Gospelling Life: Making Disciples

Many people have said — and I fully agree with the reality — that it’s very possible to plant a church and not make disciples of Jesus Christ. Many churches have been started as (primarily) a Sunday morning event and success is measured by how many people attend weekend services. However, if you commit yourself to making disciples, you will plant and grow a church.  
 
I suspect that much of your disciple-making approach is being done by either (1) exactly following the method by which you were discipled (or by reaction against how you were discipled) or (2) you have no disciple-making intentionality whatsoever because you were not discipled by anyone in your past. 
 
Let’s assume you need to begin or continue the work of creating a discipleship process for your new church. The expected course of action for an expert on discipleship would be to tell you what to do and you’d take some notes, ask some questions, and forget about it on the way home. Or maybe you’d talk through some of this with another leader in your church, a friend in ministry, or a coach who’s helping you start your new church.
 
Jesus calls specific people with specific abilities, affinities, and aptitudes for specific ministry contexts. Let’s begin moving forward with the discipleship plan your church plant will implement.
 
A Different Path to Develop a Process of Discipleship

The purpose and plan of discipleship in many churches is unclear, unfocused, and unreliable. Programming will change constantly and the themes we emphasize vary wildly. It leaves people confused or exhausted, and leadership flabbergasted. What we propose is not complicated, but it does require the hard work of clarity, discipline, and consistency.
 
But first, let’s go back to basics and re-imagine discipleship by asking three simple questions adapted from the book, Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action by Simon Sinek. The questions are WHY, HOW, and WHAT.

• WHY do we disciple?  Creates clarity.

• HOW do we disciple?  Creates change.
  

• WHAT are the ways we disciple?  Creates consistency.

 
Click here to download your FREE ebook “Gospel-Centered Discipleship” today.
 
At CMM, we believe every pastor, church planter, ministry leader, and missionary is created to thrive in ministry. We suggest getting a CMM C.R.O.S.S. Coach to help walk with you through the challenges you’ve never faced before. You don’t have to plant a church alone. A CMM C.R.O.S.S. Coach will help encourage and equip you every step along the way. Click here to learn more today!
 
If you would like to learn more about Disciple-making in the New Church you can download the full chapter for $5 today!
 
Or you can order the entire book, Church Planter Field Manual: Climbing from Amazon.
This field manual also includes chapters on team building, Gospel life, developing leaders, and planting a reproducing church.