The Disciple Maker‘s Podcast
The Disciple Makers Podcast exists to tell stories about disciples of Jesus who make disciples. Discipleship.org, who sponsors the podcast, exists to Champion Jesus‘ way of disciple making. Episodes are published in thematic seasons. To learn more, visit www.discipleship.org or email us at info@discipleship.org.
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Episodes
Monday Jan 01, 2024
Monday Jan 01, 2024
In this episode, Donnie Williams (Lead Pastor of Lifepointe) discusses the importance of intentional discipleship and the need for a biblical worldview in today's culture. The bad news is only 6% of Christians have a biblical worldview, which means we have a desperate need to align discipleship with scripture and confront cultural lies by teaching God's word. Donnie gives us hope by encouraging us to start small, stay consistent, and keep pushing to multiply our disciple-making efforts.
Wednesday Dec 27, 2023
Wednesday Dec 27, 2023
Tina Wilson shares with us today how her church went through a period of growth and success, but then faced a bitter root of discord that threatened to divide the congregation. She says intentional relationships with other women in the church helped them navigate this challenging situation and ultimately strengthen their unity and support for one another.
Monday Dec 25, 2023
Monday Dec 25, 2023
I had a chance to catch up with our point leader, Bobby Harrington, and ask him some questions about how discipleship should work through the Christmas and New Year season. He shared some great pointers for all of us and encouraged us to use the Christmas spirit everyone is feeling right now to launch your discipleship plan for 2024. Merry Christmas, everyone!
Wednesday Dec 20, 2023
Wednesday Dec 20, 2023
In this episode, Chris Seidman (lead minister at The Branch Church) shares some personal anecdotes and stories to encourage us all to engage with spiritually lost people. He emphasizes the importance of being intentional and sharing the gospel with others. “The call to be about discipling is not so much a call to go to a certain location as it is to live with a certain intention.”
Monday Dec 18, 2023
Monday Dec 18, 2023
In this Episode Lori Arnold, shares with us the importance of intentionality in building relationships and seeking the guidance of the Holy Spirit in navigating those challenging conversations. She concludes with a clear call to action for all of us to practice intentional discipleship and trust the sometimes long process of growth.
Wednesday Dec 13, 2023
Wednesday Dec 13, 2023
In today’s episode we feature a conversation between Bobby Harrington, Thom Rainer and Gabe Lyons. Their conversation discusses faith, evangelism, discipleship, church attendance, communication in religious practice, community engagement, and generational challenges in modern Christianity.
For more great content like this visit discipleship.org
Monday Dec 11, 2023
Monday Dec 11, 2023
In today’s episode, Gabe Lyons (founder and president of THINKQ Media) shares his experience in engaging with thought leaders and his vision for creating a space where Christians can come together to think, talk, learn, collaborate, and challenge each other with the biggest questions facing the world and their own lives. He emphasizes the importance of cultural discernment and provides us with a formula for thinking well as a Christian, including understanding theology, history, nuance, and simply just asking better questions. Gabe believes that thought leaders, regardless of scholarly credentials, have the ability to influence others and shape their thinking towards Christ and kingdom truths in a world filled with deceptive teachings and cultural chaos.
Wednesday Dec 06, 2023
Wednesday Dec 06, 2023
In this episode Thom Rainer (former CEO of Lifeway) talks with us about the current state of the Evangelical Church. He gives us a sobering analysis of the declining state of the Evangelical Church, pointing out that up to three out of four churches are technically dying. Thom mentions several challenges faced by churches, such as clinging to the past, failing to recognize the impact of the pandemic, struggling with prayer and evangelism, and lacking a clear purpose. Despite the negative aspects, Thom ends on a hopeful note that through evangelism and obedience to the divine commission, revival is possible.
Monday Dec 04, 2023
Monday Dec 04, 2023
In this episode we wrap up the track sessions from Lionshare, where Dave Buehring talks about how to shape the next generation. Dave discussed the concept of vocational discipleship, emphasizing the need to educate young individuals not only about their job roles but also how to apply spiritual principles in these roles. Dave talks about helping young adults understand their callings in life and how to incorporate their callings into their work, highlighting the importance of building relationships, showing empathy, and valuing other people.
Wednesday Nov 29, 2023
Wednesday Nov 29, 2023
In this episode Dave Buehring (Lionshare) teaches us about spiritual warfare. He explains the different tactics our enemy uses (distortion, distraction, discouragement and deception) to deter or divert God’s people. Dave offers practical ways to counteract these tactics, including relying on scriptures and forming strong relationships.
New Resource on Disciple Making Culture!
A disciple making church culture is what your church actually does in disciple making; strategy is your plans on paper. Unfortunately, while we have good intentions to make disciples, our strategy and church culture do not always line up.
Read this 10 minute book – a visual summary – and share it with your leaders so everyone can better understand what it means to have a disciple making culture.
Watch the recordings from our most Recent National Disciple Making Forum
“Culture eats strategy for breakfast.”
The Harvard Business Review describes it this way: “The values, beliefs and behaviors practiced in an organization formed over time because they are rewarded or punished (i.e. by formal or informal rules, rituals, and behaviors.”
The McKinsey Institute put it more simply: “culture is how we do things around here …”
That statement, often attributed to the most influential management guru of our time, Peter Drucker. What Drucker meant by “culture eats strategy for breakfast” was that lasting change in an organization comes only when the culture of an organization changes. Applying this to church, if you do not change the culture of a church, the church will not change.
Many leaders fail to account for this reality.
This gets at the root of why our disciple making plans can so easily fail. We try great strategies—preaching on disciple making, small groups, D-Groups, etc. But our churches will not change—indeed cannot change—because “culture” easily defeats the strategies we adopt.
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