by Gary Reinecke | Oct 16, 2020 | Uncategorized |
Are you looking for ways to stay true to your values and make disciples who make disciples?
Are you frustrated with the fruit of your disciplemaking?
Are you looking to connect with a community of like-minded leaders who are raising the bar of disciplemaking?
4 Disciple Making Building Blocks
Join us for a FREE webinar on Friday – October 30 @ 10am PST
to register
DR. GARY REINECKE
Gary is the Executive Director of InFocus and trains leaders world-wide in the coaching process and skills. He has been coaching leaders for disciple-making, leadership development and church multiplication since 1988. Gary co-authored the Coaching 101 Handbook and Developing Coaching Excellence. He received the designation of Master Certified Coach with the International Coach Federation in 2018. Gary and his wife Gina live in Southern CA – they have two young adult children, Joel and Zoe.
REV. MICAH DODSON
Micah and Kristen Dodson has served in church planting for over 20 years in the Northwest. Having served in Suburban, Urban, and largely post-Christian contexts, the Dodsons have experience in starting, leading, and multiplying a variety of church models. Additionally, as a couple they have over a decade of experience running Church Planting Assessment Centers. Micah’s strengths are in coaching, training, and assessing church planting leaders. Kristen brings a compassion for the church planting couple and family while leveraging her background in mental health to provide expertise in times of crisis.
4 Disciple Making Building Blocks
to register
FREE webinar on Friday – October 30 @ 10am PST
by Gary Reinecke | Oct 5, 2020 | Disciplemaking, Uncategorized |
A real problem I am experiencing in leading our small group is keeping people engaged in the disciplemaking process. Not just because we are doing this remotely but also because discipleship is hard work. Can you relate to any of the following challenges that lead to Mission Drift:
- busy schedules
- family responsibilities
- recreation
- financial obligations
- work pressure
Many times we stall-out in our development and it is easy to go through the motions and maintain vs. doing the hard work of making disciples, who make disciples.
How does that translate into the leadership roles of church planting, lead pastor or as a pastoral staff member of a church? The problem of making disciples grows exponentially with increasing scopes of care. It is one thing to disciple a small group. It is quite another to be charged with discipling multiple groups. Or an entire congregation.
The task of making disciples that make disciples is as critical today as it was 2,000 years ago. In the midst of giving leadership in a local church it can be lost in the tyranny of the urgent. I invite you to watch an interview with Ty Davis of Tulare Community Church below. He highlights the challenges he faces in his role on church staff, the struggles he encounters as he reorients his focus on making disciples and the benefits of being part of the Leadership Collective.
CLICK IMAGE ABOVE
If you would like more information on the LEADERSHIP COLLECTIVE – Missional Discipleship – please CLICK HERE.
InFocus will do everything within our ability to meet and exceed regulations so people are safe, remain healthy and have a peace of mind. If we believe it is in the best interests of everyone involved we will move the live, face-to-face event in La Jolla to a virtual Zoom event. We will communicate the adjusted cost and the modified agenda with all interested participants.
by Gary Reinecke | Sep 22, 2020 | Disciplemaking, Uncategorized |
Leaders, pastors and church planters are facing challenges like never before. Some are being hit from both sides of THE DEBATE. The debate might vary from one moment to the next; but today, at unprecedented levels, leaders are having their values tested in ways like never before. A common theme that I’ve heard in conversations with several leaders, is the issue of in-person vs. remote gatherings. Most of you reading this blog have been at the center of that debate. This is just one of several hot topics today. There are others that I could mention that are just as volatile or moreso, but that is not the point I am trying to make.
The point is, leaders are dealing with issues that were not even on their radar 6-9 months ago. I do not want to suggest to know the right answer. What I do know is that leaders are seeking authentic, responsible and collaborative support to clarify, strengthen and hold to their values. One leader I spoke to recently shared (and I summarize):
The upheaval in our world, and that I am facing right now, has undercut the rhythms of life and ministry…
…for him AND I might add, for so many others in ministry just like him.
It is encouraging to see places where leaders are seeking innovative solutions to address challenging circumstances impacting disciplemaking. Clusters of pastors and church planters gathering to encourage, support and brainstorm solutions. And new ways of doing discipleship are emerging from these encounters.
A few weeks ago I was speaking with my colleague, Micah Dodson of Thrive Church Planting. And we discussed the question, what can we do? That is how we came up with the Leadership Collective – MISSIONAL DISCIPLESHIP TIMELINE.
It is our response to help a select group of leaders, pastors and church planters support and encourage one another to clarify their values. Plain and simple. We are using the SYMBOL TIMELINE as the tool to help leaders process these together and individually beginning October 2 from 10-10:55am PST.
Here is the plan moving forward. We will meet for 4 sessions over ZOOM on Fridays from 10-10:55am PST. Below is the flow of the 4 sessions:
- October 2: ORIENTATION TO THE MISSIONAL DISCIPLESHIP SYMBOL TIMELINE
- October 9: TRANSITIONS & BOUNDARIES
- October 16: SHARING YOUR TIMELINE
- October 23: WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?
Suggested Reading: We are purposefully NOT requiring any resource costs for this exercise. However, if you would like to learn more about the timeline – especially Transitions & Boundaries, let us suggest a wonderful companion book entitled: “STUCK! Navigating the Transition of Life and Leadership”, by Terry Walling.
We will be accepting participants until October 1 @ 5pm PST. Please CLICK HERE to let us know you are interested in participating by entering your:
- Name
- E-mail address
- Paste MISSIONAL DISCIPLESHIP TIMELINE (in the Message box).
We are excited to get started. We hope you can join us. And bring a friend.
Gary Reinecke & Micah Dodson
by Gary Reinecke | Sep 16, 2020 | Uncategorized |
- Are you stuck in a ministry rut?
- Are you struggling to forge new relationships to make disciples?
- Are you tired of getting the same results, unsure what adjustments you need to make?
Before we begin the Leadership Community for Missional Discipleship we are hosting an online cohort to help you clarify your values. We’ll do that by facilitating a group through the Symbol Timeline Exercise together.
- Read more about the Symbol Timeline Exercise, please – CLICK HERE.
This will be the first time me and Micah Dodson have offered this FREE cohort to help you synthesize your values. The process officially begins October 1 and runs for 4 weeks. We will be limiting the group to 15 participants; sign-ups are on a first come, first serve basis.
- If you would like to participate in the FREE online cohort, please – CLICK HERE.
By joining the FREE online cohort you are NOT obligated to participate in the year-long Leadership Collective for Missional Discipleship process, please – CLICK TO WATCH VIDEO HERE. However, this serves as a clarifying, stand-alone exercise and can be an extremely helpful pre-cursor to the Leadership Collective for Missional Discipleship.
You are invited to participate in the FREE online cohort please – CLICK HERE.
Any questions? Please e-mail me – CLICK HERE.
Gary Reinecke
Executive Director
InFocus
MULTIPLY-FOCUS-EMPOWER-PLANT
by Gary Reinecke | Aug 25, 2020 | Disciplemaking, Uncategorized |
One of the realizations of this season we find ourselves in is discovering what is important to each of us.
For example, certain things we just are not able to do now like going to sporting events, the movie theater and even hanging out with friends and family that are not under the same roof. There are some things we are still able to do.
Reflect on those things that are important to you
Perhaps it is taking a walk or hike, getting to know your neighbors or spending a day at the beach with your immediate family. Maybe it is reading a good book, making stuff with your hands or cooking. Whatever those things are – many of us have found a way to do those activities we truly value, despite the threat of a pandemic.
One activity I love doing is riding my mountain-bike. You will find me and my wife on the trails in back of our home, three mornings a week from 6-8:30am. This is the time when we feel safe to ride given the low numbers of people on the trails and cooler weather. If you are interested – I’ve uploaded two, 25-second videos for your viewing entertainment below:
- Gary climbing a gnarly hill, 65′ change in elevation – CLICK HERE
- Gary dropping down a technical gully, 73′ change in elevation – CLICK HERE. The photo at the top of this blog is the cut I sustained when I misjudged the final drop earlier this season. It was not pretty…
BTW – in case you are wondering, my wife, Gina was the videographer. To give you an idea of her riding capacity – she was so far ahead of me that she was able to unload her bike, get positioned on the trail with her iPhone and record me riding. I want to be like her some day:>)
Let me suggest that disciple coaches value certain behaviors. Even during a pandemic, disciple coaches understand the importance of the intentional effort required to connect with pre-Christian, helping new disciples grow in their faith, coaching disciples to move from being a consumer to serve others and reproduce into the lives of other yet-to-be disciples of Christ. Here are those values again, taken from the Making Disciples Storyboard:
CONNECT
GROW
SERVE
REPRODUCE
- Interested in learning more about the values of a disciple coach?
- Would you like to explore being part of a cohort with like-minded leaders?
Missional Discipleship
Kick-off Event: Nov 15-17, 2020
- Discover ways to incorporate disciple coach values in your life and ministry.
- Connect with like-minded leaders on this same journey.in meaningful ways.
- Create a comprehensive discipleship pathway that suits your context.
- Equip other disciples coaches on your team to Connect, Grow, Serve and Reproduce.
- Bring your spouse to the 2-day, kick-off event in La Jolla, CA – at no additional cost, except for travel.
Learn more by joining our
“by-invitation-only” community by clicking THIS LINK.
by Gary Reinecke | Aug 20, 2020 | Disciplemaking, Uncategorized |
Previously, I alluded to our Leadership Collective 2000 and presented 4 Basic Building Blocks of Disciplemaking – CLICK HERE. Since then I have been working with Glenn Spyksma to brainstorm reflection questions under each of the Disciple-Making Building Blocks (DMbb).
Disciplemaking is a spiritual process with very real actionable steps. I use the term, Disciple Coach for the disciplemaker because it is more descriptive of the role of the disciple who makes disciples in our world today. Here are three benefits of Building Block #4 – Accountability.
The Power of Strategic Accountability:
- Accountability helps the Disciple Coach keep the main thing, the main thing.
- Accountability helps the Disciple Coach learn from real experience.
- Accountability helps the Disciple Coach in-motion.
Following are the reflection questions that you can use as a Disciple Coach to have a discipleship cycle (not a process)
Reflection Questions
DMbb #4 Accountability
- With God
- What are you learning about God?
- How do you know when you are doing the things God has called you to do as a disciple coach?
- With yourself with grace
- How am I prioritizing life events as a disciple coach?
- What am I not doing that I know I should be doing?
- With those God has entrusted to you
- What do you do to process set-backs with a disciple when their good intentions don’t produce the intended fruit?
- What progress are you observing with the disciples you are coaching on a monthly, quarterly and annual basis?
- How do you celebrate a disciple’s progress when they take action?
- With trusted mentors
- What do you do to process missed opportunities as a disciple coach?
- How do you celebrate your progress when you take action as a disciple coach?
A resources to help Disciple Coaches stay in motion
Making Disciples Coaching Guide: this includes a brief explanation of each of the locations on the “map” accompanied by reflection questions for use by the Disciple Coach OR used in the context of a coaching relationship (see the explanation below) – CLICK HERE.
The best way to use the 4 DMbb
- Meet with a disciple coach or a group of disciple coaches.
- Use the 4 DMbb as an assessment – help the disciple coach identify which one they need to focus on today
- Depending on which of the four the disciple coach identifies, help them further reflect on the specific aspect they need to focus – see expanded list CLICK HERE
That will set the stage for a spiritual discernment process to determine the disciple coach’s next steps. Use the reflection questions above, in addition to the questions we present under the remaining DMbb presented in future blogs to facilitate the conversation. Help the disciple coach is to stay in motion by taking the next step in their journey to make disciples that make disciples.
