Inside Out Families : Living the Faith Together

Utilizing the research methods for which she is well known, Diana Garland here guides congregational leaders to encourage families to engage together in the Christian practice of service. The fruit of family service, she writes, is not only a deeper understanding of one another and of what God is doing in the world but also the reordering of a family's values and time together. It is this communal service, she empirically demonstrates, that will develop in children and adolescents a resilient faith that will carry them into adulthood - and, ultimately, prove essential to maintaining a resilient faith in congregational life.

Diana Garland is Dean of the School of Social Work, Baylor University. She is the author or editor of eighteen books, including most recently Flawed Families of the Bible: How God's Grace Works through Imperfect Relationships; Sacred Stories of Ordinary Families; and Ministry: A comprehensive Guide.