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.

March 5, 2019

Christian Standard

Spiritual MRI

By Halee Wood  Have you ever had an MRI? An MRI produces detailed pictures of internal body structures. It can assist in diagnosing many things we never want to face: aneurysms, inner ear issues, spinal cord injuries, cancerous tumors, and more. A prescribed MRI makes us cringe because we don’t want anything “bad” exposed, though all the while, in our gut we already know something is wrong or we would not have sought the help of a physician. An MRI can diagnose, but it cannot cure. The physician is who leads you through the healing process. The apostle Paul once

February 27, 2019

Christian Standard

Kent E. Fillinger

Christianity in Confusion: What Happens When We Forgo Reading the Directions

By Kent E. Fillinger A year or so ago, one of my teenage daughters had several of her friends over for a sleepover. During the night, the girls decided to play a game. My daughter pulled Scattergories, which was new to her, out of the closet, and in the girls’ rush to play, they decided to forego reading the directions. Instead, they came up with a way to play based on what they thought made sense. Not reading the directions first resulted in a hodgepodge game with no winner. There were a few arguments along the way, due to the

February 19, 2019

Stuart Powell

Displaying our Testimony

By Stuart Powell Testifying to Jesus’ influence on our lives is an important part of the Christian faith. As we grow in our faith, we should have more to say about Jesus. His influence first affects our attitudes about living. Jesus replaces our impure inner desires by teaching us to live holy. When we grant the Holy Spirit permission, he also changes how we view other people. Jesus’ influence eventually enables us to sacrificially love those whom we formerly opposed. God teaches us to welcome all who are different. He leads us to fast for those who abuse us. Jesus’

January 29, 2019

David Roadcup

The Ultimate Goal: Spiritual Transformation

By David Roadcup   This month I want to stir the church leadership pot with three pertinent questions: 1. What does God want from us with regard to shaping the lives of church members? In other words, what is to be the ultimate outcome of our ministry? Someone might say, “Why, evangelism, of course!” Evangelism is absolutely critical in God’s plan, but we need to go deeper. Someone else might say, “Discipleship and nurture.” Also true. Evangelism and discipleship are the two engines that drive us to fulfill God’s plan for his people. But God’s ultimate goal for his church

January 29, 2019

Christian Standard

Learning the Ministry of Receiving

By Daniel Schantz The best thing about teaching in a Christian college was that someone always needed me for something. “Professor, help! I need ideas! I’m teaching junior high boys in camp!” “Dan, you’re up for devotions in the faculty meeting tomorrow.” “Hey, Schantzy, you’re the car guy around here. . . . Is it normal for a transmission to smell like burnt pepperoni?” Now I have retired to a subdivision outside of town, where I have suddenly gone from being needed to being needy. The 10 families who live out here are rather independent. Only my wife needs me

October 28, 2018

Michael C. Mack

What’s the Missing Discipleship Ingredient?

By Michael C. Mack “If you make disciples, you will always get the church. But if you try to build the church, you will rarely get disciples.” This quote from Mike Breen jumped off the page as I read his article, “Why the Missional Movement Will Fail,” several years ago. Apparently many others also found it compelling; the last time I checked, the article has more than 20,000 shares online. As a discipleship and small groups guy, I’ve read lots of articles and have been involved in many discussions about whether churches and groups should emphasize discipleship or being “missional”

June 8, 2018

Christian Standard

Discipleship for All Ages

By Rick Lowry It’s easy to focus programming on younger adults. After all, they represent the long-term future of the church. That’s why many churches place a priority on worship music preferred by the younger crowd and the children’s programs that are important to their families. I’m a discipleship pastor, and I acknowledge that our church gears most of our discipleship efforts toward those on the front end of family and life. But I have also observed that, as a result, many mature Christians struggle to find a place in their local church where they can continue to grow. As

April 5, 2018

Christian Standard

A Day with Jesus: What He Teaches Us About Discipleship

By Ryan Rasmussen As a pastor of a large church, I often question whether we’re discipling our people effectively. Though large churches have more resources and staff than small churches, they are often no better equipped to help people take steps forward with Jesus. The truth is, churches of every size seem to struggle with knowing whether their discipleship processes are effective. This might be the case because, well, it’s all a bit confusing. Multiple discipleship models are available: house churches, Sunday school, small groups, missional communities, and many others. Discipleship in its many forms has been the subject of

October 4, 2017

Christian Standard

Out of Our Depth

By Mandy Smith   What makes you feel out of your depth? Starting a new job? Taking an exam? Having a child? So many situations in life force us to face the size of our own limitations. And when we do, we deal with those feelings of fear and inadequacy in our own ways””by running away, by working extra hard, by becoming anxious. Sometimes it”s not until after we”ve tried all those options that we finally stop to ask for help. But asking for help isn”t the first choice, because it requires us to admit to someone else, “I can”t

July 25, 2017

Michael C. Mack

Old Dogs Keep Running

By Michael C. Mack Some maxims should never be uttered again, especially by Christian leaders. Like this one: “You can”t teach an old dog new tricks.” I own an old dog, a black Lab named Lainey, and she still is learning new tricks. I figured she was simply smarter than the average dog. My vet, however, told me all older dogs can continue to learn, though it may take more work. Like Lainey, we as individuals and the body of Christ, regardless of age, have the capability to learn new things, be transformed, and do more of what God created

July 12, 2017

Christian Standard

Turning Point

By Ronald G. Davis Turning points sometimes come in a roar. Turning points sometimes come in a whisper. In modern history the roar was heard in the deathly din of D-Day. And the course of modern human history was changed. In biblical history, the whisper was heard by Elijah when he had fled in cowardice from an interloper in the messianic line. God called him with “a still small voice” to return to his ministry in the court of kings. And the course of Israel”s history was redirected toward a Messiah. John 6 pictures just such a dramatic turning point.

April 2, 2017

Christian Standard

Holy Risk

By Jeff Faull It”s difficult to find a follower of God in Scripture who did not take big risks. Look at those who brought Jesus into the world. Look at the first church and the ministry of the apostles. How can our ministries and personal lives follow their example? Famous psychologist Abraham Maslow is best known for his hierarchy of needs pyramid. According to Maslow, the most primal needs we have involve our bodily activities, like breathing, eating, or drinking. Second only to those needs is the basic human desire for security and safety. We are driven by the desire

March 26, 2017

Christian Standard

Lady Wisdom, Ben Franklin, and the Marlboro Man

Jay Engelbrecht Your creator designed you to live healthy and well. How can we cooperate with his yearning for our best? Let”s test your knowledge of the book of Proverbs. Three of the quotes below come from Eugene Peterson”s modern paraphrase The Message, while the other two come from founding father Benjamin Franklin. Can you identify the source of each? 1. “Don”t stuff yourself; bridle your appetite.” 2. “He that won”t be counseled can”t be helped.” 3. “When you”re given a box of candy, don”t gulp it all down.” 4. “Eat to live, don”t live to eat.” 5. “It”s not smart

March 23, 2017

Christian Standard

Focusing on Discipleship

By Jennifer Johnson You may know Exponential as the premier conference for church planting, but you may not know that a similar event exists for leaders focused on discipleship””and that some of the same people are behind both. Todd Wilson, founder and director of Exponential, and Bobby Harrington, lead pastor at Harpeth Christian Church in Franklin, TN, launched the National Disciple Making Forum in 2014 at Saddleback Church in Southern California as a way for disciple-making leaders around the country to learn, pray, worship, and grow together. “I wasn”t sure if I wanted to take this on, honestly,” Harrington says.

February 24, 2017

Christian Standard

We Started Slowly

How men”s ministry has grown at Northside Christian Church By Gary Olsby About 12 years ago, I took our men”s leadership team to a Man in the Mirror Conference entitled “No Man Left Behind.” We learned many principles for successful ministry to men, but the thing that stood out for many of us was a statement that building a thriving men”s ministry takes 10 years. So we started slowly””with one men”s Bible study group that studied Robert Lewis”s Men”s Fraternity video series. The group met on Wednesday mornings at 6. Since then we have added a group on Thursday evenings

February 22, 2017

Kelly Carr

The Simplest Way to Change the World

  By Jim Tune Twelve people sat in silence. They had traveled from Minnesota to Orlando for a weeklong course on evangelism with Steve Childers, one of the country”™s top church-planting strategists. “You know what the key to evangelism in the 21st century will be, don”™t you?” Childers asked them. He had them captivated. He waited an uncomfortably long time. Finally he answered: “Hospitality.” David Mathis, who records this story, writes: In a progressively post-Christian society, the importance of hospitality as an evangelistic asset is growing rapidly. Increasingly, the most strategic turf on which to engage the unbelieving with the

February 22, 2017

Christian Standard

Gateway Planning

By Michael C. Mack Spending time with God is your priority as a leader. But it doesn”t just happen. Use the following strategy questions to help you plan a time of solitude with God: How often will I get away alone with God? (Weekly, monthly, quarterly, annually?) How long will I spend alone with God? When will I get away to be alone with God? (Be specific!) Where will I go? What provisions do I need to make for getting away? (Asking for permission, lining up childcare, making financial arrangements, lining up a place to stay, etc.) On my getaways

January 15, 2017

Christian Standard

The Church”s Mission: Making Disciples

By Ethan Magness My first formal ecclesiological training came from a song: The Church is not a building, the Church is not a steeple, the Church is not a resting place, the Church is the people. It was not an especially good song, but it had hand motions (perhaps you know them). I am grateful for this song, because it provided a sufficient ecclesiology for my early years of life. I did not merely go to church; I was part of the church. We were the church, the people of God. My second round of training came from the back

January 3, 2017

Mark A. Taylor

Strategies for a New Year

By Mark A. Taylor Dear Reader: This is adapted from a post that first appeared five years ago. It still seems pretty current to me, mainly because I still need to follow my own advice here! So let’s read it  together as, once again, we recommit ourselves to faith and ministry at the beginning of a new year. Anytime can be the right time for new beginnings, but the transition to a new year seems like a natural. If you”re looking for new ways God could use you in 2017, here are some possibilities. Enhance strengths. Instead of concentrating on

November 24, 2016

Mark A. Taylor

Not the Gift, but the Giver

By Mark A. Taylor As American Christians celebrate Thanksgiving Day, there’s a good chance we may miss the greatest value in saying thanks. Typically, our lists of “reasons I’m thankful” include relationships or opportunities or experiences or possessions. All these are appropriate, but listing what we have unfortunately often only prompts us to remember what we lack. “¢ We probably start our thanksgiving inventory with “family.” But quickly most of us also think of arguments, misunderstandings, or more serious breaches that are part of most family histories. “¢ We might be thankful for our ministries. But many church leaders privately

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