What is your plan for making disciples?

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“And Jesus came and said to them, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.'” — Matthew 28:18-20

Churches with a clearly defined plan for making disciples grow healthier and grow faster than churches that do not.

What is your plan for making disciples?

In their book, Simple Church: Returning to God’s Process for Making Disciples, Eric Geiger and Thom Rainer highlight the need for churches to have a simple process for making disciples.  The simpler the process, they say, the more effective it is.

Below are three characteristics of churches that have developed a clear, simple process for making disciples.

Churches with a simple discipleship process have clearly defined what a disciple should look like.

“If you don’t know where you’re going, any road will get you there.” — Alice in Wonderland

Just like all believers are given different gifts from the Holy Spirit for the purpose of building Jesus’ church, different congregations are gifted to make different types of disciples.  Some churches produce church planters.  Others missionaries.  Others servants.  Others teachers.

Do you have a clear picture of what a disciple of your church should look like?  If not, sit down with your leadership team and answer the question, “What should a disciple of [Your Church Name Here] look like?”

Start with the three core disciplines of a Christian: knowledge of God, godly character, and holy conduct.  Then ask how the Holy Spirit has equipped your church, specifically, for making disciples.

Once you have defined what a disciple of your church should look like, you have a target for your ministry process.

Churches with a simple discipleship process have identified and designed clear next steps for different stages of spiritual maturity.

As people come to your church, they will come at all different stages of spiritual growth.  Some will not be Christians at all.  Others will be new believers.  Still others will be mature Christians.

No matter the stage of spiritual growth, every person in your church has a next step.  Do you know what it is?

As Danny Franks, Connections Pastor at The Summit Church in Durham, NC says, “People don’t all have the same next step, but we assume that everyone has a next step.”

Your leaders, staff, and volunteers must be trained to help equip your people by helping them discover the next step that God has given them in their spiritual growth and giving them the tools and encouragement to make that next step.

Churches with a simple discipleship process have aligned their staff and their programs around their process.

A church calendar can fill up in a hurry.  Everyone has a program, everyone has an event, and everyone expects everybody else to be there.

Churches with effective processes for making disciples have focused their programs and declutter their event calendar to do a few things exceedingly well.  This alleviates stress on your already overworked leaders, staff, volunteers, and members, and implicitly communicates that you care about them and that you are interested not in keeping them busy, but in helping them grow in the most important areas of their Christian maturity.

A digital ministry strategy will amplify a well-designed discipleship process.

A well-designed digital ministry strategy will amplify an effective process for making disciples.

1. A digital ministry strategy will communicate what types of disciples your church desires to make.  From your church website and your social media communications to your Sunday morning announcements, you have dozens of opportunities to cast vision for your church and lead your people to become better disciples of Jesus.
2. A digital ministry strategy will equip your people to take their next step.  From first time visitors to seasoned teachers and leaders, your church website can become a central hub for equipping your people and giving them the resources they need to grow and to serve.
3. A digital ministry strategy will point people to the programs, ministries, and events that you have created to help them grow.  Does your church disciple Christians in small groups?  A small group finder on your website can point disconnected members to a group for them to be a part of.  Do you have Sunday school programs or other classroom training opportunities?  Build a resources section on your website to give attendees access to the books, handouts, and worksheets they need most.

A clear process for making disciples is just one out of five areas the Koinonia team focuses on in helping churches design and implement an effective digital ministry strategy.

Want to discover the other four?  Click here to schedule a no-risk consultation today and start making your ministry more effective today.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_column_text][/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_btn title=”START YOUR FREE ASSESSMENT »” style=”modern” shape=”square” color=”danger” size=”lg” align=”center” i_align=”left” i_type=”fontawesome” i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-check-circle” i_icon_openiconic=”vc-oi vc-oi-dial” i_icon_typicons=”typcn typcn-adjust-brightness” i_icon_entypo=”entypo-icon entypo-icon-note” i_icon_linecons=”vc_li vc_li-heart” link=”url:%2Fassessment%2F||” button_block=”” add_icon=”true” i_icon_pixelicons=”vc_pixel_icon vc_pixel_icon-alert”][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/3″][/vc_column][/vc_row]