Discipleship

You were created to become like Christ

After you have made a decision for Christ, it is your responsibility to continue developing in spiritual maturity, learning to obey Christ and become more like him in your thoughts, feelings, and actions. This is God's will for every believer.

Below, you’ll find a table with some beginner, intermediate, and advanced next steps to help you grow in your discipleship. While you may need to challenge yourself to step up to the task, you also need to be realistic in your expectations, otherwise you might become discouraged and give up.  

So consider starting off with a crawl step—a target you can easily hit in the next thirty days. Then you can move on to a walk step—a tangible goal that will stretch you over the next sixty to ninety days. Finally, choose a run step—something that will require a leap of faith, but through the power of the Holy Spirit will bring you to a whole new level of spiritual maturity  

When you have selected the step(s) you want to take, we encourage you to share your decision with a trusted friend who can help you stay the course by praying for you and holding you accountable. Don’t try to do this alone. Isolation can lead to procrastination. But a loving friend can encourage you if you’re feeling discouraged and help you up if you fall down  

Below those next steps, you’ll find some resources like books, studies, and bonus suggestions to help you dig deeper.

Next Steps

Growth Area Crawl Walk Run
I am quick to confess anything in my character that does not look like Christ. Evaluate your character. Have a friend complete the Spiritual Health Assessment on your behalf. Discuss the results. Find a spiritual partner and establish a transparent relationship of accountability.
A review of how I use my finances shows that I think more about God and others than I do about myself. Give something to the church or someone in need. Give the first 10% of your income to your church on a regular basis. Give from your abundance above the first 10%.
I allow God’s Word to guide my thoughts and change my actions. Read one Bible verse a day. Read the Bible straight through like a story or novel. See the “Suggestions” list below for more information on how to do this. Make a regular habit of studying the Bible in depth. You may want to get some tools to help you or take a class at your church.
I am able to praise God during difficult times and see them as opportunities to grow. During a crisis, thank God for all He has done for you and how He will help you grow through this trial. Share what you are learning with a friend or mentor. Journal about your circumstances to see how God is working in and through them. Spend some time reminding yourself of His work by re-reading what you have written. Minister to others through the pain you have experienced by joining ministries at church that specifically focus on meeting the needs of those who are struggling where you have struggled.
I find I am making better choices to do what is right when I am tempted to do wrong. Examine the areas of your life where you struggle with temptation. What are those areas of struggle and what should you start doing to avoid them? Develop a plan for handling specific temptation in your life. Find a spiritual partner to help you. Make confession and repentance a regular part of your time with God. Name the things you have done and commit yourself to making the right choices in the future.
I have found that prayer has changed how I view and interact with the world. Pray a one-sentence prayer from time to time to bring God into your circumstances. Spend some time praying through structured prayers on a daily basis (see the “ACTS Model” or “The Lord’s Prayer” in the “Suggestions” section below). Make spontaneous prayers a regular part of your day (see “Flash Prayers” in the “Suggestions” section below).
I am consistent in pursuing spiritual habits that are helping me model my life after Jesus. Develop the spiritual habit of praying. After waking up, take a moment to offer a prayer to God. Take a class focused on developing healthy habits at church. Commit to practicing regular spiritual habits on a daily basis such as quiet time, prayer, etc. Have a spiritual friend help you evaluate which habits you need to implement.

Community Resources

  • Praying Like Monks, Living Like Fools by Tyler Staton
  • The Way of a Worshiper by Buddy Owens
  • Knowing God by J.I. Packer
  • Attributes of God by Arthur W. Pink
  • Knowledge of the Holy by A.W. Tozer
  • Twelve Dynamic Bible Study Methods by Rick Warren
  • The Life You’ve Always Wanted by John Ortberg
  • The Pursuit of God by A.W. Tozer
  • What’s So Amazing About Grace? by Phillip Yancey

Suggestions

Book Study

Choose a book of the Bible and commit to studying it in depth. Read through the entire book a few times.  

While doing this, get a basic understanding of how the book is structured, what the author’s message is, who he is speaking to, what the book’s purpose is, etc.  

Then start with a section of one chapter and read this through a few times asking the same questions as above.  

To help you in your study, you may want to pick up a commentary that helps explain things verse by verse.

The Bible as Story

For many people, Scripture can become dry because it is read like an encyclopedia. Take some time to read the Bible like a novel.  

Start at the beginning and read it straight through. Instead of looking for something to apply that day, look for overall themes and indications of what God is like and how he interacts with people.

The ACTS Model

The ACTS model of prayer involves breaking our prayers up into different phases or focuses.  

The A stands for **Adoration**. The first portion of our prayers should focus on adoring God for who he is and giving him honor and glory.  

The C stands for **Confession**. A very basic part of prayer is self-examination and coming clean before God about our sin, confessing it, and then turning from it.  

The T stands for **Thanksgiving**. Thanksgiving involves thanking God for who he is and what he has done.  

The S stands for **Supplication**, which involves bringing our requests before God.  

This model helps us stay balanced in our prayers and attuned to the will of God.

The Lord’s Prayer

When asked by his disciples to teach them to pray, Jesus gave them what has come to be known as the Lord’s Prayer. The Lord’s Prayer is a model of prayer that can be broken up into six R’s.  

The first three R’s deal with prayers directed toward God. They are:  

 *Remember** the Lord is near (“Our Father in heaven” — Matthew 6:9),  

 *Reflect** on who God is (“hallowed be your name” — Matthew 6:9), and  

 *Refocus** our lives toward His Kingdom and His will (“your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven” — Matthew 6:10).  

The second three R’s deal with prayers for  our needs. They are:  

 *Request** the needs you have for today (“Give us today our daily bread” — Matthew 6:11),  

 *Repent** of the sins you have committed (“Forgive us our debts as we also have forgiven our debtors” — Matthew 6:12), and  

 *Rest** in God’s deliverance and presence in times of temptation (“And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one” — Matthew 6:13).

Flash Prayers

Frank Laubach talked about “flashing” prayers at anyone you meet. He explained how he would pray silently for those he came into contact with and ask for God’s joy and presence in their lives. He would “flash” these prayers at anyone he saw, people on the bus, the street, in a plane, etc.  

Take some time to experiment with this approach to prayer. At church you may want to flash prayers at those you pass by or see in the sanctuary.  

In every instance ask for God’s joy and presence in the person’s life. Then look for the response. Do you notice a difference in them.

The purpose of a traditional fast is to abstain from food in order to focus clearly on your relationship with God.  

You can also fast from television, entertainment, reading, or anything that distracts you from God.  

Those who are diabetic, pregnant, or who suffer from severe physical disorders when fasting from food should fast from other things that are not physically damaging.  

Remember, the goal is to develop a focus on God. In order to fast you may want to consider the following:

What is the purpose of this fast?

Begin with something small like one meal or one time slot.

During the fast, commit the time you would have spent eating to prayer, Bible study, worship, etc. Use it as a time to focus on God.

Sometimes it is helpful to journal in order to see God’s work in our lives. You may want to start a journal that allows you to record some of the victories and struggles you are having.  

Record your thoughts and feelings as you go through a process of self-examination. Make it a point to review your journal annually to see how God has worked in your life over the past year.

Take some time to look over how you manage your money. If you don’t have a budget you may want to establish one.  

Spend some time praying over what God wants you to do with the money he has given you. This will then help you budget with God’s priorities in mind.  

If you need help with this it may be a good idea to see a Christian financial counselor.

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