Review: Autopsy of a Deceased Church: 12 Ways to Keep Yours Alive by Thom S. Rainer

Synopsis: No one wants to see a church die. And yet, far too many churches are dying. For more than twenty-five years, Dr. Thom Rainer has helped churches grow, reverse the trends of decline, and has autopsied those that have died. From this experience, he has discovered twelve consistent themes among those churches that have died. Yet, it’s not gloom and doom because from those twelve themes, lessons on how to keep your church alive have emerged. Whether your church is vibrant or dying, whether you are a pastor or a church member, Autopsy of a Deceased Church will walk you through the radical paths necessary to keep your church alive to the glory of God and advancement of Christ’s Kingdom! (from the back of the book)

Review: This was the pick for the Book Club at Church. It's a slim, quick, volume, with some excellent points. Rainer doesn't mince words, being straight and honest about what kills a church and what to do about it. It's an okay book. Rainer is clearly passionate about this topic and truly wants to help his brothers and sisters in Christ. The questions at the end of each chapters where well designed and obviously created to dig out the truth from the readers. But, in the end, this book just didn't reach me as I thought.
My qualm is petty, I suppose, but it reads more like a blog post that someone tried to stretch into a book. Which makes sense since this topic started as a blog post for Rainer. He tends to repeat himself and uses space and fancy design to make the book appear longer than it really is. Also, to be honest, the advice, while good, was a bit jumbled and vague.
However, I'm not sure this was something he could have avoided. One can give all the reasons in the world and all the solutions and how-to's and advice and warnings - but in the end, Churches die because people are selfish and sinful. And there is only one book that has ever helped people over come that. This is not it.

Bookmarks: 6 of 10

Awards: None

ISBN: 978-1-4336-8392-3
Date Finished: 6-9-2015
Pages: 101