Journey Groups consist of 5-10 men and/or women meeting weekly in a comfortable, casual setting with a trained leader. The members of Journey Groups encourage one another intellectually and spiritually as they work through material designed to develop growing, serving, and missional lives. Truth, Equipping, Accountability, Mission and Supplication are the essential ingredients to discipleship. You will discover a deeper level of fellowship and camaraderie with those in your group. You will find yourself surrounded by new friends who will accept you, share honestly about the challenges they face, be there to support you through hard times and encourage you in reaching your goals.
What is Discipleship?
"Discipleship is nothing more than having a life product, being intentional about imparting that product, and spending enough time doing the right things to impart that product, so that the recipient of that life product will want to impart it as well." Randy Pope
Our life product is "being a mature and equipped follower of Christ for the lost world."
We are intentional about imparting our life product when we make a specific plan to not only reach out to the lost, but to then share with them what we have learned and teach them how to do the same.
We spend enough time doing the right things to help someone become a mature and equipped follower of Christ when we meet with them regularly in a discipleship setting.
What is a mature and equipped follower of Christ?
We define this as one who:
1. Lives consistently under the control of the Holy Spirit and the direction of the Word of God.
2. Has discovered, developed and is using their spiritual gift(s)
3. Has learned to effectively share their faith
4. Gives evidence of being: A faithful member of God’s church
5. Gives evidence of being: An effective manager of life, relationships and resources
6. Gives evidence of being: A willing minister to God’s people, and
7. Gives evidence of being: An available messenger to non-kingdom people.
Discipleship is not:
- Discipleship is not classroom teaching and learning, which is the imparting of truth only.
- It is not merely the sum total of a Christian’s church experience.
- It is not merely serving, although a disciple serves.
- It is not merely mission, although a disciple must have mission in his life.
- It is not the learning of the materials.
What materials are used?
Journey groups use curriculum entitled "The Journey". It is a three-year curriculum which contains six, six-week modules each year. Unlike other curriculums which focus solely on Bible study, is based upon the five ingredients that we at Lighthouse believe are essential for life change: Truth, Equipping, Accountability, Mission and Supplication.
Truth - What God has revealed for His people to know, understand and obey.
Truth is critical. However, finding, learning and knowing truth alone does not change lives. A person must also be shown how to implement what he or she knows.
Equipping - Massaging God’s truth into life so that it becomes understandable and usable.
Equipping must be added to truth. Not only does a person need to hear and learn truth, but he or she must also be shown how to use and apply the truth. Equipping is helping people to implement what they know.
Accountability - Asking the hard questions and promoting Godly behavior.
Even though a person is equipped to apply truth, that doesn’t mean they will do it. Accountability questions are added to encourage and exhort an individual on their spiritual journey.
Mission - Engaging with the lost world with the intention of imparting the gospel
Mission is the great motivation in discipleship. It drives your quest for truth and provides a goal to work toward as you apply what you learn. Each week you will be asked Mission questions to get you thinking about and relating to those without Christ and the privilege of sharing the Gospel with them.
Supplication - Engaging in conversation with God
All of the above must be under-girded in prayer. We must never think that following a curriculum is the secret to spiritual growth. It is God who transforms lives.
During each of the three years, a different theme or emphasis will be carried through the curriculum. By using this material, over the course of the three years you will gain essential skills in how to effectively study and apply God’s Word to your life. You will also have the opportunity to develop your personal and family Life Plan.
A Three-year Journey
(One year at a time)
There is nothing magical or even Biblical about three years. Practically speaking, it is short enough to be fully utilized, yet long enough to cover the abundance of subjects that need to be explored in an environment of discipleship.
