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GROWING
EDGES
 For
several years, my husband and I have pursued
a ministry at our church that we have come
to call Discipleship Evangelism, a name
we adopted from Dallas Willard’s book The
Divine Conspiracy. By Discipleship Evangelism
we mean a ministry aimed at imparting to
others the good news that life under the
authority of God and in his power is available
to disciples of Jesus, beginning now. We
are learning as we go, and one of the most
important things we have learned is that
Discipleship Evangelism must be the fruit
of our own discipleship to Jesus.
Who
is a Disciple?
Who, then, is a disciple to Jesus? What
does it mean to be a disciple to Jesus?
A disciple of Jesus is a person who has
decided to live in attentiveness to Jesus.
We live in attentiveness in order to become
like Jesus on the inside and, thereby, able
to do what Jesus would do on the outside.
As maturing disciples we progressively learn
to live in attentiveness, adoration, surrender,
obedience, and thankfulness to God, and
all of this, without ceasing.
Through
the hidden work of transformation, God writes
his good way on our minds and hearts and
this is very good. By his grace, our hearts
are divinely changed. We are progressively
conformed to be like Jesus in mind and will
and soul and word and deed. What we say
and what we do more consistently reflect
the glory and goodness of God. Our lives
work as God intends them to. The rightness
of God’s good way becomes what we experience
in our ordinary lives.
Learning
from the Teacher
The kitchen, the freeways we drive, our
offices and schools, hospitals and homes
are where we meet the Father through Jesus
in the power of the Holy Spirit. These are
the places where Jesus teaches us how to
live our lives. These are the places where
we seek God in attentiveness and adoration.
These are the places where we learn to hear
the still, small voice of God. And as he
prompts, we are obedient and thankful. Those
around us, whether family or friend or the
lady at the Laundromat who does not speak
English, see love, peace, and joy in us.
Jesus is our Teacher and we are his students.
My
husband and I are also learning that discipleship
to Jesus and Discipleship Evangelism are
best pursued within a community of like-minded
people. We are part of a group that meets
to discover, understand, and then put into
practice what it really is to live as disciples
of Jesus under the authority of God and
in his power. Our expectation is that, by
God’s grace, we will see ourselves, our
families, our brothers and sisters in Christ,
our friends, and even our enemies, being
conformed to the likeness of Jesus. Then
too we will see our church making disciples
of the nations. Will you join this great
adventure in the Kingdom?
To
God alone be the glory,
Margaret Campbell
RENOVARÉ Team
Member
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