living for eternity today
By now many of us have started to acclimate to this fully digital and physically distant world in which we now live. With the inability to meet together we have been forced to come up with creative and technology rich solutions for our meetings, study times, worship services and even our extended family time. But how do we maintain a life-to-life discipleship approach in a fully digital and socially distant society?
Continue reading
Earlier this year, I was asked to step into a role within our larger church body to serve as a Regional Facilitator. It’s a bit of a fancy term for a guy who walks alongside congregations in a specific (yet very broad) geographic area to assist with a variety of ministry and mission objectives. How’s that for vague?! Some of these tasks will include vision planning, financial and stewardship emphases, and church revitalization/planting and so much more!
Continue reading
Man life sometimes is pretty rough. There are so many pressures that the world heaps on our shoulders that it can be hard to make it some days. There are days when it feels like we’re carrying around a heavy pile of chains. The further we walk the heavier they get. Continue reading
I
t’s a word that brings fear into the hearts of many. The idea of change is frightening to say the least. But why? Why is change so frightening?
If you really think about it, change is all around us. For instance, look outside – go ahead, peek out the window. You just witnessed change. Everything around us is in a constant state of change. The grass is slowly changing. The leaves are changing color. The clouds are moving thereby changing the scenery. Our bodies are slowly growing older and cells are dying. That’s all change!
But that’s not all that’s changing. The bible actually talks about other ways that things around us are changing. Actually the bible tells us that we are in a state of change as well. We’ve been changed from death to life, following evil, living in disobedience but now we are lights in the world. We are followers of the Son of God. Our disobedience has been forgiven and covered by the righteousness of God. Now that’s a change worth talking about!
A disciple is one that recognizes that this change has happened. A disciple sees the change and seizes opportunities to talk about it with others. Actually a disciple sees him/herself as an agent of that change. If you really think about it, through our conversations with friends and neighbors we are bringing a life-changing force into their lives. The message of the bible is a set of conversations intended to impact our lives and instill this idea of change.
People who are intentional followers of Jesus, seeking to make disciples of all nations, will find ways to have these kinds of life-changing conversations. Whether it’s reading the bible with someone. Note with someone not at someone. Maybe it’s praying with and for them. Perhaps this conversation of change happens at work. It might even happen on the ball field. It really doesn’t matter how or when or where this conversation happens. The reality is a disciple is one who seeks to make these discoveries and have these life-changing conversations daily.
Today, take a minute and have a conversation. Just be intentional. Don’t preach. Don’t beat people over the head with judgement or even with bible verses. Just have conversations. Let your love for the Lord be evident in how he has changed you. And pray that the gospel might have that same changing effect on those in the places where you live, work and play.
We’re now in week eight of our journey through a book called The Ways of The Alongsider: Growing Disciples Life2Life by Bill Mowry. The idea of an Alongsider might be an uncommon thought to some of us, but Bill does a great job with the details at the outset of the book. Then as we moved deeper into our understanding of what an Alongsider was we hit six topics of great importance to discipleship: A Way of Life, Intentionality, A Life of Prayer, Relationships, Depth of Relationships, and last week we talked about Studying God’s Word. This week we’ll move from mere conversation and telling to a deeper discovery level. Continue reading
We’re now in week seven of our journey through a book called The Ways of The Alongsider: Growing Disciples Life2Life by Bill Mowry. The idea of an Alongsider might be an uncommon thought to some of us, but Bill does a great job with the details at the outset of the book. Then as we moved deeper into our understanding of what an Alongsider was we hit four topics of great importance to discipleship: A Way of Life, Intentionality, A Life of Prayer, Relationships, and last week we talked about Depth of Relationships. Continue reading
We’re now in week six of our journey through a book called The Ways of The Alongsider: Growing Disciples Life2Life by Bill Mowry. The idea of an Alongsider might be an uncommon thought to some of us, but Bill does a great job detailing at the outset of the book. Then as we moved deeper into our understanding of what an Alongsider was we hit three topics of great importance to discipleship: A Way of Life, Intentionality, A Life of Prayer, and last week we talked about Relationships. Continue reading
Over the past couple of weeks we’ve been working our way through a book titled The Ways of The Alongsider: Growing Disciples Life2Life by Bill Mowry. The idea of an Alongsider might be an uncommon thought to some of us, but Bill does a great job detailing at the outset of the book. Then as we moved deeper into our understanding of what an Alongsider was we hit three topics of great importance to discipleship: A Way of Life, Intentionality and A Life of Prayer. Continue reading
In this series titled the Alongsider, we’ve been journeying through a book by Bill Mowry titled The Ways of the Alongsider: Growing Disciples Life2Life. The first chapter of the book really sets the stage for what this idea of an alongside really is. We also talk about the different between professionals and amateurs. The second chapter deals primarily with developing a passion for the ways of God and making this life of discipleship a true lifestyle.
Chapter three brings us face to face with a powerful word: intentionality. Nothing in the life of faith happens by accident. The sooner we realize that fact, the better off we’ll be. We don’t accidentally follow Christ faithfully. We don’t accidentally share our faith lives with other people. We must be intentional about how, when, where, why and what we share with people where we live, work, and play. Continue reading
Last week we started with the idea of an amateur being a lover of things. You can read that post here. This week we’re going to look at this discipleship idea as a personal way of life. Remember, most of the time we talk about discipleship as a program or process that occurs in other; but an alongsider can only come alongside you as far as they’ve already gone.
The author suggests, and I completely agree, that we’ve all too often lost our desire for more of God. Think about it for a minute. It’s like we just know what’s coming. There’s no adventure left in our walk with God. We just have grown comfortable with the bible and what it has to teach us because we’ve heard that before. Continue reading
© 2024 derrickhurst.org
Theme by Anders Noren — Up ↑