Books by Ian Stackhouse

Charismatic renewal has at the core of its ideology an aspiration for revival. This is a laudable aspiration, but in recent years, in the absence of a large-scale evangelistic impact, it has encouraged a faddist mentality among church leaders. The Gospel-Driven Church documents this development and the numerous theological and pastoral distortions that take place when genuine revival fervor transmutes into revivalism. Moreover, Stackhouse aims to show how a retrieval of some of the core practices of the church, such as preaching, sacraments, the laying on of hands, and prayer is essential at this crucial stage in the trajectory of the renewal movement in the United Kingdom. He commends to church leaders a recovery of these means of grace - including Spirit baptism - as a way of keeping the church centered on the gospel rather than mere pragmatic concerns about size and numbers.

The Day Is Yours is a protest against the culture of speed both in society at large but also, more ominously, in the church itself. Rooted in the monastic liturgy of the hours, The Day is Yours argues that in order for Christians to act as a truly prophetic witness, in a time of cultural decadence, they must recover a more biblical rhythm in which work, rest, relationships, worship and prayer are held together in creative tension. Written by a pastor, the central thrust of The Day Is Yours is that living one day at a time with gratitude and contentedness is vital, lest the church capitulates tothe distractedness of modern life.