Discipleship & Spiritual Formation

Discipleship & Spiritual Formation focuses on becoming more like Jesus through lifelong growth in faith, character, and obedience. Explore Bible-based articles on following Christ, spiritual disciplines, prayer, Scripture reading, community, and the habits that shape a mature disciple. You’ll find practical guidance for mentoring, accountability, repentance, perseverance, and cultivating a gospel-centered life in every season. Whether you’re learning the basics of discipleship or helping others grow, these resources equip you to form disciples who love God, love people, and live on mission.

November 22, 2009

Christian Standard

Revolution

  by Glen Elliott Jesus was leading a revolution. He was far from conventional or status quo. In every way, Jesus was a radical. He gave his life to ignite a spiritual revolution that would invade and influence every nation and power on earth.  The “Jesus revolution,” also called the kingdom of God, is about radical change. The kingdom is anywhere God”s influence is supreme. I believe following Jesus is all about engaging in a revolution.   THE WORDS OF REVOLUTION Where do we find this idea of revolution in Jesus and the Gospels? His words were the words of

November 15, 2009

Christian Standard

Can We Become Better Discipling Churches?

By Derek Duncan One of the challenges of living the corporate Christian life is discovering how to connect individual principles with organizational behavior. How do we make disciples outside the realm of interpersonal relationships? Or should we? What kinds of programs help in the conversion, training, and equipping of people to become reproducing disciples? How do we use the current church model to make as many disciples as we can? Can we be more effective in helping people become like Jesus Christ, transform their own hearts and their neighbors with the love of Christ, and courageously proclaim the hope of

November 1, 2009

Christian Standard

Death by Platitude

  by Mark Atteberry By definition, a platitude is a trite remark, uttered as if it were fresh or profound. I heard a classic just an hour ago. I was driving home from an appointment and heard a radio preacher assure me that my life had value. He said that no matter how bad I may feel about myself, I am definitely worth something. Why? Are you ready for this? “Because God don”t make no junk.” Any minute I expected him to remind me that God moves in mysterious ways and that there are no atheists in foxholes. The first

August 23, 2009

Christian Standard

My Grace Journey

  by Brian Giese I was born during World War II. Like many in my generation, I grew up in the church when guilt trips from the pulpit were still both frequent and quite effective. Most Christians hoped they would be “good enough” to make it into Heaven. If someone said, “I”m saved,” we knew he was not one of us. I attended Bible college and seminary and had worked seven years in the paid ministry before I began to understand the meaning of grace. My awakening started when a Christian lady said to me one day, “Brian, you really

August 23, 2009

Christian Standard

To the Best of My Ability

  by Glen Elliott We are a people obsessed with success. We long for A”s in the classroom and the bonus or promotion at work. We want to be a starter on the team. Yet, the reality of the very system we live in is that we can”t all get A”s (that”s called grade inflation). Not everyone can get a bonus or promotion, and not everyone gets to start. The normal response to this reality is we encourage folks to just “do the best you can.” It sounds good. I like it. While most of us accept this as conventional

June 21, 2009

Christian Standard

Finding Your Focus

  By Glen Elliott   n the 2008 movie Yes Man, the main character (Jim Carrey) functions like a modern-day hermit until he is challenged to begin saying “yes” to everything. It works out well for him, for the most part, until the end when he realizes he can”t really say “yes” to everything. While it is risky to say “yes” all the time, it takes more courage and wisdom to know when to say “no.” For years our church held an annual Pumpkin Patch event (a safe Halloween alternative) that drew several thousand folks. It was a huge success in terms

June 7, 2009

Christian Standard

My Journey Toward Self-Discovery and Understanding the World

  By Derek L. Duncan When I was young I thought I knew it all. Not all in the comprehensive sense of understanding every idea and value of the universe, but all in a specific sense. Give me information, a book to read or a television show to watch, and I didn”t need anyone else”s help to interpret it.  I would like to blame this arrogance on my parents, but it is a problem deep within my heart. I make quick judgments and think I know what I am talking about when I don”t. I don”t take time to check

February 25, 2009

Christian Standard

Preventing Spiritual Desertion

By Mark A. Taylor Many would characterize the church”s work in the world as spiritual warfare. Our enemy is Satan, and our tools are “the full armor of God” (Ephesians 6:11-17). But not all soldiers in this war persevere until it”s won. Some grow weary of the enemy”s clever schemes and effective tactics. They wear out, give up, and decide to walk away. Why do some continue while others leave the battle? The Bible suggests several answers, one of them underscored by findings from contemporary students of American history. Heroes and Cowards, written by husband-and-wife team Dora L. Costa and

February 22, 2009

Christian Standard

Just What Is Christian Spirituality?

by Neal Windham In 1993, while returning from a Society of Biblical Literature meeting in San Francisco, I had a deep encounter with the living God. Having picked up Henri Nouwen”s In the Name of Jesus, I was confronted very directly with a question of terrifying significance: Had my life and work counted for anything, anything at all, or was I just playing games? That night, somewhere around 35,000 feet, God used one of the truly great Christian spirituality writers of the 20th century to begin stripping away layer upon layer of my selfishness and conceit. Since then I have

February 22, 2009

Christian Standard

What the Monks Can Teach Us

By J.K. Jones I acknowledge the title of this article is strange, perhaps even offensive to some. Our Christian church and church of Christ ears are not accustomed to such unusual language.  I also admit that the title sounds very Catholic. Of course, this may cause some to react negatively and stop reading. I hope not. I am a Christian whose heritage is found in and among Restoration churches. I am an immersed believer who holds no creed but Christ and has no book but the Bible. I don”t claim to be the only Christian, but I simply seek to

February 22, 2009

Christian Standard

Spiritual Growth at Manchester Christian Church

by Josh Peigh I was a junior in college when I heard Keith Ray, president of Lincoln (Illinois) Christian College, say, “Almost nothing happens by casual affair. It is by intentionality that things get done.”Â  That statement has lingered with me ever since. As a graduation gift, my father had the quote framed. It sits today in my office as a reminder of the mission that has been given to every church across our globe. Jesus said, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the

January 4, 2009

Christian Standard

Servanthood Without Star Power

By Jim Herbst   May I suggest another cable channel (since we don”t have enough already)? Let”s call it The Extreme Compassion Channel; its slogan can be, “Total Compassion Reality 24/7.” The catch with all reality shows, of course, is that they have little to do with reality. Like others, I”m moved every time Ty Pennington shows a homeowner his brand new home on Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. Afterwards, however, I begin to wonder why my life isn”t more sensational. My life is reality, after all. And I am compassionate. But no one applauds, cries, or hugs me when I

December 14, 2008

Christian Standard

The Power to Transform

By Victor M. Parachin In 1921 when Lewis Lawes became its warden, Sing Sing Correctional Facility in Ossining, New York, had a reputation for being the toughest prison in the country. The most notorious criminals were sent to this severe and unforgiving place. But, when Lawes retired 20 years later, the prison had become a model for the humane treatment of prisoners and the development of rehabilitation programs.  Lawes instituted theatricals, film showings, athletics, and provided radio earphones for each cell. He also required prisoners to wear identical uniforms to blur distinctions of wealth and status. Yet Lawes said his

November 30, 2008

Christian Standard

Form Without Substance?

By James Riley Estep Jr. “Why didn”t I ever hear about this in church?” he asked. I sat there at lunch a little perplexed.  I was a first-year youth minister, and Matt was a freshman at a nearby state university. We had met the previous summer when I became the youth minister, but with the arrival of fall he moved to the nearby campus and started attending classes. One of these classes was “Introduction to Religion,” wherein he learned much about Buddhism, Islam, Judaism, Hinduism . . . and of Christianity in a way he had never heard. He said,

September 14, 2008

Christian Standard

He Is “˜I AM,” I am “˜I”m Not”

By Mandy Smith We”ve heard about the Spanish Inquisition and the Salem witch trials””moments in history when, with the blessing of the church, Christians stood in judgment of one another. But that”s all history, isn”t it? Why is it, then, that in national surveys of young people, the authors of the book UnChristian found that 87 percent believe modern-day Christianity is judgmental? On the other hand, their surveys showed “only a small percentage of outsiders strongly believe the labels “˜respect, love, hope, and trust” describe Christianity.”1 We may not be hunting for witches anymore, but we point out believers who

July 20, 2008

Christian Standard

The Bible Is the Springboard

By Darrel Rowland Few congregations face one obstacle Grandview Christian Church encounters in making disciples: Too many PhDs. Located on the south side of Johnson City, Tennessee, the church is home to several professors from nearby Milligan College and Emmanuel School of Religion. That”s an obvious advantage when it comes to filling teaching and leadership positions. What”s not so obvious is that this blessing has a flip side. “The effect of having that many PhDs is that I need to be more intentional about developing teachers in the congregation that don”t have PhDs,” said senior minister Aaron Wymer. “Their presence

July 20, 2008

Christian Standard

More Than the ABC”s

By Darrel Rowland The emphasis on making disciples is not subtle at Mountain Christian Church. It”s displayed in three-foot-high letters inside the church building. It”s in the bulletin every Sunday. It”s emphasized everywhere from new members classes to gatherings of the church”s top leadership. “The purpose of this church is to make disciples””more and better disciples.” “One thing that has helped us perhaps as much as any other thing is a crystal clear focus with a mission that everyone understands and knows,” senior minister Ben Cachiaras says. “Every line item in our budget we hold accountable to that mission, every

July 20, 2008

Christian Standard

Intentional Events

By Darrel Rowland Southland Christian Church“s approach to making disciples might seem a little counterintuitive. For instance, although the Lexington, Kentucky, church has grown to 8,000 weekend attendees in recent years, Southland actually is holding fewer, not more events. And the leadership believes the discipleship process begins before, not when, someone becomes a Christian. The number of events has been trimmed to maximize impact and quality, say Will Briggs, connection minister, and Brandon Schaefer, study associate minister. “We have been aware of the stigma and reality that some churches do entertain,” Schaefer says. “We”ve combated this by really being intentional

July 20, 2008

Christian Standard

ONLINE EXTRA: Making Disciples–An Interview with Ethan Magness

By Darrel Rowland His title alone””spiritual formation pastor””is enough to tell you that Ethan Magness of Mountain Christian Church near Baltimore, Maryland, does not hold a typical ministerial position. He is a leader in Mountain”s wide-ranging effort to make disciples and the primary author of The Walk, a 226-page book to help Christians grow. Here he talks about some of the barriers and opportunities to making disciples in the 21st-century church, including the contention of some critics that too many churches are entertaining attendees instead of teaching them to follow Jesus. Is the “entertaining rather than teaching” problem new? I

June 29, 2008

Christian Standard

Wholehearted Christians

By H. Lynn Gardner I had a double-lung transplant in 2004, but that was not my first transplant. When I became a Christian I was given a new heart, a new spirit. We become new persons when we come into Christ. After the surgeons took out my old, scarred lungs, I was given “young healthy lungs.” I was given new life. When we become Christians we die to our old self””the spirit that ran our lives as we selfishly pleased. “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (2 Corinthians

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