Book Review For Shift

I recently had the privilege to read the book, "Shift" by Brian Haynes published by Group Publishing. I picked up the book while attending the D6 Conference in September. It was one of the first books I had to start reading. I highly recommend the book to those who minister to children, youth or families. Brian Haynes offers a practical and helpful strategy for equipping parents.

As someone who graduated from Denver Seminary with a degree in Youth and Family Ministry, I have always known the importance of involving parents in youth ministry. I have a heart and passion for helping parents pass on their faith to their children. I have tried many things over the years to help in this area, but many have not been long term. This is why Shift is an excellent resource. Shift talks about 7 Milestones that people naturally progress through over time. Each of these milestones are things most churches already celebrate so it is not just adding more things to an already busy church calendar. The other bonus is this "path" is not specific to just children or youth. This model connects all of the ministries in your church including adults.

Several other things that I like about the book:

• Core Competencies-The book highlights specific, age appropriate competencies that both church and home are working on as a child moves along the path. These competencies help us know what to focus on at home and the church is involved in supporting this teaching through its weekly ministries as well.
• Common Language & Path-In this strategy, both parents and ministry leaders are speaking the same language. It is not youth ministry focusing on purity while families focus on character. Church and home work together and strengthen what each other are doing. The path of milestones allows you to know where your children are headed and to prepare in advance.
• Training-Too often in the past, the church has told parents to "do family devotions" without showing them how. Shift highlights what each milestone is and an overview of the training for the parent. It not only talks about what the core competencies are, but the training shows parents how to have faith talks in the home and effectively use God Moments. It also provides resources that parents can use as their family progresses from one milestone to another.
• Theology-The book clearly shows from Scripture why this concept is so important. It challenges the way we have done ministry in the past. Those who want to continue the "bring your kids to us" mindset will probably not enjoy the book. However, we must ask ourselves whether the way we are doing ministry is faithful to Scripture and producing life long disciples.
• Examples-The book includes personal stories from the author about being convicted because he was not passing on the faith to his own kids while he faithfully served the church. Beware ministry leaders: if you are giving all of your best energy, time and creativity to minister to those within the church, while your family gets the leftovers or nothing from you related to passing on the faith, you will be be challenged to evaluate your priorities. It also includes stories from others in his church who have been blessed and benefited from this new model.

There is a movement within the Body of Christ to better train and equip parents. We are realizing our strategy of segregation of ages at church is not producing what we had hoped it would. It is great at getting kids into church, but many do not have a depth of faith to make it into adulthood. This book rightly puts the responsibility on parents and shows how the church has empowered parents to do it. It is both church and home! As someone who has been in children's, youth, and family ministry for over 10 years, I recommend the book. As someone who has been in both suburban and rural settings, I can see how it works in both settings. As someone who has ministered in smaller churches, I can see how it would work well in a church of 100 as well as much larger churches. As someone who has been looking for a practical way to empower and equip parents to pass on their faith at home, I encourage you to pick up Shift and get reading.

P.S. The book concludes by suggesting you visit their website at www.legacymilestones.com if you have other questions. The author also has a blog that talks about many of the topics in the book. Thanks to Brian Haynes for being a visionary in this much needed area of ministry!