People-Centered Administration

Your Gift of Administration by Ted W. Engstrom, Nelson, $9.95

Reviewed by John A. Huffman, Jr., St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church, Newport Beach, California

Some who write about administration have all the theory but not the practice. I read their writing, and I'm impressed; I talk to their associates, and I'm let down.

Ted Engstrom, however, is one who practices what he preaches.

Thirty years ago, as a teenager, I lived across the street from him and watched this large bundle of a man energetically drag his body, chronically pained by a hip injury, through a schedule that wouldn't stop. He was then president of Youth for Christ International, traveling the world carrying spiritual and financial burdens and administering a huge team of creative mavericks.

Read his books, observe his accomplishments, and you wonder whether he really has time for people. He does. And not just the people who are part of his organization. Thirty years ago, he had time for the kid across ...