Discipleship and Intimacy with God

Neil and Dana Gamble have had a remarkable ministry in many countries bringing believers, including leaders, into a more intimate relationship with God. Their view of discipling is urgently needed, to correct the common error of teaching abstract doctrine without bringing disciples into life-changing, intimate relationship with God. They do not neglect biblical teaching but balance it with an intimacy with God that is born of the Holy Spirit.

George Patterson

DEFINITIONS

And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. Amen." Matthew 28:18-20

We are to go and make disciples like Jesus says, teaching them to obey all of His commands, the greatest of which is to love God. So, first of all, God wants people to be restored to fellowship with Him. That is why Jesus died, to restore us to a place of intimacy with the Father. We err if we train people for ministry without bringing them into intimacy with God first. Jesus' ministry flows from intimacy with the Father; all that He has done was done as a result of this intimacy. We need to find and show Honor, learn the pleasure of simple obedience, and be willing to sacrifice to show our love and intimacy with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

People hear differently according to the positions they inhabit in a relationship. What and how you hear depends on where you hear from (the position you have with the one you are listening to). Let us apply this to listening during prayer.

God is about intimacy. All discipleship must lead toward this. Discipleship should bring people into a place of understanding their relationship with God the Father, show them who they are in Christ, and lead them into close fellowship with Holy Spirit. We tend to disciple people to enable them to do ministry and be a believer, but without bringing them into a close covenant relationship with our Creator. Our discipleship should help people to understand that they are sons and daughters of God, with the corresponding responsibilities. This workshop outline focuses on intimate love, and on hearing from the Father and our Lord through the Holy Spirit. We want all leaders and believers to gain understanding of this relationship and to pass it on to others. Our ministry, our witness for Christ and our discipleship should all stem from our intimate relationship with God and be the result of knowing Him. This will bring an even better understanding of God's Word.

Lord, teach us to love you and your people the way all need to be loved, not the way we desire to love.

Love (God's Love) in the Greek = agape and means to love dearly, a giving love that shows compassion for others' need. It has the power to change that which cannot be changed. It is a miraculous intervention into the lives of people by God. The Greek word agape that Jesus used may have originated in the Hebrew word agab (aw-gab'), a primitive root; meaning to breathe after, that is, to love sensually or dote, also to breathe against, as during an intimate kiss of passion, mouth to mouth, as when God breathed into man the breath of life and man became a living soul, Genesis 2:7. Jesus also breathed on His disciples and said,"Receive the Holy Spirit" (John 20:22). We were created in intimacy, lost it, but have been restored to intimacy through Jesus' sacrifice. Intimacy requires honor, obedience, and sacrifice.

"Know" is another word that describes the Lord's feelings about us. We are to know Him and be known by Him (Matthew 7:23 and Luke 13:27). To "know" in Scripture means not only to learn about something, but to experience it, to come to know intimately. To "know" was the Jewish idiom for sexual intercourse between a man and a woman. These biblical definitions reveal that we are to have a close relationship to the Lord. Our relationship with Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is to be an every-day experience of love, intimacy and friendship.

DISCIPLESHIP WORKSHOP OUTLINE

In the early church the disciples had only one thing working in their favor, the Holy Spirit. They did not have the New Testament or training materials. The Lord was with them, His blood had redeemed them and Holy Spirit was upon them. This was sufficient. Let us also build on this foundation if we want to see God move today as He did then.

I PURPOSE

The purpose of this workshop is discipleship. The result that we aim for is church planting. We do not aim to teach you a method or program, but simply discipleship. The objectives are to...

Help you to find and develop leaders through discipleship, and to have a multiplying effect on the church body to reach the world.
Teach you to follow New Testament training guidelines. 2 Timothy 2:2
Show you how God does the work as we honor His Word. John 14:15; 15:14; Matthew 24:35
Demonstrate how discipleship done in Jesus' way will result in church growth.
Use the Bible as our only standard and tool. It will be the foundation.

Throughout this training you will find that intimacy and hearing the voice of God are essential ingredients in all that we do.

II OVERVIEW

We will explore these areas together:

Your goals and vision
Some church statistics
What does a normal church look like?
What a New Testament church is
The three levels of authority for what churches do
Seven basic commands of Jesus
Choosing and making disciples
Choices create
Risk
Leaders and purpose
Your allies and enemies
Prayer and prayer walking
'End' visioning (planning steps that lead to strategic results)

What we believe to be true will not change the truth, but when we accept “the truth” it will change us.

III WHAT IS A HEALTHY CHURCH?

What does a healthy church look like? In general, simple church (small interactive groups) exhibit better health than traditional churches. In simple or house churches around of the world there are:

Few or no paid pastors
No visible church buildings
Severe persecution and the stigma of being a sect
Very few Bibles in the right languages
Intensive discipleship training
Few traditional bible colleges

In traditional Western-style churches there are:

Mostly paid pastors
Visible church buildings
Little persecution
Abundant Bibles available
Little or no discipleship training
Many Bible colleges

Southern Baptist researchers say that 85% of all new churches world wide from 1990-2000 started with a miracle of God. Victor Choudhrie (house church leader) says that 95% of the house churches in India started with a miracle. The house church movement is the fastest growing movement in the world, not just in India and it is powered by the Holy Spirit. Miracles and obedience are integral parts. Discipleship is the norm.

The only church that will stand in the end is one with "no compromise" written on the people's heart. It is the one that embraces a true prophetic word, and where people are willing to die to obey Jesus' commands and see His will done on earth.

More statistics:

Evangelical church buildings are used by a congregation on the average two days a week, sometimes only 4-5 hours' total time.(what kind of business is only opened 4-5 hours a week?)
Mosques, Hindu and Buddhist temples are open 7 days a week for at least 10-12 hours a day.
House churches, being "homes" can be God's "houses of prayer" open seven days a week, 24 hours a day.

IV NEW TESTAMENT CHURCH

Definition of church: The people of God, believers who gather together.

Purpose of church: To multiply and spread Jesus' mercy (to seek and save the lost, and to destroy the works of the enemy), to preach and make disciples.

Essentials of church:

Prayer
Evangelism
Discipleship
Fellowship
Worship
Giving

God calls church members to...

Be ambassadors of Christ's kingdom. We are to take what is His and bring it to bear on earth.
Not to simply exist but to be co-creators with Him, completing His work.

Moses told the Lord that unless He went up with the Israelites to the Promised Land, that they would be no different from the pagans who were all ready there: "Then he said to Him, 'If Your Presence does not go with us, do not bring us up from here. For how then will it be known that Your people and I have found grace in Your sight, except You go with us? So we shall be separate, Your people and I, from all the people who are upon the face of the earth'." (Exodus 33:15-16)

Similarly, Jesus promised His disciples that He would send them 'power from on high' (the Holy Spirit, Luke 24:49). We must have His Presence with us to make a difference.

Characteristics of the meetings of the first New Testament church (Acts 2:41-47):

Instruction, 2:42
Fellowship, 2:42
Breaking bread, 2:42
Praying as a body, 2:42; 4:29-31
Worship, 2:47, John 4:24
Effective outreach, signs and wonders, 2:43,47
Agreement, 2:44-47
Mutual assistance and giving, 2:44 (Phil.2:1-4)

New Testament	Traditional Churches
No buildings Anyone can lead Intimacy Accountability to disciple makers Main goal = discipleship All share Go 'church' Visible, and invisible when circumstances favor secrecy Everyone has the same ministry focus Healing, signs and wonders are common	Buildings and costly maintenance Clergy lead, division between clergy and laymen Superficial relations between most members Little if any accountability Main goal = membership Few share Come "church building" Very visible, subject to government control Not focused Little healing, few signs and wonders

V THREE LEVELS OF AUTHORITY

1) New Testament commands (Matthew 22:37-40, 28:18-20; Mark 16:15-18; John 14:15, 15:14)

We obey these commands without question or voting.
We never hinder or needlessly delay obedience to them by exerting control.
Not having, "sufficient knowledge" should not keep us from obeying Jesus commands.

2) New Testament practices that were not commanded (ways in which disciples showed obedience)

Examples include baptizing immediately (Acts 2:41) and procedures of fellowship (1 Corinthians 14:26).
We should follow these principles when possible. They are the methods the disciples used to keep Jesus' commands, but they are not commands. (His commands work in all societies and cultures)
We must not prohibit creativity or force people to follow "these or our" practices because only Christ has the authority to make laws for His church.

3) Ethnic customs or traditions with no New Testament basis:

Many traditions are fine. We need established customs, such as when and where to gather; they establish who we are ethnically and socially and enable us to maintain order and to work in agreement.
We need to nullify established church traditions or customs if they delay, hinder or replace obedience to God's commands.

Church traditions need to be examined against Jesus' commands. Religious customs or traditions can become gods to the crowd, and not a one of us can completely avoid homage to this idol of tradition in one way or other.

Baptism
Ordination
The Lord's Supper
Sunday "church" service
One man doing all the teaching/preaching
Praying with our eyes closed, hands folded, on knees
Laying on of hands

VI. BASIC COMMANDS OF JESUS

We do and teach these commands out of our love for Him. See John 14:15 and 15:14.

These seven commands are general and elementary, they should receive first priority (compare them to Paul"s elementary principles of Christ Hebrews 5:12—6:1-2).

Repent, believe and receive the Holy Spirit (be saved). (Mark 1:15, John 3:15-17)
Be baptized. (Matt. 28:18-20)
Make disciples who receive the Spirit of Power with signs following. (Mark 16:15-18, Luke 24:49, Acts 1:4)
Celebrate the Lord's Supper (Matthew 26:26-28, 1 Corinthians 11:23)
Love God, neighbors, brothers, and enemies with supernatural agape love. (Luke 10:25-37, John 13:34-35, Matthew18:21-35)
Pray. (John 16:24, Luke 18:1, Luke 21:36, Matthew 7:7)
Give. (Luke 6:38, Luke 16:10-13)
Go and make disciples (Matthew 28:18-20, 2 Timothy 2:2) is one of the resurrection commands of Jesus after He rose from the dead. We use, do, and teach His seven basic commands as we fulfill this "Go" command.

Excuses are invalid reasons for neglect of duty. God's servants must be available to Him for supernatural service, because the Gospel is a demonstration of Spirit and Power. (Luke 4:18, Mark 16:15-18; 1 Corinthians 2:4, 4:19-20)

In traditional churches a few people do all the work. Pastors and elders do what God meant for the whole congregation to do. Discipleship sees the abilities of others and empowers them. Pastors and elders should be serving others so "the others" can do the work of the ministry of Christ. Discipleship releases the resources you have into usefulness and obedience to do Christ's ministry. It is liberating, not controlling.

God is seeking world-changing Christians, not worldly-type leaders who control others.

VII CHOOSING AND MAKING DISCIPLES

Who would you disciple? What are the requirements to be a disciple? We are to judge by the Spirit not the flesh. What are some of the attributes that you would want in a disciple? Honesty? Integrity? Faithfulness? Loyalty? Substantial education? Good work ethics? Should they have the attributes of an elder?

How do Jesus' disciples fit the requirements you have for a disciple?

Peter (Matthew 4:18-20, Mark 1:16-20, Luke 5:1-9). Peter was not stable, nor was he honest nor did he remain loyal.
John (Mattthew 4:21-22, Mark 1:19-20, Luke 5:10-11). John was one of the "sons of thunder." He was the only one that wrote saying, "he is God's favorite". He did not remain loyal. Peter and John are both shown to be uneducated men in the book of Acts 4:13.
Nathaniel (John 1:44-51). Nathanial spoke poorly of Nazareth and said that nothing good could come from there - he was bigoted. Also he was lying under a fig tree during the work day - he was lazy. He also deserted Jesus.
Matthew (Matthew 9:9-11). Tax collector, thief, crook, sinner. Even with His experience Jesus did not give him the money to handle.
Judas. The betrayer, Jesus knows this before He chose Him. Why would anybody choose someone who will betray them to be killed, to be a disciple? Judas was given the same as the other 11 were given. Why?

How and why did Jesus select His disciples? Jesus did only what the Father told Him to do. Jesus did not choose them, the Father did. Jesus simply obeyed and trusted the Father.

Only God can show you whom to disciple. He has the plan and knows men's hearts. He is looking for a few God men. The Father knew what He wanted them to be before Jesus began (John 17:20-23).

What is the fruit of an orange tree? When is an orange tree truly fruitful, from a biblical viewpoint? The fruit with its seed is only a part of the tree. The true fruit is another tree that grows from the seed. Anyone can count the seeds in an apple or orange, but only God can count the apples or oranges in a seed.

We eat the flesh and destroy the seed. If we let the flesh die with the seed in it, in death the flesh will nourish the seed and produce real fruit, another tree or plant.

You cannot birth what you are not. Make disciples the way Jesus did, by helping them to know and be like Him, to love Him enough to joyfully obey His commands before all else, doing the Father's will. You must walk the path you want them to walk.

Jesus started with obedience. John 14:15
Jesus had His disciples do what they knew. John 4:1-2
He empowered them. Mark 3:13
He asked them questions that touched their hearts, and then answered the questions in their hearts. Mark 9:33
He provoked them to ask questions about things. He healed when they could not and then answered their questions as to why. Mark 9:28, Luke 8:9.
He let them experience the miraculous and did miracles with them. Matthew 14:13-21 Jesus only blessed the bread, the disciples saw it multiply in their hands and were able to feed the multitudes.
He sent them out, without accompanying them, to use what He had empowered them to do. Luke 9:1-2 After they worked with Him for a while, then He let them work by themselves for a short period.
He empowered the ones whom they were discipling. Luke 10:1 The 70 whom Jesus sent out never had any intimate time with Jesus that is recorded, the disciples had to be sharing with them, while Jesus slept or was doing other things. Either that, or they were new disciples and He gave them power at the beginning, trusting them with no intimate training to do what the twelve close disciples had been trained to do.
Finally, Jesus left His disciples physically. Luke 24:51 He gave them the responsibility to complete what He had begun. The disciples had all failed Him, left Him and abandoned what they had learned. Jesus went, found them and gave them the Kingdom. He did not start over with new people nor did He force them out of His church because of their failures. He empowered them again and let them take over the leadership of the movement that He started. They were not cast out or stripped of their authority like we would have done if someone deserted us.

Jesus' discipleship brought the disciples to a new place in their relationship with Him. "No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you." John 15:15

Jesus brought His disciples to a place of oneness. (John 17:20-23) The discipleship process became one of interaction among friends, and was no longer that of a master over servants. He made them into family!

Take time to follow Jesus through Scripture as He called his disciples and led them.
Look at what the disciples did.
Look at Jesus' attitude and goals for them, and how He continually exhorted them to be like Him.
See how discipline and the need of obedience were brought into their lives not by control but as they walked and did things with Jesus.
Find out how Jesus made disciples who desired to obey and walk with Him even in trials.

MODEL, ASSIST, WATCH, LEAVE

A good trainer is a disciple-maker who does not teach his students what they can learn for themselves. Trainees learn more when they think that they discover answers by their own efforts.

What are you really teaching your disciples? What they do is really what you have taught them, no matter what you have said. If believers are simply sitting, it is because we have taught in some way that being idle is acceptable. About 85% of all Christian believers are sitting, not serving. If this is the case in your church, with those you have taught, you must truthfully confess that the believers are idle because that is what you have taught them, in spite of what you may have spoken with your lips.

Discover Jesus' and Paul's model for discipling in these passages:

Luke 10
Mark chapters 5 & 6 shows Jesus' example of not being worried about the outcome of obedience. (Jesus went, miraculously healed the man who was tormented by the 'Legion,' was rejected, left, came back later and saw the harvest. He did not fight or try to force the people to believe.)
2 Timothy 2:2; Titus 1:5

Facts about good discipling:

If you have no passion, then neither will the people who follow you. Passion is contagious. God does exhibit emotions; so should we.
Discipling requires that we listen more to the Spirit and to our disciples, before we teach.
If you are not doing what you teach, then neither will your followers. Your teaching method and example will make them controllers or liberators, tyrants or servants.
Training is designed for the disciple's need, not to promote our plans. Our interests and schedule of training should never be more important than their needs.
New churches and leaders need different training from mature ones. Once people are walking the walk, then teaching can change and we can use different formats, but discipleship can never stop!
Discipling is meant to reproduce. Start with simple methods of training so that those whom you train can reproduce it as they train others. This is not just learning with the mind but doing the work. Emphasize intimacy with Christ, doing the work with Him.

NUTS AND BOLTS

Discipleship training or mentoring must be motivated by love, obedience-oriented and both natural and naturally-supernatural. It must...

Be deliberate.
Be empowering.
Set people free to follow Jesus, without restrictive, man-made rules.
Be oriented to the each person's literacy level.
Be based on the examples of the New Testament.
Be bathed in intimate prayer that hears from the Lord, not superficial, religious words that sound like prayer.
Reproduce after its own kind (orange trees reproduce orange trees; good disciples reproduce good disciples).
Be passionate and filled with love. Passion is contagious, and Love never fails.

How many of the people in your society or area died today with out hearing about Jesus?

VIII CHOICES CREATE

God is not the only one who creates - He gave us the power to make creative choices. Our choices create different futures.

God remains the same, creation continues to grow and change.

Fear of change is a fear of the future.

We make choices and the choices we make produce change. They dictate and direct us to future choices.
Our choices change our world and our options and opportunities. They can even change our eternal destination.
Has your church grown or changed because of you changing or making new choices?
A sequel to the Acts of the Apostles is still being written because God's apostles will continue His work until Jesus returns.
Our choices have to do with life—birth, growth, change, movement, reproduction and death.

All actions are the result of decisions or "non-decisions" - Choices!

If we fail to make a decision out of lack of will, we have willingly surrendered our initiative and freedom, and have made a choice to let others make our choices for us.

Death is a part of life. Things must die to let others grow. Leaves that die fertilize trees. There is a time and season for all things. At times we need to make the choice to let some things die to produce life.

As humans, all of our choices and actions are based on incomplete, sometimes inaccurate or even contradictory information. Risks must be taken. Risk is a vital part of making choices and of life. Risk is vital, to truly live as a Christian.

"Chance" is not a threat, but an opportunity that we must be always ready to seize and follow through. Calling something a coincidence is simply not recognizing God in our lives.

IX RISK

Without risk we will go nowhere and do nothing.

The definition of risk is; possibility of loss or danger, taking a chance, to expose to danger or change.

Here are some suggestions and thoughts involving risk:

Risk thinks, then acts outside of the box (not according to custom), "on the edge".
Risk dares to go into unmapped territory, where no one has gone before.
Persecution will be normal when you do discipling and church planting. Some persecution will come from traditional churches.
Thinking is not acting. If there is no action then there is no risk.
Make your church a "going" church.
Let people make mistakes. You have! Risk your reputation for them. Jesus did with you.
Teach the reasons for tithing and giving - not just for your need!
Stop building temples for men to see, build the Church (the body of believers).
Be driven by passion not reputation. It is amazing what can be done when it does not matter if you get the credit or the disgrace gained from your actions or theirs.
Network with other ministries, be the first to do something new. Explore. Initiate change.

Fear stops most of what God wants us to do. A risk taker does not fear people or failure. In Jesus we have power to resist fear. God has not given us a spirit of fear but of power, love and discipline (a sound mind). 2 Timothy 1:7

What are your fears; being vulnerable to others or their judgment, being exposed, disappointment or disappointing, rejection of any kind -- by men or God, success, failure(loosing your position or status), embarrassing the Lord? These fears will keep us from intimacy with the Father and therefore keep us from being free and effective in the Christian life and discipleship.

Which is the greater risk; to obey the commands in the New Testament (examples, Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 16:15-18; Luke 24:49 John 20:21-23) or to ignore them?

X LEADERS' PURPOSE
Ephesians 4:11-16, 1 Peter 5:1-4, Joshua 18:3-4

The purpose of leading the body of Christ is to:

Equip people for ministry (give them tools). Ephesians 4:12.
Edify people for life in Christ and in His body (build them up). Ephesians 4:12
Bring them to the unity of faith, knowledge of the Son, to a perfect man. Ephesians 4:13.
Bring people to the measure of the fullness of Christ. Ephesians 3:13-21

- that they may grow up in all things, into Him, Christ.

What is the fullness of Christ? What does it look like? Find the answers in Matthew 20:25-28; Luke 22:24-26 and John 13:13-17. (In actuality it is to be like Him, John 17:18, 20:21)

Leaders are to be like Jesus. Examples are David and Joseph. Honor, obedience and sacrifice are the main qualities needed to be true leaders in the Gospel.

Compare the likenesses and differences between the two great leaders, Moses and Jesus. What are the differences in obedience and what happened?

Moses was told to take the leaders of the tribes out to be in the tabernacle with God but he did not.
Moses then had to do everything by himself and when he left to go and be with God, the people sinned. No leaders were left who had been in intimacy with God.
Jesus put His disciples to work immediately, empowered them and brought them into intimacy with the Father and Himself.
Jesus left His disciples to continue the building of His church and they did so. They had known Jesus intimately and thus obeyed Him fully and immediately, out of love for Him.

XI ALLIES AND ENEMIES

Enemies	Allies
The flesh, Romans 8:5-7 The world, James 4:4; 1 John 2:15-17 Satan, John 10:10 Your traditions, Matthew 15:1-9 Small expectations, Matthew 14:31 Following man, not God, Galatians 1:10 Fear, 2 Timothy 1:7 Pride, Proverbs 16:18 The tongue, James 3:1-12 Gossip, James 4:11 Relying on our strength, 2 Chronicles 32:8	Jesus Name, Acts 4:12; Philippians 2:9-13 Testimony and blood, Revelation 12:11 Authority, Luke 10:19-20; Mark 16:17-18 Word of God, Hebrews 4:12; 2 Timothy 3:15-17 Faith, Matthew 19:26 Following God, Matthew 4:19 Love, 1 Corinthians 13:8 Humility, James 4:7 God's Word, Matthew 12:36-37; Proverbs 6:2; 12:6, 14 Prayer, Ephesians 6:18, James 5:16 Holy Spirit's power, John 14:26; 15:26; 16:13

PRAYER IN THE CHRISTIAN LIFE

It is one thing to have a name that is written in Heaven as being a man of God, but it is quite another to have your name feared in hell as being God's man. God's man is someone who knows who they are and who Satan is not. (Satan is not able to overcome Jesus or Jesus' disciples, he is nothing more than the leader of the fallen angels.) Christians are the Temple of God. (1Corinthians 3:16; 6:19-20) Greater is He in us...(1 John 4:4)

Prayer is not a part of the Christian walk, it is the Christian walk. That is what Jesus and Paul meant when they told us to pray always and without ceasing, Luke 18:1; 1 Thessalonians 5:17.
Without practical, focused prayer, we will never see what we desire to see to the extent we would like to see it.
Jesus did nothing but what the Father told Him to do; so He must have been in communion with His father constantly. Prayer is a two-way connection, not a one way conversation.
Prayer without ceasing keeps your heart open and in touch with the Father at all times.
Prayer is not simply asking the Father what you want, but is conversation that brings us to understand the Father's heart, to know what He wants and then to speak in agreement with that. To be truly effective in prayer or spiritual warfare, intimacy with the Father must come first: He has the answers and the authority.
Praise God for who He is, and cleanse your heart. Take your thoughts captive and bind the enemy from your prayer time. Let God search and try your heart.
Invite the Holy Spirit to lead and talk to you in your prayer. Wait on the Lord and on His Spirit.
Many Christians make plans without prayer, and then pray and expect God to bless those plans. Rather, strive to know the mind of God before you plan. Pray as a child of God, from our position in Christ, for His desire and purpose.

XII PRAYER AND PRAYER WALKING

Jesus did not only walk, He prayed, Luke 10:1-2; 18:1. Paul did the same, 1 Thessalonians 5:17.

Joshua at Jericho led the first prayer walk. Here is how to do prayer walks:

Map the area, know the history, have God's plan, do not simply start walking haphazardly. Numbers 13:1-3, 17-20, Joshua 2:1; Luke 10:1-21 A map gives you a big advantage when in war.
Go at least in pairs (take a younger disciple with you). Luke 10:1, Joshua 18:3-10
Be attentive, because Satan is stalking you. 1 Peter 5:8
Know how to listen while you pray and know who you are in Christ, in God’s sight. 1 John 3:2
Be prepared - pray in groups before you go.
Be looking for a 'man of peace' even as you begin. Expect God to lead! Luke 10:5-7
If possible write down what you hear and see, everything that is impressed on you as you pray and find out if what you felt or heard is true. Add it to your map. This develops your hearing from the Lord and helps you to recognize what is of the Lord and what is not.
Expect to see changes, bad and good, as the Spirit moves in response to the Lord and your prayers. People will get glad, mad, or sad. There will be anger and change!

See the spiritual things in (or through) the natural things around you. Wage battle, find victory in the Spirit, and see the results in the natural realm.

Information that may prove helpful for informed praying includes:

Racial and ethnic makeup of the people
General social and economic needs of the community as a whole
Material of the community (roads, water, etc.)
Common physical and material needs of the people
Religious presence
Names (if available) of Christian workers who serve in the area
Possibilities of future ministry
What spiritual activity is already under way, including opposition
Do not underestimate the need to live in your armor, always! Ephesians 6:10-18 Satan does not sleep. He will not give you the ground you desire without a battle. He is a deceiver and a liar.
Use every piece of armor mentioned in Ephesians 6:12-18.
To deal with demonic oppression, follow Luke 10:19-20.
Romans 8:14-17 (God's assurance that we are His sons) should be your confidence.
Be aware of spiritual forces sent to stop your prayer.
Be spiritually prepared. Remember that we struggle not against flesh and blood but against demonic powers, Ephesians 6:12.
Talk and listen to God in a conversational manner.
Use scripture in your prayer, either direct quotes or paraphrases.
Do not feel uncomfortable during times of silence.
Smile and be pleasant to people you meet. Pray for them.
It is normal if prayer walking feels awkward the first few times.
Singing is often an effective way to do spiritual warfare; worship and praise God.
Be flexible as the Holy Spirit leads. Listen and pray. Do not try to understand everything that you hear and see in a rational way. 1 Corinthians 1:18-30
Pray together as a team at the conclusion of the walk.
Keep a daily journal at the conclusion of each day - add to your map.
Keep your focus - winning souls to Christ, defeating the enemy.

XIII 'END' VISION
Aim for Strategic Results

For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost, whether he has enough to finish it—lest, after he has laid the foundation, and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, saying, 'This man began to build and was not able to finish.' Or what king, going to make war against another king, does not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? Or else, while the other is still a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks conditions of peace. Luke 14:28-32

Look beyond your limitations and the barriers that surround you.
To plan your work, start at the end, envisioning the final results, and then work back toward where you are at the present.
This is like a carpenter looking at a house plan, and then working through each part of it. See the finished design first, then build.
Plan easy steps toward your final goal. Each step must be obvious, simple, easy to do, and must lead directly to the next step.

Prayerfully determine to succeed before you begin:

Know what God wants you to do. He said, "My people perish for a lack of knowledge," Hosea 4:6.
Jesus had a plan, from the foundation of the world.
Plans must be purposeful and bathed in prayer.
Let God give you a big vision; do not put limits on what God can do through what you do.
Some Christian workers find it helpful to make a general plan for the next three years' work. Then they add a more detailed six-month plan with simple steps.

Obedience is our victory. Jesus showed the way; we leave the results of our obedience to God the Father, but we expect His Word to stand. The church and discipleship are Jesus' vision. He has determined the purpose. We simply obey.

The process of 'end vision' has four simple steps.

1) Consider what your vision or goal will look like when it is fulfilled.
2) Consider what steps you will take to get there.
3) Make your plans by thinking backwards step-by-step, starting with your final goal, and seeing what must happen prior to it to prepare for it. Keep thinking backwards until you arrive at your present position.
4) Work forward through each step, modifying your plans when you discover conditions different from what you foresaw.

Large projects require a large vision, with many complicated steps toward your goals. End vision, or planning backward, is the most effective way to plan. To reach a large number of people with the Gospel, visualize by faith in your heart what things will look like when you achieve your goal.

End vision helps you to see your need for others' help and to incorporate their visions and ministries into your plans. You can not do it all. "WE" are the Church!

How many disciples will you make?

.....

I would like to acknowledge George Paterson and his influence on us and what we do as well as Galen Currah. Victor Chaudhrie also has been a great support to us as has Bill and Susan Smith. Some of the original outline points came from George's teachings and our association with him. He continues to be a great encouragement to us. There are many others who have mentored us and put up with us. Thanks. Neil and Dana

FURTHER RESOURCES

House2house.com
Tony and Felicity Dale, simple church advocates, books and other links for discipleship and church planting tools. Their links page connects to many other sites.

CMAresources.org
Neil and Dana Cole, simple church materials and other helps to facilitate reaching the lost through discipleship and small group ministry.

Mentorandmultiply.com
George Paterson, mentoring and small group materials proven to work around the world on a variety of subjects relating to growing leaders and ministries into maturity.

Copyright © 2010 Neil & Dana Gamble
All Rights Reserved (materials and photos)
http://fathershand.net

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®.
Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

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