An effective disciple is someone who truly understands that they are loved by God. Without such knowledge we lack courage along with the relational strength to be obedient to the Word of God. In her book The Fear Cure, Lisa Rankin says that we need courage to deal with our fear and that, “Courage is not about being fearless it’s aboutletting fear transform you . . .”[1] (xxix) If I may change the wording on this just a little and apply Christian truth to it I would say that as a Christian we let God transform us in the midst… Read moreFaith Your Fears

by Chris Matthisen “I’m not able to experience God’s presence”, or “I’m failing to find purpose in my life”, are two of the most common statements I hear from disciples as they struggle to make sense of their faith. Although the answers may vary, I have found one answer to trump them all. They fail to experience God’s comforting presence and lack purpose in life because they are not engaged in the mission of their faith. Of course there are other reasons but I would say the majority of the time it boils down to a lack of obedience to… Read moreWhen We Neglect the Mission

Disciple! Collingwood was a success! If you missed out, don’t despair. go to the link for the recordings and supplemental materials from the day. To not miss out on future Disciple! Conferences, subscribe to our newsletter

by Chris Matthisen In the opening Chapters of Matthew, Jesus gives us a good understanding of the content and process that goes into the formation of a disciple. The Sermon on the Mount for example, communicates foundational truths that Jesus wants every disciple to assimilate into their lives. It’s not a coincident that it falls at the beginning of His Ministry. In the chapters following the Sermon, however, we discover that Jesus did far less of the initiation in teaching and spent more time responding to the needs of the people (disciples and non-disciples). This may include more teaching but the… Read moreMaking Disciples – both content and process

by Luciano Del Monte Someone asked me recently, “Luch, do you know where you are broken?” That is what you call an intimidating and revealing question. Fortunately I have identified the broken areas of my life over the years. I recently turned 61 after all, and so am well acquainted with my inner self, but I have so many more miles to travel when it comes to what Isaiah called “the highway of holiness.” It seems in the last 5 years pastors, mentors, disciplers, counselors and coaches are discovering that people can not fully mature without addressing the broken areas… Read moreFree and Equipped

by Irv Augustine Look at 2 Corinthians 6:1-2 1 As God’s fellow workers we urge you not to receive God’s grace in vain. 2 For he says, “In the time of my favor I heard you, and in the day of salvation I helped you.” I tell you, now is the time of God’s favor, now is the day of salvation. We enjoy the favour of God! He created us, sustains us, convinces us of our brokenness and our need of Christ, and then convinces us of our nobility, created in the Image of God, so we can enjoin Him… Read moreDiscipleship is all about the Grace of God

by JD Sherman This morning as I was praying, I was reflecting on a conversation I had with a group of University students just a day earlier. We were beginning a new study around the theme of purpose, and as the students began to share it became evident that few had an understanding of God’s purpose for their lives. “Am I really supposed to be in engineering? Or am I wasting my time?” The honest questions that were deep within these student’s hearts began to come out. Amidst reflecting on this recent dialogue, I thought of the Israelites in the… Read moreJesus our Shepherd

by Chris Matthisen You have probably heard of setting SMART1 goals, WIG2 goals, HARD3 goals and many other kinds of goal setting acronyms that encourage us in the best ways to accomplish an objective. No matter what acronym you use many of us find that the journey in achieving our goals creates a lot of frustration and stress. I want to share with you a simple truth in goal setting that has liberated many people from the negative emotional baggage that tends to accompany our goals. Let me start out by saying that this is neither a method to follow… Read moreGoal Setting With Less Frustration

by Chris Matthisen List names of people you believe God may be leading you to invest in. Take time every morning during your devotions to pray that God would reveal those on your list whom He is preparing for a discipling relationship with you. Don’t rush the process, as you look to God to lead you to that person. Look for encounters with these people to see how spiritually hungry they are for growth. Look for the following characteristics in the potential disciples: This person should manifest a hunger for God This person should show potential for becoming a person… Read moreIdentify Your “Timothy” – passing the baton