When I attended the International Maxwell Conference (IMC) in March of 2022 I was skeptical that I had made the right choice to join the Maxwell Leadership Certified Team.
Then I had lunch with my friend John. As I heard his heart I realized everything he is teaching is the gospel! John has taken the Bible, the book of life, life’s owner's manual, and the instruction for how to live and made packaged them in a way that eliminates the fear of needing to be a bible scholar to understand them.
For example take Mathew 28: 16-20: Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted. And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 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 all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” (ESV, emphasis added)
The GREAT COMMISSION is veg and intimidating! It leaves room for fear.
Fear of Failure
Fear of Trading Security for the Unknown
Fear of What Others Will Say or Think
Fear that Success Will Alienate Peers
(Maxwell, 2021)
Yet there is hope! In The 15 Invaluable Laws of Growth, John C. Maxwell gives us God’s game plan for how to “make disciples,” & “teaching them to observe…” Over the next 15 weeks, I will unpack The 15 Invaluable Laws of [Discipleship] Growth and provide the vision to develop your plan on how to grow and make disciples. Get a copy of The 15 Invaluable Laws of Growth by John C. Maxwell to enhance your experience as we walk together on this journey.
The Law of Intentionality. (Part 1; Introduction)
The Law of Intentionality means discipleship doesn’t just happen. You have to be prepared to share your faith. Not just when the opportunity presents itself (by accident) but by preparing yourself to create those opportunities.
1 Peter 3:15
but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect (ESV)
The only way you can “always be prepared” is to have a “defense.”
One of the roles I had, when I coached football, was that of a defensive coordinator. How well do you think it would have gone for my team if I showed up on gameday and told the players I had no idea what type of offense the opposing team ran or what position my players would be playing? We would fail miserably.
I had to be prepared with a plan (and a backup plan) to make a defense so we could take action. In football, the space between players along the offensive line is called a gap. Each gap has to be accounted for and defended against otherwise the offense will run through those gaps and be successful.
The same is true of discipleship. You have to spend time practicing your defense; Studying/Reading scripture, praying, and thinking through responses. You have to study your opponent and look for “gaps” to apply your defense when the opportunities show up.
John identifies eight discipleship [growth] gaps we will face.
I will expand on a few of these gaps in the weekly Faith Lane messages. To frame these discipleship [growth] gaps properly it is important to have a grounded perspective on what God is asking us to do as we “Go therefore and make disciples.”
I became a parent 7 years ago when my wife and I adopted a 9-year-old. God has taught me while raising this wonderfully precious human being God did not put my son in my life for me to train him up (Prov. 22:6). God put him in my life so God could train me. Discipleship is the same. God didn’t command us to disciple others for their benefit of them. He commanded us to disciple others so he could disciple us.
Be Intentional. Choose to disciple. Prepare for every situation. Put your plan into action. Then Listen for what God is teaching you.
* All book quotes from The 15 Invaluable Laws of Growth by John C. Maxwell (2021)
* Bible quotes were found on the bible.com ESV version.