The Prodigal God | A New Church-Wide Campaign

The story of the Prodigal Son is one of Jesus’ best known parables.  Almost anyone you ask can give you at least a little bit of an overview.  But do they really get what’s going on?

One of the best-selling books of 2008 was Tim Keller’s The Prodigal God: Recovering the Heart of the Christian Faith.  In it, Keller unpacks the story and highlights some surprising truths; truths that will illuminate a new and more complete understanding of this important story.

In The Prodigal God: Finding Your Place at the Table, Zondervan has packaged the book along with a 6 session study guide and DVD (featuring Tim Keller).  In addition, you’ll find free sermon outlines and promotional materials at the resource site.

Designed to be used as a companion to the book, the study guide is a “show-up” resource; simply a tool to make discussion flow.  No homework is required, other than reading a relatively short section from the book.

Although session one’s video segment is 35 minutes, the rest are short (approximately 2 minutes long).  This will allow plenty of time for participants to discuss what they experienced in the reading as well as explore the questions in the study guide.

As is becoming more common, the participant study guide contains leader notes for each session, making it possible for the facilitator role to be rotated among members.

I can definitely see The Prodigal God being used by many congregations as a church-wide campaign.  Keller is not only a compelling author, he’s a great communicator.  Session one flies by and will captivate members as they hear aspects of the story that will really never seem the same.

Finally, Zondervan has done some good thinking about pricing on this campaign.  You’ll find 20-50% discounts depending on quantity ordered on their site.  You can also find it at CBD at a pretty nice discount.

If you’re looking for a church-wide campaign that helps take your congregation’s understanding of the heart of the Christian faith to new depths…this is one you should be considering.