Leas, an Alban senior consultant and a nationally recognized authority on conflict in congregations, helps you to self-assess your conflict response and discover options appropriate to different levels of conflict. Leas draws on his years of experience helping conflicted congregations, providing valuable insights on the nature of conflict and its resolution. This new edition contains an improved Conflict Strategy Instrument, revised to reflect new learnings.

Parsons and Leas have created an important tool for congregational leaders in this application of systems theory to evaluating a congregation s life and readiness for change. Church leaders can explore the forces at work and examine the systemic implications in seven key areas: strategy, process, pastoral and lay leadership, authority, relatedness, and learning. The Manual provides an overview of systems theory, complete instructions for administering and scoring the Congregational Systems Inventory (CSI), and guidance for interpreting and explaining the inventory results using sample scores. Be sure to order some packs of the CSI along with this valuable resource."

Parsons and Leas have created an important tool for congregational leaders in this application of systems theory to evaluating a congregation s life and readiness for change. Church leaders can explore the forces at work and examine the systemic implications in seven key areas: strategy, process, pastoral and lay leadership, authority, relatedness, and learning. The Manual provides an overview of systems theory, complete instructions for administering and scoring the Congregational Systems Inventory (CSI), and guidance for interpreting and explaining the inventory results using sample scores. Be sure to order some packs of the CSI along with this valuable resource."

Ever wonder why some people never return after their first visit? Why some join but you rarely see them? Or why others become active participants in your church family's life and worship? Discover how your congregation can meet growth challenges. Based on Alban Institute research, The Inviting Church includes a self-study design for assessing assimilation processes and analyzing visitors' perceptions.