifer Lyell. She is my editor, but she also leads trade books for B&H. I have worked with Jennifer in two organizations. She is one of the most gifted people I know; and I am so grateful she chose to come to LifeWay several years ago.

If you know me in even the most casual way, you likely know how much I love my family. You know how much they are an integral part of everything I do. You know how I depend on them and absolutely adore them. They are a numerically growing bunch, seventeen at present count. There is my wife, Nellie Jo. There are my three sons and their wives: Sam and Erin; Art and Sarah; and Jess and Rachel. And of course, there are my nine grandchildren: Maggie, Bren, Nathaniel, Joshua, Canon, Will, and Harper. If you only counted seven grandchildren, you are correct. Two more are due close to the release date of this book, so I dont know their names as I write these words.

To you the reader, I owe you more gratitude than I can ever express. Some of you have been with me for all twenty-five books. I am ever humbled that any of you readers consider my writings worth reading.

It is my prayer that I Will will be an encouragement for you who serve in churches and for you who love the bride of Christ. Though many churches struggle, I remain an obnoxious optimist about their future. I hope you will hear my optimism. And I pray you will have the same hope too.

Thank you for reading this book. And thank you for your willingness to read it with great prayer. It is my prayer that the Holy Spirit will do an amazing work in congregations around the world, and that more and more of us will respond to His call to obedience by saying, I will.

Copyright 2015 by Doulos

All rights reserved.

Printed in the United States of America

978-1-4336-8729-7

Published by B&H Publishing Group

Nashville, Tennessee

Dewey Decimal Classification: 248.84

Subject Heading: CHRISTIAN LIFE \ HELPING BEHAVIOR \ INTERPERSONAL RELATIONS

All Scripture quotations are taken from the Holman Christian Standard Bible ( hcsb ), Copyright 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 21 20 19 18 17 16 15

To

William Thomas Rainer

My Grandson

I cant wait to see you again in heaven.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

And always to

Nellie Jo

My Wife

I cant imagine life without you.

Introduction

A Tale of a Joyous
Church Member

H er name is Heather.

Heather is a single mom with three kids, two boys and a girl. The ages of the children are five, seven, and ten. Heather is concerned about her children because of the divorce, because they are struggling in school, and because they are failing to obey at home. Yet she has not taken them to church in more than three years.

The divorce was messy. But then again, divorces are not neat and joyous situations. When Dan and Heather split almost four years ago, Heather decided to leave the church. Her ex-husband was staying at the church with his soon-to-be wife. It just would not work for Heather to be around them.

So she left Resurrection Community Church.

And she has not returned to any church for more than four years.

Heathers friends and family sympathized with her regularly. Poor dear, you lost your husband, many of his friends, and the church you love, some would say. And Heather nodded her head, receiving the condolences with quiet acceptance. Its okay with her if they feel that way.

But Heather has a secret, a secret she has confided to no one. Yes, the divorce was incredibly painful. Yes, so much of the change for her and the kids hurt deeply. Still, she has told no one the full story.

Heather was glad to leave Resurrection Community Church. Indeed, she had become really miserable at the church long before the marital problems began. Leaving the church was one of the blessings of her life changes. It was a big relief.

In order to understand Heathers sentiments, we need to take you back about twelve years ago. That was when Dan and Heather were married. They bought a home where Dan was working. And they both made a commitment to get involved in a church. They mutually decided it would be Resurrection Community Church.

Thats where this story begins.

I Am Not a Happy Church Member

From Heathers perspective, Resurrection Community Church was an easy choice. Dan and his parents had been members there for many years. The church had about 250 in worship attendance. Obviously, Dan knew most of the members. The church members were friendly to Heather as well. They accepted her immediately. After all, she was now part of Dans family.

Heather really did not have to do much to get involved. Within a few weeks of joining, she was asked to be in a womens Bible study, to help with the church finances since she was a certified public accountant, and to be a greeter.

When the children came along, it was pretty natural for them to connect in the church as well. Dan and Heather had many good relationships in the congregation. Some of them were young parents with children of similar ages to Dan and Heathers.

So she began church life just fine. Her attitude was great. Her relationships were solid. Her involvement was good.

She has trouble remembering exactly when the change took place. It was more gradual than sudden. Heather, just a few years later, had become an unhappy church member. There was no one negative event. Indeed, she barely noticed the change day by day.

Heather does remember waking up one Sunday morning with a dread about attending church. When did these feelings develop? she asked herself. Why am I no longer a happy church member?

This story is Heathers story.

But it can be repeated in the lives of church members by the millions.