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During college I remember having a conversation with one of my professors over coffee. At the time I was complaining about the lack of spirituality I saw in some of my classmates. It bothered me that these students were preparing for ministry. I asked my professor why the college would allow certain people in a program when clearly (in my opinion) they had no business being in ministry at that point. I was new, and I admit I was a little naive in some of my questioning, but I will never forget his response. He asked me, “How would you grade spirituality from an academic standpoint?” I’ll spare you the rest of the details of this conversation, and the many more that followed over my years in college. But the same question still rings in my ears today.
Education, and grading our progress, is a good thing. But we don’t have a good way to measure progress in some character issues and personal spiritual matters. Just because they can’t be “graded,” does that mean there’s not a way to learn and grow in these areas? The answer is a loud and resounding “no!” God has given us tools to help us. He has given us the keys to being faithful in what he has called us. God even gave us a pattern in how Jesus led his own followers.
Jesus spent the largest amount of time and energy in his early ministry, dedicated to 12 friends. He prayed with them, read the word with them, and discipled them! Mentoring seems to be the simplest method of discipleship and yet it is the most complex in part because it can take on many forms. And it seems that many Christians and leaders would rather talk about mentoring than actually be mentored themselves. We have a “me and my Bible” mentality, and think we can be “Lone Ranger” Christians. Too many of us are afraid of someone “calling us out.”
But the Bible talks about how “iron sharpens iron” as we learn to submit to the wisdom of our brothers and sisters, growing together through studying God’s Word, and allowing the Holy Spirit to shape us. John Donne is famous for stating that “no man is an island”; each one of us is created to be in relationship.
Just recently I noticed a drastic change in a friend’s attitude and in his Christian walk. I started noticing positive changes in the way he handled various situations and “small things.” I knew something was different. My friend then told me he was being mentored by a person he deeply respected.
Discipleship is not a task or a class we can take. It’s not something you put on a list and then cross off. It is a lifestyle, and one that is not popular in American society. We must kill the “American Dream” of independence and self-sufficiency and instead focus on intentional accountability in a relational format. This type of accountability allows us to be honest with our thoughts and feelings, creates opportunities for us to pray for one another, and invites God to speak to us. You don’t need to join a YES team or go through a DM experience to have these experiences, although that may be a good place to start. Discipleship is a lifestyle that can be lived in any location, today as well as in Jesus’ day.
How are you living out discipleship?
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Positions Available
Join StaffX at the Harrisburg Discipleship Center to grow spiritually and in leadership skills as you mentor and serve others. Current volunteer staff openings: Community Outreach Coordinator, Mission Mobilizer, Office Assistant, and Prayer Coordinator.
Contact Sherrie Ober if you are interested.
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