A Vine confabulation Ian Carmichael

We at Matthias Media have recently made available a free and downloadable discussion guide for Col Marshall and Tony Payne's The Trellis and the Vine. Download it from our Australian or North American store.

Released in only December last year, The Trellis and the Vine is currently undergoing its fourth printing, which will bring the total number of copies printed to over 55,000. This makes it the most successful book we've published in our 22-year history.

But it's not just the quantity of sales that's exciting; what really excites us is what people are saying to us about the content. The Trellis and the Vine calls for a radical re-think of the priorities of church ministry. So far, most of those buying the book are pastors, and the reaction has been extremely good. They see the biblical truth of what's being said, and they are being challenged to rethink what they're doing. In particular, Col Marshall and Tony Payne call upon them to focus on people more than on programs and structures. Providing that kind of help and challenge to so many people—well, that's why we do what we do here at Matthias Media.

We hope that the release of this discussion guide will facilitate church members talking together about the issues the book raises and the changes they might need to make in their fellowship and in their own lives.

4 Comments »

Thanks for this resource. However, the North American link doesn’t work.

Karen Beilharz13/03/2010 10:34 AM

Hi Michael! Please try again: http://www.matthiasmedia.com/tatvhb.

Andrew Clarke18/03/2010 10:20 AM

I chaired an Annual Congregational Meeting last night, and I was very grateful to be able to draw from the book to give focus to the discussion. We were doing trellis work (audited financial statement, budget, committee membership, etc) but with vine work in view.

Thank you for the discussion guide. This will make the book all the more attractive as a group study resource.

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Paul is one of the Staff Editors at Matthias Media. He is married to Cathy and has three fantastic kids. He loves student ministry, reading, writing music and playing the saxophone, and is looking forward to meeting Jesus face to face.

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