 Hardy Street Baptist Church Associate Pastor, Scott Alexander shared a compelling word on New Year’s Eve about discipleship.
He emphasized the importance of intentional investment —that we do not stumble into Godliness and growth, but rather, we must be intentionally engaged in this discipling process. He also added some great advice about “relational investment”. The process of discipleship doesn’t happen in a vacuum. You need others! God designed it that way! In Ephesians 4:11-16, we see God’s design for discipleship laid out. He gifts leaders who equip the saints for the work of ministry. AND we know from Scripture, that God desires ALL believers to be disciple-makers. That means you cannot do it alone! You need others speaking into your life and you need to speak into the lives of others! You need specific relationships in your life that God uses to make you better! What are these relationships? Leadership and relationship coaches say that everyone needs a teacher, a student and a friend. Financial guru, Dave Ramsey frames it up this way, "As Christians, we can confidently say that everyone needs a Paul, a Timothy and a Barnabas.” Motivational speaker Charlie “Tremendous” Jones used to say that five years from now, you’ll be the same person you are today except for the books you read and the people you meet. In other words, we need the accountability and support that come when others invest in our lives. Our interactions with others matter! So why not pray for those relationships? You need to be both “influenced” and “influencer”! In Sunday’s message, Scott challenged us to pray specifically for those discipling relationships, so here is a great prayer for every believer in this new year: Pray for a “Paul” … Someone who will disciple you! Pray for a Paul figure who will speak into your life, hold you accountable, stretch you in your faith! Who is that person? If you don’t have them identified, pray and ask God to reveal them to you! God wants all of us to grow to maturity in Christ, and since His design is for people to be involved in the process…this is a prayer aligned with His will… He WILL answer this one! Pray for a “Timothy”… Someone to invest and pour into. To disciple someone else, you don’t have to have it all together, have all the answers, or be fully matured. To make a spiritual impact in the lives of others, you need to be yielded to God and obedient to the Great Commission call to disciple-making! Pray for God to give you influence in the lives of others (specifically, a “Timothy” figure that you can encourage). In addition to those discipling relationships, I want to suggest a third prayer request: Pray for a “Barnabas”… encouraging friends that will divide the load of trouble and burden, multiply the joys of celebration, and will inspire and motivate you along the path! Praying for a “Paul”, a “Timothy”, & a “Barnabas” in this New Year is a great way to obediently join God at His work! Your “Paul” is the mentor/coach/discipler who pours his life and wisdom into your life, while your “Timothy” receives the same blessing from you. You need to sit at the feet of people who are further along the journey than you are. As you do, you will find that pouring your life into someone else can be incredibly energizing! And being a friend will attract friends and having friend will make all the difference in the journey! Zig Ziglar often told a story about how Belgian horses are trained to work together—and how it made these incredible animals so much more effective. Belgian horses are huge, powerful animals. In fact, one Belgian can pull more than 8,000 pounds. THAT’S A LOT OF HORSEPOWER! A strange thing, however, is that if you put two Belgian horses together who are strangers, they don’t just double the amount they can pull to 16,000 pounds; they actually triple it to 24,000 pounds. And if you spend some time training them to work together, that unified pair can pull a whopping 32,000 pounds. That’s four times what a single horse can do alone! That story should remind us that connections are powerful—and not just for Belgian horses. People need healthy relationships to win at life, too. God works through each of these relationships in our lives. He uses a Paul to guide us. He uses a Timothy to help us mature. And He uses a Barnabas to challenge us. In response, we should always be learning, teaching and loving. I’m praying for you in this New Year, and I hope that you are praying for these relationships for your own life!
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I hope to… I resolve to… I plan to… I want to… Sound familiar? Tis the season for reflective resolutions and for considering changes that we desire. The New Year brings a flurry of resolutions calling for new actions, new habits, a better future, a new direction. I bet some of you are spending time today thinking about ways to be better, to do better, or to act differently. I also bet many of you are making promises to yourself to do something less. And with a burst of enthusiasm, grit, and determination, you begin! From weight loss to work advancement, from overhauling finances to organizing spaces, the end results are clear, but the pathway seems a bit fuzzy. So, paralysis hits. I want to help you get momentum! I am praying for “authentic transformation” in 2018 for my life and for my church members... and I would to help you on this journey, too. Our church's theme for the year is "A Season of Growth". Our staff is leading our church family to embrace the necessary changes to maximize growth: personally, spiritually, relationally, emotionally, & physically! This year, I’ll be working through a set of goals and targeted plans for my own growth, and along the way, I hope that we can help one another to grow! Now, much has been written about the psychology & process of successfully making and keeping resolutions. Popular advice includes:
You might question the idea that the Bible is compatible with setting resolutions, but I believe that we’ll see a great deal of encouragement in this arena as we investigate together! My intention is not a Bible study to build and argument for resolutions. My clear goal is to challenge and motivate you to consider how well-conceived goals and plans can enhance your quality of life, improve your relationships, give you purpose and clarity, and ultimately, honor God! The Bible certainly encourages us to examine our lives and resolve to change them if necessary (although not just at the beginning of a new year). The Psalmist, David, made a resolution to keep his speech pure: “I have planned no evil; my mouth has not transgressed” (Psalm 17:3) and in Job 31, we see a commitment to pure thoughts as Job said, "I made a covenant with my eyes not to look with lust at a young woman.” (Job 31:1) Burk Parsons of Ligonier Ministries offers great insight into a Biblical rationale for resolutions. I encourage you to check out this article! If you'll stick with me over the next two weeks, I will unpack the process of goal-setting and developing workable plans for success, addressing each of these from a biblical perspective. I’ll share more about the process later, but for now, let's talk about getting started! My focus for today is simple… GETTING STARTED! Getting Started the key to success! Today, I simply want to challenge you to get started! To take action! To break the inertia and MOVE! Taking action is so much more important than just having a good idea. Many people have had great ideas, but never acted on them... One of two things occurred: Either they had no PLAN or they PROCRASTINATED. NO PLAN Antoine de Saint-Exupéry rightly said, "A goal without a plan is just a wish or a dream!" Creating a plan is the action you must take, and the first step of any plan is to make a decision! Pull the trigger today... In your heart and mind, decide that you are no longer content to sit on the sideline and watch life go by! I can help you flesh out a workable plan, but today, I'm calling you to commit! Let me illustrate... Have you ever heard of a Snuggie? Who hasn't? Lots of people had the idea of a blanket with sleeves... I remember thinking about that as a kid and even trying to bundle up with my hands free so I could play with my Atari (I know that's way old school). I also remember seeing a blanket with sleeves (the thneed) on Dr. Suess' Lorax. But I didn't act on it... and neither did millions of other people. But one man did... The SNUGGIE took the world by storm and now has gross sales of over $500 million! See the principle? A simple idea coupled with action can yield great results. So your great idea to become a better you in some way (weight loss, save more & spend less, relational improvement) will only yield great result IF you take action! PROCRASTINATION The other major setback is procrastination. This isn’t just simply us putting off things until a later date, it’s purposefully putting aside important work knowing there will be negative consequences in the future. We aren’t just being forgetful, or complacent. We’re purposefully hurting ourselves by focusing on short-term pleasure at the cost of the long-term. What are you waiting for? A more opportune time? Are you waiting until you have the time, money, energy to do something? Are you waiting until all the circumstances line up just right? If so, I can tell you right now, you'll be waiting forever. Now is the time to act. Now is the time to begin moving forward. Join me on a journey of Authentic Transformation today! THREE {3} Action Steps: (1) Sign up for my "Monday Motivation" e-newsletter below! (2) Write down five to seven goals for 2018. Fast forward to December 31, 2018 and think about what it would be like if you accomplished _________________________. (Whether you want to lose a certain amount of weight or save a certain dollar amount or go on a trip...whatever goes in the blank should motivate you!) (3) Leave me a comment on this blog and let me know ONE of your goals for 2018. |
Scott HanberryChrist-follower, husband, dad, friend & the Senior Pastor of Hardy Street Baptist Church. 
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