Front Matters

18 • F RONT M ATTERS : P REREQUISITE R EADINGS FOR THE E VANGEL S CHOOL OF U RBAN C HURCH P LANTING

Source: Ripe for Harvest, pp. 11-22

• Are they teachable and open to the Lord, to the leader, and to one another? • Did they understand the exercises and complete them satisfactorily? • Is there strong leadership? • Is the team and its members weighing their decisions in light of the Holy Spirit’s leading and the principles of Scripture? Obtaining Our “Church Planter’s Tool Kit” In addition to the guidebook and the anthology texts, we have put together a resource “kit” for church planters and their teams that provides a broad range of essential tools every church planter or team should possess as they prepare and begin their work to plant a church in the community God has called them to. If at all possible, obtain the tool-kit and familiarize yourself with these materials before you engage in the sessions included in this guidebook. (Note: In the TUMI Store [ www.tumistore.org ], we have priced this kit affordably [the kit contains one each of the following] so you can obtain them all together, at a discount!) • Ripe for Harvest . The fundamental resource guidebook for the Evangel School of Urban Church Planting • Planting Churches among the City’s Poor: An Anthology of Urban Church Planting Resources, Volumes I and II . A thorough and essential listing of World Impact’s historical papers, diagrams, and insights into the issues and opportunities associated with urban cross-cultural church planting among the urban poor. • Jesus Cropped from the Picture: Why Christians Get Bored and How to Restore them to Vibrant Faith . An insightful analysis of the reasons behind the demise of the American evangelical church, and how to fix it. • Sacred Roots: A Primer on Retrieving the Great Tradition . A sequel to Jesus Cropped from the Picture , this is an informative introduction to the power of shared spirituality of the ancient church, and how a return to those roots can transform the contemporary church. • Fight the Good Fight of Faith . A clear, concise, and biblical introduction to the first truths of the Christian faith (and TUMI’s official pre-Capstone curriculum). It is designed especially for new Christians and helps them understand what the Bible says