If we can assume you are correct about your church ’ s toxicities and that you want to move the church toward tov , you must begin by spending plenty of time in prayer , Bible study , and thinking about the one thing that you believe needs to change . The only way forward is one step at a time . You will need to articulate what the Bible says about what is wrong in your church and about what should replace it . You will then need to find another person whom you can trust to discuss the situation by listening to one another carefully . This , too , takes time — more than one or two conversations , more than a week or two . Over time , branch out to a few others so you can form a pocket of tov . Begin to live out the tovness that needs to replace the toxicity .
Adapted from Pivot : The Priorities , Practices , and Powers That Can Transform Your Church into a Tov Culture by Scot McKnight and Laura Barringer . Copyright 2023 . Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers , a Division of Tyndale House Ministries . All rights reserved .
That is the first step toward pivoting to a tov culture .
Scot McKnight is professor of New Testament at Northern Seminary and a recognized authority on the New Testament , early Christianity , and the historical Jesus . He is the author of more than ninety books , including A Church Called Tov , the award-winning The Jesus Creed , and The Blue Parakeet . He and his wife , Kristen , live in the northwest suburbs of Chicago .
Laura Barringer is a teacher and the coauthor of A Church Called Tov . She is also a children ’ s ministry curriculum writer for Grow Kids and coauthored the children ’ s version of The Jesus Creed . A graduate of Wheaton College , Laura resides in the northwest suburbs of Chicago with her husband , Mark , and three beagles .
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