So What Do We Do Now?

We had an excellent question posed to me yesterday via e-mail concerning the number of salvations we have recently had at NewSpring. This person wanted to know now that these people were a part of the kingdom—what are we going to “do” with them.

Disciple them—of course!

HOWEVER, my thoughts about discipleship and the traditional thoughts of discipleship are VERY different.

Traditional views of discipleship say, “teach them to act and think just like you.” I think a Biblical view of discipleship is, “Teach them how to completely fall in love with Jesus.”

We provide opportunities for a person to grow in their walk with Christ at NewSpring—our “Basic Five” Bible study is an excellent opportunity for someone to really get a handle on the basics of Christianity…and we have other Bible studies going on as well.

AND—I think one of the MOST neglected forms of discipleship is a Sunday worship service. We try our best to make sure that people leave with something new—something they have never thought about before—something they can apply.

I believe a key to being effective in discipleship is for a pastor to present Biblical information with practical application. In other words—if all people are getting in church on Sunday’s is a history lesson then that is not true discipleship!

AND—one of the things we also do at NewSpring is rely heavily on the Holy Spirit. I sincerely believe that it is the churches job to provide growth opportunities and to challenge people to mature in their faith; however, in doing so I think there are times when we try to “out do” the Holy Spirit and do not allow Him time to refine and reshape someone’s life. He can do more in five minutes than we can do with five hundred classes.

One of my very first posts was on discipleship—you can read more here if you would like!

ONE MORE THING…

Don’t forget that this Sunday we are returning to our normal service times - 9:30, 11:15, and 6:00. WE ARE NOT DOING A SATURDAY SERVICE!!! Remember, that was a one time deal. And this Sunday we will be looking at the questions, “How reliable is the Bible? Is it full of myths and legends? Can we be totally sure that we are reading what was actually written?” It’s going to be awesome!

AND…John Maxwell’s assistant confirmed it yesterday—he will be speaking at NewSpring this fall! I can’t wait!!!