Source: PODCAST 124: Disciples Making Disciples in a Multimodal Church

The post PODCAST 124: Disciples Making Disciples in a Multimodal Church appeared first on Passion for Planting.

By TheChurch.Digital: Let’s come to clarity. The Western church has done some things right over the years. That being said, there’s still a lot to learn. The mass accelerator of COVID changed all the rules, and as a result the church has more questions than answers, especially in the long-term usefulness of digital church.

While some of the Western Church struggles with the long-term longevity of Phygital/Digital, the global church has had huge success with the digital church. Digital discipleship? Digital evangelism? Digital only expressions of church?

Recently, I was told “Jeff, you know who’s really good at digital church? Every pastor in the Middle East. Because of persecution, it’s one of the few opportunities the Middle East has to grow the Church.” Dig into this episode of The Church Digital Podcast and discover what we can learn from the Global Church.

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ON THE SHOW

Source: PODCAST 123: Justin Murff & Digital Lessons to Learn from the Global Church

The post PODCAST 123: Justin Murff & Digital Lessons to Learn from the Global Church appeared first on Passion for Planting.

By Stan Rodda: I remember those early days when my children started to feed themselves. It was an awesome day and felt like I had gained so much of my freedom back. As babies, my wife and I would feed them one bite at a time. If you’re a parent, you remember those days or are still living them. But as they gain some independence and start feeding themselves, it feels like you’re getting your life back.

The natural growth path for a human is to grow to be able to self-sustain. To feed and care for themselves. This also works when you think about your kids growing and finally being able to take themselves to the bathroom or take a shower. These are little moments of progress that all parents celebrate as their children grow and mature.

And that’s what we want to experience as disciple makers also. We want to experience the joy of someone we have discipled taking steps of obedience. Feeding themselves for the first time. Taking a risk like a first walking step. Learning how to clean themselves up after they have fallen down. That’s where the real joy is in disciple making. In order to get there, we have to help our disciples know how to measure and track their own obedience. The sooner they can do that, the sooner you will see them growing and maturing.

One tool that is helpful in measuring obedience is called “The Wheel.”

The Wheel

“The Wheel” focuses on four key areas of a disciple’s life to help them learn how to walk in daily obedience. The four key areas are:

Daily Prayer

Daily Scripture

Intentional Fellowship

Gospel Shares

How it Works

When I am obedient in all four of these areas, my discipleship tire is full. I roll along down the highway with no issues. When one of them is a little off, I end up with a flat or out of balance. Either way, I’m not operating at full capacity.

So imagine these four areas are supporting the overall healthy and vibrance of your life as a disciple and that of someone you are discipling. As a disciple I want to leave these core areas out daily. Then I want to train someone I am discipling to do the same. That’s where the “Thermostat” comes in.

The Thermostat

Technically, there are four thermostats. Each one with seven dashes representing the days of the week. If I read the Bible 5 days this week, then I circle or put a mark that shows I was in scripture 5 days in the past week. Then I measure the other three areas. What I come out with is either a nice full tire, or a flat.

Please note: the purpose of this tool is not to be legalistic in our approach to discipleship. It is meant to be a helpful tool for new disciples to learn how to walk in daily obedience. As a disciple maker, it is so encouraging and exciting when you meet with someone you are leading and they have used this tool to show you progress they are making in daily obedience.

So use the Wheel and Thermostat as you make disciples. It helps to lead others into steps of obedience and also trains them to disciple the next generation in daily obedience.

What questions do you have? How would you adapt these for your context?

Download the Wheel and Thermostat

Let’s take Kingdom territory!

Source: Disciple Making And Obedience

The post Disciple Making And Obedience appeared first on Passion for Planting.

Source: Spiritual Formation for One

The post Spiritual Formation for One appeared first on Passion for Planting.

By TheChurch.Digital: Discipleship means a lot of things. At it’s core value, though, there are two different ideas: 1) Knowledge-Based and 2) Obedience-Based. Many churches operate in a knowledge-based system of discipleship. In fact, our buildings exist as the center of that knowledge. Come to the building and we can teach you more knowledge. Unfortunately, knowledge-based discipleship tends to move away from action. We as Christians have a cognitive understanding of what God has called us to, but we don’t do it. God calls us to make disciples. But many of us are too busy consuming a product instead of denying self and carrying the cross Christ gave us.

This is where Obedience-Based Discipleship comes into play. This is why today’s podcast may be difficult to listen to… cause maybe our strategy for doing church, for making disciples, isn’t working and if we can figure out how to this digitally…

So, let’s dig into some new ideas here. Maybe this is the new wineskin your church needs for 2021? Let’s explore what discipleship can look like, digitally.

If you’re enjoying this episode, subscribe for free using your favorite podcast app below:

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ON THE SHOW

Source: PODCAST 115: Digital Discipleship thru Timothy Initiative

The post PODCAST 115: Digital Discipleship thru Timothy Initiative appeared first on Passion for Planting.

By Stan Rodda: The prophet Habakkuk has much to teach us 2600 years after his life and work. Habakkuk teaches us that when it comes to seasons of waiting, we must embrace God’s promises and His people. You can read that post here.

Habakkuk shares his burdens about the people of Judah with God. He asks God questions that all of us have probably asked God ourselves at one point or another. Questions like…

How long, Lord, will I call and You don’t listen?

When will You do something about this injustice?

When will You do something about this violence and evil?

Where are You?

And part of the answer that Habakkuk receives is found in his name. Habakkuk means to embrace or wrestle. When seasons of waiting come to us in life, we wrestle with God over our questions, but we also draw near to embrace Him in His faithfulness.

Wrestle. Embrace. Wrestle. Embrace.

Habakkuk shows us how to be disciples of Jesus in times when all we seem to have are unanswered questions. And part of our answer is that even in the wrestling, don’t give up. Draw near to God. Embrace Him and His promises.

The message of chapter 2 is clear; Wait on the Lord!

There are a lot of things we can hurry in this life. God is not one of them. We can hurry our kids out the door for school, or speed through traffic to make that meeting on time. But you can’t hurry God. It seems he is never in a rush, but somehow is always on time. All of us have been there. Wanting to rush God along with His answers. We’ve all been waiting on God at different times. Things like…

An answer to prayer

A glimmer of hope

Clarity on some issue

To end a pain

To begin healing

Habakkuk 2 teaches us that we will get there someday. And if there’s one over arching principle we must develop, one lesson to learn as disciples of Jesus it would be this…

Gain An Upper Story Perspective

Habakkuk positions himself in the lookout tower. When I think about a lookout tower, I think about old war movies. You see things from the tower you can’t see from the ground. Who is approaching your town? How many people are coming? Are they friend or foe? There’s a lot you can see when you get to higher ground to gain and upper story perspective.

Click here to subscribe to 4Gen’s Field Notes disciple making emails.

Habakkuk is searching and says he will go to the lookout tower to see what God will show him. And from there, Habakkuk learns at least three things. First,

There is a Natural Delay Between Planting and Harvesting

We are like Veruka Salt. Do you remember her? “I want it now. I want it my way.” Classic character from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. She deserved what was coming to her because her attitude was so annoying. Yet, that’s how we so often approach God. We want our answers and we want it now.

Patience now!

Joy now!

Rewarding career now!

Wisdom now!

To lose 20lbs now! (Just me?)

But between the planting of the seed of a tomato plant and the harvesting of that tomato, there’s a natural delay. A natural delay when you begin to sow into your marriage and when you reap the benefits. A natural delay when you begin to sow into disciple making and harvesting the fruit. Don’t get discouraged when you don’t get answers immediately. There’s a natural delay. Second,

There is a Bigger Battle Going on Around Us

Our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this darkness, against evil, spiritual forces in the heavens. [Ephesians 6:12 CSB]

Satan is here to steal, kill and destroy. He hates you. He hates your marriage. He hates your children. He hates your faith. He hates your attempts at disciple making. He hates when you point people to Jesus. And he is in complete opposition to you. Just ask Daniel.

In Daniel 10 we read that the angel carrying the answer to Daniel’s prayers was caught up in a battle for 21 days over Persia. He had to call in reinforcements to get free to respond to Daniel. There’s a bigger battle going on around us. There’s so much more to the story. If you hear nothing else in this post, please hear this…

God’s delays are not necessarily denials!

If you get stuck in a lower story perspective, it can be easy to get swept up in the idea that God has denied you. That you didn’t get an answer, or at least not the one you wanted. All we see is the discouragement of the lower story; family struggles, anxiety, fear, depression, national chaos. There is a spiritual battle raging in the heavenly realms. Get to the lookout tower. Gain that upper story perspective. Third,

God is at Work Preparing You for Amazing Things

Scripture tells us that God is at work in each of His children, bringing them to maturity. He is getting you ready for the future that is ahead of you. Disciple making opportunities you don’t even know about yet. Ministry opportunities you haven’t even considered. A fulfilling marriage that today seems has no hope. God is at work bringing you to completion and maturity.

I am sure of this, that He who started a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. [Philippians 1:6 CSB]

It doesn’t do Habakkuk any good to pour over the The Jerusalem News or The Babylon Inquirer. It doesn’t do us any good either. Being informed is different from only having a lower story perspective. Being informed is different from feeding on the garbage of this world. Everything we take in as disciples of Jesus, no matter the media, should be viewed from the lookout tower, from the upper story perspective.

God, You are at work in our day. You are doing amazing things. You are preparing us for amazing things. And until I am clear on it, I will be in the lookout tower, waiting for Your answer.

But the Lord is in HIs holy temple; let the whole earth be silent in His presence. [Habakkuk 2:20 CSB]

When it comes to seasons of waiting on God for answers, there is no place like the lookout tower. The place where we gain an upper story perspective. Habakkuk reminds us…

There is a natural delay between planting and harvesting

There is a bigger battle going on around us

God is at work preparing you for amazing things

Have you found it difficult to maintain an upper story perspective in light of our recent history? What step do you need to take to regain it?

Let’s take Kingdom territory!

Source: Someday | Part 2

The post Someday | Part 2 appeared first on Passion for Planting.

By Stan Rodda: Just like everyone else, disciple makers experience seasons of waiting in life. Times when it seems that God is distant. Maybe He isn’t hearing your prayers or He has abandoned you for some reason. We can convince ourselves of nearly anything during this times of waiting.

We need these seasons of waiting from God because it is one of the key ways that He develops and prepares us for the future. And one of the best places to learn about these times in faith is the prophet, Habakkuk.

Philosopher, Winnie the Pooh, said,

Rivers know this: there is no hurry. We shall get there some day. -A.A. Milne

This is the first in a 4-part series on learning to wait on God during times of suffering and silence. If you are a disciple maker in a season of waiting, I hope this series will encourage you. In this first part, we must learn from Habakkuk’s groan.

Habakkuk’s Groan

Habakkuk is confronted with a burden from God. The prophet responds to God by groaning a bit about the way things are going in life. He groans to God, “Why aren’t you doing anything about the injustice and evil? I have been telling you all about it and you’re totally silent.” (Habakkuk 1:2-4)

The nation around Habakkuk had fallen into complete rebellion. While this book was written 2600 years ago, it could have been written at the end of 2020. So much chaos, sin, injustice, pain, suffering and evil. God, where are you? Why won’t you answer me?

God, I’m doing my best to make disciples. I’m trying to reach people. Why is it that You seem to have gone silent? Don’t You care about what’s going on in the world? Don’t you want people to come to You? Where are you?

Permission Given to Ask Questions

When I was growing up, it was never okay to question God. If you were thinking about questioning God that meant you had a faith problem. That your relationship with God wasn’t good enough. No one ever told me that babies aren’t born with Paul-like relationships with Jesus. No, we have to work at it. Developing faith and making disciples comes with questions.

I believe that when God responds to Habakkuk’s questions, He is in essence saying, “I welcome your questions. I’m big enough for them. Let’s develop your faith and I’ll show you a little more of what I’m up to.”

Ask Humbly

Not all questions are created equal. Don’t pull a Job assuming you know more than God. By the time God finally responds in chapter 38 of Job, He responds out of a whirlwind. God storms His responses back at Job. Be careful Job. You don’t know nearly as much as you think you do. Be careful Stan. You aren’t nearly as clever or wise as you think you are. Be careful disciple maker. You don’t know as much as you think. Ask your questions, but ask with humility.

God’s Promise to Habakkuk

Habakkuk 1:5 God responds and tells Habakkuk that He is doing amazing things. Even if Habakkuk could see clearly he wouldn’t believe it. God is at work beyond all we can ask or imagine, doing amazing things that we wouldn’t believe even if He told us. But as God is at work, it’s not all rainbows and unicorns. It’s going to come with the price of suffering.

God promises that the Chaldeans are coming and they are going to punish Israel. They will sift the people and it will not be pleasant. I’m sure Habakkuk had to have a moment of celebration that God was at work only to backtrack not wanting God to work through the Babylonians.

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God’s Way Are Not Our Ways

When the disciple making conversations have run dry. When disciples walk away from us looking for a simpler life. When we feel we are completely on our own and God doesn’t seem to be responding to the mess that is life; God’s ways are not our way.

Think Noah. God says, I’m going to purify the world and rid it of evil. Starting over with you, Noah. Awesome, sounds great. What’s next? Oh, I need you to build an ark. What’s an ark. It’s a huge boat that will float on water. That much water? Yeah, it’s going to rain. What’s rain?

God’s ways are not our ways.

Think John the Baptist. Jesus said, “There is no one greater than John.” What did that mean for him? It meant imprisonment and beheading. All because he supported God’s definition of marriage.

God’s ways are not our ways.

When God says, “I’m doing amazing things in your day. You’re not going to believe this.” Always remember that some of God’s greatest work comes through suffering. In fact, God’s greatest work in history happened through a cross. We all have heavy hearts because of what is happening in our nation. God is still doing amazing things. Even if He has to use Babylon to do it.

What To Do In The Waiting

The answer to seasons of waiting can be found in Habakkuk’s name. It means, “to wrestle, embrace.” We go back and forth with God, drawing near to Him, asking questions.

Wrestle. Embrace. Wrestle. Embrace.

Embrace God’s Promises

The God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself restore, establish, strengthen, and support you after you have suffered a little while.

[1 Peter 5:10 CSB]

Even when things are difficult, draw near to God. Stay connected in your abiding time with Christ. Don’t let go of your relationship with God. Draw near. Embrace Him and His promises. That even though you may be going through a season of suffering, He Himself will restore you.

The Lord is the One who goes before us (Deut 31:8). He turns to me and hears my cries (Ps 40:1). Gives us days of rejoicing that match the days we wept (Ps 90:15). Embraces God’s promises to restore you, to bring you through for His glory. Embrace the promise of God that He is at work.

Embrace God’s People

Gallup and the CDC both say mental health is an absolute crisis. Since the summer of 2020, 1 in 4 young people have considered suicide. Suicide rates are soaring. People considering it is higher than ever. And yet I the midst of that tragedy, one group stands out as having improved mental health; those who regularly attended church through the pandemic.

Something supernatural, mystical happens, when God’s people gather. Whether you are gathering at a modern looking church, a traditional church or you meet in a church in your living room, the gathering of God’s people is an essential for us.

God is doing something amazing in our generation. But it seems He is going to do it through Babylon. As you go through your season of waiting, remember to embrace God’s promises and His people.

What promises of God do you hold onto the most in times of suffering and waiting?

Source: Someday | Part 1

The post Someday | Part 1 appeared first on Passion for Planting.

By unSeminary: Thanks for listening in to this week’s unSeminary podcast. We have Zach Zehnder with us today, the author and founder of the Red Letter Challenge. RLC began with the simple concept of trying to help people be greater followers of Jesus. It started as a book, leading the reader on a 40-day life-changing discipleship experience with Jesus and evolved into a turnkey teaching series for churches.

With the pandemic and everything else happening across the country over the last year, life has been disrupted in many ways and feels increasingly complex. So Zach had a burden to return to simplicity and find unity around Jesus by zeroing in on the keystone habits Christ practiced during his ministry on earth. Listen in as Zach shares how you can help your church discover or return to these life-giving habits in the new year.

Spiritual health influences everything. // 2020 was an exceptionally difficult year and there have been high levels of emotional and mental unhealth among Christians. Many followers of Christ have allowed the disruptions caused by the pandemic to let bad habits develop. Unfortunately this has been true for pastors as well. Our mental and emotional health is driven by our spiritual health, and our ministry ultimately comes from the overflow of our relationships with Jesus.Keystone habits. // Goals and resolutions for the new year come out of a desire to establish the right habits. The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg introduces us to keystone habits, which are habits that unintentionally spill over into other areas of our lives – they aren’t any harder to form, but they have greater benefits in all areas of life. They can help lead you to becoming more productive in life, more connected to your family, and more connected spiritually. Spiritual habits are some of the most keystone of all habits because they impact every other area of our lives. So how can we help our people to develop spiritual keystone habits that will help them moving forward?Look at Christ’s example. // What are the spiritual keystone habits that can carry over into other aspects of your life? Look to Jesus and discover what spiritual keystone habits he practiced, like committing to community, studying scripture, prioritizing prayer, seeking solitude, and choosing church. All of these contributed to his spiritual health and we can implement them in our lives to grow our relationship with God and others, and become healthier emotionally and mentally too.Connect with each other and Him. // One of the first things Jesus did was enter into community with others. Community is important not only because it was one of the first things that Jesus did, but also as you try to instill keystone habits, it’s important to have a supportive community. People who are in our lives and who we habitually associate with have a profound impact on us. 95% of our success or failure can be attributed to the people we are closest with. We can be stronger with other believers who are also pursuing God. How we commit to community today may be different with the pandemic, but it’s important that we find a way to connect with others and point each other to Jesus.Spend time with God. // For Jesus, seeking solitude wasn’t just about being alone, it was about being alone with the Father. It’s intentional time with God where we step away from the noise and distractions of our culture and daily life and listen to His voice. In solitude we get our focus and our energy as we listen to what God is saying, and let Him simply love us.Dive into the spiritual keystone habits. // So how do you grow your relationship with God this year? Join the Being Challenge. The Being Challenge is another turnkey 40-day series for churches or individuals which teaches people the keystone habits of Jesus. It will unify your church beyond Sunday, and there is even a kids’ version for grades K-5 so children can begin learning these habits at a young age. About 120,000 people have gone through the Red Letter and Being Challenges and it’s led to small group growth, increased unity, and people taking practical next steps in their relationships with God, including jumpstarting their prayer life, beginning to observe sabbath, or completing their first bible reading plan.

You can learn more about the Red Letter Challenge at www.redletterchallenge.com. Or learn about the Being Challenge and receive a free book about it at www.redletterchallenge.com/being.

Thank You for Tuning In!

There are a lot of podcasts you could be tuning into today, but you chose unSeminary, and I’m grateful for that. If you enjoyed today’s show, please share it by using the social media buttons you see at the left hand side of this page. Also, kindly consider taking the 60-seconds it takes to leave an honest review and rating for the podcast on iTunes, they’re extremely helpful when it comes to the ranking of the show and you can bet that I read every single one of them personally!

Lastly, don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast on iTunes, to get automatic updates every time a new episode goes live!

Thank You to This Episode’s Sponsor: Plain Joe Studios

Create a space people love coming back to. With a combination of architecture, concept & graphic design, technology integration and a deep love for the church, Plain Joe Studios will elevate your building into an immersive asset that propels your mission and connects more people to your story.

Schedule a FREE 30 minute consultation and discover the power of spatial storytelling.

Source: Helping Your People Add Keystone Habits that Grow Their Spiritual Lives in 2021 with Zach Zehnder

The post Helping Your People Add Keystone Habits that Grow Their Spiritual Lives in 2021 with Zach Zehnder appeared first on Passion for Planting.

Source: PODCAST 109: Multiplying Churches Until There’s No Place Left

The post PODCAST 109: Multiplying Churches Until There’s No Place Left appeared first on Passion for Planting.

By NewChurches.com: In Episode 554 of the NewChurches Q&A Podcast, Daniel and Todd discuss how the church should multiply in the midst of a culture continuing to grapple with COVID.

In This Episode, You’ll Discover:

Some of the challenges the church will continue to face in 2021
How you grow in micro-ways and a macro-way

 Shareable Quotes (#NewChurches):

“How in the midst of all of that should we multiply as a church?” – @danielsangi
“Jesus never said to go and make disciples until you have COVID.”  – @danielsangi
“Part of being a disciple is making other disciples.” – @toddadkins
“Perhaps in 2021, your vision for multiplication is actually a downward sort of root-focused based multiplication.” – @danielsangi
“Perhaps you need to grow in depth before you can be sent out and send others out.” – @danielsangi
“What does it look like for you as a church to be on the offense as it relates to multiplying and being a blessing?” – @danielsangi
“Your church is strategically positioned to bring the gospel to that subdivision, to that community through where people live, work, and play.” – @toddadkins

Recommended Resources:

Read Multiplication Today, Movements Tomorrow
Read 1,000 Churches

Help us Multiply the Mission:

Please subscribe
Leave a rating and review on iTunes
Ask a question by clicking Send Voicemail on the right hand side of NewChurches.com
If you’re on a phone or a tablet, then go to www.speakpipe.com/newchurches to download the app and record your message
When you’re recording, introduce yourself and your context in about 15 seconds and then record your question for 30 seconds

The post Episode 554: A 2021 Vision for Multiplication appeared first on NewChurches.com – Church Planting, Multisite, and Multiplication.

Source: Episode 554: A 2021 Vision for Multiplication

The post Episode 554: A 2021 Vision for Multiplication appeared first on Passion for Planting.