Training Spirit-Filled Local Church Leaders for the Twenty-First Century
by Ray Miller
Imprint: Resource Publications
Who decides what your church (local or denominational) will look like twenty-five or thirty years from now?
How can you ensure that your church will continue to fulfill its God-given purpose in the next generation?
What can be done now to reverse negative trends in ministry such as pastoral burnout?
Much of the answer to these questions about pastors and other local church leaders is tied to the training they receive. Training Spirit-Filled Local Church Leaders for the Twenty-First Century encourages all stakeholders in ministry training--educators, pastors and other local church leaders, church members, and those who sense God is calling them to ministry--to prayerfully consider the foundational issues that determine the effectiveness and relevance of a ministry training program.
These foundational issues are:
-What is the local church, really?
-What is spiritual leadership?
-What is ministry training?
-What is the role of the Holy Spirit in all this?
-What did effective training look like in the past, and what might it look like in the twenty-first century?
Ray Miller was in pastoral ministry for twenty years in the US before serving as a missionary in the Philippines for fifteen years. He now serves with Assemblies of God US Missions in New Mexico. He completed a DMin degree at Asia Pacific Theological Seminary in 2020.
“Ray Miller has gifted the twenty-first-century church with a thought-provoking training manual for church leaders. His years of pastoral experience, missionary work, and theological studies enable him to articulate the foundational and essential principles for training quality ministry leaders. This handbook is culturally sensitive, biblical, and focused on the work of the Holy Spirit. . . . The final chapters offer insights into cultural trends that challenge the reader to apply Miller’s principles in creative ways to today’s world.”
—Brian Lidbeck, Academic Dean, Northpoint Bible College, Grand Rapids
“Ray Miller has a heart for ministerial formation at the local church level. What should the outcome for ministerial training look like? Miller leads the reader through several chapters that will provide a strong foundation for spiritual leadership formation. I highly recommend this work to any local church considering establishing a ministerial training ministry.”
—Weldyn B. Houger, Director, Asia Pacific Theological Seminary, Baguio City, Philippines
“Ray Miller is a man after my own heart. More importantly, he is a man after the heart of God. Like Jesus, who seemed to love investing time with his leaders-in-training . . . , Ray focuses on equipping Spirit-filled leaders for this third millennium. . . . This book is about building leaders and watching God build his church. Ray is a scholarly writer yet makes it incredibly easy to understand the principles and how to apply them in your own life, your church, or your school. As you read this book, you’ll quickly catch Ray’s passion for the church to energetically pursue Christ’s mandate to equip Spirit-filled leaders for these critical, prophetic times. You will bring your church, fellowship, or school into a fresh new dimension when you absorb and practice the principles in this essential reading.”
—Dave Williams, author of The Art of Pacesetting Leadership
“It has been my privilege and joy to work with Ray Miller and sense his passion for the wellbeing, vitality, and fruitfulness of the local church in the power of the Holy Spirit. As you read this little book, you will sense that his passion embraces congregations worldwide. . . . Miller would nudge the church beyond simply traditional training approaches and toward creativity in delivering ministry training in today’s world and various cultures. I especially affirm his recommendations that include investing in and forming ‘home-grown leaders’ within the local church. I am confident you will find this book a worthy read.”
—LeRoy Bartel, author of Prison Epistles
“Ray Miller seeks to bring theological education and practical formational ministry together. It is a lack I have seen in most theological schools. Rather than separate categories, true ministerial training needs to be seen holistically in every approach to education, from the pastoral training levels to equipping the layman for ministry. Miller is an ‘on-the-ground Pentecostal practitioner,’ having served as a missionary in Asia. . . . His is a challenge to the present and future that will demand flexibility, creativity, and urgency to develop better, more effective approaches that combine Spirit, academic, practical, and personal formation. May it be so!”
—David Lim, former Senior Pastor, Grace Assembly of God, Singapore
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