Photo of Barry Sneed

Downstream

Thoughts on disciple making, life transformation, and environments of grace and trust. . . .
Executive Vice President of NavPress


05.06.2013

Assessment, Vision, Strategy

How do you know what direction to go if you don’t know where you are?  In order to get to a future state, understanding current reality is a must.  For the next few moments lets consider three important factors to becoming a disciple-making church.
 
Assessing the Present Reality (Evaluation)
 
Many churches believe they are making disciples who make disciples when, in actuality, they are merely adding people to their membership and placing them in groups, groups that are about gathering more than disciple-making.
 
In order for a church to conclude whether or not the church is making disciples who make disciples they simply need to ask themselves the following questions.
 
1. Do we have a reproducible disciple-making process in place?
 
2. Are those who consider themselves disciple-makers doing life alongside those they are discipling or are they simply leading a Bible study or hosting a small group?
 
3. Are those who have been discipled exhibiting the fruit of the Spirit (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control), engaged daily in the spiritual disciplines, as well as being witnesses for Christ?
                                                                                     
4. Are those who have been discipled leaving the discipleship experience spiritually mature enough to disciple someone themselves?
 
5. Are those who have been discipled choosing to disciple someone else or are they still focused on themselves?
 
 
Envisioning the Future Reality (Vision)
 
Until a leader sees in his/her minds eye what the future reality will be, that leader will continue to hold on to the present reality. The vision a disciple-making church leader imagines is a church made up of groups gathering to become more like Christ. These groups are led by spiritual parents who nurture and challenge those in their group toward greater levels of spiritual maturity.
 
 
Utilizing a Strategy to Make the Future Reality a Present Reality
 
A vision without a strategy is only a dream. In order for a vision to become a reality, there must be a strategy in place and that strategy must be carried out aggressively and persistently.
The first step is to determine if the church is going to be a church OF Disciple-making or WITH Disciple-making. We will talk next week about a strategy that might serve you well.   
 
See you downstream . . . . .
 
disciple, Disciple-making, discipleship, leadership, strategy, church
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03.26.2013

Why Become a Disciple-Making Church?

We are thrilled that you have decided to join the discipleship revolution. Churches across the globe have begun to realize the importance of this biblical mandate (Matt. 28:19–20) and are imagining the transformation of lives and the culture where their church exists. Church leaders like you are dreaming of a congregation and community saturated with mature followers of Christ willing to do whatever it takes to further God’s Kingdom.

Some have asked, “Why would I want to lead my church to become a disciple-making church when the people I lead are happy with the status quo?” There are many undeniable and essential reasons.

1. Jesus expected it. Jesus never anticipated that His bride would become a people who simply hosted church events and held weekend worship experiences. He declared that we should, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” (Matt. 28:19–20)

2. Mature disciples evangelize. Every biblical church is passionate about making the gospel known to the world allowing those who are in the world to start and eternal relationship with Christ. Mature disciples intuitively tell others about the Jesus who has transformed their own lives.

3. A disciple-making church is never void of leaders. One of the most tragic realities in the present day church is that she is void of the leaders necessary to accomplish the vision the senior pastor has been given. A disciple-making church produces leaders who produce leaders.

4. It transforms the church dynamic. Many churches suffer with a church full of immature followers of Christ. Because of this, the church is constantly dealing with petty arguments and unhappy congregants. At the same time, those who visit the church are hesitant to join as they sense the tension and immaturity of the people who make up the church. A church that makes disciples is full of people who exhibit “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control,” the fruit of the Spirit. (Galatians 5:22–23) A church made up of people exhibiting these characteristics is a magnet for both believers and unbelievers.

5. It transforms households. Many families are made up of husbands and wives that are church attenders but have never been discipled. Because they have never grown to maturity spiritually these couples live a life of carnality often leading to divorce. For those who do stay together and raise children, their children are void of parents who nurture them spiritually so, when they reach adulthood, these children often leave the faith for the rest of their lives.

6. Disciple making allows the congregation to take ownership and empowers the laity to care for one another. Many pastors are overwhelmed with an unending number of counseling sessions, mediating conversations between those who are at odds with one another, and easing the tensions of immature believers concerned that the church isn’t “meeting my needs.” Over time, a disciple-making church is filled with people who need less counseling as those who have been discipled depend more and more on the power of God and the Holy Spirit, are mature in Christ so they are less conflictual and when conflict does arise they follow biblical directives to singularly clean up the mess that has been made if possible (Matthew 18:15-17), and who realize that it isn’t the churches role to meet their needs, rather, it is their role to serve Christ through the church and in so doing, they will be fulfilled.

These six why’s of a disciple-making will make your church a church that makes the gospel known, is a magnet for those far from Christ and believers seeking to be part of a healthy congregation, and makes it possible for you to give your time to study of God’s Word, prayer, and leadership.

See you downstream . . . . . .
Disciple-making, Discipleship, Church
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02.15.2013

Seven Disciple-Making Imperatives

Continuing from last week’s blog, let's talk about some imperatives to disciple-making.

1. Whether your church is a church WITH small groups or OF small groups, if your church is making disciples who make disciples you are accomplishing the Great Commission.

2. Curriculum is not the key to making disciples, however choosing the right curriculum at the right time is important. Disciples are made as the Holy Spirit works in tandem with a human disciple-maker to move a disciple to be more like Christ. Curriculum is simply an important tool in the disciple-making process.

3. It is vital that the pastor and all staff members of any disciple-making church be the leader of a disciple-making group of or is involved in a disciple-making group. If any of these key leaders choose not to be part of the disciple-making ministry, others will find no need to be involved themselves.

4. The most important promoter of the disciple-making ministry must be the senior pastor.

5. Pray that God would lead you to the right people to be your first disciple-makers. Jesus prayed prior to choosing His, it is vital that we do the same.
 
6. It is vital that the group’s first studies teach the disciple basic spiritual disciplines, doctrines, and practices of a disciple in relation to the church they are members of. While felt-need studies and sermon based discussions have a place in the church, a disciple without a firm foundation to stand on will easily become self-focused and begin to serve themselves rather than focusing on the cross and Jesus’ Kingdom agenda.

7. Utilizing a “reproducible process” is the key to long-term success. It has been proven that disciples who make disciples are much more likely to do so if they utilize the same principles and practices as well as the same curriculum as those who discipled them. It is for this reason that I recommend training every group leader using the Real Life Discipleship Training Manual and that each group do the three studies, Growing Strong in God’s Family, Deepening Your Roots in God’s Family, Bearing Fruit in God’s Family, as their foundational and first studies.

More to come . . . see you downstream!
disciple, discipleship, church
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02.07.2013

A Church OF or a Church WITH...

Is your church a church OF disciple-making or a church WITH disciple-making? 

The question is not meant to offend or criticize, but rather to clarify. The question has been generated from numerous conversations with pastors and discipleship leaders on a daily and weekly basis.  From experience, I know that these conversations are generated from “pain points” of these leaders.  This blog post and the next several to follow will be centered on this subject or question.
 
I’ve borrowed a quote from a good friend of mine that begs consideration.  “When the pain of staying the same is the greater than the pain of change, we will consider change!”  One of the issues I hear from pastors on a consistent basis is dealing with spiritual immaturity in the church.  This begs the question, is the church today doing a better job of teaching people how to be good members or disciples?
 
The term “disciple” simply means, “learner.” A disciple is some one who learns principles from someone else, sees those principles lived out by the discipler’s practices.  Those principles and practices are then passed on to others.  If a church is to be a disciple-making church, making disciples that make disciples, she must first embrace the following ideas.
 
1.     Disciple-making is relational – “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you.  Now remain in my love.  If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father’s commands and remain in his love.  I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.  My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.  Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.  You are my friends if you do what I command.  I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business.  Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.  You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit—fruit that will last.  Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in my name.  This is my command: Love each other.  (John 15:9-16)
 
Disciples are made as a disciple-maker befriends and mentors a disciple.
 
2.     Disciple-making is a stage-by-stage process – “We have much to say about this, but it is hard to explain because you are slow to learn.  In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s word all over again.  You need milk, not solid food!  Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness.  But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil. (Hebrews 5:11-14)
 
Notice I said stage-by-stage, not stage-to-stage.  The process is cyclical not linear.  Disciples experience the following stages of spiritual growth; spiritually dead, spiritual infant, spiritual child, spiritual young adult, and spiritual parent.  (Note: these stages of spiritual maturation are outlined in Real Life Discipleship)
 
3.     Disciple-making is generational – “And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others.” (2 Timothy 2:2)
 
Disciples are made, as one person who has been or is being discipled is discipling others.
 
 
More to explore . . . see you downstream!
discipleship, ministry, relationship, disciple
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01.07.2013

Getting to the Root of Discipleship

“He didn’t say the world would know we are Christians because we are theologically right, though we should be. He didn’t say people would know we are Christians because of miracles, though sometimes God uses them. He didn’t say people would know we are believers because we are wealthy and disease-free, though God sometimes blesses His people in these ways. Jesus said we would be known by our love. When the structure of a church supports a relational environment for discipleship (spiritual growth), that church is more likely to be full of people who demonstrate this kind of love Christ talked about.”
- Jim Putman, Senior Pastor at Real Life Ministries, and author of Real Life Discipleship.

As individual believers we must understand our responsibility to love people well. As leaders this also means equipping others to understand that Christlike love is the root of all discipleship. The way we love people is a direct reflection of how we understand the love of God. Scripture is incredibly clear about this.
I am pleased to say that NavPress is hosting a Real Life Discipleship Conference featuring Jim Putman at The Met Church in Houston, TX on January 17, 2013.

If you are serious about making disciples in your church, you have to join us!
Conference, disciple, discipleship, Life, Love, Real, church
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12.18.2012

Opportunity for Disciplemaking Churches

Discipleship for the individual believer is a lifelong journey with Jesus. For the church, this means creating an environmental process for disciplemaking. This environment has to be intentional, just as Jesus was intentional as He modeled disciplemaking in one-on-one relationships and small groups.

The environment, however, is not the end game. The goal is mature disciples who make more mature disciples. But knowing what a mature disciple looks and acts like can be tricky. Many churches have good and even intentional process aimed at getting people connected to their group system. However, in some cases these processes do little more than move individuals through content, assessments, and placement into a role or position. Assimilating someone into a position or through a process does not mean an individual has become a disciple.

The apostle Paul almost always used the language of family when he wrote about discipleship. He was a spiritual parent to so many, and when he wrote to them in his letters, he addressed them as his children in the faith. This is evident in 1 Thessalonians 2:10-12, 1 Timothy 1:1-2, and Philemon 1:8-11.

These verses clearly show Paul as a disciplemaker, intentionally investing in people around him. What about you? Who has God brought into your circle of influence? Who are the people around you needing encouragement, mentoring, and a spiritual parent? What is your church doing to make disciples?

Many churches are doing a pretty good job of getting people in the door and quenching some degree of a spiritual thirst, but most have done a less-than-adequate job actually nurturing and growing these folks in the faith. The dropout trend in churches today is troubling; young adults and older adults are leaving at an alarming rate.

Sadly, many churches today have compromised a biblical model to suggest that adequate disciplemaking can be done in large groups or even crowds. While that element of the spiritual disciplines (corporate worship, for example) is needed, these large gatherings do not and cannot take the place of meaningful and significant relationships that are formed in small groups.
I’m not a researcher by trade, but I contend that one of the biggest issues in the Christian Church is a lack of healthy environments for disciplemaking. Over the last 25 years in particular, disciplemaking church practices have changed drastically with less time and fewer resources committed to this biblical mandate.

I have the privilege of talking weekly with pastors and church staffs, and the issue of disciplemaking is a constant concern and need. They have a good reason to be worried. Consider for example, research showing that more evangelicals affirm the idea of there being more than one way to get to heaven than they did 15 or 20 years ago. How could that be? I believe it is the result of a lack of disciplemaking.

Churches want to discover ways to leverage the Sunday morning experience, to connect people to small groups and discipling relationships, to understand their identity in Christ, and to find their place of missional service in local communities and beyond. To address these trends, the NavPress Church Direct team is serious about providing support, training, mentoring, consulting, and teaching for leaders who are ready to change the scorecard and focus on a different set of expectations and results.

I am thrilled to introduce you to a new opportunity for discipleship training. The Real Life Discipleship Conference will engage you and your team in a biblical foundation and methodology to intentionally create an environment of discipleship in your church. Leaders will be exposed to a transferable, highly relational, proven methodology and biblical content to equip and empower your ministry. This conference is for those who are serious about making disciples.

With God’s grace and discerning leadership, we can address these discipleship needs as we encourage, equip, and engage the future together. Our heritage is rich. Our vision is strong. You’ve heard me say it before: Let’s start a discipleship revolution! God is answering our prayers. It has started!

Join us January 17, 2013 at The Met Church in Houston, TX

Register now at navpress.com

See you downstream…
Discipleship Inside Out, church, Conference, DIO, disciple, discipleship, Life, NavPress, Real, training, Christianity
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11.06.2012

Voice, Influence and Love

 It is no secret that today is a significant day for our nation. For months now, we have been exposed to campaigns filled with ideas of what change might look like. It’s always interesting to see people’s personalities come out via social media and other outlets. For me it’s a reminder of how loud our voice really is and the influence we do have with the people that we live life with each day.  There’s a line in the book Real Life Discipleship that reads this way, “Christians are known more for what we are against than for our love.” I am reminded once again that our voices are really loud and our influence is strong.
 
Scripture clearly tells us that it is by our love that others will know we are Christ’s disciples (John 13:35). It is true. By our love we show the world that we are disciples. By our lack of love we convince the world that we are not. We cannot forget that our love is significant. We must remember that it is how we set ourselves apart as true disciples of Christ. We cannot forget that our voice really is loud. We have to remember that we always have influence on others. The question becomes, what are we known for? Are we known for a life that demonstrates our faith through love for others?
 
 
Everything hinges on this. Love God and love people. No wonder he also says this is what will set us apart. It’s hard, but it’s worth it. Loving people well leaves no room for regrets. In fact, it speaks very clearly of who God is in our lives and who He can be in the life of every person.
 
At NavPress we call this Discipleship Inside Out. We believe it is not enough to simply declare and defend our faith. We believe we must demonstrate our faith. We are to be a generation of believers that live and disciple among the lost-disciples that make disciples. It is my hope that through our voice and influence the Lord will give us the ability to love in incredible ways. This is what will truly bring about change. This is what will begin the Discipleship Revolution. My hope is you will join us.
 
You can check out this video for more thoughts.
 
See you downstream!

 
 
 
 
Discipleship Inside Out, discipleship, Influence, Life, Love, Real, Voice, , DIO
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10.19.2012

Disciples in Action Speak

Words are powerful. Words carry with them intention and emotion. They are expressions of the thoughts that we have in our head and the emotions that come from our heart. Words define who we are to others. They also define who others are to us. Words are important.
 
Our words are a reflection of our discipleship. As we mature in our faith, so should our words. As the Holy Spirit works in and through us, our words should speak the message of Christ. Our words should carry the character of the fruit of the Spirit found in Galatians 5. Most of all, our words should show that we truly love one another. After all, this is how the world will know that we are His disciples (John 13:35).
 
216216o.jpgDiscipleship is at the core of everything we do at NavPress. It is our hope that as believers we are equipped to walk through life with the people that are around us each day in a way that brings honor to God. The 2:7 series offers approaches for strengthening your own life in Christ and for helping others move closer to God. The series helped me better understand the significance of Bible study, Scripture memory, ways to meditate on Scripture, group interaction, journaling, explaining the Gospel, telling my salvation experience, and many other useful tools.
 
The resource is based on Colossians 2:7 (quoted here from the Message): “You’re deeply rooted in him. You’re well-constructed upon him. You know your way around the faith. Now do what you’ve been taught. School’s out; quit studying the subject and start living it! And let your living spill over into thanksgiving.” God used 2:7 in my life as a young adult in ways that are still bearing fruit.
 
As believers we have the responsibility to own our faith. We cannot wait any longer to begin living it out! The words we use will show what is most important to us. A mature faith results in spiritually mature thoughts and words.   My hope is that you will desire to both be a disciple and make disciples, and that you will begin doing so now!
 
Learn more about the 2:7 series by clicking here.
 
See you downstream…
Christianity, discipleship, navpress, 2:7
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08.21.2012

Harvest America - Every Day Their Numbers Grew

Proclaiming the Gospel LIVE

1,755 host sites so far and growing every day. Churches and venues around the nation (and the world) are joining together for a unified evangelistic effort this weekend, Sunday, August 26, 2012. The Harvest America live event will be available on every form of media imaginable: TV, radio, webcast to computers and personal devices, Roku, and of course simulcast into host sites. (Click here for viewing options.) One Day, One Church, One Message!

Pray for thousands to respond in genuine faith to the gospel.

Pray for the Church to be awakened with a renewed passion for evangelism.

Pray for a discipleship revolution and ongoing ministry that is both relational and intentional about spiritual growth.

Go to StartToFollow.com for follow-up discipleship resources from NavPress and Greg Laurie for your church.

Go to HarvestAmerica.com for more information on how to view, host, and pray for the event this weekend.

We hope you will join us in this historic leveraging of technology to proclaim the gospel.

"Change your life. Turn to God and be baptized, each of you, in the name of Jesus Christ, so your sins are forgiven. Receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is targeted to you and your children, but also to all who are far away—whomever, in fact, our Master God invites."
 
"Every day their number grew as God added those who were saved." Acts 2:38-39,47 (The Message)
 
 
Greg Laurie, Harvest America, discipleship, navpress, church
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