Four Essentials

Leading an internally focused church to embrace and practice gospel centered missional ministry is a daunting task. Leading a rural congregation brings additional,
unique challenges.
Most leadership books are written from an urban perspectives, and often fail to
understand how they connect to a rural culture and congregation. Four Essentials
does not lay out an easy 1-2-3 step plan, rather, it lays a foundation for leading effective, healthy change in a rural church context. It is intended to equip pastors and
rural church leaders to lead their congregations from an internal focus to externally
focused, gospel centered, missional ministry.

The challenge for rural churches is to move from preservation to transformation, to become missional in focus rather than maintenance. Richard Weinert provides pastors and churches with the pathway for moving the rural church to a renewed missional focus. In his book, he provides more than the “how to” for leading the church in change; he gives the theological and biblical foundation for why change is necessary. He gives a biblical foundation for developing a missional ministry and sound principles for implementing and developing a missional ministry. The reader will be challenged and encouraged by the words of this book, and it is a needed message for rural churches today. I highly recommend this book to any who desire to see their church become more effective in reaching their community with the gospel.

Glenn Daman —Author, Conference Speaker, Professor, Rural Pastor

Rick provides a strong foundation for leading a rural church in effective change. This is not so much a “how-to” book as much as it is foundations necessary to make essential changes in a rural church. In this volume, Rick goes deeper than just trying to get the church to try new ideas. Instead, he moves toward a model of helping the church to think differently and to make decisions from this new way of thinking. All of this starts with the spiritual, emotional, and relational health of the leader. So, while this is not a quick fix, it is a deep fix.

Dr Jeff Clark—Director of Wheaton College Billy Graham Center Rural Matters Institute

Rick Weinert has a MABS from Dallas Theological Seminary, and a DMin in Missional/Pastoral Leadership from Houston Graduate School of Theology. He and his wife, Billie Jean, have been in ministry for over 45 years. Rick has served nationally and internationally as a teacher, a pastor in both rural and suburban settings, a missionary training center Director, denominational District Superintendent, mentor, and ministry consultant. He is Facilitator of Church and Ministry Resources, Program Director of the Certificate in Rural Leadership and Ministry, and Senior Vice President of Administration at Oak Hills Christian College.