Beginning this coming weekend we are entering a season as a church where we are going to try and walk tangibly through how we are to live as gospel-driven followers of Christ. I know I know, on the surface nothing sounds revolutionary about that. Well, hopefully it doesn’t. Let me tell you more about why I’m believing God for big things over the next couple of months.
When I was in college a group of 4 guys decided to make it their mission to see me and a handful of other guys grow as followers of Christ. Chuck Barrier, Chris Beam, John Crane, and John Ussery. These guys will never know the extent to which God used them as disciple makers in my life. They invited me into their lives and they had a gameplan for pushing me closer towards the image of Christ. and They were supported by Cole McGlaughlin, Chad McGee, and Hugh Jones who were showing them the ropes as they were living it with us. How to share the gospel, how to study the bible, how to engage the world not separating from it, why theology matters, what prayer is all about, understanding God’s will, why the nations should be on my mind. Basic concepts that were not taught as a course but as a series of life conversations. God used Logan Keck, Nate Gilmore, and Matt Clark as they went through that season with me. He used Jon Sink, Todd Kingdon, and Zach honeycutt as we tried to disciple them in the model Chris, John, John, and Chuck had done with us. The model they learned from Hugh, Cole, and Chad who learned it from somebody else.
Names. Nobody you probably know, but men whose names I will carry forever alongside 2 Tim 2.2 “and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.”
I wonder how many of us could take on a couple of people and God willing make disciples of them who will make more disciples. This is my cornerstone prayer for our church. would we be a disciple making church. This is what I want to be about. And over the next seven weeks we are going to throw ourselves as a church into a disciplemaking crash course. I can’t wait.
We begin Saturday morning at the Summit Small Group Leader Rally. If you are in the area, we’d love to have you there. RSVP here.
