Nathan's Notions

Every Church on Mission in Discipleship Every church can be on mission when it comes to discipleship. This includes Sunday school classes, small group discipleship outside of the church building, and one-onone discipleship.

According to our ACP we have 3,560 people attending Sunday school on any given Sunday. We have 10 churches that have 100 or more (5 – 100-199, 2 – 200-299, 2- 300-499, 1 – over 500). However, we have 5 churches with no Sunday school. How can every church be on mission in discipleship? If you do not already have a Sunday school class, commit to start one this year. If you already have Sunday school every week, commit this year to TIGER. Josh Hunt uses the acronym TIGER in his book You Can Double Your Class in Two years or Less. He proposes five things that any Sunday school class can do to double their attendance. These include:

  • Teach a halfway decent lesson each and every week – nothing less will do.
  • Invite every member and every prospect to every fellowship every month.
  • Give Friday nights to Jesus.
  • Encourage the group to ministry.
  • Reproduce new groups.

Another form of discipleship takes place outside the church building as people gather in small groups to do life together. Any gathering can turn into an opportunity for discipleship with intentionality. It only takes one person to suggest that the group spends some time talking through spiritual things and how they impact everyday life. Some people would love to talk about their spiritual journey, but do not know how to get started. How can every church be on mission in discipleship? Encourage at least one of your church members to transform an existing group into a discipleship group, or start one from scratch.

A third form of discipleship takes place when two people decide to engage in one-on-one time together studying God’s Word. My daughter Cassie Edinger lives in Shelbyville and attends Graefenburg Baptist Church as a regular member. Her pastor, Philip Meade, implemented one-on-one discipleship teams. Cassie has had a discipleship partner for several years now and loves how it has grown her love for the Lord and deepened the relationship with another young woman at her church. How can every church be on mission in discipleship? Find those first two people in your church that already have a connection and ask them to study the Bible together, sharing with each other insights and challenges along the way as they dive deeper into the Bible.

This year, make a commitment that your church will be on mission in discipleship!

Your AMS, Nathan A. Whisnant 

Ministries
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