Building the Body: 12 Characteristics of a Fit Church by Gary L. McIntosh and Phil Stevenson is a book that explores how to keep a church healthy and thriving. The authors discuss the topics of outreach, effective evangelism, community engagement, personal ministry, God-honoring stewardship, leadership development, Christ-exalting worship, disciple-making strategies, pastoral leadership, loving community, vision-directed systems, divine empowerment, and tracking church progress.

My favorite chapter was “Christ-Exalting Worship,” especially the passages that defined worship and talked about the variances in worship styles. I also really enjoyed reading about the elements of a disciple-making strategy and five types of churches in the chapter “Disciple-Making Strategies.” Not only is Building the Body a good book for church leaders, but it is also helpful for laypeople; the book provides a good way for those in the congregation to examine the time and effort that church leaders often put into maintaining a healthy church.