Run With Horses

Engage, The First Step in a Discipleship Pathway

24_07_06 -Ep.320  - Run With Horses Podcast  - Engage – Part One of the  Discipleship Pathway
Podcast:  rwh.podbean.comWebsite:  www.runwithhorses.netYoutube:   https://youtube.com/@rwhpodcastFacebook:    https://www.facebook.com/RWHpodcastInstagram:    https://www.instagram.com/rwh_podcastTwitter:   https://twitter.com/RWH_podcast
Last week we began talking about a discipleship pathway for the church. Today we begin to break it down and consider the first step. What does it mean to Engage with your community?
Welcome to Run With Horses! My name is Norman and my goal is to help you thrive as a follower of Jesus. The spiritual life is both incredibly simple and potentially the most difficult part of your life. God invites you to live intentionally and on His mission. It’s very cool that we can do that together!
*******
HABITS - ThanksgivingThe Discipleship pathway is intended to help a church be intentional about helping people take steps toward Christ-likeness. However, individually each one of us has the same responsibility and opportunity to pursue that growth ourself. One thing that you can do personally to support a life of pursuing Jesus is work to develp new habits that make it easier to move forward.Today I want to focus on Thanksgiving.Thanksgiving is a habit that we all can and should develop and ingrain in our lives.1 Thess. 5:16-18, 
How? Make it easy and give yourself reminders. Memorize this verse or others like it.One step at a time. This is a good place to start.
******
A quick review:What is as discipleship pathway? Simply put, an intentional plan to help followers of Jesus grow toward Christ-likeness. That word intentional is key.
MY WORKING DEFINITION OF CHURCHA CHURCH is a group of followers of Jesus who worship Him in spirit and truth, humbly offering their lives as living sacrifices, together living out the mission of Jesus as His witnesses to the world, by sharing the gospel and making disciples through teaching obedience to His commands as they edify and EQUIP OTHERS to join them on His mission.
The discipleship pathway is an intentional plan to equip others to be on the mission of Jesus.
Don’t forget the goals of the pathway. Clear goals are important. What are the goals of a discipleship pathway? a. self-feeding Christians b. everyday missionaries c. disciple-makers d. pastors e. new churches f. all members of the church, shepherded well
First step in the Pathway.
ENGAGE, then CONNECT, EQUIP, RELEASE
ENGAGE -  Everything is covered with the clear expectation of Intentional Engagement by all members of the church.
Actions by the Church, outside the four walls primarily.* Community Engagement Where and how are we involved in the community? How does the church family encourage and support community activities and projects?
* Relationship Building We seem to have lost the ability to build realtionships! What does it take to make a new friend? Time and conversation. Galatians 5:22-23, 22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23gentleness, self-control.
* Evangelism – Gospel Conversations -  built on relationships. Not a rote prepackaged gospel conversation, although there is a time and place for those, but bringing your friends into your relationship with Jesus and sharing hwo the Gospel has impacted your life.
* Pre-Baptism – following up with those God is working in. - Gospel review – How well do they understand what Jesus did on the cross? - Christian Life Basics – How do you build a relationship with Jesus?  > Prayer  > Bible Reading  > Church Family - Church Family – get to know relationally, invite your unbelieving friends into your church family network of friends  > Importance of–   > Purpose of – introduce the mission of Jesus
** Baptism/ Membership – connected with the church family officially.
Equipping by the Church- support and training for engagement1.  Gospel Foundations. -  grounded in God’s Word and His work in our life a. salvation and faith – review and talk about your own life change comfortably b. Jesus' finished work on the cross and the implications of that work, what Jesus did in and through you. c. our new identity and all that means for life, who we are has changed and impacts everything!
 2. First Steps in Gospel Ministry a. my testimony – your story connected with God’s story b. Three Circles gospel presentation c. The Bridge gospel presentation
 
*********DOCTRINEJuly – GodAugust – JesusSeptember – Holy Spirit
God is OmnipresentJeremiah 23:23-24, Psalm 139:7-10, 
 
Thanks for joining me again today! Stop and say a prayer for your church family today! I’d love to hear from you, write me at norman@runwithhorses.net or leave a comment on the Run With Horses Podcast facebook page. Take time today to pause and thank God for His work in your life and keep running.
 

What is a Discipleship Pathway?

24_07_06 -Ep.319  - Run With Horses Podcast  - Beginning A Discipleship Pathway
 
Podcast: rwh.podbean.com
Website: www.runwithhorses.net
Youtube:  https://youtube.com/@rwhpodcast
Facebook:    https://www.facebook.com/RWHpodcast
Instagram:    https://www.instagram.com/rwh_podcast
Twitter:  https://twitter.com/RWH_podcast
 
I have spent some time looking at the a definition of the church recently, today we begin thinking about what it means to live this out as a church.
 
Welcome to Run With Horses! My name is Norman and my goal is to help you thrive as a follower of Jesus. The spiritual life is both incredibly simple and potentially the most difficult part of your life. God invites you to live intentionally and on His mission. It’s very cool that we can do that together!
 
A quick review:
 
MY WORKING DEFINITION OF CHURCH
A CHURCH is a group of followers of Jesus who worship Him in spirit and truth, humbly offering their lives as living sacrifices, together living out the mission of Jesus as His witnesses to the world, by sharing the gospel and making disciples through teaching obedience to His commands as they edify and equip others to join them on His mission.
 
Why do we need this kind of essential definition of the church? 
Clear vision – who we are and what we do
Unity
Clear purpose – what do we need to focus on, How do we accomplish our purpose
Goals and Strategic planning, Intentionality
Church planting – more and faster
Mission
 
So what does it look like to be a member of something like this? What is my role? How am I supposed to act and what should I do?
The church IS it’s members. Every member needs clarity of vision and purpose.
 
The church is a group of people who are intentionally and increasingly moving along a path toward becoming like Jesus.
So, are you a good church member? How about a good disciple of Jesus?
What can you do to help your church as you all grow in Christ-likeness and pursue Him and His mission together?
These are all questions we have asked in the past. Now, let’s begin to develop some answers.
A church needs a discipleship pathway. What do I mean by that?
Some define it as a disciple making strategy for the church. Navigators has called it “a sequenced plan to move disciples from one stage of growth to the next.” 
REF: https://navigatorschurchministries.org/2023/07/21/growing-disciples-the-discipleship-pathway/
What you should take away from any definition is that it is intentional, some thought has been put into it, and it has the goal of helping people grow toward Christ-likeness.
Clear goals are important. What are the goals of a discipleship pathway?
a. self-feeding Christians
b. everyday missionaries
c. disciple-makers
d. pastors
e. new churches
f. all members of the church, shepherded well

Life is A Journey

24_06_29 -Ep.318 - Run With Horses Podcast - Life is a Journey
 
Podcast: rwh.podbean.com
Website: www.runwithhorses.net
Youtube: https://youtube.com/@rwhpodcast
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RWHpodcast
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rwh_podcast
Twitter: https://twitter.com/RWH_podcast
 

Becoming a Responsible Adult

24_06_22 -Ep.317 - Run With Horses Podcast - Becoming a Responsible Adult
 
Podcast: rwh.podbean.com
Website: www.runwithhorses.net
Youtube: https://youtube.com/@rwhpodcast
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RWHpodcast
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rwh_podcast
Twitter: https://twitter.com/RWH_podcast

Becoming a Better Church Member

Podcast: rwh.podbean.com
Website: www.runwithhorses.net
Youtube: https://youtube.com/@rwhpodcast
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RWHpodcast
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rwh_podcast
Twitter: https://twitter.com/RWH_podcast
 
I have spent some time looking at the a definition of the church recently, today I want to consider what it means to be a good member of the church.
 
Welcome to Run With Horses! My name is Norman and my goal is to help you thrive as a follower of Jesus. The spiritual life is both incredibly simple and potentially the most difficult part of your life. God invites you to live intentionally and on His mission. It’s very cool that we can do that together!
 
A quick reminder:
 
MY WORKING DEFINITION OF CHURCH
A CHURCH is a group of followers of Jesus who worship Him in spirit and truth, humbly offering their lives as living sacrifices, together living out the mission of Jesus as His witnesses to the world, by sharing the gospel and making disciples through teaching obedience to His commands as they edify and equip others to join them on His mission.
 
So what does it look like to be a member of something like this? What is my role? How am I supposed to act and what should I do?
The church IS it’s members so what we do makes the church what it is to some extent.
 
The Church Member is a Disciple of Jesus
*Arrange their life to be with Jesus
*Intentionally pursue the character of Jesus
*Increasingly love what Jesus loves
*Are committed to the mission of Jesus because of their devotion to Jesus
 
Knows the mission of the church
Prays for church and it’s leaders
Understands the value of their presence
Pursues peace and unity in the church family
Has healthy relationships with unbelievers
Teachable
Humble
Patient
An encourager
Is a theologian
Is a growing disciple maker
Builds up others
Think about ministry and how to do it better
Work hard
We over me. Lives for others.
Understands difference between preferences and Biblical principles.
 
 

Are Short Term Missions Trips Worth It?

24_06_08 -Ep.315 - Run With Horses Podcast - Are Short-Term Missions Trips Worth It?
 
Podcast: rwh.podbean.com
Website: www.runwithhorses.net
Youtube: https://youtube.com/@rwhpodcast
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RWHpodcast
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rwh_podcast
Twitter: https://twitter.com/RWH_podcast
 
I have just returned from a 3 week trip to Japan taking two groups, one from a Bible college and one from a church. I’m often asked if these trips are worth it, today, let’s explore that question!
 
Welcome to Run With Horses! My name is Norman and my goal is to help you thrive as a follower of Jesus. The spiritual life is both incredibly simple and potentially the most difficult part of your life. God invites you to live intentionally and on His mission. It’s very cool that we can do that together!
 
Mission trips are by definition focused on the mission of Jesus, but are they really? How do short term trips fit into the bigger picture of what it means to be the church?
 
MY WORKING DEFINITION OF CHURCH
A CHURCH is a group of followers of Jesus who worship Him in spirit and truth, humbly offering their lives as living sacrifices, together living out the mission of Jesus as His witnesses to the world, by sharing the gospel and making disciples through teaching obedience to His commands as they edify and equip others to join them on His mission.
 
Goals of short term trips:
 
Some examples:
https://ministry127.com/missions/4-goals-for-a-short-term-missions-trip
 
https://leadership.lifeway.com/2019/06/26/three-objectives-for-a-short-term-missions-trip/
 
https://www.youthpastortheologian.com/blog/are-short-term-missions-trips-worth-it
 
1. Work Projects
2. Support missionary in relationship building
3. Encourage local churches and missionaries
4. Recruit new workers for the harvest
5. Inform and recruit prayer partnerships
6. Give both the church going and the churches receiving a better vision of the Universal church.
 
Why do short term missions trips sometimes have a bad reputation?
1. Vacation for rich Americans
2. Fulfilling for team, meaningless for nationals.
3. No clear purpose.
4. Team unprepared.
5. Waste of missionary time.
 
GRIT
 
 
Doing it Well:
https://missionguide.global/articles/missionexcellence
 
https://www.imb.org/2017/05/18/5-things-consider-church-plans-short-term-mission-trip/
 
1. Have clear goals that fit in with the missionary or national church pastor’s long-term vision and strategy.
2.Take time to train and prepare the team to be servants in all areas of life.
3. Use the opportunity to equip the team in new ways that will benefit the sending church when they return. New training opportunities.
4. Support disciple making in both the sending and receiving churches.
5. Plan ongoing evaluations and debrief, get the receiving church’s evaluation.
6. Pray!
7. Choose the right people for the team
 
Thanks for joining me again today! Stop and say a prayer for your church family today! I’d love to hear from you, write me at norman@runwithhorses.net or leave a comment on the Run With Horses Podcast facebook page. Take time today to pause and thank God for His work in your life and keep running.
 
 

Progressing on the Mission of Jesus

24_06_01 Run With Horses Podcast - Progressing on the Mission of JesusI hope to return to looking at our definition of church soon but as I am traveling and don't have access to my notes at the moment, I am going to take a parallel path that should lead into the next topic, and Today, that topic is the mission of Jesus.Welcome to Run With Horses! My name is Norman and my goal is to help you thrive a a follower of Jesus. It may be a long road but it shouldn't be a lonely road because we get to travel it together with the body of Christ, His beautiful church! Thanks for letting me be part of your journey.
 
MY WORKING DEFINITION OF CHURCH
A CHURCH is a group of followers of Jesus who worship Him in spirit and truth, humbly offering their lives as living sacrifices, together living out the mission of Jesus as His witnesses to the world, by sharing the gospel and making disciples through teaching obedience to His commands as they edify and equip others to join them on His mission.The next official part of the definition of church that we will look at is the mission of Jesus. It may be jumping the gun a little but I want to spend some time today going over some simple steps that you can take to grow in your direct involvement in the mission of Jesus.I think 2 Corinthians 5: 17-20 and Matthew 28:18-20 give a good summary of the mission for now.First 2 Corinthians 5:17-20Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ’s behalf, be reconciled to God.Matthew 28:18-20And 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.Throw in Ephesians 4: 11-16 and you have a good idea of the mission of Jesus and the work of the ministry that Jesus called us to.And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ— from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.But practically what are the things that you can do to directly grow in your involvement in the mission?0. Pray!For your spiritual growth, for your personal ministry, for gospel workers, for your church, for the lost in your sphere of influence.1. Remember your testimony.Go through again what Jesus did on your behalf on the Cross and the changes that He worked in your life. Not the point of today's show but a quick partial reminder: forgiveness of sin, reconciliation with God, adoption into God's family, eternal life, received the righteousness of Jesus, etc, etc. Be encouraged! This is what Jesus did for you!2. Remember the Gospel that secured those benefits for you.Jesus did it through His perfect life, sacrificial death on the Cross and resurrection on the third day.Review 1 Corinthians 15:1-8Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve. After that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the present, but some have fallen asleep. After that He was seen by James, then by all the apostles.Then last of all He was seen by me also, as by one born out of due time.3. Write out your personal testimony of salvation and spiritual growth with the gospel as a centerpiece. Your story is really all about Jesus. Tell His story.4. Memorize 2 simple gospel presentations as touchstones to come back to when you share the gospel. It's not a rote memory presentation but a place to return if you get lost and a road map to make sure you hit the key points.Need a recommendation? Three Circles - https://multiplyingdisciples.The Bridge - https://www.navigators.org/5. Practice journaling as a way to stay consistent in God's Word and help you remember the things God is teaching you. Seems like someone I know wrote a book about this.  : )And whatayaknow I just happen to have the Amazon link! https://a.co/d/4ixVVL66. Learn how to lead a basic evangelistic Bible study.ABWE has the Good Soil Project to help. https://www.goodsoil.com/blog/A Discovery Bible Study is also a great method of leading a simple Bible study that everyone should know and be able to use. There are lots of resources if you search online for them but it is basically reading God's WOrd together and asking some basic questions. There are recommended passages to use for going through the Big Message of the Bible. https://discipleship.org/blog/7. Get comfortable leading a small group of believers. Lots of formats, lots of things you could focus on but as long as Jesus is the center and we are focused on living lives as obedient disciples of Jesus there is value. Keep the eyes of the group focused on Jesus and the heart of the group aligned with His desire to see all lost come to repentance and all believers come to maturity. How can each one of use help the others be reproducing disciple of Jesus?These are each things you can pursue yourself and with a group. We should seek after God with our heart, soul, mind, and strength. There is nothing more worthwhile than spending our lives pursuing Jesus and obedience to His calling to make disciples.Thanks for joining me today! What steps can you take this week to move a little closer to Jesus in your thoughts, attitudes and actions? Who can you take with you on the journey? Write me at norman@runwithhorses.net or leave a note on the RWH Facebook page, I'd love to hear from you! Whatever you do, don't stop, keep running!

Growing through Caregiving

24_05_25 -Ep.313 - Run With Horses Podcast - Growing Through Caregiving
 
Podcast: rwh.podbean.com
Website: www.runwithhorses.net
Youtube: https://youtube.com/@rwhpodcast
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RWHpodcast
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rwh_podcast
Twitter: https://twitter.com/RWH_podcast
 
Last Week I spoke with Chloe and Hope, this week we talk to Susan about the lessons she is learning as a caregiver.
 
 
Welcome to Run With Horses! My name is Norman and my goal is to help you thrive as a follower of Jesus. The spiritual life is both incredibly simple and potentially the most difficult part of your life. God invites you to live intentionally and on His mission. It’s very cool that we can do that together!
 
 
Thanks for joining me again today! Stop and say a prayer for your church family today! I’d love to hear from you, write me at norman@runwithhorses.net or leave a comment on the Run With Horses Podcast facebook page. Take time today to pause and thank God for His work in your life and keep running.

Missionary Kids! A Talk with Chloe and Hope

24_05_18 -Ep.312 - Run With Horses Podcast - Chloe and Hope
 
Podcast: rwh.podbean.com
Website: www.runwithhorses.net
Youtube: https://youtube.com/@rwhpodcast
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RWHpodcast
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rwh_podcast
Twitter: https://twitter.com/RWH_podcast

Notes from the National Disciple Makers Forum 2024

24_05_11-Ep.311 - Run With Horses Podcast - Notes from the National Disciple Makers Forum
 
Podcast: rwh.podbean.com
Website: www.runwithhorses.net
Youtube: https://youtube.com/@rwhpodcast
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RWHpodcast
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rwh_podcast
Twitter: https://twitter.com/RWH_podcast
 
Last week we talked about the National Disciple Makers Forum and today we continue as I go through my notes and share some of what I learned along the way.
 
Welcome to Run With Horses! My name is Norman and my goal is to help you thrive as a follower of Jesus. The spiritual life is both incredibly simple and potentially the most difficult part of your life. God invites you to live intentionally and on His mission. It’s very cool that we can do that together!
 
 
 
The question we all answer every day is how do WE live this HERE, NOW. The answer says a lot about our view of God and His place in our lives.
 
A life that is focused on Intentional, Relational Disciple Making that is Centered on Jesus is a life of worship. And what a journey He takes us on when we follow Him!
 
Thanks for joining me again today! Stop and say a prayer for your church family today! I’d love to hear from you, write me at norman@runwithhorses.net or leave a comment on the Run With Horses Podcast facebook page. Take time today to pause and thank God for His work in your life and keep running.