Turning the Ship
Authors new title rejects secularization of church and ministry
Book Tells of Church's 180-Degree Shift Toward Age Integration
Authors new title rejects secularization of church and ministry
2009-02-24
LONGWOOD, FL--In recent years, unbiblical worldviews have taken precedence in our society, leading to a mass exodus of church teens. Opinions about the cause of the disappointing slide are myriad; despite this, there is universal agreement that something must be done. Xulon Press author Dustin Guidry's Turning the Ship: Exploring the Age-Integrated Church ($14.99, paperback, 978-1-60791-262-0; $22.99, hardcover, 978-1-60791-263-7) tells the story of how Ridgewood Church in Texas was able to "turn the ship" by rejecting the secularization of church and ministry and relying on the sufficiency of Scripture for all matters of faith and practice. The remarkable events that transpired were nothing short of miraculous, as Ridgewood witnessed a complete 180-degree shift from an age-segregated church to one that was age-integrated. Says Guidry, "Agree or disagree with Turning the Ship, my hope is that Christians and church leaders in particular will at least be willing not only to ask the question 'why do we do what we do?' but also be willing to actually try to answer that question. My desire is that the Bible is the rule and authority in the pursuit of answering that question. I hope readers will see that the social experiment of age-segregation has failed." Out of the 600 family-integrated churches (FICs) nationwide, Ridgewood Church was rare in that it was an established neo-traditional church with age-segregated ministries, whereas most FICs have been started as a new work or as church plants. "Many say that what has transpired at Ridgewood can't be done or isn't work the right," Guidry says. "But we are the only church to our knowledge that has turned the ship completely toward becoming a multigenerational community of believers."