User:Cdbrauns/sandbox

Dr. Chris Brauns is the pastor of The Red Brick Church in Stillman Valley, IL and an author. His works include Unpacking Forgiveness: Biblical Answers for Complex Questions and Deep Wounds.

Biography
Chris Brauns received degrees from Central College (B.A. Chemistry, 1985), the University of Northern Iowa (M.B.A., 1991), Grand Rapids Theological Seminary (MDiv, 1993), and Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary (DMin, 2006).

Chris grew up on a farm near Keosauqua, IA. Prior to entering ministry, he worked for Bayer in new product development and applied statistics.

Chris and his wife, Jamie, have two daughters and two sons.

Writing and Speaking on Forgiveness
Unpacking Forgiveness: Biblical Answers for Complex Questions and Deep Wounds was published by Crossway: A Division of Good News Publishers (Wheaton) in 2008. While Brauns's central goal was to offer biblical and pastoral answers relating to forgiveness, he also sought to counter superficial understandings of forgiveness often set forth by others as a Christian position. Brauns defends the position of conditional forgiveness rather than unconditional forgiveness.

On Pastoral Search Committees and Pulpit Nominating Committees
Brauns's doctoral work focused on developing a book to equip pastoral search committees to call pastors in a Word-centered way. He also maintains the web site PastorSearchResources.com.

Selected Publications
Be Visibly Devoted to be Pastorally Placed. The Gospel Coalition. July, 2011.

Bound Together: How We are Tied to Others in Good and Bad Choices. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, forthcoming 2013.

Packing Unforgiveness. Reformation 21. August, 2009.

A Review of A Million Miles in a Thousand Years. Reformation 21. October, 2009.

A Review of Preaching Christ from Ecclesiastes. The Gospel Coalition. August, 2010.

Unpacking Forgiveness: Biblical Answers for Complex Questions and Deep Wounds. Wheaton: Crossway, 2008.

When the Word Leads Your Pastoral Search: Biblical Principles and Practices to Guide Your Search. Chicago: Moody, 2010.