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I had been betrayed. I do not mean this as hyperbole. If you want to be in ministry, you will have scars; The longer we are in, the more scars we will have, that is, as long as we are really in. There are those among us who figure out how to have a kind…

What does a disciple look like? Clarifying and simplifying the definition of a disciple is critical if your church is going to be committed to making disciples. You can’t have a fuzzy vision of your end product. That is what a disciple is—it’s the end product of a church.  Just as a tire factory produces…

Language matters.Before discussing some practical concepts of Intentionally Branching, I’d like to briefly discuss the importance of a church being unified in the language they use in making disciples. For instance, notice the word branch. Merriam-Webster defines branch as “to put forth secondary shoots or stems: to put forth branches.” Branching describes movement, growth, maturity, and life….

Discipleship is not enough… Over the weekend, Jennifer and I went to see Jesus Revolution, a new movie based on Greg Laurie’s personal journey with the birth of the Calvary Chapel movement of the late 60’s and early 70’s. As we sat in our seats at the movie’s conclusion, Jennifer and I both found ourselves saying…

What is a Disciple? Years ago, I received an invitation to meet with several national discipleship leaders. If I mentioned their names, you would know them. Most of them had written extensively about discipleship for decades and led national disciple-making ministries. Honestly, I’m not even sure why I was in the room. I felt like…

As a young Christian, I remember coming across a book titled The Fight by John White.  It appeared to be a volume on basic discipleship with chapters on the importance of Scripture, prayer, holiness, and other matters of what we would call personal piety.  But the final chapter caught my attention.  It was titled Deliverance…

When Jesus commissioned His disciples, He was very clear. He told them to make more disciples. But that begs the question: What is a disciple? The term “disciple” comes from the Greek word “athetes,” which means, “to learn.” The Hebrew word for a disciple is “talmidim.” That word, too, is connected with learning. So, in its most basic sense, a disciple is someone…

There are 15 ministries that will be teaching about disciple making at the National Forum in April. We want to give you an idea of some of the key breakout topics to be discussed as they add so much value to the event and to the ministries of those who attend. We also hope this…

Jesus’ method for disciple-making is timeless – the same approach He used in in His day works for us today. Jesus-style disciple making never gets old or becomes irrelevant. It will never be outdated – it works in every generation and in every nation. The process of coming alongside other people and helping them become more like Christ…

Just as Jesus modeled for Peter, James, and John by drawing them close, inviting to his inner circle, Paul replicated with his invitation to Timothy. Similarly, we too must model for those we have apprentice in our small groups. As a disciple maker I want my apprentice to reproduce what he sees me do. So,…

Have you been paying attention to what’s been happening in Wilmore, Kentucky? On February 8th, the chapel service at Asbury University concluded with a single student, convicted by the Holy Spirit, rising to his feet to publicly confess his sins. This simple act of obedience ushered in a profound move of the Spirit across the…

7% of the next generation globally identify themselves as Christ-followers. This Barna Group statistic was the focal point of a three day conversation among leaders recently gathered in Orlando from various youth ministry organizations. Are we, the church, losing the next generation? Are we really satisfied with the results we’re seeing? We can’t stick our heads in…