Simple is repeatable. Complex is not.
Never forget it. If your process for making disciples has a million components that tries to fix every possible issue you have a model that starts and stops with you. No one will be able to pick it up and run with it.
You want your approach to be a Case knife, not a Swiss army knife. You want it to have high effectiveness with few functions rather than be mediocre at a bunch of things. No one buys a Swiss army knife because it is amazing at every tool it has on it. You but it in case you need something random you might not otherwise carry around. It will do an adequate job but never as good as if you had the individual full size tool the knife is replacing.
A Case knife on the other hand is simple. You just get various size blades. That’s it. If you just need to cut something but don’t need to open a cork or have a magnifying glass…the Case knife is for you!
Discipleship needs to be more like a Case knife – a few simple core tools that are executed with quality, reliability, and effectiveness.
Jesus had a simple approach.
He took a small group of people, took them with him to show them and tell them what to do. He coached them in the necessary skills, had them try out the skills while he was around. Ultimately Jesus left them do live out what they learned and they knew the message!
Not only did they know the message they knew how to share the message with people who would share the message with people.
This was all possible because it was simple. Even country folk could understand it and pass it on (you think Galileans are city folk?).
When you disciple someone make sure to pass all you do through the overcomplicated filter. Would someone watching be able to watch you, pick it up and reproduce it? Or does your approach require such a high level of expertise that 50% or less of people of Christians could reproduce it if you showed them what to do?
One Response
You’ve nailed it Matt, mentoring a small group of believers who seek to imitate Jesus. Keep it simple.