The Lost Art of Disciple Making

All too often it seems, after people come to trust Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, there is no structured next step.  Most simply start attending church, maybe getting involved in a Bible study group, and the most ambitious perhaps serve in church in some capacity like helping in Sunday school, or lending a hand in preparation for church events.  Leroy Eims, author of “The Lost Art of Disciple Making,” believes there needs to be much more going on in the lives of new believers to help them achieve their full potential for God.

Eims makes the clear point that we were called by Jesus to make disciples.  Disciples are those qualified to share the Gospel with others.  The training for such a person needs to be comprehensive in order to develop a well-rounded understanding of the Gospel and a well-rounded individual who will adapt to specific circumstances.  Eims lays out a list of 30 qualities that need to be developed in a believer to establish the profile of a disciple.  Throughout his book, he makes the point that all of his suggestions will need to be adapted to the individual being trained – some will need to work through 30 steps and others may only need instruction and encouragement in a limited number of the steps.  The most important aspect of the training, as Eims sees it, is one-on-one interaction with a fully matured disciple who will guide the trainee throughout the process.  Eims doesn’t believe one-size-fits-all programs are of much value.  While some group instruction can be helpful, in the end, real growth takes place when someone is given personal attention from a sincerely caring mentor.

The art of disciple making doesn’t end once the trainee has become a disciple.  The growth process continues in the one-on-one training so that the disciple can become what Eims calls a worker.  The worker is a disciple who has the ability to make other disciples.

Finally, after the disciple has reached full maturity and become a worker, the next step is to train those with the right gifts to become leaders who will lead a team of workers.

Leroy Eims has a long career training disciples, workers, and leaders all over the world.  He has built an extraordinarily well designed training system that is fully adaptable to any and all who wish to put it to use.  All the details are included in this meticulously laid out system that will over time expand any ministry into a vibrant community of disciples, workers, and leaders.

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