You don't need to feel perfect to start; the power of Christ living inside you is enough to begin walking with someone else. Look for opportunities in your everyday spaces, like the grocery store or church, to invite someone into a deeper conversation about God. Take the first step today by reaching out to someone the Lord highlights, knowing you are equipped to disciple them.
Mariah is our speaker today, and I'm up here just to go ahead and we're gonna kinda do this podcast style. We're gonna do a little interview here. Okay? So something a little different. I already know, because I looked at the notes, that she's gonna be speaking on discipleship today.
Alright? So, she's incredibly gifted in discipleship. She she she has a lot inside of her that that you're gonna be able to take and chew on and eat, and actually, move forward in action on some steps. Okay? So we're excited.
Miss Mariah, let me just start off with the first question. So what is discipleship? What what is it? Have you always done it? Give us a little intro on what's going on.
Yeah. *Discipleship*. So in Matthew-28, I believe it says, go and make disciples. Right? So we know that that's the "great commission".
That's something that all Christians are supposed to be doing. It's what we're called to be doing. What is that is a great question. Discipleship, you know, if you think about it in in terms of I'm a disciple of Jesus. It is my desire, my call, my greatest desire to follow Jesus, to look like him, to imitate him, to read the word, and then to obey him.
And so if I'm a disciple of Jesus and I want up to disciple someone else as well, what I'm saying is just like Paul said, follow me as I follow Christ. I'm running after Jesus right now. Come and "run with me". That is what discipleship is. And so, yeah, when I when I started just getting into this, it was definitely a challenge.
You what was the question you said?
Well, so before we go there, so you how did you get into it with, like, Jerry
Yeah. Yeah. Okay. So when I first started just being poked out by the Lord on on how to disciple and and that I needed to be doing this, it was a really challenging thing for me to enter into because at first I thought, well, if I'm going to present myself as a leader of someone else and and lead them, it just felt like I was thrusting my spiritual authority over them. And so I had a hard time with it at first.
I was like, I don't really like that. And then the Lord pointed out that when Jesus taught his disciples, he actually said that you must **become servants** in order to do this work. And so he really changed my mindset. He's like, yeah. You're not really being promoted in that way.
You you do become a leader, but when you become a leader, you become a servant. And so if that's your mindset, like so that shifted for me. And then the other thing that I really struggled with was, well, you know, Lord, I'm maybe I'm too young to be discipling these people or maybe I'm, you know, and I haven't been to ministry school and I just can't really relate to what they're going through. And and the Lord started just poking at me more and more and he said, you know that's pride. It's pride what you're saying right now.
Because you're looking at yourself and you're saying, well, I'm not good enough to do the work that you have for me. But it's not I, but Christ who lives in me that does that work. So I needed to really repent of pride and say, yeah, it's not about me. Not at all. It's about Jesus who lives in me.
You know, the word it says that the same power that conquered the grave lives inside of us. And so if I'm gonna interact with somebody knowing that, then I'm interacting with people with the power of Jesus Christ that's in me and not really with all of my understanding and my knowledge and, well, I haven't read enough books on that. I've read the word. I know what Jesus says about that.
Amen.
And, and so throughout this time, the Lord you know, we became elders at the church. Pastor David required us to read this book called Wiki Church. It's a church that's located in The Philippines. It's it's a book about it. And a lot of their structure looks a lot like our church does.
They have, just a similar setup and and design for how we do church. And as I read that, I realized that what pastor David preaches on Sunday is just really true. He says, it's my job as the pastor to equip the body to do the works of ministry. And so I'm sitting in the congregation going, I think that means I need to do some work. You know, he's equipping me to do work.
And I just felt really empowered by that. I thought, man, like, my pastor wants me to do this, and this is his vision for the church. And then the Lord pointed out Jerry. Now many of you know Jerry and Heidi. They're also elders here.
And Jerry would meet with men and disciple them. And the Lord said, I want you to do what he does for women. And I, again, had to set aside my pride and and wrestle with that and let the Lord say, okay. Like, yeah, I can do that even though, you know, I look at Papa pie, Jerry, and I'm like, man, he's just like this papa of wisdom. You know, how am I gonna do that?
And he's like, you're gonna do it. I told you that you you're gonna do it. And so I had a conversation with Jerry, and it was just a good a good conversation of of encouragement and wisdom and and how to go about doing this. And so I started pursuing **intentional relationships** with people. And if you if you don't know me, I'm not big on small talk.
I will tolerate small talk but but it kinda tires me out. And when I talk to people, I want to get to the "deep stuff". I wanna ask you the deep questions about what the Lord is teaching you. What are things that we can pray for? Like, I wanna get into it.
And that brings me so much life and joy. And the Lord, as he was calling me to discipleship, he really opened my eyes and he said, you know, you've been doing this all your life. I was like, oh, yeah. I guess that's just like how I make friends. That's how I interact with people.
It's my desire to have these conversations with people about the Lord in deep ways. And so I'm pursuing these intentional relationships and I started making a list of people that the Lord really said, like, this is somebody I want you to pursue and be intentional about pouring into. And so I have I have a list of about the 35 women now that I am intentional with. And some of those women are here in the church. There's a girl I met at the Waffle House.
There's a girl I met at Walmart. There's a sweet friend from Michigan. There's another friend from Texas. Like I just have these people that the Lord has said be intentional with them. And so some of them I meet with regularly or I have phone calls with.
And and I try to set it up like like this is my hope in meeting. I wanna meet with you maybe it's once every other week or once a week and we talk for an hour, hour and a half. And we get into the word. I wanna encourage you in your walk with the Lord. I wanna talk about what the Lord is teaching you right now.
I wanna pray with you, and I wanna have a really intentional time of that. Yeah.
Amen. Go ahead. Take a drink. Have you ever noticed we're, like, what, 7 to 8 months pregnant here? So, yeah.
So, that's the real reason for the chairs here.
Yep. Okay. I always have to have a prop.
Yeah. I
know. Very nice. So The pregnancy prop is the chair.
So so what about what what does it actually look like? I wanna I wanna get into a couple stories because I think you do discipleship ridiculously well and there's a reason why. They're like, there's a reason why. You you hear the Holy Spirit and you give what the Holy Spirit is saying to people. You don't just sort of, you know, give advice.
Like, you I I think to your point, you know, you don't need all the you don't need all the wisdom in the world. You you have Jesus in you. And if you'll tap into him, then you'll actually give the person what they need. So could you tell us some stories about like Yeah. And highlight that?
So I met this beautiful friend in Maine. We lived there for a short period of time and she had just come to know the Lord. We're living there for about 4 months. He's doing travel nursing. So we knew we were leaving soon.
So And it was a very stop and go friendship, you know. I I knew that I was gonna be going on and and she had just come to know the Lord, like, the same week that I met her. She had given her life to the Lord that Sunday at her church, and then I met her throughout the week. And she had no experience with Christianity, just the the vocabulary or or or like what's true and what's not true. She didn't have a great grasp of that.
And so we went for a long walk together and she just started sharing some of her life stories. And I'm listening intent intentionally to her. And I am asking the Lord, you know, what what's going on here because she's bringing up these topics that I would call "hot button topics". Like, wanna talk about that. This sounds like a really great diving point.
And so she brought up that she was doing something that I I would I would call it witchcraft, really. You know? And she's not she's not real she's just become saved, and she doesn't really know. And and so she brings up this, like, you know, prayer thing that she does. It's like, definitely not to the Lord.
And I'm like, okay. And I hear the Lord say, like, not yet. And so in those moments, I I would describe it as like I'm a "bow and an arrow". And I just feel this intensity in the moment to pay attention to the Lord and and figure out what he's doing. And I feel really held back, like, just hold off.
And then she brings up that she needs healing. And I'm like, oh, I could talk about healing. I would love to pray, you know, Lord. And he kept holding me off. And and she brought up a couple other things that I just thought, man, Lord, like, when do I get to, you know, dive in with with her?
Like like, there's so much here that I felt like I could set her free from. Like, have the answer to this or the scripture or the the breakthrough. I have the revelation and I wanna give it to her. And the Lord kept saying, no. No.
Wait. And then she brought up this story where she just had she called it a knowing. Had a knowing that this bad thing was gonna happen. It was like this car accident thing. And so she like moved herself in the situation so that the bad thing didn't affect her.
She was like, yeah, man. I just had this knowing and the Lord said, now. Like, now's your chance. Like, this is your moment. And I and I felt the Lord just released me to say like, the Lord told you that.
Like, you need to give the Lord credit for that moment. This wasn't unknowing that you have. He was actually speaking to you. He was protecting you. He's always been there for you.
He loves you. He desires that you would see him in that moment and that you would give him credit. And, you know, we're crying immediately because it's the word of the Lord. It's not the word that I came up with or my own understanding of the situation. It was God had a word for her that day.
And it was that he loves her and that he has been there for her. And and as our friendship has gone, she ended up moving to The UK, and she she does, like, children's ministry there and and just has, like, grown her relationship with the Lord. And all the other things that I thought, oh, what about the witchcraft and the healing and the you know, like, everything has shifted in her life because of that 1 thing that she received. And she received that word excuse me. And there was just a "giant hunger" in her to read the word because she's like, oh my goodness.
The love of God just, like, touched me so drastically that I need to get to know him more. And so her relationship with the Lord was just encouraged. And it wasn't encouraged in a way that was like, here, let me, like, take you through every little hurt that you've had, and I'm the the answer to all your problems. Like, I pointed her to to the Lord, and the Lord fixed everything else. And so the the opportunity to listen to the Lord and hear what he has to say to someone is so powerful.
The amount of times that the Lord has told me to be quiet is way more than when he tells me to say something. And when I interact with him in that way and I allow him to say, like, now is not the time to speak and now is, I get to touch on the thing that the Lord is actually working on them in. Because it's not me who softens hearts, it's the Lord. It's not me that brings conviction, it's the Holy Spirit. And there are things in our lives, you know, I think for myself, I'm a very different person now than I was 3 years ago.
Because the Lord has taken his time to father me and to walk through different situations with me. And so he's had grace for things that he is now asking me to remove. Right? And so in the same way he's doing that for your brothers and sisters in Christ that you're communicating with. There are some things that I'm convicted about that you're not convicted about and vice versa.
But the Lord is softening our hearts on a specific topic, and he's walking with us. And when we can tap into that, we can really see a person the way God sees them. The love that we have for them can really overflow and it becomes so powerful. It becomes so full of grace and you're like, when do I have grace and when do I call out, you know, a sin or when do I, you know And the Lord will just guide you And you'll notice by the way that when you say something, it doesn't sound like you. It sounds like the Lord.
And so we get to give him credit for that, and it makes ministry so fun.
Amen. Sounds like Jesus. You know?
Yeah. Jesus, I would say, is the the ultimate example of discipleship. You know, he has these these followers, these disciples, and then these followers. And and people will bring questions to him. Right?
Like like I think of the rich man that came to talk to Jesus and he says, good teacher, how can I make it into heaven? And Jesus says, why do you call me good?
Right.
Like, why did he feel the need to point that out? The reason he felt the need to point that out is because he could see the rich man's heart. It had nothing to do with with what was going on. He knew that the rich man was saying, good teacher, why do you call me he says, why do you call me good? Only God is good.
Right.
And so he's pointing out to this rich man. He's saying, you don't think I'm *God* and you don't think that salvation comes through me? And throughout this conversation, you see those signs again and again where the rich man is like, okay. But but which commandments should I do? And he's like, Jesus, all of them.
You know? Like, that's a stupid question. But it that's what I would have said. That's not what Jesus said. It's a stupid question, though.
It is. And and then and then you'll see him ask again, like, well, how can I make it into heaven? How can I do this? And Jesus eventually says, like, well, if you want to be perfect, like if that's your goal. My goal is to come and be God and be good and be the only good that you've ever known.
Oh, wow. But if your goal is that you figure out how to be perfect, let me point out this thing in your heart that you don't have right. In your heart, you care too much about your earthly goods. So you need to go sell it all, give it all to the poor, and come and follow me. And he goes away sad.
And then Jesus responds after he leaves. He goes, it's harder for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven than for a camel to go through the eye of a needle. But nothing is impossible for God. Like, it's impossible for him to be perfect is what he's saying. And so I think we oftentimes will go to God with these questions or with these ideas and we're like, God, you know, can I just stay with my boyfriend or my girlfriend?
Can I just, like, get rid of this job? Can I just and it's like, you're asking the wrong question? Mhmm. Like, are times that the Lord is like, I see your heart, and if you let me reveal it to you, you'll get an even better answer. Like, the even better answer than how can I be perfect is, Lord, save me?
Right. You know? Amen. Yeah. And there's time and time again where he does that with the Sadducees and the Pharisees, and he just, like, does what I call Jesus jukes all over the place.
He's like he's like, why are you asking me if you should pay taxes? Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and give to God what belongs to God. And what I'm saying is, do you belong to God? Yeah.
That's so good. What about tell this story about the person you prayed for with the with the dreams and stuff because I think that highlights this too.
That's so fun. So she she's a sweet girl. She I don't actually know how old she was, but she had a daughter my age. So that that'll give you some context. And we had been having regular phone calls.
I met her here at church. And she had come up for prayer 1 Sunday to the altar ministry. And she was just praying. She goes, you know, I just need direction on this job. And and we've been praying together for this for a little while too.
Like, this was a a longing of her heart to figure out, like, I need an answer on this job situation. And so I'm like, okay. Let's pray, and I'm gonna ask the Lord. And I hear the Lord say, ask her if she has dreams, like, she have if she has dreams at night. And so I did.
I asked her, do you do you dream, like, at night when you sleep? And she goes, oh, I knew God was gonna get me on this. She goes, I smoke marijuana so that I don't dream. It it it makes it so that I don't dream at night because I've been having some nightmares and so I smoke marijuana and I knew he was gonna get me on this because he's been telling me to stop. And and the stuff like that is so fun.
Right? Like I don't In discipleship, I don't go up to everybody and say, okay, what's your sin? What's your deepest darkest? But the Lord, he gives this woman this just massive hug and she's weeping because she feels so loved by it and also like, I knew it. Like here, I'm asking for direction and the Lord says, like, hey, girl, you know, I've been telling you to stop smoking marijuana.
That's your that's step number 1 in direction. And I'm I've been trying to communicate to you through dreams, but you've been you've been pushing them away, and you and you haven't been dealing with this. And even some of the nightmares that she's been having, it was such an honor to walk through that with her because the Lord actually had breakthrough for her. Like not marijuana. Marijuana didn't have breakthrough for her.
The Lord had breakthrough for her in her nightmares and in her dreams. And and to be able to walk through those moments with her is such an honor, and it's so beautiful, and and it's so loving. You know, it feels so good when the Lord corrects you like that because he's saying like, hey, like, I'm gonna set you free from this.
Yeah. Yeah. I always think about like when people with dream with dreams and dream interpretation there you go. You got a gift there. Like, I can always tell when somebody does not have the, you know, correct like interpretation of a dream because they are kinda bummed about it.
You know, it's like, like, yeah, I had a dream and, you know, like, I I just need to work harder at this or whatever whatever. And I'm like, yeah, you haven't heard God's voice. Because his voice is so good. It's so good. It's like, here he speaks to her, he's not like, hey, did you do the checkbox or not?
Like, did you obey or not? Marijuana, yes or no? It's bad. You know, he's not doing that. He's like, hey, have a "wildly better plan" for you.
Yeah. Like, I wanna speak to you in the night and give you and give you revelation and and move you forward in love, you know. Mhmm.
Yeah. And that that idea that only God sees our heart. So when you're discipling someone else and you're speaking to them, you have to realize that only man sees the outward appearance. But God sees the heart And the heart is what matters. Right?
And so when you're interacting with somebody and you're you're like, oh, man, I'm gonna try to figure this out. Maybe I'll read a book that a psychologist wrote. Like, that's not the answer. I'm telling you, it's not. Unless the Lord says, like, hey, go read this book.
I would say, like, you need to ask the Lord and you need to read the Bible to know what he's saying because he sees your heart. And then I feel like when I'm communicating with someone that I'm just an enlisted soldier. Like, I just feel like I I don't have like like, yeah, I'm leading in some ways, but he's the leader. He's the 1 that that has the strategy and the plan. And I take a step forward and then I go back to him and I'm like, okay.
So I we did that step. What's next? And he tells me the next plan. And so I just get to, like, run back and forth between the Lord and and his people and just share his love and be like, okay. This is the next vision that I had for you.
This is the next thing that the Lord has for you. And just interact with them knowing that I don't have the answer, and I'm not supposed to because I'm not in charge of all of this. The Lord is. And because I get to be enlisted, I get to be the the person that just interacts with the Lord for them.
Again, what do you find is the is, like, the hardest part of discipleship?
That's a fun 1. And that was sarcasm. There was a girl that I prayed for at altar time. She came up to the front and she said, I need prayer for my aunt. You know, she lives far away, and so we prayed.
And I felt the Lord really highlight her to me, so I got her number. And that's that's generally how those interactions go when the Lord highlights someone to me is I'll get their number and just be intentional and be like, hey, like, let's have a phone call and I wanna encourage you in your faith. And so we had been having regular phone calls. And she tells me that she had been in a homosexual relationship for 8 years. She was pregnant when they started dating.
So they've raised this boy together. And she just started opening up to me that she felt like the Lord was like telling her to to leave, but she didn't know what to do. And she was just really confused about it. And so that was like, you know, meeting her at the altar to pray for someone else. And then the Lord really had something else for her, you know.
And and so she brings this to me. And and at the time, pastor David and Courtney were teaching on the Corinthians series way back when.
Could literally be any time.
Could be any time. Keeping it vague. We are still in it. Yeah. And and they were teaching on marriage and and so she calls me the next day and she's like, hey, you know, they're they were teaching on if you're a wife and you have an unbelieving husband, how you should stay married and and, well, my my partner, she's not a believer and so I'm just wondering if I should stay.
And and I'm like, okay. You are bringing up something that's like a 6th Floor issue, and we need to start at the ground. Like, we need to get back to the foundation. So let's just start off with like what the Lord calls marriage. And and so we started talking about just like what marriage is, and and so we're starting with foundations.
Marriage is between a man and a woman. And and I opened the word and I said, we're gonna read this. Because I'm not gonna just tell you what I think it says. You need to know word for word what the word says. And so we opened up the bible and I said, okay, we're gonna read this together.
And and we talked about where it says, you know, those who are homosexual will not enter the kingdom of heaven. And I just I can tell that that the Lord has, like, softened her heart on this. And the conversation just kept flowing in a way that the Lord was just doing all the work. And she's like, yeah. I really feel like the Lord has been actually talking to me about that.
You know, same thing. Like, brought a a completely different question than what she really had in her heart. And when the Lord revealed her heart, it revealed just this amazing conversation where we're we were able to discuss that like homosexuality is not what God has for you. And she said, yeah. I just I just don't know what to do and and like what like how do I I guess it's just hard, you know.
And I said, okay. The word says that when you confess your sins 1 to another, you will be made free. There's a freedom that God has for you that's more than just he wants you to "turn from your sin". Like, he wants you to turn from your sin and run to him. He also wants to give you the the delight and the joy to do that.
Like, he will take away your desires that are sinful, and he will replace them with the the desires that he actually has for you. And she's weeping and I'm weeping and she's like, yeah. I I think I yeah. And I'm like, well, if you're ready to repent and turn, then we can do that. She said, I think so.
And I felt the Lord press that. And I said, okay. Well, I think so is not repentance. So when you're ready to really repent, she said, no. You're right.
You're right. I need to repent. And so I walked her through just what repentance looks like. And I said, now, I've kinda told you about this a bit. If you want to pray, you can.
I think you have all the words you need to pray and repent and turn from this and turn towards the Lord and allow him to fill you with righteous living. And otherwise, I can pray for you and you can repeat after me whatever you feel. And she's like, I'm ready. I'm gonna pray. And so she did and and we're both just weeping.
The the Holy Spirit is so there and he's impacting her. And we had a few more phone calls after that day as well. And then and then she ended up messaging me and just saying, like, I've had a really hard time. I found a TikToker online that said that I could be a homosexual and God would still love me. And so I'm I'm gonna be done.
And and I'm I'm not coming back to real and and like thanks, but no thanks sort of thing. And and, you know, the Lord, he's so good. Right? Like, loves her so much. And it's such an honor to walk so closely with someone and see them in their hurts.
And and the desire that he has for her is still breakthrough and freedom. On this list of of 35 ish women, the Lord will at times remove 1 from the list and just be like, nope, Blake. You don't have to reach out anymore. It's okay. He has not removed her from my list.
And so I'm continuing in prayer even though she won't message me back and I've tried to have phone calls with her. And but I I remain in prayer and in hope that the Lord is walking with her. He has softened her heart and will continue to soften her heart. There's this verse. I I gotta read it.
It says, it's *2 Timothy-2:24* through 26. It says, a servant of the Lord must "not quarrel" but must be kind to everyone, be able to teach and be patient with difficult people, gently instruct those who oppose the truth. Perhaps God will change those people's hearts and they will learn the truth. Then they will come to their senses and escape from the devil's trap for they have been "held captive" by him to do whatever he wants. So when we're interacting with people or moments that feel really difficult, it's good to remember that they're actually being held captive and they don't even know it.
And so there's such a compassion and a love that the Lord has for them to be to just know that they're being held captive and they don't see it. And and to be able to be patient with difficult people is what it takes. And and it's hard, you know, I feel so much love for her that I feel like the Lord has given me. Before I meet with anybody, just pray, Lord, let me see them with the way that you see them. Let me love them the way that you love them.
And then he does that, and then it's heartbreaking when you walk through a journey with someone and you see them get touched by the Holy Spirit and then they still turn away. And then to just remain in that hope and to say, *Lord*, I am your servant and I will remain patient in this and I will remain in hope for her.
Yeah. And I think it's worth like mentioning the transformative power of Christ. Right? Yeah. Because because, you know, there's there's a lie in the world and then it's also crept into the church that for some reason, homosexuality is, like, different.
It's, like, not just a sin like all the other sins. And *Christ*'s blood transforms everyone in such a way that they are empowered to no longer sin. That's what the gospel is. And so if you heard that story and you think like, oh, I don't think I would confront that or like or if there's anything in you that says, well, that's not right. They're always gonna be like that.
And, oh, they're just gonna have to suffer or whatever. I question, like, how much has God transformed you? You know? We have to have been transformed to even understand the transformative power of Christ. You know?
And so for me, I'm like, God can do anything. Yeah. Because I know what I was. Right? And I know what and I've watched him take things out of my life that had *captivity* over me.
It's called sin. You know? And this is the gospel. This is the truth. You know, I don't know if you have anything to add to that.
Yeah. I think she's not the first person that I've interacted with where homosexuality was just broken off of by the reading of the word and by the reading of truth. Because it's not about, well, how can I how can I, you know, navigate a an argument with somebody? Like, I'm not trying to argue with anybody. I'm trying to reveal truth, tell you and and even that comment that she had was was so showing of her heart when she said, you know, I I found out that I could be homosexual and God would still love me.
I was like, I was never questioning if God loved you. Yeah. I was questioning if you love God. Because that's part of obedience. Right?
Is to turn towards him and I know that the Holy Spirit was softening her heart in that. And so there are times when when the Lord will cover things with grace and there are times where he asks that thing of you, where he says it's time to look more like me. And I'm gonna remove that that sin in your life so that you can look more like me. And it's just part of his sanctification, which is beautiful. And he did all the work as well.
And so to walk through that with her and to see her touched by the Holy Spirit and for a time truly believe it. And then to turn and and have to figure that out again, you know, the transformative power of *Christ* is the most powerful moment in all of history. When I say the same power that lives in you that conquers the grave, that is the most powerful moment in all of history that lives inside of you. And so when you're interacting with somebody, you don't have to you don't have to say, oh, man. I don't know about that homosexuality stuff.
I don't know about this. I don't know how to set you free from your sin. You don't have to. The power of Christ within you does that.
Amen. Yeah. Let let's just take 2 minutes. So, God, we just we just thank you for the seed of your word in that young woman, and we pray that it will come to fruition and bear fruit. You said your word never returns void.
So we just pray over her right now that the real encounter she had with you will will not be forgotten. And no matter what it takes, bring her to you in Jesus name.
Yeah. Amen. Amen. So
alright. So why do people struggle? Like, what have been the struggles of like figuring out how to be a dis a discipler of people? Or or why is maybe there is there some instruction that the church needs? Yes.
There's some practical things for sure. If if you're going to meet with someone and you you you're gonna be intentional about this, which you're supposed to because it's the great commission. It's good to start with the foundations. Right? When when I go to meet with someone, I'll pray for them and ask the Lord, what do you have for them?
And each person is really very different. There's people that I meet with. There's this precious girl in Texas. She called me to start having regular phone calls and she said, you know, I don't really know why we're supposed to meet, but I feel like the Lord wants us to meet. And and I said, okay.
Well, I feel like the Lord is gonna create in you a teacher, That you're gonna start teaching the word. And she was like, oh my goodness. I have this opportunity to teach and to go to this school and to learn how to teach, and I just I just have been pushing it off. And I I oh my goodness. And so she was like, a little overwhelmed that I would present that to her
as That was a prophetic word. You didn't know that about her?
No. I didn't. No. Yeah. And so she didn't wanna do it.
She was like, I don't wanna teach. I get nervous. I just don't wanna do it and I feel like the Lord has been asking me to do this. And I said, man, that's such great news. You're gonna learn to teach.
That's what we're gonna do together. So I would meet with her and I and I'm I'm still asking the Lord day by day, you know, that was that was 1 little step to the strategy. And so now I'm like, okay, Lord, what is she gonna teach? And so now we're looking at the word and we're saying, okay, where in the word are you gonna teach? Or like, what has the Lord put on your heart that you're gonna start learning how to teach?
And so that's that's just 1 example. Another person is really struggling with with marriage, and so we're we're meeting and praying and interceding together for that. There's always something now. If you're going in to talk to a new believer, let's get into those foundations. Right?
There's there's just faith in Jesus, *repentance*, baptism, being filled with the Holy Spirit. Those are great places to start. And if any 1 of those, you hear that and you go, I have no idea how to teach that. That's great. Because part of teaching is just being 1 chapter ahead, 1 verse ahead.
And and if you're teaching somebody and they get 1 verse ahead of you, guess what? Now you get to be discipled. It's great. It's actually a really good setup. And I've I've noticed this in my friendship.
Some of my favorite people to hang out with are those that "sharpen me". It's like, who's discipling who? It doesn't really matter. The fact that you're pursuing the Lord and you're saying, run with me. I'm running after God.
That's where you see discipleship happen. And so does it matter who's the mentor or who's the mentee? Not so much. When you swap, you just become the servant versus being served. And to be able to receive the revelation that someone has received for you is such a blessing.
And it's just a much of as much of a blessing to give it out as it is to receive it. And so, yeah, those those foundational things are super great. At Belong on Tuesday nights, we use the purple book and what is that? 10 or 12 chapters? 12 chapters where we go through just foundational understanding of what it means to be a believer and, you know, who is the Holy Spirit?
Some of those really basic questions just make great conversations. I'm so bad at small talk that I I have a friend that always asks me like, how was your weekend? And I'm like, oh, that takes so much brainpower right
now. What is a weekend?
Where where am I? I can't remember what I had breakfast all of a sudden. Like, what in the world do do you mean what how was your weekend? But like, I have a stack of questions that I'm just ready. Right?
Like, what is the Lord teaching you these days? Have you been in your word lately? Where where do you want to read? You know, have have you have you prayed for anyone lately? Is there anything that you're praying for in your life right now that we could pray for together?
Like, there's so many good conversations that you can pull up when you're planning on being intentional with 1 another. Read a gospel together. Matthew, Mark, Luke, John. Read 1 of those together. That's just a great place to start.
And so, yeah, I I don't think that there's a bad way to do it. But to just really say, I'm gonna pursue Jesus with all my heart, and then sometimes the Lord will just bring me to someone where I'm like, I'm just gonna tell you everything I've learned this morning and just share my bible study with you and share what I've been reading. And sometimes, it's like, man, that was the unlock. And sometimes, he gives me a word of knowledge and sometimes he doesn't. But regardless, it's just doing life together.
You know, when I meet with people, I bring my kids with me. I have you know, we have a 2 and a half year old and a 4 year old. We'll meet at the park, and they're running around. And I'm like half disciplining, half, you know, discipleship. It's great.
Like, it's such great fun. And even that is ministry to the Lord. And just being like, come hang out and do life and come talk about Jesus while I fold laundry. You know, it doesn't have to be all that complicated.
Yeah. And I think 1 thing that I would had on my mind that I wanted you to mention just before we kinda wrap up is, I think like a common objection or thing that would make somebody nervous is like, well, I can't relate to somebody or I don't know like, I don't know what they're going through or whatever. Or if I haven't gone through what they've gone through, how could I speak into it?
Yeah. I I had a conversation with a a different woman who is probably my parents' age. And she she said, you know, I've I've raised 4 children and I just I want to be helpful and I wanna pour into these young moms. But young moms, you know, they're just they do things so differently now and I just don't relate to I don't think I have anything to help them anymore. And so, I guess I'll just like give them their space and I I won't do that.
And I said, you're right. You don't have like, your your past experiences aren't going to be what the young moms need. You're right. Like, you wanna say like this is how I parented and and I sent them over to the neighbor's house or you know, whatever it was that was like more acceptable back when we were little and it's not acceptable anymore, you're right. Like you don't have what it what you need to pour into a young mom.
You have to give the testimony of Jesus. You have to give the word of the Lord. And so when you're giving advice, you don't have to come up with these these like innovative ways of helping someone. We're not about innovation. We're about imitating Jesus.
Not innovating, imitating. Okay. So when you imitate Jesus and you show up and you act like Jesus and a mom says, man, like my kids are just not patient. You're like, man, how do we receive patience? Let's pray for them that they can receive patience as a fruit of the spirit.
Let's like, how else can we dive into the Lord?
How much iPad time have they had? You know? Or whatever. It's like, no. That's not what they're coming for.
Yeah. Like, they're coming from a word from the Lord. They're coming for for an answer. How do I discipline my children? Hey, that's in the Bible too.
How do I, you know, prepare my home? That's in the Bible too. How do I find space for rest? It's in the bible. Like, you don't have to make this this complicated, like, I created a 12 system on how I, you know, ran my home.
That's not what we need. We need just a relationship and a walk with Jesus and an example of that. And I've seen this over and over again where there are people in the church that are a bit, what I would say, older or they see themselves as older. And they say, I'm gonna pass the baton. You know, I'm gonna, you know, pass the baton and allow space for this younger generation to do what they need to do and I'm just gonna kind of drift into the background.
You know, the word talks about running your race to the very end, and the very end is when you die. Like, it's not when you just decide you're done. It's not a baton race. This is a, like, you "run your race" until you meet Jesus face to face. Amen.
Okay? So if you're gonna run your race as hard as you possibly can, I, as a young mom, right, or as a young person in the Lord, I'm gonna see somebody who's older than me and go, oh my goodness? They're running so fast. I I gotta run fast with them. Like, that's way more encouraging than, like, here you go.
I'm gonna make room for you. There's plenty of room. There's plenty of room for everyone to be doing discipleship. There's plenty of room for us to interact with each other in a in a powerful, I'm gonna look like Jesus kinda way. And so run your race to the very end.
I think like the 1 of my biggest pet peeves is like the idea of a retirement community. Not like no offense. Okay? But like or like a city where like all the older people go and it's like, oh, great. We all get to be with each other.
And and it's like, okay. Yeah. Let's round up all the wisdom, all the people who have been there, all the people who walked things out and saw how the world works, and let's put them all over there and let us all run around like, you know, chickens. So, you know, I not to not to speak to strongly, but like, we need older people's input. I think there's some well, I I'm strong on it because there's a insecurity, I think, that happens as people age that they start to and and it's probably because, you know, they are they are actually disregarded and they are actually shoved off.
And so then it becomes this thought of like, well, I I'm just, you know, I'm just not important anymore. You guys are doing your thing. And it's like, no, man. That's not in the kingdom. In the kingdom, you're like the the, you know, the elder.
It's like that that that's the opposite of American. In the in the kingdom, you have the honor and we wanna listen, know. So
Yeah. And when they speak with that wisdom, you could feel it. Like, you know somebody that's walked through and had a revelation of the Lord and are giving it to you with the spirit of the Lord on it. And it's such a blessing. And and you know that verse that Paul says, I've become all things to all people so I can win many.
You know, there's there's an opportunity for all of us and and the older, community as well included to become all things to all people. You're like, man, well, this is all I have to offer. This is the only type of person I can minister to. That's not true. You can be a father to somebody if you're a woman.
You can be a mother to somebody if you're a man. Like like, because of the Jesus that's inside of us, you can satisfy the the things that are missing because you have Jesus in you and because you allow him to come out of you. And so I get to be a brother to people at times. Right? And be a protector or be a like, I get to be whatever Jesus wants me to be for them so that I can win them, so that I get to show them who Jesus is in all of the lack that they have in their life.
*Jesus* will fill it, and he may even fill it through me.
Amen. Let's give a hand for this lovely lady. I'm gonna pass it off to her to to close out and take your time, you know. I know I don't know if you were gonna read it.
Yeah. I got 1 more or maybe 2 more things. If you're a brand new believer in Christ, you have everything that you need to disciple someone. If you have the testimony of Jesus, whatever you have flowing in you should flow out of you. Alright?
You should not become "stagnant water". That's gross. Alright? You need to be flowing water. We're we're rivers of life.
They flow and they whatever you you learn, you pour out. There's a version a verse in Ephesians I gotta read. It's *Ephesians-4:11* 12 and 13. It says, now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church, the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors, and teachers. Their responsibility is to equip God's people to **do his work** and build up the church.
Okay. So notice that just 1 second. When someone's speaking up here, pastor David, someone on the speaking team, they're giving you, they're equipping you to go do work. Alright? So it's not so that you can just fill your mind with more and more information.
The intentionality is that you would receive something that you could put your hands to work in. Alright? So to equip God's people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ. This will continue until we all come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God's son that we will be mature in the Lord measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ. So I want you to notice the pattern.
The first thing that happens is people are equipped. The next thing that happens is they do the work of ministry. Now, the outcome of that is maturity. Oftentimes, we we think to ourselves, okay, I need to go to church for this long. I need to read my bible.
Oh, I've been really bad on that. I'll get back onto it. And then hopefully, someday I'll become mature and then I'll be able to do work. *Maturity* only comes by doing the work. So you can't learn, become mature, and then do the work.
It won't work it doesn't work that way. You only become mature by doing the work. We talked about this the other day when, you know, he's been learning Spanish. And if you're learning Spanish and you're going through all the the grammar and all the understanding, you're learning learning learning, reading reading reading, you know, all the things, but you never speak it, you will never mature in speaking Spanish. And so you need to put these things into practice.
And I think part of the fun of this is the the grace to to mess up and make mistakes. Part of doing discipleship for me has been going to somebody that I trust and going, hey, I gave this advice. What do you think about that? And just letting them respond and and being corrected and getting better at it and being humble. If I, you know, didn't do it right and coming back to it and saying, hey, so I I said this the last time but I I need to add something or I need to remove this or, you know, whatever it takes to just be real in the moment of being like, hey, this is part of discipleship is sometimes I make mistakes.
But you have to put it to work. You have to practice it if you plan on becoming mature in it. And so, we're gonna we're gonna do a little practice. Right? So this is this is how my brain works.
When I am out in public or in church, I am looking for people. I'm a stay at home mom, so I meet people in the grocery store and at the Waffle House. And and so I wanna just, like, give you an idea of what this looks like. Now if you're if you serve here, this is how your mindset should be at all times. If you're a believer in Christ, this is how your mindset should be at all times because it is the work of discipleship.
Let's start. Let's just have everybody stand up. And the first thing that we do is we just look around. Alright? See who's behind you.
And and as you're looking, allow the Lord to highlight someone. Now I'm gonna make this easy on you. They will be the same gender as you are. We're we're not trying to hook up our single people right now. We're not trying to make anybody uncomfortable.
Let the Lord highlight someone to you that is the same gender as you. Maybe they're gonna be somebody that disciples you. Maybe there'll be somebody that you disciple. But regardless, there's a connection that needs to happen. So if y'all are done looking around, I'm assuming that you already have somebody in your head.
So look around 1 more time and just make sure you have somebody that you're you're like, this is the person that the Lord has highlighted. I know exactly who I'm gonna talk to. Alright? Alright. And then you can look back at me.
Nice. Good job. Step number 1 is done. The next portion is is you're gonna walk up to some if I walk off the stage, is the mic gonna go crazy? Okay.
I I saw a not no and a not yes. So I'm gonna we're gonna go with no. And if it doesn't go well, then we'll know. Okay. Hi.
You were highlighted to me. My name's Mariah. What's your name? Sade. Sade.
Nice to meet you. This is real and also it's an example, so this is fun. Make it super awkward. It should feel kinda like you're "making a friend on the playground". Right?
Like, hi, my name's this. You wanna be my friend? Pretty similar feel. And then I'm I'm just Sade, it's really nice to me. I felt like the Lord highlighted you to me and that he really loves you.
And so, I would love to just be a friend to you. I'd love to get your phone number and reach out to you and be somebody that walks with you in your relationship with God. Is that good? Can I get your number? Alright, great.
We're friends now. I'll get her number after. Cool. That's it, guys. That's the that's like the hardest part.
And then, you just are intentional. You you do phone calls and you reach out and and it's you walk with them. Right? So, Sade is my my girl. If anybody else had her, you can still go to her.
Okay? That's fine. We do share. It's not it's not like that. I'm gonna pray that you guys just feel empowered to do this work of ministry and then I'm gonna let you do it.
Okay? So that's your time to like be chitchatty, make a friend. Alright?
And then also last Sorry. Phone fake. But don't forget, next week, 2 services, 9AM, 11AM. Alright. Christmas, December 22, and then that's it.
Alright. Yeah. Just hold out your hands like this so that you receive. Heavenly Father, Lord, I pray that you would empower this church to do the works of ministry that you have for them. I pray that they would be disciple makers, that they would be the *disciples* themselves, that you would grow us in your foundations, in deep conversations, in loving you well, and in loving your church.
I pray, Lord, that you would touch us in a mighty way and that we would feel what you feel for people, that our eyes would be open and that we would "see the love" that you have for them, that we would believe all things for them and that we would spur them on to do great works as well, that we would encourage each other forward to run our race all the way to the end. And Lord, we just love you and we give you our lives and we surrender to you. In Jesus' mighty name. Amen.