1. The staff and deacons know that God is leading our church to take the next step in leading people to become fully devoted followers of Jesus. There needs to be a process put in place to make disciples so that we are all on the same page doing the same things reaching for the same goals.
2. Our mission statement for the last several years has been “Leading persons to be fully devoted followers of Jesus.”
3. First, we want to clarify, scripturally, what is a fully devoted follower? OR What is a disciple?
1. Prayer

Jesus said, “So I say to you, keep asking, and it will be given to you. Keep searching, and you will find. Keep knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who searches finds, and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.” Luke 11:9-10

Prayer is foundational to what it means to be a disciple. Prayer begins a relationship with God, and prayer sustains it. Therefore, prayer should be central to what we do.

2. The Great Commandments

Jesus said, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and most important commandment. The second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets depend on these two commandments.” Matthew 22:37-40

Jesus indicated two very important things with these two greatest commandments. We are to “Love God” first and foremost. Secondly, we are to love our neighbor. Jesus later said it this way: “Love one another.” Disciples learn to love each other.

3. Great Commission

Jesus said, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:18-20

The Great Commission tells us another very important trait of a disciple. We are to make disciples. This is what we call reaching the world.

These things are how we define a follower. Our goal as a church is to help people become fully devoted as a follower (or a mature disciple) and as such will move through all these areas. We see disciples doing this by following this simple diagram.

4. Diagram it
1. Share the Process
1. Love God (Worship)
1. PBC will help disciples “Love God” by providing worship.
2. Love One Another (Sunday School)
1. PBC will help disciples “Love One Another” by providing Sunday School. Sunday School classes are the small groups that gather in order to love one another through ministry, study of the Bible and spurring one another on to good deeds and missions.
3. Reach the World (Missions Involvement)
1. PBC will help disciples reach the world by providing ideas and activity for missions involvement.

2. How this happen?
1. Christian Disciplines
1. So then, my dear friends, just as you have always obeyed, not only in my presence, but now even more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God who is working in you, [enabling you] both to will and to act for His good purpose. Philippians 2:12-13
2. As disciples learn to love God and one another, they will need to learn to “love themselves” by caring for themselves spiritually through “habits” such as having time with God, being accountable to a mentor, Bible study, involvement in church, tithing, and scripture memory to name a few.
2. Christian Service
1. And He personally gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, for the training of the saints in the work of ministry, to build up the body of Christ. Ephesians 4:11-12
2. As disciples are learning to love one another and reach the world, they will engage themselves in serving, using the gift God has given them to grow the Kingdom.
3. Christian Witness
5. Set apart the • Messiah as Lord in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you. 1 Peter 3:15
6. As disciples we are called to share the good news with people and to give a reason for our hope as we go.

What’s next?
We will begin the process over the next twelve months of moving to “focus” on our process.
Recap…Where we have been…

1. Simple Church book (staff, deacons, and other key ;eaders read the book)
2. Eric Geiger consultation and presentation
3. Prayer focus
4. Staff Process Development
5. Staff assisting about 50 people to walk through the process.
6. (February 2007) Staff lead the Deacons through the process as a training. (Deacons lead their spouses/families through it)
7. Now: (March/April 2007) Staff and Deacons are personally walking through the process with all of our regular attenders.
8. Next: The process will become our mission statement, the model will be what we use. It will help us visualize where we are individually and where we are as a church in discipleship. (Remember, we are called to “make disciples”) our statement will be…

Growing mature disciples of Jesus who love God, love one another and reach the world.

We will move as quickly as the Lord allows to “focus” on the process and eliminate that which does not help people become disciples. No changes will be made that the entire staff and deacon body have not approved.

Therefore since we also have such a large cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us lay aside every weight and the sin that so easily ensnares us, and run with endurance the race that lies before us, keeping our eyes on Jesus, the source and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that lay before Him endured a cross and despised the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of God’s throne. Hebrews 12:1-2