It was such a blessing to be a part of KBC’s mission conference this past weekend. The theme of the conference was “Disciples Making Disciples”. It was neat to participate with other missionaries of our home/sending church, but as I left the conference I was thinking more of the church’s impact on me!
At the conference, I was on the panel for one of two panel discussions about discipleship. As I considered the other panel members, the moderating pastor, other church leaders – those who minister in AWANA, in youth group, in the sound booth, I was impressed by the significance of their part in discipling me!
Some of the people on these panels were:
– the camp director of a camp where I spent summers from age 8 to 19
– the church planter who started the church where I grew up (who also happens to be a personal mentor and the current director of our missions organization)
– a missionary pastor / church planter (who also happens to be my brother-in-law)
– the director of a pregnancy care center who’s personal support, along with her husband’s, has been invaluable over the years to me (and who also happened to help lead the youth group in my jr. high school years)
– a fellow TBM Missionary (who also happened to be a former camp counselor)
The impact of these people on my life didn’t just “happen to be.” God has pulled together all these strands of different people and woven them into my life at various times. I think we often consider discipleship in terms of one-on-one, but this conference helped me to see what a a cooperative / collaborative effort it truly is.
I’ve long defined the church as a disciple-making community. God confirmed that for me this weekend, with an emphasis on community .
Take some time and listen to Mark Vowels insightful and practical messages about discipleship.