They Smell Like Sheep: Spiritual Leadership for the 21st Century

Rating:
Summary: A great primer for all Christian leaders
Review: Anderson lays down practical guidelines for Christian leadership in practical terms. He breaks down the book into useful sections such as mentoring. There's plenty in the book for you even if you aren't a leader in the church because the book provides excellent hints for reaching the lost and your Christian friends. My personal favorite part of the book was the great way that Mr. Anderson weaves practical experience into the rugged world of Christian leadership.

Rating:
Summary: A Great Book on BIBLICAL Church Leadership
Review: Anderson's book is an excellent work that everyone who wants to lead in any capacity at a church should read. This has nothing to do with the typical things discussed at a church board meeting. This is strictly about God's methods for nurturing people.

Another reviewer faults the book for not answering the questions of who will run things, how will the business of the church get done, etc. That's exactly what this book is about! THe business of a church, Anderson is saying, is to raise the people up in God and that's where the focus will be. That done, the rest will take care of itself.

Rating:
Summary: A Must-Read For Pastoral Leadership Preperation
Review: Don't expect to handle and lead people without getting yourself a little "smelly" sometimes. And don't plan on reading Anderson's excellent book without some heart stretching and soul searching. This is a must-read for anyone whom God has called to pastoral leadership. Get your hands on this book and God will get His hand on you!

Rating:
Summary: A Must-Read For Pastoral Leadership Preperation
Review: Don't expect to handle and lead people without getting yourself a little "smelly" sometimes. And don't plan on reading Anderson's excellent book without some heart stretching and soul searching. This is a must-read for anyone whom God has called to pastoral leadership. Get your hands on this book and God will get His hand on you!

Rating:
Summary: A Must-Read For Pastoral Leadership Preperation
Review: Don't expect to handle and lead people without getting yourself a little "smelly" sometimes. And don't plan on reading Anderson's excellent book without some heart stretching and soul searching. This is a must-read for anyone whom God has called to pastoral leadership. Get your hands on this book and God will get His hand on you!

Rating:
Summary: A nice beginning to the conversation...
Review: I think the author does a good job to begin to encourage us to remember that Jesus' view of those who want to serve with Him is a shepherding/pastorial/servant view. Not a leader of an organization; but a person who cares for those whom they have been entrusted with...who REALLY cares for THEM as PEOPLE. He offers some reasonalbe ideas on how to pursue living and serving like that, but I found the primary value of reading the book to be that he has begun to invite us to ask the right questions of ourselves & our christian 'leaders'.

Rating:
Summary: A nice beginning to the conversation...
Review: I think the author does a good job to begin to encourage us to remember that Jesus' view of those who want to serve with Him is a shepherding/pastorial/servant view. Not a leader of an organization; but a person who cares for those whom they have been entrusted with...who REALLY cares for THEM as PEOPLE. He offers some reasonalbe ideas on how to pursue living and serving like that, but I found the primary value of reading the book to be that he has begun to invite us to ask the right questions of ourselves & our christian 'leaders'.

Rating:
Summary: Fine Primer on the Heart of Eldering
Review: The strength of "They Smell Like Sheep" is the general direction of the book. Dr. Lynn Anderson's theme is that elders should focus upon knowing, loving, serving, and nurturing a number of Christians (first and foremost) rather than attending endless board meetings. Although Andersons' arguments are compelling, he leaves us with a number of unanswered questions, including: "Who will make the decisions necessary for a church to advance?" Anderson is right to encourage elders not to get wrapped up in micromanaging or getting out of their domain, thus freeing up boards to focus upon more, if not completely, hands-on ministry.

Anderson divides his book into two main sections: "A Biblical Look at Spiritual Leadership Principles (The Sort of Things Leaders Do)" and "A Biblical Look at Elders (The Sort of People They Are)."

The first section of the book is the strongest and presents church leaders (particularly elders) as Shepherds, Mentors, and Equippers. He is to be commended for advocating leadership based upon relationship and earned influence, not a chain of command emphasis. Although much of this material can be found elsewhere, Anderson makes this material palatable to the average layman, especially those who have never been taught principles of spiritual leadership (as opposed to corporate leadership). This section is a great primer for elders and other church leaders and worth the price of the book.

The second section is weaker. The author addresses some of the texts regarding the qualification of elders, but does so in an unsatisfying way, leaving a mountain of unanswered questions. For example, he assumes that the word "elder" must mean an older man, but words change meaning and he does not even acknowledge the existence of diversity among evangelical opinion (for example, Timothy oversaw the elders and appointed them, even though he was a mere 30 or 35 years old). Anderson does not demonstrate a serious grappling with the meaning of the text.

If the book is weak in particulars, the overall strength is its broad themes. His final few chapters address the meaning of authority and the words used to express this authority in the New Testament.

Although his attempt to prove elders should not pull rank through retranslating the Greek words is suspect, his point is well taken. Elders should not pull rank and play the authority game -- not because the Greek words have been mistranslated all these centuries -- but because I Peter 5:1-4 tells us not to do so. So Anderson gets us to the right point, yet not because of his exegesis, but in spite of it. His argument of leading through moral suasion is right on target! This is an absolutely key thought.

As a primer book for getting the feel of the right attitude toward serving as an elder, this book is great. But if you are looking for a scholarly book that addresses all the issues and evaluates a number of interpretations, you might be disappointed. This volume is definitely worth reading and sharing with fellow board members.

Rating:
Summary: Fine Primer on the Heart of Eldering
Review: The strength of "They Smell Like Sheep" is the general direction of the book. Dr. Lynn Anderson's theme is that elders should focus upon knowing, loving, serving, and nurturing a number of Christians (first and foremost) rather than attending endless board meetings. Although Andersons' arguments are compelling, he leaves us with a number of unanswered questions, including: "Who will make the decisions necessary for a church to advance?" Anderson is right to encourage elders not to get wrapped up in micromanaging or getting out of their domain, thus freeing up boards to focus upon more, if not completely, hands-on ministry.

Anderson divides his book into two main sections: "A Biblical Look at Spiritual Leadership Principles (The Sort of Things Leaders Do)" and "A Biblical Look at Elders (The Sort of People They Are)."

The first section of the book is the strongest and presents church leaders (particularly elders) as Shepherds, Mentors, and Equippers. He is to be commended for advocating leadership based upon relationship and earned influence, not a chain of command emphasis. Although much of this material can be found elsewhere, Anderson makes this material palatable to the average layman, especially those who have never been taught principles of spiritual leadership (as opposed to corporate leadership). This section is a great primer for elders and other church leaders and worth the price of the book.

The second section is weaker. The author addresses some of the texts regarding the qualification of elders, but does so in an unsatisfying way, leaving a mountain of unanswered questions. For example, he assumes that the word "elder" must mean an older man, but words change meaning and he does not even acknowledge the existence of diversity among evangelical opinion (for example, Timothy oversaw the elders and appointed them, even though he was a mere 30 or 35 years old). Anderson does not demonstrate a serious grappling with the meaning of the text.

If the book is weak in particulars, the overall strength is its broad themes. His final few chapters address the meaning of authority and the words used to express this authority in the New Testament.

Although his attempt to prove elders should not pull rank through retranslating the Greek words is suspect, his point is well taken. Elders should not pull rank and play the authority game -- not because the Greek words have been mistranslated all these centuries -- but because I Peter 5:1-4 tells us not to do so. So Anderson gets us to the right point, yet not because of his exegesis, but in spite of it. His argument of leading through moral suasion is right on target! This is an absolutely key thought.

As a primer book for getting the feel of the right attitude toward serving as an elder, this book is great. But if you are looking for a scholarly book that addresses all the issues and evaluates a number of interpretations, you might be disappointed. This volume is definitely worth reading and sharing with fellow board members.

Rating:
Summary: Qualities of the TRUE Shepherd
Review: With sufficient depth for any theologian, but as down to earth as the parables of Jesus, this is a book that will inspire and challenge church leadership.

The premise is startling in its simplicity -- The true shepherd spends a lot of time in the field with his sheep -- so much time that he smells like them. The true leader who models his life after Christ spends a great deal of time wherever his people are.

Shepherding, according to Dr. Anderson, includes the dust and sweat and smell of the field.

This is an easy book to read, a difficult and challenging book to implement.