FOREWORD for Can These Bones Live?
On the following pages a story of faith is told. Like Joshua of the Old Testament, God has given to this
“Joshua” a vision and a promise. The Old Testament vision given to Joshua was one of expansion for the people
of Israel. The promise to him was that God would be there for him as God had been there for Moses and that
no matter what the situation the Lord would not fail or forsake him.
Here we have the opportunity to walk with Pastor McClure as he unfolds the challenges he encountered while
attempting to remain faithful to the vision that God gave him. In the end, we hear this pastor’s testimony of how
God has kept His promise.
What is revealed here is a congregation modeling the New Testament paradigm of what Jesus mandated the
church to be. In this telling we hear the long ago directives of Christ, who implored the disciple community not
to be enslaved to tradition, put into contemporary praxis. This pastor challenges the status quo and offers a
vibrant alternative to despair.
Here is told the story of how God honors faith. This witness is a source of encouragement for all those who are
trying to do ministry, often in the context of hopelessness. It is here that some pastors struggling with despair
and overcome by expectations too grand to achieve, may find a fresh witness to the power of faith. The
experiences of this pastor and people shared here are existential evidence that the biblical canon is not closed.
God continues to reveal God’s self and engage God’s self in the affairs of the human predicament.
This book is one pastor’s contribution to the conversation of how the sovereign Lord works in the lives of
people to realize God’s will and bring forth redemptive transformation. It is a conversation worth sharing for it
testifies to a reality worth knowing. Moreover, we have here, an epistle of hope for the church today. We taste
here sweet water in the desert, a note of triumph for despairing and failing congregations throughout our nation.
I am certain that those who read this witness of faith will find, as I have, new inspiration in the knowledge that
God is still working in the lives of the faithful. God’s voice yet speaks new life into dead situations.
W. Franklyn Richardson
Senior Pastor
Grace Baptist Church
Mt. Vernon, New York
More Reviews:
Can These Bones Live? is a book much needed for the so-called "small" church and its leadership! This is a
book that is both spiritual (rooted in the scripture and the Holy Spirit) and down to earth (with real-life
experiences)! It is a book that calls me to a more faithful ministry!
I quote the following as key thoughts:
The church is not chartered to be an institution of the world; rather, it is called to be a living organism birthed
into God’s Kingdom under the watchful eye of the King. Unless pastors and church leaders have a God-given
vision of ministry to people, church growth is not possible, and the result is stagnation or declination. (p. )
Without vision the church would be lost in a parade of churches wandering aimlessly, imitating, emulating,
copying, and pirating programs from other dying churches. It is sad to see a church without vision. (p. )
-- Rev. Dr. Paul D. Schoonmaker, Pastor Emeritus Calvary Baptist Church Providence, Rhode Island
Joshua McClure is recognized as a man who hungers and thirsts after God’s own heart. His book Can These
Bones Live? is timely. I am sure; this book will liberate the body of Christ from the conclusion that the mega
church is the emblem of success. His obedience to fill the will of God at Pleasant Street Baptist Church will
revolutionize pastors and congregations, especially congregations serving small churches. I personally endorse
and recommend that every preacher, who desires nothing less than to live out the vision of God, should read and
add this book to their personal collection as a present and future resource.
-- Rev. Dr. Kelly Littlejohn, Jr., Pastor New Beginnings Christian Church Windsor, Connecticut
One thing that attracts me to this book, Can These Bones Live?, is that it is not a “how to do it” publication.
Pastor McClure’s understanding of where vision originates is very crucial to any of us being able to do the will
of God. I am impressed with the style of writing in that anyone on any level should be able to read and
comprehend what lies on the pages of this book. The real life experiences that are illustrated seem to jump right
off of the pages and become such that the reader can almost feel like he /she is right there in the midst of what is
happening. Author Joshua A. McClure has done a marvelous job in looking at the challenge for the church to live
again. Even though this is not a “how to do” book, I believe that if we would listen to the vision that
God gives to each of us, then God will show us how to do what He wants done. If every pastor / leader
would read this book, I believe it will bring new life to their ministries. Once the understanding of God’s vision
for the church comes, then surely these bones can live.
--Rev. Dr. Vincent L. Thompson, Jr., Pastor Community Baptist Church Newport, Rhode Island
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