Jim & Casper Go To Church.

Book Review.

Henderson, Jim. Casper, Matt. Jim and Casper Go To Church. Frank conversation about faith, churches, and well-meaning Christians. Tyndale. 2007.
Comment. Henry.
This book is the result of Jim Henderson, a pastor with 30 years experience, responding to his frustration about having a church that is really effective and following Christ’s teaching regarding impacting its community and world. How he addressed this frustration is unusual and that gives the book its appeal. An easy, thought-provoking read. This is another tool for leaders who are serious about ongoing evaluation of doing church effectively.
In the 35 pages of introduction Jim explains what motivated the writing of this book. It describes an interesting journey for him as he moves through a very disillusioning experience as a pastor and how he resolved some of his questions about how church should be done and how it should not be done. He actually ‘hired’ Matt Casper, an atheist friend, to accompany him in a project to visit various churches to explore how church was being done.
The first church they visited was Saddleback. Casper’s observations are sincere, serious but not very positive. There was too much focus on believing and not enough on action. At the ‘Dream Center’ Casper was impressed positively by the location of the church and its focus on the needy of the community. Pastor McManus from Mosaic did not impress Casper. He did like the idea of having church in a theatre.
Willow Creek, in Chicago, was too much. Discovering that the church had a significant overseas ministry was helpful in dealing with all the wealth that the church complex represented. During a visit to a Presbyterian Church Casper revealed that he had been a part of such a church during his childhood. Laundale Community Church in downtown Chicago came across as an effective church since it actually had community involvement. Their visit to a house church was a very positive experience for Casper. He had gone there alone. Visiting Image Dei, an emerging church in Portland was an ‘eye-opener’ for Casper. They also visited Mars Hill church in Seattle. Their pastor Mark Driscoll impresses them as somewhat of an anomaly. Back in Portland Casper was taken with the informality of the service at the Bridge, a church that advertises that people should ‘come as they are’.
Visits to churches would not be complete without a visit to Lakewood church in Houston and the Joel Osteen show. The ‘church circuit’ was completed with a visit to Potter’s House, the home of T.D. Jakes.
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