The first of four weeks at the Keystone Project have been completed. There's lots of info to process, but it is good. Through the course of each lecture I'm taking three sets of notes - notes that amplify the material, questions for those I'm coaching, and observations for my ministry back in Nicosia.
The emphasis of the first week has been on focusing on Jesus' command to make disciples. While there are other important elements to church and ministry, this is the supreme command and needs to be the lens through which we view our lives and activities. The goal in the teaching and coaching sessions have been to help people evaluate whether or not their current activities are resulting in transformed people committed to following Jesus.
While a lot of it may seem basic, it is amazing how easy it is for us to get off focus in our ministries. In tandum with the Project, I've been re-reading Dallas Willard's 'The Divine Conspiracy' and working through a study guide. In the chapter 'The Gospel of Sin Management' he talks about the tendency to reduce our faith to the questions 'How do we get to heaven?' or 'How do we transform society?' The better question, he suggests, is 'What do we need to be or do to become disciples of Jesus?' I would add to that 'What do I need to do to help others become disciples of Jesus?' Those are the questions I'm asking myself, implementing in my ministry in Nicosia and helping the Keystone participants work through.
Pray for those I'm coaching: Nader, Matt, Chris and Wendy.
No comments:
Post a Comment