Jesus instructed us to ‘Go and make disciples’… This was not an option, it was a command. He then went on to say ‘And I will be with you’, in other words He will be walking alongside us in this activity.
The men and women who taught me mountaineering did not give me a lecture, they explored and travelled with me over rock and ice. When we came to a problem, it was good to share their greater experience, it helped me to feel safer, more confident and more relaxed. They always seemed to have that vital spare pair of gloves at the top of their rucksacks, where as mine were in the bottom!
While I was learning my mountaineering I was passing on my experience to the next generation, often these activities overlapped. You feel a glow when a past ‘pupil’ becomes your ‘teacher’. Also some of my mountaineering friendships have lasted many years and others have only been for one expedition or event.
Perhaps ‘making disciples’ is similar to learning about mountaineering. Sometimes it can be fairly formal such as in a home group or prayer triplet. Other times it may be a friendship that occurs only for one event, but it can be very special when you have that ‘light bulb’ moment.
This week, I challenge us to pray to be sensitive to the opportunities that God will give us to make disciples and be discipled.
Remember that we are making disciples for Jesus with Him along side us.
