Red Alert – Does the Future Have a Church?
By Gil Cann
Reviewed by Rev Dr Bill Brown

Wow! Challenging, stimulating, inspiring, engaging, disturbing, down to earth, encouraging and with bucket loads of wisdom. ‘Red Alert’, written by Gil Cann, with the sub-title, ‘Does the Future Have a Church?’ is a book that is worth reading and re-reading and exploring with others on your team. You find yourself not wanting to put it down because it not only challenges long held traditions but provides signposts to a more relevant and appropriate way to be partnering with Jesus in his mission.

Gil Cann, one of Australia’s elder statesman Christian leaders, looks at our world, the model of church that is prevalent today and calls us to think afresh about what it means to be the Church of Jesus Christ.

This is a book for any follower of Jesus as well as, and perhaps especially for, pastors, church leaders and leadership teams, but don’t read it if you simply want to cruise along. It will cause you to think again about …

• our understanding of church.
• what we do, and who we are, when we meet together.
• how too often we neglect to acknowledge and commission most of our people for the vital ministry role and context in which they spend most of their lives.
• what sort of leaders we need to appoint.

This book would be great for leadership teams to work through together. It is filled with many practical suggestions and ideas that have been well field tested.

‘Red Alert’ is published by Albatross Books. For more information, including ordering online, please visit the website gilcann.com

Bill Brown
Pastor Emeritus, Syndal Baptist Church and Pastoral Coach, Baptist Union of Victoria