Michael Frost - The Faith of Leap: Embracing a Theology of Risk, Adventure & Courage

2011 by Michael Frost and Alan Hirsch

Published by Baker Books

a division of Baker Publishing Group

P.O. Box 6287, Grand Rapids, MI 49516-6287

www.bakerbooks.com

E-book edition created 2011

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any meansfor example, electronic, photocopy, recordingwithout the prior written permission of the publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews.

ISBN 978-1-4412-3424-7

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file at the Library of Congress, Washington, DC.

Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations are from the Holy Bible, New International Version, NIV. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com

Scripture quotations marked NKJV are from the New King James Version. Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked RSV are from the Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 1952 [2nd edition, 1971] by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

All the books of Hirsch and Frost are books that need to be written. Very thoughtful and chock-full of insight and practical advice, t his brilliant book reminds us that we canin fact, we mustsubstitute another narrative for the security-obsessed one that normally drives us if we wish to truly live!

Reggie McNeal , missional leadership specialist, Leadership Network; author of The Present Future and Missional Renaissance

Imagine the apostle Paul arriving in the metropolis of Ephesus with the sole task of gospeling that city. Now imagine yourself at the edge of your community with the task of gospeling your community. Youve got two pockets. Stick in one of your pockets your Bible and in the other The Faith of Leap . Youre ready. Now go.

Scot McKnight , Karl A. Olsson Professor in Religious Studies, North Park University; author, One.Life: Jesus Calls, We Follow

There is too much shallow talk these days about the church at the margins, liminality, or living on the edge. Instead, we need people who will teach us how to become capable of such a thing! The Faith of Leap does just that. Hirsch and Frost use their manifold gifts to show us why and how adventure, risk, and courage is at the very heart of living life together in Gods Mission.

David Fitch , author, The End of Evangelicalism? Discerning a New Faithfulness for Mission ; B. R. Lindner Chair of Evangelical Theology, Northern Seminary

As Alan and Mike have helped forge and form missional strategy for the church of the twenty-first century, they have now put rubber to the road by exposing nebulously boring faith and pushing toward the trilogy of adventure, courage, and transformation. Read it if you have the guts.

Hugh Halter , author of The Tangible Kingdom , TK Primer , AND , and Sacrilege

I have read everything Hirsch and Frost ever wrote individually or together, and each time their writing kindles my intellectual and missional imagination. The Faith of Leap was a wholly different experience. I began reading it with the thought that the church could certainly use a theology of adventure, but within just a few pages, my own heart was ravenousurged by the call of the wild to which Jesus invites every woman and every man.

Linda Bergquist , church-starting strategist; co-author, Church Turned Inside Out: A Guide for Designers, Refiners, and ReAligners

Christianity has waited its entire history for someone to risk a theology of risk. Who would have thought that its appearance would come in the form of a fireworks festival.... A remarkable tour de force.

Leonard Sweet , bestselling author; professor, Drew University and George Fox University

I am frequently asked what it will take to see church multiplication movements occur in the West. This book hits on one of the most crucial elements we need to release church multiplication movementsif not the most significant missing ingredient. This is, in my opinion, Hirsch and Frosts best work to date and is must reading for anyone who wants to release missional movements.

Neil Cole , author of Ordinary Hero , Church 3.0 , Journeys to Significance , and Organic Leadership

To the courageous Ross Clifford, for all the risks hes taken over the years to foster my thinking and writing.

Michael

To Kim, Maria, and the Hammond family, who threw caution to the wind to join us in our American adventure. And to all those Forge pioneers who continue to birth and nurture the missional church wherever they find it.

Alan

To Shirley Decker-Lucke, who took a brave step in publishing two out-of-towners like us, and for Chad Allen and the whole Baker crew for continuing to do so.

To Jon Strother for suggesting the provocative title, The Faith of Leap .

Good one, Jon.

About the Shapevine Missional Series

T he key purpose of Shapevine the organization is to bring the various elements of missional Christianitynamely, church planting movements, urban mission, the emerging church, the missional church movement, the organic/simple church, and marketplace ministriesinto meaningful dialogue around the truly big ideas of our time. Consistent with this purpose, the Shapevine Missional Series in partnership with Baker Books seeks to bring innovative thinking to the missional issues of church planting, mission, evangelism, social justice, and anything in between.

We seek to publish both established authors as well as others who have significant things to contribute but have operated largely under the radar.

The series will focus on three distinctive areas:

• LivingPractical Missional Orthopraxy
  Orthopraxy is what makes orthodoxy worth having. We yearn for the experience and continual flow of living out the gospel message in our day-to-day lives for the sake of others. The stories and ideas in the Shapevine Missional Series are aimed at providing practical handles and means to wrap our readers minds around the idea of living as the people of God, sent into the world with the Spirit and impulse of Jesus himself.
• LearningSolid Missional Orthodoxy
  Jesus both lived and proclaimed a theology of a missional God. His was and is a message of mercy, justice, and goodness toward others. It was this message that erupted into the greatest movement in the history of humankind. The same God who sent his only Son now sends those who follow his Son, in the same manner and with the same message. This is at the heart of a missional theology.
• LeadingTools for Missional Leadership
  Our aim is for the books in this series to serve as tools for pastors, organizational leaders, and church members throughout the world to equip themselves and others as they travel the path of faithfulness in the missional life.

As a global interactive forum, Shapevine allows anyone to both learn and contribute at whatever level suits. To learn more, go to .

Alan Hirsch and Lance Ford

Series Editors Preface

C learly coming into deeper knowledge and experience of God is a profound adventure into the infinite unknown. Given that we will always be finite creatures, and God always infinite, this adventure is one that is unlikely to ever end. So we might as well get used to the idea of journey, pilgrimage, risk, and exploration.