Mark Sayers

Australian pastor and podcast host, Mark Sayers, explains why the rise of secularism can actually be good news for the gospel and the church. It's all about learning how to reach people after one idol has fallen but before they've picked up a new one. Look for its release in August 2019 or pre-order now.

The Hope for Renewal in the Rise of Our Post-Christian Culture

Reappearing Church

Why our churches are shrinking: In the discomfort between orthodox Christian faith and twenty-first century western dogma, we are tempted to do what it takes to make the pressure go away, to acquiesce on the beliefs that grate against contemporary sensibilities. For Christians raised under the ethic of relevance the desire to prove believers can be both holy and cool the pressure is too much. Some compartmentalize their beliefs into an orthodox/secularist mashup; others simply disappear into the ghostly embrace of secularity. Mark Sayers "Disappearing Church "is a direct answer to the most pressing question facing church leaders today: How do we make disciples who stay the course? Full of real stories and actionable insights, "Disappearing Church "is a guide for disciple-making in a highly secularized society. God will grow His church and protect its purity, but He will use us to do it. Are you up for the challenge?"

From Cultural Relevance to Gospel Resilience

Disappearing Church

For much of recent history individuals and institutions could plan, execute, and flourish with their visions of a better world. Volatile, complex forces could be addressed and confronted with planning and management. But crisis is a great revealer. It knocks us off our thrones. It uncovers the weaknesses in our strategies and brings to light our myths and idols. Our past strategies run aground, smashed by unpredictable and chaotic waves. Yet in the midst of the chaos of a crisis comes opportunity. The history of the church tells us that crisis always precedes renewal, and the framework of renewal offers us new ways forward. A Non-Anxious Presence shows how that renewal happens and offers churches and leaders strategic ways to awaken the Church and see our culture changed for Christ.

How a Changing and Complex World will Create a Remnant of Renewed Christian Leaders

A Non-Anxious Presence

How a Changing and Complex World Will Create a Remnant of Renewed Christian Leaders

It's time for a return to Radical Holiness. Welcome to the 21st century where you can now purchase and exchange personalities, depending on mood and circumstance; where you are told that you can be anyone you want to be, and identity is no longer based in a sense of self but rather in the imagery you choose at that moment. The Bible contains a radically different way of understanding our identity. The path that God has chosen for us to discover who we really are is the path of holiness. The most exciting thing is that this path is not for otherworldy saints, rather it is a path of earthy, gutsy holiness. It's a path that is not about basing your life on this world or of shunning your desires. Instead, it is about bringing your hopes, your dreams, your brokenness, your desires, your humanness under the Lordship of Christ. By doing this we don’t just discover a new way of living out our faith, we discover a liberating, revolutionary, life-embracing way of being truly human.

How Biblical Faith Can Help Us Discover Who We Are in An Age of Self Obsession

The Vertical Self

Sixty years ago a goatee beard would have gotten you beat up in a lot of places. Chin fuzz was the symbol of the Beats or Beatniks, a mid-century, marginal group who pioneered a new kind of lifestyle that was hedonistic, experiential, and individualistic. Their contradictory approach to spirituality combined a search for God with a search for 'kicks.' In 1947, these Beatnik heroes set out on a road trip across America re-writing the "life-script" of all future generations. They modeled a new approach to faith: desiring Christ, while still pursuing a laundry list of vices. Yet this dream would turn into a nightmare and the open road would lead back to an ancient, half-forgotten path. It was a path that began with a single step of faith as a pilgrim named Abraham stepped away from a cynical culture. A path of devotion that led to a cross on Golgotha.

The Unlikely Theory That Will Change How You View Culture, the Church, And, Most Importantly, Yourself

The Road Trip That Changed the World

What in the world is going on? These days the world has everyone spinning. Weekly terrorist attacks. The refugee crisis. Transgender bathrooms. Academic safe spaces. Tensions with Russia. A perpetually uncertain economy. The list goes on. It s enough to make us crazy or want to put our heads in the sand. But we can t, because these are our times, and we must face them. So what many Christians are looking for is someone to communicate a way forward someone who both understands culture and trusts the Bible. Mark Sayers is such a leader, one who writes from the future. He is a gifted cultural analysist who combines his biblical knowledge, curious mind, and pastoral heart to offer a guide to the times. Strange Days will help Christians slow down, get their bearings, and follow God with wisdom and tact in this wild world. Take heart, for I have overcome the world, Jesus said nearly 2,000 years ago. And that s the message of Strange Days, the message the church needs today. "

Life in the Spirit in a Time of Terrorism, Populist Politics, and Culture Wars.

Strange Days

What in the world is going on? These days the world has everyone spinning. Weekly terrorist attacks. The refugee crisis. Transgender bathrooms. Academic safe spaces. Tensions with Russia. A perpetually uncertain economy. The list goes on. It’s enough to make us crazy… or want to put our heads in the sand. But we can’t, because these are our times, and we must face them. So what many Christians are looking for is someone to communicate a way forward—someone who both understands culture and trusts the Bible. Mark Sayers is such a leader, one who “writes from the future.” He is a gifted cultural analysist who combines his biblical knowledge, curious mind, and pastoral heart to offer a guide to the times. Strange Days will help Christians slow down, get their bearings, and follow God with wisdom and tact in this wild world. “Take heart, for I have overcome the world,” Jesus said nearly 2,000 years ago. And that’s the message of Strange Days, the message the church needs today.

Life in the Spirit in a Time of Upheaval

Jon Tyson

Traces the history of leadership from the Enlightenment to World War II to analyze the shortfalls of two predominant leadership styles, and argues for adopting leadership approaches rooted in the wisdom of Christ.

Leadership, Influence, and Creating in a Cultural Storm

Facing Leviathan

Can’t find no satisfaction? There’s no shortage of prescriptions for restlessness out there: Seek adventure. Live your life. Don’t hold back. Sound familiar? The Road Trip that Changed the World is a book challenging the contemporary conviction that personal freedom and self-fulfillment are the highest good. Like the characters in a Jack Kerouac novel, we’ve dirtied the dream of white picket fences with exhaust fumes. The new dream is the open road—and freedom. Yet we still desire the solace of faith. We like the concept of the sacred, but unwittingly subscribe to secularized, westernized spirituality. We’re convinced that there is a deeper plot to this thing called life, yet watered-down, therapeutic forms of religion are all we choose to swallow, and our personal story trumps any larger narrative. This is the non-committal culture of the road. Though driving on freely, we have forgotten where we’re headed. Jesus said His road is narrow. He wasn’t some aimless nomad. He had more than just a half tank of gas—He had passion, objectives, and a destination. Do you?

The Unlikely Theory that will Change How You View Culture, the Church, and, Most Importantly, Yourself

The Road Trip that Changed the World

Enjoy these SAMPLE pages from The Road that Changed the World- What if the problem is us? Sixty years ago a goatee beard would have gotten you beat up in a lot of places. Chin fuzz was the symbol of the Beats or Beatniks, a mid-century, marginal group who pioneered a new kind of lifestyle. Their approach to life was hedonistic, experiential, fluid, and individualistic. Their contradictory approach to spirituality combined a search for God with a search for 'kicks'. In 1947, these Beatnik heroes set out on a road trip across America re-writing the "life-script" of all future generations. Theirs was a new kind of lifestyle for a secular age. Their lives then (like so many of our lives now) were built upon experience, pleasure, mobility and self-discovery. They would also model a new approach to faith: desiring Christ, while still pursuing a laundry list of vices. Yet this dream would turn into a nightmare and the open road would lead back to an ancient half-forgotten path. This was a path trodden by millions of feet over thousands of years. It was a path that began with a single step of faith as a pilgrim named Abraham stepped away from a cynical culture. A path of devotion that would lead to a cross on a hill named Golgotha.

The Road Trip that Changed the World SAMPLER

What if you're living in the wrong reality? Doesn't everyone want the good life these days? Our shopping mall world offers us a never-ending array of pleasures to explore. Consumerism promises us a vision of heaven on earth-a reality that's hyper-real. We've all experienced hyperreality: a candy so 'grape-ey' it doesn't taste like grapes any more; a model's photo so manipulated that it doesn't even look like her; a theme park version of life that tells us we can have something better than the real thing. But what if this reality is not all that it's cracked up to be? Admit it, we've been ripped off by our culture and its version of reality that leaves us lonely, bored, and trapped. But what's the alternative? In The Trouble With Paris, pastor Mark Sayers shows us how the lifestyles of most young adults (19-35) actually work against a life of meaning and happiness to sabotage their faith. Sayers shows how a fresh understanding of God's intention for our world is the true path to happiness, fulfillment, and meaning.

Following Jesus in a World of Plastic Promises

The Trouble With Paris

The content in this short e-book is excerpted from The Road Trip That Changed the World, by Mark Sayers. The book examines the influence of Jack Kerouac on Western Culture and the Church from a Christian perspective. We live in a culture of the road—restless for adventure, glorifying experience, seeing life as a journey. Dissatisfied with where we are, we are constantly on the move to redefine our sense of home. Why do we see the world like this? How did we come to believe that our best chance of finding home is to be constantly moving? Jack Kerouac was one of America’s original proponents of the culture of the road, documenting his famous road trip across America in his classic work, On the Road. The standards he set forth in that book have influenced Western culture and church so much that we still read his book, echo his philosophies, and make movies in the vein of his iconic road trip. (A movie adaptation of On the Road is set to release winter 2012.) In this twenty-minute read, Australian cultural commentator Mark Sayers examines how Kerouac’s influence has shaped Western traditions, our cultural identity, and the church. By analyzing our culture of the road and its influence on us, he leads us to understanding what it means to have a true sense of home.

Adapted from The Road Trip that Changed the World

How Kerouac's On the Road Created a Generation of Half-Believers

There are two styles of leadership at war in the world. On one side the mechanical leader casts a vision of heroic action aided by pragmatism, reason, technology, and power. On the other side the organic leader strives to bring forth creativity, defying convention, and relishing life in culture’s margins. This leadership battle is at the heart of our contemporary culture, but it is also an ancient battle. It is the reinvocation of two great heresies, one rooted in an attempt to reach for godlikeness, the other bowing before the sea monster of the chaotic deep. Today’s leader must answer many challenging questions including: What does it mean to lead in a cultural storm? How do I battle the darkness in my own heart? Is there such a thing as a perfect leader? Weaving a history of leadership through the Enlightenment, Romanticism, tumultuous 19th-century Paris, and eventually World War II, cultural commentator Mark Sayers brings history and theology together to warn of the dangers yet to come, calling us to choose a better way.

This participant's guide provides images, quotes, text, and questions to help groups and individuals further understand hyperreality's impact on the attitudes of people around the globe, and consider what true satisfaction in Christ might really look like. -- Back cover.

Mark Sayers

About

Books

Join the club