STEP TWELVE – Connect to a purpose

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The next step for the disciple-maker is to help the spiritual child connect to a purpose. They need to see beyond themselves, that they are part of God’s story and that they can go on a mission with Jesus, making fishers of men.

Just imagine that you share the gospel with a friend and they become a Christian. You connect them with a small group, and as a spiritual parent you disciple that person by meeting regularly. That person develops new habits: doing daily devotion, pray regularly, commit to church attendance, etc. Later, you notice the persons gifts and abilities and see how God could use him/her to help others.

How would you help this person grow from here?

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Helping this person grow to doing service is important for their growth to a spiritual young adult. When they are not connected to a purpose, it can limit their growth. They will then rely on a spiritual parent or others in the church. We don・t want to have a church full of infants and spiritual children. We want mature disciples who can make disciples and help others grow.

Read Ephesians 4:12 and paraphrase the following words or phrases in your own words.

• Prepare ___________________________________________________________________

• Works of service ____________________________________________________________

• Built up ___________________________________________________________________

Who helped you most in learning to develop a personal relationship with God?

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Who helped you most to connect to a group of believers who would support you?

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Who helped you most to connect to a greater purpose for your life?

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2 Corinthians 5:14 For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died;
15 and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.

After God saves us, our lives have a new meaning and purpose. We no longer live for ourselves, but we live for Jesus that died and was raised for our sake. The way we view ourselves and others changes. Our story is not important if it is not part of God’s story. We live for a greater purpose, to be a follower of Jesus and be that person that God wants us to be.

Our lives teach and become that model of spiritual change that others need, and we help them to become that change for others again.

Being a Christian is not just about knowing the truth and being in a relationship with God and others. It is also about doing, serving, engaging in Christ’s mission on earth. Spiritual parents must train and develop disciples to take care of themselves and their future spiritual children. This does not mean that we no longer need the support of others, but we must also become the support for those who we disciple.

How can you get involved in your local church?

• Become a member of the church.

• Find out how you can use your abilities and gifts

• Understand how the church works

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A spiritual child has made the transition into young adulthood when there is evidence that his or her heart has changed from being self-centred to being God-centred and others-focused. The disciple-maker intentionally looks for these changes as a cue that the disciple is ready for ministry/service.

Check three behaviours you could model to help a disciple understand a servant’s heart:

⃝ Giving credit to God for good things

⃝ Taking the credit for success

⃝ Being in charge

⃝ Loving the difficult person

⃝ Helping others joyfully

⃝ Avoiding difficult people

The correct answers should be obvious: giving credit to God, loving difficult people, and helping others.