Discipleship is the core of what we do on our mission’s trips. So, we created a two-part discipleship blog series. In the first part, we talked about the importance of meeting people where they are. Here is an excerpt from the post:
“We at Missions Partners know that we cannot show up in a region and plant a seed without tending the soil. For us, the “soil” is the physical condition of our brothers and sisters in Christ. It’s difficult for people to come to know Christ and care for themselves spiritually if they are hurting physically from things that WE can fix!
Sure, mature Christians should always put their spiritual health before the physical, but these people don’t know Christ. We can’t have the same spiritual expectations for them.
We are told to be God’s hands and feet, and that’s exactly what we do on our mission’s trips. We disciple by tending the “soil”– healing their bodies before planting the seeds.” Read more here.
Now, we are going to address the “how-to’s” of discipleship…
1. Recognize your need for a Savior
Before we can give others the hope of Christ, we have to recognize our human need for a Savior. Sometimes when we are on our own Christian walk for some time, we forget.
“For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.” –Romans 3:23
When we recognize our need, we see the importance of giving others the gift of salvation.
2. Follow the Holy-Spirit’s leading
There are so many times where we feel led to reach out to someone but we don’t because we lack confidence in our message.
“I don’t know enough.”
“What if they ask me a question I cannot answer?”
“Now is not a good time.”
These things are all problems if the delivery of the Gospel was solely OUR responsibility. But it’s not. It’s spirit-led! We need to confidently follow the Spirit’s call when we feel that nudge to share Christ.
3. Plant the seed.
When planting the seed, think quality instead of quantity. In Judges 7:1–22, God gave His servant Gideon the ability to win against the Midianites. He made the odds against Gideon by decreasing his army from 32,000 uncommitted men to 300 committed men. This is an example of how God cares about the quality of His people rather than numbers. You can trust that God has enough power to reveal Himself to someone in just a short amount of time. Rest in God’s assurance of quality when you follow His lead!
Tell us about a time when you stepped outside of your comfort zone and became a disciple of Christ!
