Discipleship…. part 2

Continued from part 1....

When I was about 12 I got a box of stuff from my grandfather’s house (they were moving out) and one of the things was an ‘inline’ electrical switch, a plug and some wire. I decided I wanted to connect this up, to something (to be determined later) and use the switch. So I unscrewed the switch housing, saw there were 2 screws and the switch. I hooked up one screw of the switch to one of the wires going into the plug and the second screw to the second wire going into the plug and the plugged it in. I remember thinking ‘this doesn’t seem quite right, but whatever….’. I flipped the switch and immediately tripped the breaker to the whole second floor of the house. Anyone with a basic understanding or electricity and switches would immediately see the problem with my electrical work and that I created an electrical short. But this was an ‘As best as I know how…’ effort.

Back to today… I think most people, regardless of their personal church history, have their own idea of what the Christian life should be and look like. So if a person decides to follow Christ, they are excited and start making the changes they think need to be made so that they can be a ‘good Christian’. The problem is that when things get hard or don’t work out they way they expect, they can conclude that either the Christian life is too hard, or it is not real and then walk away. If I decided, when I was 12, that I was going to be an electrician based on my knowledge and experience, I may have concluded that it was an impossible task for me.

This is where discipleship comes in. At RCC we want to make sure that anyone who decides to follow Christ has some help to get started on this lifelong journey. Someone to teach them from their own experience, someone to answer questions, someone to point them to God through His word, and someone who is on the same journey as they are. The Christian life was not meant to be lived alone. Additionally it can only be successful when you allow the Holy Spirit to have full control of your life and lead you in the things of God. This ‘surrender’ is a continual process and one that is not natural. The good news is that you are not alone and as you learn to seek God, He meets where you are and leads you. Instead of trying to ‘implement’ your version of the Christian life, you let God lead you into the changes you need to make. He does this through prayer, study and other Christians (discipleship).

I want to conclude by saying that discipleship is not only for new believers, but it is for all Christians. If you are a part of RCC, you will be invited to go through the discipleship study. To underscore the importance of this, Vince (the lead pastor) has just about completed this discipleship study with a mentor. The elders are going through it now. The core launch team will be next. As each of us completes this study, we will be taking others through the study and as we all continue to grow through discipleship, we will naturally desire and seek the things of God. This will result in God using us to help accomplish His plans for the city of Reading.

And no, I did not become an electrician…. In case you were curious…