Page 71 - Principles for Discipling Others-Student textbook

5. Long-range Plans - Go ahead and make a list of future plans/goals, etc. that might take over a year or
several years to accomplish.

Problems and finding solutions

1. Take a look backward and ask yourself these questions:
What have my main problems been in the past?
How have I dealt with them?
Did I solve them well? If so, note what I did and how I did it. Keep a log.
Did I fail to solve them or solve them poorly? What else could I or should I have done? Note
probable causes of poor solutions. Keep a log.

2. Take a look forward and ask yourself these questions:
Can I foresee problems on the horizon?
Can I prepare to meet them beforehand?
Can I commit them to the Lord so I don’t have to spend time and energy worrying about them?

Evaluate your progress

1. Of Self ---Once a month or so, sit down and conduct a spiritual evaluation of your growth as a
Christian. This is much like the parent who stands their child up against a door once or twice a year and
with a ruler and pencil or pen marks his/her height showing how much they have grown since last time.

2. Of My Ministry – Do the same as you look back upon your ministry. Evaluate it in terms of the
degree to which it has accomplished your hopes and dreams and goals for the Lord.

Building up these growth aspects

Until now we have been dealing with the spiritual growth needs of the new-born Christian “babe in
Christ.” We have looked at the various aspects of growth and the kinds of spiritual nutrition, air,
environment, etc., needed for him/her to grow spiritually in the “nurture and admonition of the Lord.”
Below, we suggest some ways to help to build these growth aspects into the life of the new Christian.

Follow-up (Weekly follow-up teaching topics for new Christians)

At the beginning of this course on the topic of DISCIPLESHIP, we said the course would focus on
nurturing a new, born-again “babe in Christ” into a strong disciple, willing and able to win and train
others, is a tutorial aspect of the ministry of the church for the spiritual growth
of its younger Christians. We said that this was an aspect of the church that has
been sorely lacking in western Christianity (and, indeed, in Christianity
worldwide) over the past 100 years.

We also opened by saying that the Christian church had placed a strong
emphasis upon evangelism which resulted in the conversion of thousands and
even millions of souls. But after these evangelistic efforts, follow-up of infant Christians was in many
cases totally missing. Instead of intentionally nourishing them so that they could grow into strong,
stalwart and caring disciples, determined and capable of winning others to Christ and reproducing
themselves in the lives of others, they were left to flounder spiritually.

70