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I DARE YOU TO GET IN THE GAME!
Do you want to be happy? Randy Alcorn warns, “If we buy into the lie that happiness is
to be found in wealth, beauty, fame, or any number of endless pursuits besides Christ,
we’re doomed to unhappiness because we’re pursuing the wrong things.” (Alcorn,
Randy. Seeing the Unseen, Expanded Edition (p. 7). The Crown Publishing Group.
Kindle Edition.)
“To be truly happy a man must have sources of gladness which are not dependent on
anything in this world.” —J. C. Ryle
Happiness is found in being a disciple of Jesus Christ!
The invitation of Christ to the joy of discipleship is the same as it was 2,000 years ago:
“Come, follow me.” (Matthew 4:19 NIV)
He wants us to be His disciples and be discipled. The question is, will we answer His call
and find true happiness by being His disciples?
To help with our motivation, here are…
5 Reasons to be Discipled:
1. The joy of true fellowship.
One of the best parts of discipleship is the fact that you are creating relationships
that go beyond surface deep. True fellowship is something we long for, but we
don’t know how to achieve it. Discipleship accomplishes that.
When we meet together, we:
Share life together
Study the Bible together
Encourage each other
Pray for each other
Doing these face-to-face allows us to achieve what we long for but often don’t
achieve or know how to achieve: true fellowship.
2. The joy of growing in Christlikeness.
If I ask myself the question “When am I the happiest?” the answer is that I am
happiest when I am like Jesus. I’m not talking about a “giddy” kind of happiness,
but a serene, able to handle anything, at peace with the world kind of joy.
Conversely, when I am the unhappiest, it is because I am not following in the
footsteps of Jesus. It’s when I’ve…
Become impatient
Started complaining
Been worried
Said things I shouldn’t have
Lost my cool
Envied
But the more I grow to be like Jesus, the more joyful I am. 2 Corinthians explains:
But whenever someone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. For the
Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.
So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory
of the Lord. And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more
like him as we are changed into his glorious image. (2 Corinthians 3:16-
18 NLT)
Recently after playing basketball, one of the guys said to me, “I wish I could be
like you and just keep my mouth shut and not let things bother me when the game
doesn’t go like I want.”
I appreciated the comment, but I’m not sure I deserved it. Not because it isn’t
true, but because my positive traits are the Lord working in my life, not my own
goodness. And growing in Christlikeness through the power of His Spirit feels
good!
3. The joy of fulfilling your destiny.
It is awesome to have a destiny that we can fulfill because we are His disciples
and growing in Him.
As it says in Ephesians: “For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew
in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.”
(Ephesians 2:10 NLT)
I’m so grateful that I am involved in something beyond pettiness, beyond
triviality, beyond just “eat, drink and be merry.”
“You satisfy me more than the richest feast. I will praise you with songs of joy”
(Psalm 63:5, NLT)
Many people lack purpose, direction, meaning. But when we are discipled, not
only are we fulfilled, but we begin a cycle of reproduction that can impact
multitudes as disciples multiply disciples. Generation after generation can be
affected by our discipleship! It’s a wonderful destiny to fulfill!
4. The joy of getting your questions answered
Another great thing about discipleship is we get questions answered. Especially
about how our faith relates to our personal lives. Yes, we get Bible knowledge,
but more importantly, we have godly examples to emulate.
Like the Apostle Paul wrote, “Follow my example, as I follow the example of
Christ.” (1 Corinthians 11:1 NIV)
One of the men who discipled me was a missionary and evangelist named Floyd
“Mac” McElveen. He was an amazing man of God and the most remarkable
evangelist I ever met. He had over 2 million books in print. Although he died in
Mac answered my theological questions. But more importantly, he set an example
for me through his incredible life and his dedication to sharing Jesus wherever he
went. He was a dear friend and mentor to whom I am deeply grateful. (As are
others who discipled me.)
There will never be another Mac. He was exceptional. But it doesn’t take a Mac
to be a mentor. Most disciplers in my life have been regular Christians. They
answered my questions and helped me understand what it meant to follow Jesus
5. The joy of knowing how to disciple others
You should be discipled for your sake but also, so you know how to disciple
others.
As Rick Warren famously began his book The Purpose Driven Life, “It’s not
about you.”
Real joy comes when we share with others. So, when we’re discipled, it is to grow
personally, but more importantly, it is so we can do the same for others.
“I could have no greater joy than to hear that my children are following the
truth.” (3 John 1:4 NLT)
To this end, my next blog will be “5 Reasons to be a Disciple-Maker”
CONCLUSION:
Maybe you’re wondering how you can be discipled—how can you get started?
Here’s a simple solution: Find just one person and ask them if they would study
“Discipleship Journeys with Jesus” with you. That will give you a pattern to follow—you
can meet and do one journey per week or whatever schedule works for you.
Or it could be more than one person. How many could it be? Here’s the answer from the
example of Jesus:
Discipleship can be done in small groups, just like Jesus had a small group of The Twelve.
Discipleship can be done in an even smaller group, just like Jesus had a smaller group of an inner circle: Peter, James and John.
Discipleship can be done one-on-one, just like Jesus had “The Beloved Disciple,” John.
So, from 2 to 12 works. Don’t get hung up on numbers.
And don’t get hung up on titles like who is the disciple and who is the discipler. Just ask
someone, “Would you like to go on some discipleship journeys with Jesus with me?
We’ll just meet for about an hour each week, have some coffee or tea, and follow the
journeys laid out online with DJJ.”
If they say “yes” then off you go!
Here are the details:
Discipleship Journeys with Jesus (DJJ), is a free resource for discipling that makes it far
easier to “make disciples.” Thousands are being discipled using these studies based on
biblical journeys with Jesus. You can join with them. Just click the link and sign in. More
languages are being translated all the time.
If you're wondering about being a discipler, see my article on 5 Reasons to be a Disciple-Maker.
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Additional resources about related subjects on this site:
Quote Card: He is no fool who gives what he cannot lose...
Quote Card: Spurgeon on being a missionary
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