Disciple Me
It's a subject that my wife and I talk quite a bit about:
We need to be discipled.
Not merely an all-inclusive general "we," not a community-based program in our church "we," but a very granular, specific "we" as an she and I. We have great days, experiences and conversations where we sharpen each other. We have people of all ages who speak into our lives, that we grow in Christ with, that we can learn from. But... there are so few people who we can point to and say: this person specifically took time to teach me, to disciple me, to pass on wisdom, love, rebukes and passion for the Word.
As my life fills up with more school work, with greater job responsibilities, with the lives of people that we're trying to teach and disciple... I worry that I will somehow miss the chance to even allow someone to speak into my life. I worry that some day I might think, "Yes! I know enough! I have achieved what this world calls success!" and - at that moment - somehow deny or ignore someone whose journey was meant to connect with mine.
There are people I look up to, who I consider mentors-from-afar. I have people who teach around me. I have people I observe and learn from. But I still feel a yearning for someone to develop that discipling relationship with me. To hold me accountable to the plans God has for me and my family. To teach me some of the so-many-things-I-don't-know.
I don't know if it's just that the part of the people of God that I interact with have lost the art of discipleship, or if people for some reason think I don't need it. I don't know why I've gone to great men of God and said "this is a need!" and then... nothing. And I'm left still feeling that need, wanting desperately to fill a void that I know is in my life.
But, as desperate and hopeful as I am about finding someone, or someones, to take an interest and disciple this child, I do so little to pass my little wisdom on and let others know that I am praying for them. And, though I've (in)directly asked people to disciple me before... it's not like finding a mentor was actively on the top of my to-do list for 2009. It was there... just not always at the very front of my mindset.
So...
What do you do? How do you find a mentor? What do you look for in someone else to disciple? What's your discipleship story?
We need to be discipled.
Not merely an all-inclusive general "we," not a community-based program in our church "we," but a very granular, specific "we" as an she and I. We have great days, experiences and conversations where we sharpen each other. We have people of all ages who speak into our lives, that we grow in Christ with, that we can learn from. But... there are so few people who we can point to and say: this person specifically took time to teach me, to disciple me, to pass on wisdom, love, rebukes and passion for the Word.
As my life fills up with more school work, with greater job responsibilities, with the lives of people that we're trying to teach and disciple... I worry that I will somehow miss the chance to even allow someone to speak into my life. I worry that some day I might think, "Yes! I know enough! I have achieved what this world calls success!" and - at that moment - somehow deny or ignore someone whose journey was meant to connect with mine.
There are people I look up to, who I consider mentors-from-afar. I have people who teach around me. I have people I observe and learn from. But I still feel a yearning for someone to develop that discipling relationship with me. To hold me accountable to the plans God has for me and my family. To teach me some of the so-many-things-I-don't-know.
I don't know if it's just that the part of the people of God that I interact with have lost the art of discipleship, or if people for some reason think I don't need it. I don't know why I've gone to great men of God and said "this is a need!" and then... nothing. And I'm left still feeling that need, wanting desperately to fill a void that I know is in my life.
But, as desperate and hopeful as I am about finding someone, or someones, to take an interest and disciple this child, I do so little to pass my little wisdom on and let others know that I am praying for them. And, though I've (in)directly asked people to disciple me before... it's not like finding a mentor was actively on the top of my to-do list for 2009. It was there... just not always at the very front of my mindset.
So...
What do you do? How do you find a mentor? What do you look for in someone else to disciple? What's your discipleship story?