Discipleship is simply the practice of helping another person grow in their relationship with the Lord for the purpose of multiplication. It takes place in many forms, both in structured times of equipping as well as unstructured times of modeling the Christian life alongside another. A Discipleship Group (or D Group) is a small group which comes together for the purpose of growing into greater maturity in their faith. It is not a group of mature, trained believers meeting together, but typically consists of new or untrained believers being led by one or more mature believers.
Just as Jesus sent his disciples out two by two in Mark Chapter 6, Reel Life advocates for a pair of mature believers to partner together in leading discipleship groups. There are many benefits to this strategy, such as the combination of various gifts, the opportunity for a more experienced leader to help train a new leader, and the provision of mutual encouragement and accountability.
Discipleship Groups are generally formed through various church and ministry organizations. Our role is to simply offer training, resources and encouragement.
An effective discipleship group has the following characteristics:
- Limited to 3-5 members in order to maintain an atmosphere of trust, confidentiality, honesty and transparency.
- Shared commitment to group goals of attendance, preparation and replication.
- Regular weekly meetings which include Bible study, prayer and personal accountability.
- Include self-study and Scripture memorization to be completed between weekly meetings.
- Include monthly hands-on involvement in local ministry as integral part of Bible teaching application.
- Annual participation in a short-term mission trip as part of the disciple making process.
- One to two-year commitment based on the pace of growth and maturity of the group. At the conclusion, the group members continue to meet together for encouragement, accountability and coaching as they pair up to start their own discipleship groups to repeat the process.
Who Should I Disciple?
Identify who the Lord would have you invest in spiritually.
- Consider first individuals in your immediate and extended family.
- Then go to your church and ask if there are any new or untrained believers who would like to be discipled. (New or untrained is the key. You are not looking for another Bible study with believers who already know how to pray and study the Bible).
- Next, look to your circle of influence. It’s a good idea to look for people you naturally connect with who are both available and teachable. Make a list of people you know and approach them with getting together with 1-3 others to begin a weekly Bible study. Pray for these individuals and rely on the Holy Spirit to move.
- If all of these avenues are exhausted, contact Reel Life to be connected with those who are looking to be discipled. There are an abundance in our city!
“The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few.”– Matthew 9:37
Our desire is to assist God’s people as they engage in outreach and discipleship, and we are available to help. For information about starting a discipleship Group, please contact us at info@reel-life.org.
