Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
– Romans 12:2
When I was still living in Seattle, Washington, in the 1990s and living my own way, God brought an amazing man into my life who challenged me greatly, both in the way I was living and the way I thought about things connected to life. I was not a follower of Jesus Christ by any stroke of the imagination, but he sure was. Even while my friends and I would be hanging out at the clubs, living our lives the way we wanted, there he was hanging out with us, drinking his Coca-Cola. Even though we were flat-out heathens, he chose to work and live with us, “godless heathens.” Little did I realize how God was going to use this man in my life to help draw me closer to Him.
For about four months, Danny discipled me in the strangest way. He not only lived with us, but he also challenged me in my thoughts and beliefs with a lot of questions. He would always ask me questions like, Why do you think that’s true? Or, how do you know you are being told the truth? Then he would give me something to read up on and dig into. We would then talk about that, and he would keep leading me to Jesus Christ, the Author and Creator of life. In and through that time, I grew in the Lord immensely; I just didn’t know it. I was going to go wherever truth took me, and that journey to truth led me to Jesus Christ.
I have also been blessed to be discipled by many incredible men of God over my lifetime. Their biblical beliefs and convictions have impacted me greatly as a follower of Jesus Christ. At the time, I really had no idea how much this would impact not only me but my family as well. Consciously choosing to take the “narrow path” Jesus Christ teaches on is an amazing journey, but it can also be a very difficult journey. Now that I am an older man, I make certain that when I am about to begin discipling someone, I try to warn them about the cost that this journey will have, not only on their own life, but with human relationships they have as well.
Choosing to follow Christ is not for the faint of heart. He is, after all, I believe, the strongest man to ever walk this planet. If you don’t agree with my assessment, please consider that He took on all of the sin of the world for all time onto Himself. He did this while all of His earthly friends deserted Him, and His Father in heaven left Him. I am in awe of what the Savior of the world did.
Over the past year, I have been meeting with not only a small group of young men, but a small group of older men as well. It’s becoming more and more clear to me about what God is not just calling Worldview Warriors to do, but it’s more and more clear to me about what the Church is supposed to do. It’s time for those who are older to genuinely sink into the younger generations with not only the good news of Jesus Christ but to challenge them to live for Christ in all they do, truly following the example of Jesus Christ. The older generations need to see that many in the younger generations desire to seek and serve the Lord and have much to offer, too.
With all of that said, I am planning to start a discipleship group for young men interested in growing in the Lord, starting on Saturday, October 11, at 10:15 am for 7 weeks. We are planning to meet at Evangelical Pietist Church of Chatfield, located at 3535 Chatfield Center Road, Bloomville, Ohio. If you or someone you know might be interested in joining these young men, you can write me at epcpastor.1@gmail.com for more information and direction. You can also message us on the Worldview Warriors Facebook page.
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