Kenneth H. Carter and Audrey Warren describe a simple, step-by-step process for making disciples and mentoring friends to be closer to Jesus -- a process of faith formation that is increasingly important as more and more nontraditional expressions of church emerge.
---
For the unchurched, or “nones,” the language of becoming a disciple is entering a new world of practices, habits, and relationships. For the dechurched, or “dones,” the path of discipleship requires a detachment from negative experiences of church in the past and a turning toward the gift of new forms of church. And for leaders, lay and clergy, there is the essential and lifelong basic work of spiritual formation. At our best, we will be most effective and faithful as we accompany each other into the future God is preparing for us.
Once we are on the path of being a disciple, we soon discover that we are called to invite others into this way of life. Thus we need a simple method for making disciples or mentoring friends to be closer to Jesus.
There is a mutually reinforcing relationship between becoming a disciple and making disciples. We often learn best by teaching and leading: at the same time.
So how do we make, or mentor, new disciples?
1. Listen to the other person. This may happen in planned or unplanned ways – a meeting, over a succession of conversations, or perhaps in everyday life. In a culture that is cynical about faith, it is not wise to rush this step. Listening is a lifelong activity!
2. Reflect back to the person who you want to know and understand. For many persons, it is a rare experience to discover that others are listening to and honoring their stories.
These first two steps are essential and cannot be bypassed.
3. Connect their story with your own story and a part of the Gospel. This assumes that we know the Gospels and can access the presence of Jesus in most any human situation: fear, loss, anger, poverty, betrayal, confusion, pride. You may share an experience where the power of Jesus helped you to overcome an obstacle. This connection isn’t about institutions or denominations but is instead about relationship and spiritual journey.
4. Ask how you can be in prayer for the person, and ask if the other person will pray for you. This places you together on the same level.
Here you will want to be as humble as possible, trusting in the power of the Holy Spirit to speak through the Gospels and the act of prayer. At this point the action is more important than the response, which you can’t control.
5. Seek to connect the other person to your community. In our time, the basic steps will be a group that meets outside the church (say in a coffee shop), or in a context of mission and serving, or in a new group in formation. Don’t worry if you get stalled here, but don’t hesitate to name your own worshipping community. It is a relational process.
6. Stay in touch with the person and continue to develop the relationships — no matter the response. You are investing in the friendship for the sake of the other person and not for any congregational or institutional gain.
7. Continue to pray for the other person each day. Occasionally let the other person know you are doing this.
There is a mutually reinforcing relationship between becoming a disciple (spiritual formation) and making disciples (mentoring). We often learn best by teaching and leading: at the same time, our own lives are shaped, formed, and enriched by deep friendships.
This article is excerpted from Fresh Expressions: A New Kind of Methodist Church for People Not in Church (Abingdon Press, 2017) by Kenneth H. Carter and Audrey Warren. The book is designed with a small group Bible study format, intended to stimulate ideation for new forms of ministry in and through a congregation. Available at Cokesbury and Amazon.
Related Resources:
For the unchurched, or “nones,” the language of becoming a disciple is entering a new world of practices, habits, and relationships. For the dechurched, or “dones,” the path of discipleship requires a detachment from negative experiences of church in the past and a turning toward the gift of new forms of church. And for leaders, lay and clergy, there is the essential and lifelong basic work of spiritual formation. At our best, we will be most effective and faithful as we accompany each other into the future God is preparing for us.
Once we are on the path of being a disciple, we soon discover that we are called to invite others into this way of life. Thus we need a simple method for making disciples or mentoring friends to be closer to Jesus.
There is a mutually reinforcing relationship between becoming a disciple and making disciples. We often learn best by teaching and leading: at the same time.
So how do we make, or mentor, new disciples?
1. Listen to the other person. This may happen in planned or unplanned ways – a meeting, over a succession of conversations, or perhaps in everyday life. In a culture that is cynical about faith, it is not wise to rush this step. Listening is a lifelong activity!
2. Reflect back to the person who you want to know and understand. For many persons, it is a rare experience to discover that others are listening to and honoring their stories.
These first two steps are essential and cannot be bypassed.
3. Connect their story with your own story and a part of the Gospel. This assumes that we know the Gospels and can access the presence of Jesus in most any human situation: fear, loss, anger, poverty, betrayal, confusion, pride. You may share an experience where the power of Jesus helped you to overcome an obstacle. This connection isn’t about institutions or denominations but is instead about relationship and spiritual journey.
4. Ask how you can be in prayer for the person, and ask if the other person will pray for you. This places you together on the same level.
Here you will want to be as humble as possible, trusting in the power of the Holy Spirit to speak through the Gospels and the act of prayer. At this point the action is more important than the response, which you can’t control.
5. Seek to connect the other person to your community. In our time, the basic steps will be a group that meets outside the church (say in a coffee shop), or in a context of mission and serving, or in a new group in formation. Don’t worry if you get stalled here, but don’t hesitate to name your own worshipping community. It is a relational process.
6. Stay in touch with the person and continue to develop the relationships — no matter the response. You are investing in the friendship for the sake of the other person and not for any congregational or institutional gain.
7. Continue to pray for the other person each day. Occasionally let the other person know you are doing this.
There is a mutually reinforcing relationship between becoming a disciple (spiritual formation) and making disciples (mentoring). We often learn best by teaching and leading: at the same time, our own lives are shaped, formed, and enriched by deep friendships.
This article is excerpted from Fresh Expressions: A New Kind of Methodist Church for People Not in Church (Abingdon Press, 2017) by Kenneth H. Carter and Audrey Warren. The book is designed with a small group Bible study format, intended to stimulate ideation for new forms of ministry in and through a congregation. Available at Cokesbury and Amazon.
Related Resources:
- “The Possibilities of Fresh Expressions,” a Leading Ideas Talks podcast featuring Ken Carter and Audrey Warren
- Networks and Third Places are Today’s Mission Field by Ken Carter and Audrey Warren
- What is Your Faith Development Process? By Bob Farr And Kay Kotan
Read more.
---
---
Martin Luther King Jr.'s 4 Key Principles of Prophetic WitnessC. Anthony Hunt explains how Martin Luther King, Jr.'s prophetic witness was grounded in four principles -- call, conviction, courage, and commitment. Even 50 years after King's assassination, these principles are still relevant to leaders engaging in prophetic witness and public ministry.
---
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. believed that God intended for the human family to live in community as interrelated members. He saw the Christian love-ethic as foundational in moving forward constructively toward the realization of this authentic community — his Beloved Community. And he saw the struggle to eradicate racial hatred and economic oppression as not just a moral imperative but also as a divine imperative for both church and society. His prophetic leadership was grounded in four key principles — call, conviction, courage and commitment — that still have great relevance to leaders today engaging in prophetic witness and public ministry.
King consistently affirmed the somebodyness of all people regardless of race, class or other categories. Ultimately, these faith convictions undergirded his prophetic witness.
Call
King’s thirteen-year ministry in the public sphere was ultimately rooted in a deep sense of God’s call. And it was this sense of calling that ultimately spawned his action. Early in his ministry, King concluded that becoming one of the prophetic public voices of the Civil Rights movement was indeed a part of his vocation and calling — first in Alabama and then beyond. Likewise, leaders today must clearly discern if and how they may be called by God to engage in public ministry and address prophetic concerns.
Conviction
King acted on his sense of calling within the broader context of his understanding of God and people. King believed that all persons were created by God with inherent worth. Accordingly, human dignity and social justice for all are moral imperatives. King consistently affirmed the “Somebodyness” of all people regardless of race, class or other categories. Ultimately, these faith convictions undergirded his prophetic witness. Likewise, leaders today engaging in ministry in the public square must be equally clear about their convictions — what they believe about God, God’s people, and God’s will for peace with justice.
Courage
Courage serves as the measure of the human will to act on our call and convictions – to say and do what we believe to be just and right. Interestingly, Martin Luther King Jr. carried with him Paul Tillich’s The Courage to Be as he traveled, providing leadership to the Civil Rights movement. Courage to act on one’s call and convictions means being willing to risk much of oneself — one’s popularity, promotion and associations — for the sake of causes you are called and convicted to address prophetically.
Commitment
In 1955 and 1956, in the midst of the 381-day Montgomery Bus Boycott, King made a statement that became emblematic of his prophetic witness. “True peace is not merely the absence of tension; it is the presence of justice.” He would later state that, “The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.” These statements speak clearly to King’s commitment to promote racial equality and social justice, to eradicate the “triplets of evil” of racism, poverty and war, and to help move the church and society toward becoming Beloved Community.
Martin Luther King Jr.’s commitment to do justice was derived from his sense of calling, conviction and courage. Today as well, prophetic leadership requires clear and consistent commitment in light of the calling and conviction to do justice, and the courage to carry it out.
This article is adapted from “I’ve Seen the Promised Land: The Legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Prophetic Preaching” in Stones of Hope: Essays, Sermons and Prayers on Religion and Race, 2017, by C. Anthony Hunt. Available at Amazon.
Related Resources:
- Moving Faith Communities to Fruitful Conversations about Race, a free video study
- Ten Ways to Build the Beloved Community by Tony Hunt
- Nelson Mandela — A Leader for His Time by Lovett H. Weems Jr.
---
NEW Leading Ideas Talks Podcast: "The Possibilities of Fresh Expressions"What can church look like in your neighborhood? Listen as Lewis Center Associate Director Ann Michel speaks with Bishop Ken Carter and Reverend Audrey Warren about their book Fresh Expressions: A New Kind of Methodist Church for People Not in Church. They discuss the promise of new, nontraditional expressions of church that meet people where they are.
Listen now.
---
The Right Question:
Leaders do not need answers. Leaders must have the right questions.
Knowing the importance of small groups, many churches struggle to determine what constitutes a small group. William R. Hoyt suggests a question he finds helpful.
- Does the group put people into relationship with a small enough number of people that they can be known, cared for, encouraged, challenged, taught, helped, and held accountable by the others in the group?
---
Free Video Study: "Moving Faith Communities to Fruitful Conversations about Race"Moving Faith Communities Forward is a dialogue about race in America and may be used to help your church bring people together to talk about moving forward bravely and boldly in the name of Christ. The resource is divided into four 15-minute videos which may be used in one or more sessions. Moving Faith Communities Forward is sponsored by the Institute for Community Engagement at Wesley Theological Seminary.
Watch now.
---
NEW: 50 Ways to Multiply Your Church's Leadership CapacityThis free resource in our popular 50 Ways series provides strategies to identify and support new leaders and build and maintain effective ministry teams.Topics include: helping new leaders get started, inviting people effectively, making meetings matter, supporting and affirming existing leaders, and more.
This free 50 Ways resource provides strategies to identify and support new leaders and build and maintain effective ministry teams.
Make it easy for new leaders to get started
- Consider ways to divide responsibilities among two or more individuals. Job sharing makes it easier for people to say “yes” and gets more people involved.
- Ask existing leaders to invite someone new to partner with them as a way of easing someone new into a leadership role.
- Invite people to join a team or take on a responsibility on a trial basis. Trial periods let everyone get a feel for things and allow for a graceful exit if it’s not a good fit.
- Be honest about the time commitment required when someone steps into a new role. Vague expectations are off-putting and scary to potential leaders.
- Avoid open-ended terms of service. No one wants to risk being saddled with a job forever. And term limits incentivize the search for the next leader.
- Communicate a clear pathway for people to get involved in ministries and progress into leadership.
- Maintain clear and up-to-date job descriptions. Ask leaders to keep good records that will allow the next person to hit the ground running.
- Don’t assume simple tasks are always the best starting place. High-capacity people will only give their time to meaningful, challenging responsibilities.
- Initiate new groups and programs regularly because they are more attractive and welcoming to new people than long-standing structures, which can be cliquish.
Build on the power of relationships
- Schedule one-on-one conversations with prospective leaders to strengthen your interpersonal bonds and get to know their interests, gifts, and passions.
- Make a special effort to get to know new people in your congregation or your neighborhood.
- Think of your small groups as leadership incubators and their leaders as scouts. It’s often within the relational bonds of a small group that individuals experience spiritual growth and discover their gifts and callings.
- Capitalize on the power of personal invitations. People are most motivated to do something when asked personally by someone they know.
- Exploit the power of networks. Think beyond the people you know personally to those people your friends and acquaintances know.
Think beyond the usual suspects
- Cast a wide net when looking for new leaders. Thumb through the whole church roster to think of people who might not otherwise come to mind.
- Don’t limit your search to church members or attendees. Inviting someone from outside your church into a meaningful leadership role can be a great way of introducing them to your church’s mission.
- Signal your openness to new people by displaying younger and more diverse leaders in visible roles, such as worship leadership or staff roles.
Invite people effectively
- Maintain a bold, confident manner when asking someone to do something. Being reticent, uncertain, or apologetic is counterproductive.
- Stay positive. Appeals to guilt or desperation motivate few, and communicate that your ministry is struggling or marginal. People want to be part of something vibrant and hopeful, not something that is spiraling downward.
- Don’t rely on a single approach to recruiting people. Different people respond to different kinds of appeals, so mix it up occasionally.
Help people discover their gifts
- Provide opportunities for people to explore their spiritual gifts through classes, gift inventories, and other structured means of gift discovery.
- Avoid pigeonholing people according to their professional skills. An accountant may have spiritual gifts for teaching and a teacher may be spiritually gifted for administration.
- Practice the “ICNU” approach. Train yourself and others to notice people’s gifts and then start a conversation with “Here is what I see in you….”
- Think beyond people’s current capabilities. Imagine what they might become and help them learn to see areas of giftedness they don’t yet recognize in themselves.
- Encourage every member of your church to listen for God’s call on their lives. Too often laypersons think that God’s call does not extend to them.
Delegate and empower
- Encourage long-standing leaders to make space for new people by stepping aside and relinquishing control, while still collaborating and providing support.
- Give new leaders the flexibility to innovate and implement goals creatively in service of the church’s overall mission and vision.
- Equip people with what they need to succeed in a new leadership role — resources, information, training, affirmation, etc.
- Support people in what they want to do rather than only trying to find new people to do what you need them to do.
Mentor new leaders
- Know that informal mentoring is often a more effective way of preparing new leaders than formal leadership training.
- Encourage existing leaders to invite someone new to “come alongside” and learn by observing, helping, and debriefing while on the job.
- Embrace a mutual mentoring approach in which seasoned leaders share their wisdom while also seeking input and fresh perspectives from newer, younger people.
Develop a culture of team leadership
- Rather than looking to an individual to manage a project, ask if it’s an opportunity to create a team.
- Structure teams so that each member has a distinct and vital role. Commitment and accountability are enhanced when each team member knows their contribution is essential to the team’s success.
- Multiply your teams and the number of team leaders by subdividing tasks and creating new teams when a job grows too large to be accomplished by a reasonably sized group.
- Reinforce the expectation that a team leader’s role is not to do the work on behalf of the group, but rather facilitate and coordinate the work and maintain a healthy group dynamic.
Make meetings matter
- Clarify the purpose of every meeting so that the group can accomplish what most needs to be done.
- Think of a meeting agenda as a game plan for accomplishing the meeting’s purpose. In crafting your agenda ask, “Who needs to be at the table?” “What information is needed in advance?” “What key questions need to be addressed?”
- Conduct meetings in a way that maximizes opportunities for everyone to participate meaningfully, because boredom results when participants are placed in a passive role.
- Honor people’s time by keeping meetings to a reasonable length of time. When setting the agenda, be realistic about what the group can accomplish, watch the clock, and keep things moving along.
- Drive decisions by listening for consensus and having the courage to act, rather than endlessly discussing things or letting a few dissenting voices derail the process.
- Before adjourning, clarify what the group has decided and what each individual has agreed to do. This will help you monitor follow-through and achieve your goals.
Support and affirm existing leaders
- Communicate regularly with leaders to maintain a healthy flow of information and honor their contribution by keeping them in the know.
- Keep attentive to signs of possible burnout among your current leaders. Check in with leaders regularly and listen to their concerns.
- Be realistic about the overall scope of your congregation’s programming. Don’t overload the calendar or schedule competing events that overtax your leaders’ time and energy.
- Celebrate and affirm the work that has been accomplished — in worship, in social media, in the church newsletter, etc.
- Say thank you regularly and often. Personal notes, public recognition, and informal words of thanks go a long way to make leaders feel appreciated.
Inspire people
- Preach and teach regularly about the call to Christian service. Leadership in the church is more than volunteer work. It’s ministry. It’s a calling.
- Stay grounded in your own faith and commitment to serve. People are most motivated to help whenasked by someone whose commitment they admire.
- Always find ways of pointing people back to the ultimate purpose of the church’s mission because at the end of the day, people want to be connected to what matters.
Download a PDF of this page to share with others.
Learn Much More with the “More Church Leaders | Stronger Church Leaders” Video Tool Kit
Churches with vital, growing ministries learn to leverage leadership potential within their congregations. With More Church Leaders | Stronger Church Leaders you will learn strategies to identify and support new leaders and build and maintain effective ministry. The tool kit includes engaging videos, presentations, and supplemental materials to help you discover a more synergistic and fruitful way of being in ministry together. Learn more and watch video previews now.
Learn to Increase Active Engagement
What can you do when 20 percent of your congregation does 80 percent of the learning, serving, and leading? The Increasing Active Engagement Tool Kit includes videos, narrated presentations, outlines of key points, and supplementary materials to help you get and keep people involved and engaged. Learn more and watch introductory videos today.
Read now and download free.---
Quotable Leadership:
In a world connected by technology but fragmented by the forces of diversity, connective leaders foster community by practicing a politics of commonalities that offers membership to the broadest set of constituents. (Jean Lipman-Blumen)
---
Register Now for "Protect, Sustain, Grow: Best Practices for Handling Your Church's Money"Conference and Livestream
Saturday, March 10, 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Eastern Time
Managing church finances requires skill, dedication, and know-how, but also the heart of a steward. Protect, Sustain, Grow: Best Practices for Handling Your Church's Money provides practical advice, best practices, and resources for pastors, finance committee members, church treasurers, financial secretaries, and bookkeepers - all those charged with the sacred trust of protecting, sustaining, and growing the resources God has entrusted to your church. Save with early-bird registration through February 12.
Learn more and register now.
---
Reach New Disciples with the "Taking Church to the Community" Video Tool KitExplore strategies your congregation can use to reach beyond its walls with worship, community events, ministries, and service. The Taking Church to the Community Tool Kit features engaging videos, presentations, and supplemental materials and is designed for both self study and for use with groups in your church.
Learn more and watch introductory videos now.
---
Editor: Dr. Ann A. Michel
Copyright © 2004-2017 Lewis Center for Church Leadership of Wesley Theological Seminary
churchleadership.com/leadingideas
Connect with the Lewis Center:
Lewis Center for Church Leadership
Wesley Theological Seminary
4500 Massachusetts Avenue North West
Washington, D.C. 20016, United States
Copyright © 2004-2017 Lewis Center for Church Leadership of Wesley Theological Seminary
churchleadership.com/leadingideas
Connect with the Lewis Center:
Lewis Center for Church Leadership
Wesley Theological Seminary
4500 Massachusetts Avenue North West
Washington, D.C. 20016, United States
---
No comments:
Post a Comment