Introduction
After a person accepts the gift of salvation, they typically are hungry and open to understanding how to live the abundant Christian life, but often don't know how or where to begin.
They may listen to sermons and podcasts, are told to read their Bible but struggle to understand it, and tend to model their behavior after other believers, often leading to wrong conclusions. So they end up wandering in a "spiritual desert" rather than living the abundant life God has promised.
Just as a newborn baby needs immediate and intentional care, we have found that "baby Christians" will flourish with intentional individual attention.
A Tool for Personal Discipleship
This App is an electronic version of our comprehensive A Tool for Personal Discipleship ( available in .pdf format to print at no cost from our website https://disciplers.org/lessons.)
This tool is intended to help believers discover the answers to the “now what?” question by stimulating conversations between a mentee and their spiritual mentor that encourage spiritual growth and walking in dependence on the Lord under the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
The workbook lessons are not designed to be given to the mentee with the expectation that they will understand them on their own without personal mentoring. The personal relationship between a mentor and mentee will accelerate spiritual growth.
This is not academic material to be studied just to acquire knowledge. Although having Biblical knowledge is important, the goal is for the believer to KNOW God and have an intimate relationship with Him – not just know ABOUT Him.
Use A Tool for Personal Discipleship
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In a one-on-one mentoring relationship (or one-on-two)
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In group study
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For personal study and growth
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In training faithful believers to mentor others, which will help identify gaps in spiritual understanding and accelerate their growth
Three Phases In The Tool (curriculum)
Phase 1—Understanding the Christian Life
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Foundational concepts and principles to be used in the mentoring process, focusing on inward transformation and the heart attitude rather than behavior manipulation.
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Guidelines for those who want to disciple/mentor other believers
Phase 3—Amplified Discipleship Concepts
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Lessons to deepen understanding of Phase 1 concepts
A Tool for Personal Discipleship has proven effective in spiritual formation and is focused on:
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Cultivating a relationship with the Lord (heart attitude) rather than behavior manipulation
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Learning to trust in God's character
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Understanding how to relate to the personhood of the Holy Spirit
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Allowing God to transform their thinking, resulting in behavior that is pleasing to Him
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Making a decision to recognize and surrender to Him as their Lord, not just as their Savior
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Continual abiding in harmony with and dependence on the Holy Spirit
For long-time believers the DTI process will help identify gaps in spiritual understanding and address spiritual needs in order to strengthen their relationship with the Holy Spirit and prepare them to spiritually mentor newer believers.
HOW TO ACCESS THE TOOL AT NO CHARGE https://disciplers.org/lessons
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Available to download and print in English, Spanish or Mandarin on our website
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Available as an App for mobile devices in English or Spanish on our website. Not available in any App store, only from the DTI web site
Anyone may freely reproduce and distribute our materials, but please do not sell or charge for the resources, or alter anything without DTI's consent.
Free Discipleship Resources
RESOURCES to train and equip faithful men and women (laity, not just leaders) as Spiritual Mentors and to implement a discipleship culture in your church are available on our website: https://disciplers.org/
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Discussion on possible reasons why the Church is not having a greater impact, along with potential solutions
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Audio of the author teaching on each lesson from a live class
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Video of “Equipping The Saints” live training sessions
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Additional video snippets / teachings are imbedded in each lesson in the App
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Useful tips for mentoring and for Small Group leaders
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Ideas and tips to effectively establish a disciple making culture in your church
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Sample forms and agendas for follow-up
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YouVersion Bible App devotionals (Search for "DTI" in Plans)
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DTI will consider requests to conduct live remote training or onsite training for pastors and leaders, with a commitment and plan to implement discipleship utilizing DTI.
The Purpose and Goal of Discipleship:
SPIRITUAL MATURITY
Colossians 1:28-29 (Paul wrote) We proclaim Him, warning and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone mature in Christ. I labor for this, striving with His strength that works powerfully in me.
SPIRITUAL FRUITFULNESS
John 15:8 (Jesus said) My Father is glorified by this: that you produce much fruit and prove to be My disciples.
SPIRITUAL REPRODUCTION
2 Timothy 2:2 (Paul wrote) You have heard me teach things that have been confirmed by many reliable witnesses. Now teach these truths to other trustworthy people who will be able to pass them on to others.
A Few Comments About the Materials:
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This material, by design, doesn’t use much jargon or “Christianese.” People who have been around church a long time can often repeat the words without understanding their meaning, and persons with no church background may have no idea what is being discussed!
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The material intentionally does not get into doctrinal issues that might divide or cause distractions from the purpose of helping them learn to listen and depend on the Holy Spirit. (The Pastors can clarify doctrinal specifics.)
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A hard copy version can be printed at the end of each lesson.
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In addition to text, lessons also contain diagrams, since many people learn visually.
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The lesson point explains the diagram, one element at a time, which should make it clear.
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When using the App, you may find it helpful to print an entire larger diagram ahead of time (for clarification) so you can look at the bigger picture together while you read through each element.
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If you want more explanation on any diagram, contact us (info@disciplers.org) or watch the training videos in the Mentor Training section on the DTI website, or listen to the explanation video snippets in the App.
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Scripture quoted is from the Holman Christian Standard Bible, unless otherwise noted.
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The Bible verses are displayed to facilitate the conversation and help to keep you on track.
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While Scripture verses are sometimes truncated to keep the focus on a particular concept being discussed, this is NOT intended to "proof text," / just to prove a point by presenting partial Scripture. We encourage you to read the verses in context to the complete passage and consult different versions as you seek God's clarification for what that Scripture means to you.
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Suggested Timeline for Mentoring
(Preferably one-on-one, but can be in a Corporate Setting with Mentoring Role-Play)
Important: Preference should be given to using these lessons on a one-to-one basis, although they can also be used effectively in a class setting. However, add role-play for mentoring others so they can envision themselves doing it.
These lessons are not designed to be simply read through like a newspaper, but rather to be personalized by the discipler, and to serve as a means to stimulate dialog and address spiritual issues and concepts that need to be internalized in order for each Christian to become an effective and useful tool in His hands to come alongside others. For most Christians the lessons will be most beneficial through discussion and explanation.
A Note from the Author
We believe there are some foundational principles that all believers, especially newer believers, need to understand and internalize. Often Biblical “knowledge” is presented to new Christians rather than personalized instruction of Biblical “principles” to apply in their lives to help them mature more rapidly.
New believers need to be quickly introduced to a life of walking in dependence on the Lord. (A manual for a car or computer may have the exact specifications and a great description, but to learn to drive a vehicle properly or operate a computer, most people would greatly benefit from individual mentoring.)
We believe God is pleased by the attitude of a disciple (an apprentice learner), who is concerned about allowing God to use them and minimally interested in defending their personal viewpoints. All our beliefs should be open for Him to alter. Please prayerfully consider the validity of the concepts presented here, allowing the Holy Spirit to guide you.
Our passion to help believers grow to spiritual maturity, spiritual fruitfulness, and spiritual reproduction in Christ is knit together with our desire to be true to Scripture. We believe that God has provided provision for every believer to grow from infancy to maturity in Christ so as to become a spiritual reproducer (disciple-maker).
We believe that one of the main reasons there is a lack of spiritual vitality in the Christian community is the failure to clearly explain essential Biblical concepts and goals to new converts initially so they learn them early in their walk. If such principles are presented early on, new believers will be saved from much unneeded frustration as they seek to understand God’s purpose for their lives.
For most converts the first few months are critical. New believers will tend to adopt the outlook and value system of those they associate with during the formative part of their Christian walk. This is the time to take advantage of the initial hunger to learn and grow that characterizes the normal new believer.
Too often new believers are simply placed in the mainstream (Sunday) services and small groups and expected to somehow assimilate Biblical understanding. It is therefore not a surprise to see that many new believers come to the conclusion that Sunday services are the most important spiritual experience of the week, rather than developing a spiritual walk with God that is a 24/7 experience.
Caution: Please do not give these lessons to someone without adequate explanation. We usually tend to assume that others understand more than they actually do. If the disciple grasps and applies the concepts presented in this workbook, the energy and hours you have invested in them will be well worth it.
- Art Barkley
Ready to begin? Go to Phase 1