HEALTHY CHURCH: Think Slow, Not Fast
Disciples are not widgets. They cannot be mass-produced on an assembly line. Disciples are formed while they are moving toward Christ through the transforming power of the Word of God at work with the Holy Spirit. The process of discipleship is first about direction and the journey, not the completion of the journey or the destination. You never arrive because you continue to press toward the mark of Jesus’ calling on your life. Eugene Peterson described discipleship as “a long obedience in the same direction.” The discipleship journey of following Jesus is more about progress than perfection.
We have challenged you before to think small, not big. Alan Hirsch reminded us, “You can create a stronger movement with 12 disciples than with 1,200 consumers.”Ministry to the few is as important as ministry to the many, and you should be made fully aware that discipleship may be simple, but it is not easy. Robert Coleman reminded us, “Discipleship is not the path of least resistance because the devil never gives up!” Have you established a clear, intentional discipleship pathway where the route and steps are well-defined to the disciple and the disciple-maker? Does everyone in your church know what the next steps are?
Discipleship takes time, and while some will seem to grow to maturity at supersonic speed, others will creep along at a snail’s pace. Look for balance and not the extremes where the pendulum swings too far either way. Your goal and vision for this pathway is to develop fully devoted followers of Christ who become disciple-makers. Design some simple metrics with accountability questions for those you disciple. Accountability is often the missing ingredient in the discipleship pathway, which is why groups of 3-4 are critical to spiritual growth and development. Small enables customization with the Holy Spirit’s leading.
In his book, The Body, Chuck Colson listed seven questions used by Chuck Swindoll and other pastors:
• Have you been with a woman anywhere this past week that might be seen as compromising?
• Have any of your financial dealings lacked integrity?
• Have you exposed yourself to any sexually explicit material?
• Have you spent adequate time in Bible study and prayer?
• Have you given priority time to your family?
• Have you fulfilled the mandates of your calling?
• Have you just lied to me?
With a discipleship pathway in place, you are halfway there because now you must focus on a leadership pipeline.
In No Silver Bullets, Daniel Im used this analogy: “If your church were a car that had to get to a particular endpoint — which would be the church’s vision — the discipleship pathway would be the fuel, and the leadership pipeline would be the engine.” Both are equally important. When we say, “Go slow, not fast,” that refers to the building of the pathway and pipeline even more than the actual process once you get started. Ministry becomes so hectic and busy that it is easy to always work “in” the ministry while rarely having the time to work “on” the ministry. Yes, implement your plan, but take the necessary time in planning your work.
Do you dream about a preferred future of making disciples and developing disciple-makers? Do you have a vision to see people who are mature in Christ and also reproducing themselves in others? Do you have a vision to discover, deepen, develop and deploy disciple-makers? Vision is about a preferred future. It is the ability to conceptualize a picture of a golden tomorrow that does not yet exist. It is about seeing the difficulties and the possibilities so clearly that you can actually visualize a different reality than what you see now. Dreams without strategies are only illusions that soon become pipedreams but never materialize.
Developing disciples requires quality time as you design a process that will lead a new believer from being a spiritual infant who needs 100% of your guidance and attention to becoming a spiritual parent. A spiritual parent is then able to give guidance and attention to the newest spiritual infants. The ultimate goal is to equip every disciple to become spiritual grandparents who are training disciple-makers. Forming missionary disciples does not happen overnight. Your discipleship pathway shapes character, transforms hearts and shows disciples who they are in Christ. Think development.
A discipleship pathway is mandatory, but you are only halfway to the dream of your church fulfilling its vision of discipling disciple-makers. The other half needed is a leadership pipeline that will equip your church to live as missionary disciples by developing every disciple’s competencies, training them to be transforming agents and helping them discover what they are called to do. The discipleship pathway stresses who they are in Christ (development). Your leadership pipeline focuses on what they should be doing (deployment). Both are equally important in your church’s vision to fulfill the Great Commission.
Vision without action is only a dream, and action without vision usually becomes a nightmare. When biblical optimism and creativity come together, a pathway (the fuel — development) and a pipeline (the engine — deployment) emerge that leads your church to a brighter future. Disciple-making disciples who become disciple-makers is a four-generation process that does not happen overnight. You must begin today for things to change tomorrow. Are you making disciples? Are you deploying leaders into disciple-making? Are you willing to do the hard work necessary to build a discipleship pathway and a leadership pipeline?
It has been said that change is painful, but nothing is as painful as staying stuck somewhere you don’t belong. Are you a little overwhelmed by the process and the task? Do you wonder where to begin? Start in prayer by asking God to show you what you should be doing and what you should stop doing. Then look to resources such as books, other church leaders and churches ahead of you in this process. Third, look for some trainings to be involved in, such as The Multiplication Workshop or Good Soil. Lastly, seek a coach/mentor to lead you through the process. Think small, not big and think slow, not fast!
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Larry Barker
Director of Church Planting and Church Health Larry Barker submits a weekly column titled, Healthy Church Solutions, designed to strengthen and encourage the local church.
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