Here are three common obstacles people face who earnestly want to impact the Kingdom by doing good and making disciples:
Obstacle #1: Staying true to your values
Oftentimes a disciple maker initially attempts to follow a prescribed disciple making process that good but not consistent with the values a disciplemaker embraces, for instance, the more relational a person’s temperament the less structured their approach might be to help a person process the next step(s) in their faith journey.
Obstacle #2: Not bearing the fruit expected
Oftentimes a disciplemaker has higher expectations than the apprentice of Jesus has for their life that can lead to frustration for both parties.
Obstacle #3: Connecting with a community of like-minded people
Oftentimes the disciplemaker is working alone and longs to be connected in a meaningful way with others who are on the same journey to.
Last Friday Micah Dodson and I hosted a 55-minute webinar to present the essential building blocks to build into your disciple making. Here is the slide deck from that presentation – 4DMBB Webinar HO 10.30.20
Now we want to give you the chance to build these 4 Disciple Making Building Blocks into your church culture with an expanded version of what we presented last Friday. We know that this does not happen over night, so we are doing a combination of a 4-hour webinar followed by 4, hour-long coach triads over a 4 month period (December 2020-March 2021). Each triad consists of a coach facilitator and two participants.
Below are the details for both opportunities!
4 DISCIPLE MAKING BUILDING BLOCKS: WEBINAR + COACHING TRIADS
Description: Orientation + Implementation of the 4 Disciple Making Building Blocks
Dates:
4-hour webinar – November 16, 2020 from 10amPST-2pm PST (1-5pm EST)
Four, hour-long coach triads over a 4 month period (December 2020-March 2021) – dates TBD with participants
As in the past, I want to pass-on opportunities for you to learn how to empower leaders through coaching from global thought leaders in the coach community. If you are a pastor, church planter or missionary – see if this applies to you…
Yes, I do believe we as Christians have the advantage when we coach and equip leaders how to coach other leaders because we have the capacity to rely on the Holy Spirit that others outside the Christian faith do not possess. And No, I don’t believe we know all there is to know about coaching just because we are followers of Christ. You and I have much to learn from secular leaders on the topic.
The 5 Ways to Accelerate Your Coaching Impact Masterclass featuring former Director of Executive Coaching at Google, David Peterson and Coaching Industry Pioneer, David Goldsmith is starting soon!
Have you secured your spot?
In this complimentary masterclass, you’ll learn how to:
• Engage Faster – Give your clients real value in the first 20 minutes • Make Leaders You Coach Want More – End your first meeting strong • Coach Effectively – Ask key questions to progress quickly with your client • Connect Quicker – Uncover client insights swifter than you thought possible • Produce greater value per minute – Learn when to work fast for greater impact
If you’re ready to accelerate your coach development, join me at this session.
As a thank you for registering, you’ll receive an additional bonus – the ACE Coach Note-Taking Tool. This tool enables you to stay fully present while taking notes during coaching conversations. It includes tips on how to take notes effectively while ensuring it doesn’t get in the way of building rapport.
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.
As in the past, I want to pass-on opportunities for you to learn how to empower leaders through coaching from global thought leaders in the coach community.
Yes, I do believe we as Christians have the advantage when we coach and equip leaders how to coach other leaders because we have the capacity to rely on the Holy Spirit that others outside the Christian faith do not possess. And No, I don’t believe we know all there is to know about coaching just because we are followers of Christ. You and I have much to learn from secular leaders on the topic.
With that backdrop, this month, former Director of Executive Coaching at Google, David Peterson and Coaching Industry Pioneer, David Goldsmith will host a complimentary masterclass called 5 Ways to Accelerate Your Coaching Impact. I’d love for you to be my guest.
In this live masterclass, David and David will show you how to accelerate your path to more effectiveness in your coaching. You’ll discover how applying the right coaching skills in the right way can help you deliver huge impact quickly. Even for the most challenging leaders.
Get key concepts you can use in your very next coaching engagement!
Have you been asked: “What is the fruit of an apple?” It is kind of a trick question. The expected answer is, “the seeds of another apple”. The fruit of an apple is NOT just another apple; the fruit of an apple is an orchard.
Relating to Jesus’ commission in Matthew 28:18-20. The true fruit of a disciple is a disciple who makes disciples – who makes disciples. Another way of saying this is, the seed of a disciple-making movement are contained in every disciple.
If the fruit of a disciple is a disciple-making movement then a fair but more strategic follow-up question to ask leaders of leaders is: What does it cost your ministry to make a new disciple? This may seem like an odd question to ask a pastor, church planter or missionary. But is it really?
I was speaking with a colleague last week. He mentioned a network of disciple-makers that had done the hard work to track and calculate the return of their investment so they could study the metrics that mattered most to them. Note, these are conservative estimates. To-date they have facilitated the transformation of approximately 830,000+ people who now follow Jesus at a cost about $35 per new disciple. In addition, they tracked the following data points:
2,400,000+ people reached with the gospel
36,000+ churches started
720,000+ people in small groups.
Back to the question: What does it cost your ministry to make a new disciple?
This question triggers a number of reactions:
Defensive (We don’t track that sort of thing!) OR Curious (Why do you ask?)
Closed (Are you kidding?) OR Open (I’ve never thought about it that way before.)
Criticism (Aren’t you bringing business principles into the church?) OR Willing (That is an interesting question!)
One of the first things we will do in the Leadership Collective – Missional Discipleshipis ask leaders to consider this question. It is a clarifying exercise and one that helps leaders grasp a number of insights. See if you can relate to these.
5 benefits to asking the question:
What does it cost your ministry to make a new disciple?
Clarifies the type of fruit a leader is harvesting
Channels resources in the direction of making disciples
Helps a leader know what opportunities to say “no” to
Has the potential to align ministries to support the work of making disciples
Empowers teams to celebrate “wins” along the way
Here are some of the reasons why we created the Leadership Collective – Missional Discipleship. We believe this is a strategic opportunity for leaders to re-think their disciple-making process due to the restrictions that are being opposed in our society. See if you resonate with any of these:
Simplify your disciple-making process
Adapt innovative ideas that have worked elsewhere
Create new discipleship processes you have been envisioning
If you relate to any of the above and would like more information on the Leadership Collective – Missional Discipleship – watch the video below. Micah Dodson and I share the vision for this 10-month learning community so that you have a clear picture of what you will achieve. We pray you can join us in La Jolla, CA for the launch event November 15-17.
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.
Covid-19 UPDATE
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.
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, forso 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.
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 cohortplease – CLICK HERE.
Values serve as guide rails for leaders and organizations
Values provide guidelines for appropriate behavior
Values accelerate personal development
I like to say that values are the things leaders argue for when the values are challenged. Vision, as others suggest is…
Vision is a picture of the preferred future from God’s perspective.
A leader without a clear set of values is like a ship without a rudder. The ship is afloat, but not going anywhere in particular.
Do you know your values?
Take a moment to 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 – you will find a way to do those activities you value.
During challenging seasons, it is natural to examine and discover what is important to us, often as a function of those things no longer being available or accessible because of extenuating circumstances. Travel, time with friends, sporting events, concerts, creating, connecting and establishing relationships – the list goes on and our priorities are distilled down to the essentials when life twists and turns. If we allow it, our human resilience rises up and we find ways to create opportunities to fulfill our deepest desires and highest priorities.
What are the values of a disciple coach?
Let me suggest that disciple coaches value certain behaviors. Disciple coaches understand the importance of connecting with pre-Christians, helping new disciples grow in their faith, challenge disciples to move from “consumer” to “contributor” to serve members of their community and reproduce themselves into the lives of other new followers of Christ.
I was talking with a young, emerging leader recently who stated his desire to identify his values. Those things that are near to his heart, as a part of his maturing process moving into adulthood. This is what we did.
I asked him to take a look back and find the consistent themes that emerged from positive and negative experiences throughout his life:
Influential people
Circumstances that shaped him
Events that encouraged new ways of think and behaving
From that list I asked him to identify lessons he learned. One lesson was – “be true to myself”.
From those lessons, he identified values. For instance – from “be true to myself”, he arrived at Authenticity.
Personal Timeline Exercise
In my final year of seminary I came encountered a class on leadership development and was intrigued by topic. The paradigm was developed by Dr. Robert Clinton in his dissertation entitled “Leadership Emergence Patterns” and identified 6 stages of a leader’s development based on case studies of over 300 biblical and historical leaders from his research. That course was transformational for me as I learned about the challenges leader’s face as they encounter boundaries that either stifle development or challenge leader’s to move forward.
We were instructed to go through an exhaustive and lengthy recollection of our leadership journey to-date. As I journaled my story the professor, Dr. Gordon Klenck, instructed us to lay-out our life in a timeline, identify the various “process items” Clinton describes in his material and roughly construct the phases of development. To give you an idea how long ago this was, I still have my final paper which was typed on a word processor.
Since then, Clinton has written a more concise explanation of his work in “The Making of a Leader”. I have taken many individuals and groups through this exercise using a resource that popularized the process in a weekend retreat setting called “Focused Living” by Terry Walling. A wonderful companion book entitled “STUCK! Navigating the Transition of Life and Leadership” is also available, by Terry Walling, and introduces the timeline in a user-friendly style.
For those that want to explore your values but want a simplified version of the Personal Timeline process, I would suggest a “Symbol Timeline”. We initially used this exercise as a primer for the more expanded version of the Personal Timeline -see above. It will serve the purpose of identifying your values. Follow the steps below; but instead of listing the people, events and circumstances – draw them out like in the image at the top of this blog.
Remember, the goal of the Symbol Timeline is to use symbols to illustrate the major milestones in your life and distill the lessons you learned, so that you can identify your values.
5 STEPS TO CREATE YOUR SYMBOL TIMELINE
STEP 1
Take a look back and find the consistent themes that emerge from positive and negative: influential people in your life, circumstances that shaped you, events that encouraged new ways of think and behaving. That lightening bolt in my timeline above represents a health issue that altered the trajectory of my life.
STEP 2
Draw symbols to represent the most important items in your development as a leader. See that soccer ball in the image above – guess what my favorite sport was growing up?
STEP 3
Identify lessons learned. One lesson I learned was based on a statemnt my mom made every morning when I left the house with my brothers and sister – “remember who you are and who you represent”.
STEP 4
Identify values. For instance – from “remember who you are and who you represent”, I arrived at Integrity.
STEP 5
To take this to a more pragmatic context, let’s compare and contrast your values to that of a disciple coach. Here is a brief list of those values taken from the Making Disciples Storyboard;
CONNECT
GROW
SERVE
REPRODUCE
If you would like to participate in a cohort that will be going through this process together please join the Leadership Collective for Missional Discipleship online learning community – CLICK HERE. This will be the first time me and Micah Dodson of Thrive Church Planting 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.
By joining the Leadership Collective for Missional Discipleship online learning community you are NOT obligated to participate in the year-long process we outlined in last week’s blog – CLICK HERE. However, this serves as a clarifying, stand-alone exercise and can be a tremendous pre-cursor to the Leadership Collective for Missional Discipleship.
If you are interested in participating in the FREELeadership Collective for Missional Discipleship online learning community – CLICK HERE.
We use cookies to optimize our website and our service.
Functional
Always active
The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes.The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
