What Jesus Started ebook

“Clear, compelling, and exciting. Ellen provides a much-needed reminder that local churches living in and by the power of God are the way He displays His glory and goodness to a broken world.”

“Relaying the true-life accounts of simple believers who labor in small, dark corners of the earth, Ellen shows us once again how ‘weakness and humility’ open the way for God to perform His most powerful, kingdom-shaping work. The faith-forging stories you will read in this exceptional book will stir you—as they’ve stirred me—to roll up our sleeves and do the hard, modest labor that will impact our communities for Christ.”

"The apostle Paul said that God’s promises are ‘yes’ and ‘amen.’ One of His promises was to build the church, and, as Ellen Vaughn describes in these pages, He has. The stories she tells should inspire and encourage us to be the church where He has placed us, resting in the promise that ‘the gates of hell shall not prevail,’ but the church certainly will.”

"When Ellen Vaughn writes something, I read it—no question. What she writes is never boring. She makes history come alive—not just as facts or a compelling narrative but as a story she genuinely understands and helps you understand too, and in a way that points straight to the hand of God moving through it all. What Jesus Started is a rich, compelling, and beautifully written book that celebrates the local church as God’s primary instrument for changing the world. It will inform you, stir you, and challenge you to live differently for Christ.”

“Jesus said, ‘I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.’ In this remarkable book, Ellen Vaughn shows how He continues to do that. The stories she shares are eyeopening and soul-stirring. I hope this book will be widely read and that the Spirit will stir us all to prayer and action.”

“Jesus came to build His church, but we’ve often settled for building a crowd. If you’re longing for more than just ‘church as usual,’ the real-life stories in this book will stir your faith and call you back to the movement Jesus started.”

“What Jesus Started will help rejuvenate a faith grown stale or one coddled by Western comforts. Ellen not only writes with the pen of a poet and the wisdom of a sage but with a passion for the local church. She calls us back to our thrilling roots. This is a book the church needs to read. And as we do, we’ll discover it’s the one we’ve wanted to read for a long time.”

"Does your faith feel stagnant or small? Do you long to hear of God’s miraculous works in ordinary individuals across the world? Reading these true stories will set your heart ablaze with a fresh perspective on how very big and how very good our God is. In our broken world it brings very good news.”

“ Ellen has captured stories that expand and challenge us all. I was blessed to travel with Ellen when she collected many of the stories in this book, and I can attest that there are thousands more that could be told! The Spirit of the living God is working in powerful ways to continue to build what Jesus started.”

“The masterful writing of Ellen Vaughn pointing us to the supernatural power of the local church around the world? Yes, please! May this book encourage, embolden, convict, and challenge you as you continue what Jesus started in your own life and local church.”