Mike Lueken

Honest Worship

Preaching & Worship

“Over the past twenty years I have spent many hours with Manuel neck deep in the unspectacular details of everyday church life and ministry. From the front row, I have watched him pour himself out in sacrificial and tireless service to God, our staff, our congregation, and people all over the world. Twenty years ago Manuel could not have written this book. But I have seen the Spirit at work in him. I have watched Manuel pursue greater self-awareness. I have heard him examine his heart to identify where his own false self might be hiding behind a spark of defensiveness. I have seen him struggle to yield to the Spirit's deep, interior, and sometimes painful work of authentic formation. This book is the product of God's Spirit doing genuinesoul work in a man willing to cooperate, stretch, and grow. Our preference for inauthenticity is one of the reasons the church is now in so much trouble. We desperately need Honest Worship. Today, because of the narrow road Manuel has traveled, he is the best person to have written this exceptional book.”

Life Together in Christ

Prayer & Spiritual Formation

“There are a plethora of books on Christian community but too many of them dabble at the surface and reinforce the myth that the Christian life is simple. I for one am tired of a sugary Christian message that depicts a life I've rarely experienced, a faith I've rarely had and a boringly tame God I'm not sure I want to know. This book courageously ventures into uncharted territory by encouraging transforming communities to authentically dialogue about delicate and difficult subjects. If a small group of people would use this book to guide what they discuss and how they discuss it perhaps they would awaken anew to the radical nature of the gospel and to the depth and wonder of genuine Christian discipleship.”