I’ve sifted through the lists that have been coming in via comments on the blog and email. Here’s the list of the top 10 (ok 11) books/resources recommended for church planters in alphabetical order.
I’ve avoided listing them in order of priority as the differences between them have more to do with ministry values and models than quality.
I should also mention most of the contributors were either church planters or coaches ministering in the west (US, UK, Europe, Australia).

“Doing Church As a Team” (Wayne Cordeiro)

“Church Next” (Ian Coffey, Eddie Gibbs)

“The church planter’s toolkit: A self-study resource kit for church planters and those who supervise them” (Robert E Logan)

“Planting Growing Churches for the 21st Century: A Comprehensive Guide for New Churches and Those Desiring Renewal” (Aubrey Malphurs, Baker Book House)

“Starting a New Church: The Church Planter’s Guide to Success” (Ralph Moore)

“Church Planting: Laying Foundations” (Stuart Murray)

“Natural Church Development: A Guide to Eight Essential Qualities of Healthy Churches” (Christian A. Schwarz)

“Community of Kindness” (Steve Sjogren, Rob Lewin)

“The Purpose-Driven Church” (Rick Warren)
Thanks to everyone who contributed.




One Trackback
[...] Now that we have our list of best books for church planters I’d like to remind us all that we’re talking about planting churches not passing essays. Reading the right books is a nice bonus. But it won’t get you across the line if you’re not a church planter to start with. [...]