Additional information
by Rick Harrington (Author)
Over forty million people have left the church in the past twenty-five years in the United States. This is not merely people walking away from the faith. Many Christians have dechurched as well. The local church is seen as an optional club, and gathering with other Christians is a sort of side issue in the real business of following Jesus. This short book seeks to push against the cultural tide. It musters together an argument biblically, historically, and practically on behalf of the church. The church does not sit on the periphery of the Christian life; it belongs smack dab in the center. The church is our means of grace to corporate worship, Christian fellowship, and the Great Commission. Read and reimagine what the church could look like going forward. Brief and winsome, this resource draws on Scripture, pastoral experience, and wisdom from the global church to present a thoughtful and practical argument intended to help readers understand the call upon the Christian to commit and serve the church.
Author Biography
Rick Harrington serves at First Baptist Church of Haverhill, MA as the senior pastor. He loves to travel the world, read good books, drink quality coffee, and spend time with his wife and two kids. His passion is to see the church deeply in love with Jesus, spreading the fame of His Name throughout the globe.
Pastor Rick graduated from Gordon College (B.A.) and Trinity Evangelical Divinity School (M.Div), and holds a doctorate degree in preaching from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary (D.Min). He serves as the Provost of the Multiplication Center of the Baptist Churches of New England.
He is the author of Churching: Rediscovering the Centrality of the Church in the Christian Life (2025). Rick has published with Baptist Press, The Baptist Paper, and The New York Times.
