Learning and living the steps of discipleship.
by Mike Wallace
The first thing one teaches students as a water safety instructor is reach, throw, row, go. Safety in rescuing a drowning victim has a natural progression of action. First, reach out to them. If they are too far from shore, throw them a life buoy attached to a rope. If available, use a boat or raft of some kind you can row. The last thing you want to do is go into the water after the victim. In water rescue, the axiom is always “It is better that one drowns rather than two.”
Our discipleship into the life and mind of Jesus also has a natural progression of action: learn, follow, teach, and go make disciples. What stage of discipleship are we in?
When I was a ten-year-old, my family began to learn of God and His Sabbath day of rest. To a young boy raised in a home of agnostics, this was exciting. Soon I began to preach the gospel to school mates, only to be told by one, “My mom says I can’t listen to you anymore.”
Well, at least I was trying, but I was not equipped properly to “go” preach the gospel.
Since then, my life has been a steady progression of learn, follow, teach, and go.
Concepts
First, I dedicated myself to the study of God’s Word. The Bible urges us to grow in grace and knowledge (2 Peter 3:18) and study to show ourselves approved of God (2 Timothy 2:15).
By the sixth grade, I was reading Bible stories and participating in church. I was and still am a slow learner. I started to collect books on history and now have around fifteen hundred books. I am a voracious reader, particularly during Montana winters when it is 29 below zero.
Second, I learned to follow the leader (Matthew 4:19; Philippians 3:17). As a young high school student, I was close to our pastor. He mentored me and encouraged me to continue on the right path.
Our youth group had around thirty kids, and I was named its president. Our great desire was to have a weeklong backpack trip in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. We followed our pastor, raised funds, and went on a trip to Ranger Lake in Kings Canyon. We lost one young girl in the mountains when she forgot to follow her leader down the trail. We found her the next day, perfectly fine.
Third, I began to look at the idea of becoming a teacher (Matthew 28:20; 2 Timothy 2:2). I volunteered in high school to help as a teacher’s aide. In college I took water safety, CPR, and first aid and became an instructor in all three. I loved teaching the little kids how to blow bubbles and be safe around water. Last year, I ran into a man who was my student forty-four years ago. He was forever grateful for learning how to swim, and his daughter is now a lifeguard at a church summer camp.
Fourth, I eventually felt the need to go preach the gospel (Luke 24:47; Acts 28:31). After graduating from college, I had not been called into the ministry but worked as an insurance agent. Interestingly, one day an aged, retired pastor came to my office, leaned against the doorjamb, crossed his arms, and said, “Your job is much like mine was. At 3:30 in the morning when something bad happens, they call you, me, and 911.”
He had a good point. I have found my job in the “service” industry to be one of the greatest ministerial preps I could have had. After being out of college for forty years, I was finally called into the ministry, and it has been “go, go, go” ever since. Considering it took Moses forty years to begin his ministry, I felt good with the forty-year wait.
Saving others
One young teenage girl on our backpacking trip went too far out into the lake and was not a good swimmer. The other teens had convinced her she was fine to be out there with them.
I was sitting on a large dead tree log by the lake shore when I heard the cry for help. I could not reach the girl, and I had nothing to throw and no rowboat. All I had left was to “go.” I rescued her, and the teens were grateful for the help. The same applies to our life of faith. We must do our best to save others. Are we ready to go? Have we been trained (learn)? Are we following the leader? Are we equipped to teach about the gospel of the kingdom of God? If so, then it is time to go!
