Be committed

It's useful to agree some standards to help us in our lives together as disciples; this guide doesn't give you any rules to follow so you will need to work out your own. Every group is different, but getting into some sort of discipleship rhythm is useful. Our aim is already clear (1 Corinthians 10:31-11:1) but the details need working out.

Litter needs clearing up

Try hard to discover what really matters most to you. You'll need to talk about it, and pray together, and you'll need patience because it may come gradually. You're looking for the group's sense of purpose, something that really grips you, a shared passion. Once you understand why your group exists you can begin to work out some of the details together. You'll be searching for objectives that are both exciting and challenging. As soon as you recognise these group purposes start working towards them.

Choose one or two activities for each of them. Some examples might help. Suppose you really care about the state of your local area, you might organise or join a weekly walk to clear litter or adopt a piece of waste ground and turn it into a beautiful flower bed. Or perhaps you're passionate about homeless people in your town. If so, find practical ways to regularly bring them food or give them shelter. Maybe the group feels driven to dig deep into the Bible: in that case work through a study course together, find and watch a relevant DVD or online video together each week, or share something significant that you've learned or found challenging. One or two could do this every time you meet, different people each time so that everyone is active in sharing.

If enough people in a group are actively growing as disciples it will become the norm. Talk about what you are doing, demonstrate it, give plenty of examples, tell stories of successful outcomes, and encourage others to share too. Try to get more groups of people engaged, tell them about your activities, invite them to come and see for themselves, suggest they try working through this guide with their own group, help them get started.

Discuss – Spend a little time right now talking about the group's passions and purpose. Consider options for practical ideas like the examples above, and decide how you could work on these together. If it's difficult to make progress give yourselves more time and come back to it in a few weeks or months. Oh, and pray about it.

Becoming disciples

Becoming disciples is important because it's the main way believers grow to be more like Jesus. It's not a process with a beginning and an end; it's ongoing throughout our lives. And we're not automatically disciples simply because we have believed. Not all of the crowds who listened to Jesus or were healed by him were disciples. Only those who followed him and were greatly changed could claim to be disciples. (Matthew 4:19, Matthew 10:38)

An apprentice thatcher

The English word 'disciple' is rather old-fashioned these days, but it has more or less the same meaning as 'apprentice'. In particular it's all about learning to do the things that the expert is already doing, and Jesus is the expert here. Apprentices don't just learn from books; this is a hands-on experience. At first, things will often go wrong, but apprentices get better and better by repeatedly doing something under supervision. Expect that to happen to you as Jesus' apprentice.

Because this change is hard and takes time, Jesus put most of his effort into three years of living closely with a small band of men and women who were prepared to do much more than simply be amazed. They were utterly transformed in those three years. The fact that Jesus worked this way reveals how important making disciples was and is. He put everything he had into those few, and when he returned to the Father they were the ones he continued to work with to reach the nations and build his church. (John 17:6-23)

Jesus needs men and women who will become conformed to his image. They are his disciples.

The challenges for us include rejecting false gods such as consumerism, becoming more and more like Jesus, and understanding that we most effectively change by doing, not merely by thinking. Imagine an apprentice plumber who had studied all the books on plumbing but had never bent a pipe or soldered a joint.

Discuss – 'We most effectively change by doing, not merely by thinking.' Is this true in your experience? List some examples. Think about the skills involved in sport, work, music, art. Are there any areas of life in which regular practice doesn't help?

Jesus at the centre

As his followers, Jesus should be central in all we do. Few would argue with that! The alternative is to do things in our own strength and wisdom and we know this will never be enough.

How is it working out so far?

Jesus, Disciple, Mission, Church (JDMC) is reaching further and is showing signs of effectiveness. The pace is definitely picking up. The material is starting to be used in Nottingham and I'm going through it with two groups in St Neots. One of my friends, John, is really fired up about it and may soon explore ways to reach others here in the town (he's planning to go out and deep). Copies are being downloaded around the world and I have no idea how these are being used, nor do I know if others are distributing or modifying the material.

More than community

Church is a community, so church life is a form of community life. But what kind of community should church be? After all, a music appreciation society is a community, but so is an orchestra. Which is most like church?