Equal to the task - Softcover

Spck

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0830813578 ISBN 13: 9780830813575

Publisher: Inter-Varsity Press,US, 1998

Synopsis

Would you like todiscover how to break through gender barriers at the office?learn how to work through conflicts on ministry teams?have a healthy friendship with a man or woman who is not your spouse?better understand the relationship between sexuality and spirituality?move beyond stereotyping to godly partnerships?God has created male and female to live in community as one. Yet in the church we have created systems that segregate and limit us rather than unify and free us. But we can be together the way God intended--not only as husbands and wives in the safety of marriage but also as brothers and sisters in the safety of community.The disciplines of biblical community, partnership in marriage, good communication and more can help us serve God together. Only a radical return to Christian community can take men and women beyond ineffective relational patterns to genuine models of mutuality and interdependence. Ruth Barton's biblical insights, personal experience, extensive research and real-life interviews will help you take significant steps toward true teamwork in all of your cross-gender relationships.

About this title

From the Publisher

Beyond Mars and Venus - the next step in gender issues.
Much has been written lately about how men and women are different. But stereotypes often hinder more than they help. They create distrust and miscommunication, and threaten to divide communities by emphasizing how we’re different rather than how we’re alike.

At the same time, little has been said about the practical realities of men and women working together in daily life. Is it really possible for men and women to be friends, without sexual temptation getting in the way? Can we break through gender barriers at the office, at home and in the church?

Moving beyond generalizations and stereotypes, Ruth Haley Barton offers a vision for authentic partnerships between men and women. Her new book Equal to the Task: Men & Women in Partnership (228 pages, paper, 0-8308-1357-8, $11.99) shows us that only a radical return to Christian community will take men and women beyond ineffective relational patterns to genuine models of mutuality and interdependence.

Her biblical insights, personal experience, extensive research and interviews will help us take significant steps toward true teamwork in all of our cross-gender relationships. This is a book that addresses men and women not simply as opposites—but as equals.

Ruth Haley Barton has served on a variety of teams in church and organizational settings. Most recently she has served as president of the Chicago chapter of Christians for Biblical Equality while working on a degree at Northern Baptist Seminary. She lives with her husband and three daughters in Wheaton, Illinois, and continues a ministry of speaking and consulting. Ruth is also the author of Becoming a Woman of Strength: 14 Life Challenges for Women and the Men Who Love Them.

"A gift to all who want to mine the richness of a community that values and honors the gifts of all God’s people, male and female. It is a rare combination of theological acumen and sound practical wisdom." Nancy & John Ortberg, Willow Creek Community Church

"Combining biblical truth and practical insight, she calls on us to move beyond debilitating stereotypes so that we might develop enriching communication skills and a genuine sense of teamwork." Dr. Stanley J. Grenz, Regent College

"This is a very timely work that will become a classic resource for individuals, couples and congregations in quest of authenticity in relationships. . . . A must-read book in the hands of every thoughtful Christian." Dr. Gilbert Bilezikian, author of Community 101

Table of Contents

Forward
Introduction
Chapter 1: Created For Life Together
Chapter 2: The Disciplines of Biblical Community
Chapter 3: The Discipline of Honoring Sexuality
Chapter 4: Tearing Down Walls, Building Bridges
Chapter 5: Beyond Stereotypes to Partnership
Chapter 6: Improving Cross-Gender Communication
Chapter 7: Teaming Up to Get Things Done
Chapter 8: Together at Work
Chapter 9: Mutually Empowering Marriage
Chapter 10: Partners in Parenting
Chapter 11: Love, Sex and Friendship

About the Author

Ruth Haley Barton (DD, Northern Seminary) is founding president of the Transforming Center, a spiritual formation ministry to pastors and Christian leaders. A trained spiritual director (Shalem Institute for Spiritual Formation), teacher and retreat leader, she has served on the pastoral staff of several churches, including Willow Creek Community Church. A sought-after teacher, preacher and consultant to leadership teams, she is currently adjunct professor of spiritual transformation at Northern Seminary. Educated at Wheaton College, Northern Seminary and Loyola University Chicago Institute for Pastoral Studies, Ruth is the author of numerous books and resources on the spiritual life, includingInvitation to Solitude and Silence, Sacred Rhythms, Longing for More and Strengthening the Soul of Your Leadership. She is also the author of an online resource titled eReflections, spiritual guidance via e-mail. She contributes regularly to Conversations: A Forum for Authentic Transformation.

Edition details

• Publisher: Inter-Varsity Press,US
• Publication date: 1998
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0830813578
• ISBN 13: 9780830813575
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 228