Breakthrough

The last 30 years of American church life have played a familiar refrain: "The church is old, out of touch, dying, and it's too late." Why bother? What if the church is not old enough, not out of touch enough, and not dying enough? When survival-rooted panic is supplanted with calm, spirited creativity, that may be exactly the moment your church was made for, that your community was hoping for- and that God is waiting for. First Christian Church of Odessa, Texas made a radical choice and was reborn as Connection Christian Church, with a new view on ministry and new energy. Breakthrough: Trusting God for Big Change in Your Church tells the story of what happened when this church dared to place their desperate, dying selves into the hands of a God whose middle name is "Surprise!" - and hints how readers might find that audacity in their own congregations. Rev. Dr. Dawn Darwin Weaks is co-pastor of Connection Christian Church, a vibrant and trusted community leader in Texas' Permian Basin. She is a contributor to the Unbinding the Gospel series, a popular church transformation resource. Connection is the third century-old congregation she has led to discover bold, new purpose in ministry.