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The simple revolution has begun. From the design of the iPod to the uncluttered Google home page, simple ideas are changing the world.

Simple Church clearly calls for Christians to return to the simple gospel-sharing methods of Jesus. No bells or whistles required, so to speak.

Based on case studies of four hundred American churches, authors Thom Rainer and Eric Geiger prove that the process for making disciples has quite often become too complex. Simple churches are thriving, and they are doing so by taking these four ideas to heart: Clarity. Movement. Alignment. Focus.

Each idea is examined here, simply showing why it is time to simplify.

Download FREE Discussion Guide 10-Page PDF

Download Sample Chapter 27-Page PDF

Watch Dr. Thom Rainer discuss the concepts in Simple Church:

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About the authors:
Thom S. Rainer, Ph.D., is president and CEO of LifeWay Christian Resources. He has consulted with more than five hundred churches, served as pastor in four churches and interim pastor in seven churches, spoken in hundreds of venues, and authored sixteen previous books. Rainer and his wife, Nellie Jo, have three grown sons and live in Nashville, Tennessee.

Eric Geiger, Ed.D, serves as executive pastor of Christ Fellowship, a large and growing multicultural church comprised of more than seventy nationalities near Miami, Florida. He has also worked with churches in Ohio, Arkansas, and Louisiana. Geiger and his wife, Kaye, live in Florida. Visit www.ericgeiger.com where you may complete a Process Design Survey to help you evaluate your church’s process and prepare to make necessary changes.

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From:  Clearfield, UT

5/23/2006 12:03:00 AM:   In the sample it was refreshing to see leaders being simple like Christ

The simple approach is refreshing. The simplier the leaders can reduce the concept and design of Discipleship and church functions the quicker the people will grasp the concept. This book urges the simple approach and will encourage simple answers to maturing chiristian.

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By:  Pastor William D. Webster  From:  Boise, Idaho

2/12/2007 3:58:33 PM:   Simple Church is the best book about church design & growth I have ever read!

Simple Church was refreshing and exciting. My church has been moving to a simple process but we were not aware that we were simplifying. The work that Rainer & Geiger have done in this book put into words and thoughts the direction that we were wanting to go. I firmly believe that God, through this book, has given us a game plan, a clear direction in which to head. I have waited all my ministry for a book like this on church and spiritual growth. This is an excellent book, one that every minister and church leader should read.

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By:  Pastor Brad Toyama  From:  Honolulu, HI

3/21/2007 10:08:00 PM:   This is a great resource to step back and re-evaluate your church.

This book has tremendous insight into the big picture of the church as well as some good practical, but not so easy (well, nothing good comes easy) steps to simplifying and unifying the body of Christ. Excellent resource!!!

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By:  Barbara Grove  From:  Waynesboro, Va

4/5/2008 8:51:11 PM:   Great for church leadership, espically for churches with declining membership

It is written in laymens terms and language.

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By:  KC Armstrong  From:  Birmingham, AL

1/26/2007 2:21:36 PM:   Ecclesiologically Lacking

Simple Church was an easy read, even with the statistical data that the authors decided to throw out, but still left me wanting. It was good to examine whether our church would be classified as “simple” or complex and I believe that consensus was that we need to be “more simple” even if we are already simple. We have a clear purpose statement and seek to align all of our ministries behind this purpose, yet as a large church, we still must resist the temptation of doing more. Bigger is not always better and more is not always best. Rather, we are to focus on what we do and do it well. I am excited about this next year as we have made a commitment as a church family to focus on Sundays and Wednesdays to make them the best that they possibly can be. Not a novel idea, but one that will help us each achieve a simple focus. However, Simple Church, although it does not claim to be the next church-growth model, seems to be simply a formulaic model for doing church. There is a glaring lack of biblical support for the “simple” model given in the book. Not that there is not biblical evidence that can be used to support how the church ought to be simple in its focus, but this evidence is not given in Simple Church. It is not void of scriptural references, but it seems to rely on the survey data that the book was complied around, rather than a biblical approach to how Christ sees His Church and how it ought to function. The subtitle, “Returning to God’s Process For Making Disciples” is therefore misleading as we are not called to return to anything other than statistical analysis.