Jesus said “go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit and teaching them to observe all the things that I have commanded you.” The word “disciple” is used 260 times in the New Testament and a proper understanding of its meaning is essential for God’s people if we are to live out our calling to live as His disciples; and in our ministry of making disciples of all nations.
Back in the early 1980s, the LCMS convened a “Great Commission Convocation” that focused on discipleship formation. One of the keynote presentations was given by Dr. Walt Stuenkel. Walt had many good things to share with us in his seminal bible study on discipleship – foremost that day were these take-aways from the biblical text:
Each workshop is from 9:00 a.m. until 2:30 p.m. The cost of attending a one-day workshop is $10.00 in order to cover the costs of lunch, and the various snacks, provided by the host congregation. Download a handout for the workshops here: Workshop Dates and Locations (Check the District Event Listing for links to online registration) Life is All About Stories:
The Parables of Jesus:
If you are interested in hosting a workshop, please contact Caren Vogt at the District office…908 233-8111 Lesslie Newbigin, one of the foremost missiologists of the 20th century, retired from missionary service in India and returned home to England in the 1970s. What he found in his beloved homeland was a more challenging mission field than he left behind. He wrote this:
“England is a pagan society and the development of a truly missionary encounter with this very tough form of paganism is the greatest intellectual and practical task facing the church” (Unfinished Agenda, 1993:236) Newbigin foresaw that the West was quickly becoming a mission field and the church needed to develop a truly missionary encounter with their friends and neighbors. In other words, if western societies have become post-Christian mission fields… …how do we lead a congregation to be faithful to the mission that God has put before us when the world has changed so radically? …what kind of leadership does it demand of those of us who have been called to lead God’s people at this time and in this place? Each workshop is from 9:00 a.m. until Noon. The cost of attending a one-day workshop is $5.00 in order to cover the costs of the various snacks provided by the host congregation. Workshop Dates and Locations (Check the District Event Listing for links to online registration) topic | workshop date | location | presenter adaptive leadership – part one (1) | January 12, 2019 | Good Shepherd, Old Bridge | Tony Steinbronn adaptive leadership – part two | February 16, 2019 | Good Shepherd, Old Bridge | Tony Steinbronn adaptive leadership – part three | June 15, 2019 | Good Shepherd, Old Bridge | Tony Steinbronn adaptive leadership – part four | August 3, 2019 | Good Shepherd, Old Bridge | Tony Steinbronn Teaching Fish to Walk (2) | September 21, 2019 | “yet to be determined” | Peter Steinke Download a handout with the workshop information here. (1) workshop developed from the book “Canoeing the Mountains: Christian Leadership in Uncharted Territory” by Tod Bolsinger (2) workshop based on the book “Teaching Fish to Walk: Church Systems and Adaptive Challenge” by Peter Steinke; Peter Steinke will be the workshop presenter on September 21, 2019 |