In life, humans seem to struggle with the middle of the pendulum swing. What I mean is that we tend to lean toward the left or right extreme of the pendulum swing. Too often balance is delicate and fleeting. Like faith and works (see James), head knowledge and behavior are…
Too frequently I find church leaders complicating the simple. Disciple-making is one place where I see complexity too often. Keep it simple! I want to suggest four simple steps for a disciple-maker to invest in his disciple(s) one-on-one or in D-groups (discipleship groups no larger than 5 including the leader).…
Sometimes I read books, articles, or posts that need to be shared. Kandi Gallaty (Robby’s wife) wrote a great blog post on LifeWay Women. I want to encourage you to read her entire post at What Is Discipleship? The following five paragraphs launch her post. Let them whet your appetite…
Gather a team and prayerfully put together a simple plan for discipleship. Choose materials. Set expectations. Determine goals. But don’t wait too long. In all my conversations with leaders, two truths seem to be universal. First, every plan needs adjustment. Second, most wish they had started discipling sooner and adjusted…
Pray. Gather a team with passion for disciple-making. Work through these questions. Don’t be afraid to launch disciple-making actions while working through strategy development. But keep things fluid so adjustments can be made. Consider these questions as starters: EVALUATE: What is the current state of disciple-making (strengths and needs)? What…
What if every church ministry and program… was required to advance individual and/or corporate discipleship and disciple-making? was required to show how it will do so before it could be calendared? was required to show (measure and report) how participants acted, ministered to others, or invited/shared Jesus differently as a…
The beginning of each new year is an opportunity to start things, to start over, to start again. It can be a time of commitments and resolutions, a time of review and desire to improve. At minimum, the Christian should stop to reflect on what God has done in the…
My sons are young adults. One lives a couple hours away; the other lives nine hours away. But when we are together in person or connecting by phone or electronic means, I am often amazed at how much I hear me in them. I hear my dry humor. I hear…
During the National Disciple Making Forum earlier this month, I attended four conferences led by Craig Etheredge, Pastor of First Baptist Church, Colleyville, TX. In those conferences, he shared his experiences which formed seven steps (bold moves) necessary to transition a church to become an intentional disciple-making church. Those seven…
On churchleaders.com, Bobby Harrington asks ten disciple-making questions for churches in an article entitled 10 Disciple-Making Questions You Need to Ask. I encourage you to read the entire article. Many good questions are in his list: How does our church define discipleship? What does a disciple look like? Do we…
Two encounters are critical. First, the leader encounters God in His Word and is changed. Second, the leader guides the group to have a life-changing encounter.