Ministry of Small Things (Bredenhof)

Christ can do a lot with a little—and he loves to bless his church through a pastor’s small acts of care. In thirty chapters, Reuben Bredenhof explores seemingly minor ministry activities and attitudes that can make a great impact on a flock. Celebrate God’s power at work through quiet, predictable faithfulness.

The ordinary is seldom in vogue. Yet faithful pastoral ministry is forged in the crucible of small, ordinary, powerful moments of faithfulness--the Puritans would have called them "holy habits"--done in faith in the presence of God (coram Deo) and for his glory (soli Deo gloria). Like compound interest, such habits snowball in impact over the long-term. They are much like the barely visible yeast that makes all the difference in a loaf of bread. With seasoned pastoral skill, Dr. Bredenhof shepherds his fellow shepherds, catechizing them in these simple but eternally valuable habits of a faithful ministry: Loving the sheep. Praying with the sheep. Listening to the sheep. Showing up for the sheep. Private ministry--or house-to-house ministry, as Paul calls it--complements the public ministry of Word and sacrament. In the kingdom of God, the least is the greatest. And so it is in the rhythms of pastoral life: Often the smallest acts of faithfulness have the greatest impact, and, like the cup of cold water given in faith, lead to the greatest eternal reward. Here is a manual of faithful shepherding--not in the limelight or the ivory tower but in the trenches of daily ministry. Every pastor would do well to heed the wise counsel contained in these pages.--Joel R. Beeke, Chancellor and Professor of Systematic Theology and Homiletics, Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary