A Crown or The Cross?

Discipleship can be seen as a means to put a crown on yourself.

But Jesus's discipleship isn't about having a crown, but taking up your cross.

I was reminded with this as I review what Dr. Ramesh Richard shared this morning at GDC. True, CG leaders are vulnerable to the temptation to pin their CG members' quality or quantity on their chest as medals of honor. Sporting how "big" their CG is becoming, or how "mature" their members have grown, disciplers could consider their disciples their crowning glory. This could look great on the external, but it destroys the much more important - the internal condition of the discipler and the group.

1. Disciples become objects
This could easily lead their hearts into loving their disciples as "objects that bring them glory" instead of "people who needs relationship with the Lord". You begin telling all the girls you know to join your small group. You meet them for a few weeks.. And when somebody asks, you proudly say. "I have 20 members already!" and sound like a kid bragging how much candy he has. After receiving the glory for having these large group, you stop the actual discipleship. Your ultimate purpose for your small group has already been fulfilled, you have already received all the glory, why still do your best with them?

2. Focus is Self not Christ
Instead of being drawn to love Christ deeper and share in His story, they become "hypnotized" and more drawn to the glimmer and shine of selfish glory. A crown.

The Great Commission is considered quantity-wise most of the time, for glory. Okay, sometimes you care for the quality.. Only to let all the people see what you can produce.
 But if the self is the more dominant focus, how would Christ-like values be caught from you?

3. Discipleship is Perverted
There you go. The horror of introducing these people to the wrong, selfish definition of discipleship. The kind of discipleship unconcerned of the actual growth of the disciples. Merely concerned on the aspects of the disciples that can be seen by others. You require them to go to church (so people would think your group is visible). You want them to be involved in ministry for the wrong selfish reasons.

When they post pictures on Facebook that shows how their lifestyles swing back to their old self, you become like a police officer, "Hey! What's the meaning of that?!" But deep inside, you are afraid that people would judge your leadership by looking at the people you're leading.

You become the scary strict authoritarian.

You demand perfection (so you could say that you're the best leader).

And the scariest part is that, you raise up disciplers who are arrogant, perfectionists, proud and self-seeking like yourself.

A Crown.

Grabbed here.

But hey, you lift your "leader image" a notch when you are deceived to think that it is you who do all the work for the people you handle. I'm sorry, but to let you know, leaders have the littlest role in making Christ-like disciples compared to how huge the Holy Spirit's role is.
Your role is a one millisecond appearance in a movie that's all about what the Holy Spirit does in the lives of your CG members!

Moreover, prideful discipleship is the farthest from the kind of discipleship Jesus models.
If you are trapped in that selfish kind of leadership, aren't you preaching one thing and practicing another?
If it is Jesus that you want them to see, it is His servanthood, humility and pure love that should shine in your leadership! If you pursue this kind of leadership, this is what happens.. The exact opposite of the former.

1. Great Relationships with Disciples
Now, if Jesus is the center of your discipleship, you would consider having a genuine relationship with them as the most important thing in discipleship. Beyond what the people around you sees, you develop a special relationship with your small group members. You do not only meet them once a week just to have a very good report about your CG.
YOU LET YOUR LIFE INTERTWINE WITH THEIRS.
Like real friends, you expose to them every corner of your life. So that they will learn from you how to follow Christ as they see you following Him in every little aspect of your life.
You do not only meet on Sundays or on CG days, you all should know so well that you have a real relationship, friendship, connection, that would go on all the days of the week.
You do casual things together to bond, and consider these times as important as your serious time studying the Bible.
For you to see how Jesus spent His everyday life with His discipleship, you should erase the selfish mentality of seeing them as objects and see them as real people.
It is not your CG material that would teach them how to follow God.
It is your life.

2. Focus is Christ
Since the spotlight is not on you, you do not become fully dependent on your leadership skills. You become a lot more dependent on God's leading. You do not grieve because of your weaknesses, and hide them from your disciples. You humble yourself, show them your weakest points and let them witness what God does as you surrender these weaknesses to Him.
This is one of the most common mistake of CG leaders. You wanna be prim and proper in front of your small group, and when you're gone, you become another person. Eengk! Not authentic! What ruins your testimony to them is saying you're one thing and having them question seeing another.
They know you're imperfect. No need to pretend you're perfect.
But you have to let them see how Jesus outshines human imperfection.
After all, it is God's power you should depend on, not on your own.
In turn, your small group members would learn to fix their gaze on Jesus and not on you.
They will not see you, they will see God's work in you.

3. The Call to Make Disciples is Realized
Discipleship, the kind Jesus wants us to do and to pass on, is realized.
You are not multiplying people who are like you, you are reproducing Christ-followers.
Truly, it would be hard to teach others to follow Christ, if they don't see you demonstrating it.
But if you start truly living following Christ, your life would be like a magnet. People around you would want to live like you do, as they see how much joy and out-of-this-world fulfillment you get from following Him.
And your life's fruit would not only be believers - they would be Christ-committed followers who would share the same passion to "Go and make disciples".

Jesus had a big heart for His disciples - they were not mere objects to make other people "envious" of His leadership skills. He invested in them all He can, He shared to them all He knows, He demonstrated to them the Christ-like lifestyle they need.. He poured on them His purest love.
It's not easy. It's self-denial.
Its purpose is love, nothing more, nothing less, nothing else.
The cross.

Grabbed here.

Are you willing to be that discipler who does not want to make his/her own name known.. And only wants the Name above all names to get all the glory?
Photos grabbed here and here.

If you are a discipler reading this, ask yourself what you choose.

A crown or the cross?

Let the Pricking Commence!

Photo grabbed here.

Have you ever experienced being confronted about your behavior?

You hate that feeling. Who would ever like the feeling of being rebuked? When rebuked, you feel like you're a butter slowly melting on a hot pan. You're embarrassed and on top of that, you are helpless. As soon as someone tells you the weaknesses you struggle with for so long, your body would feel limp, as if suddenly vanishing would be a great help in the moment. 

That's why, when rebuked, one engages in one of the various defense mechanisms so as to dodge the hurtful attack of the pointing finger.

Hearing piercing words that pokes our weaknesses makes us a lot more sensitive than usual.

And here are some of the things we tend to do:

1. Blame Our Past

We recall a grim situation in the past that had the greatest influence on our weakness. We become upset at the scars our past had left us. We think we're scarred for life.

2. Blame Our Environment

We look at how we were raised, and what culture we were raised in. We remember how each person behaves, how each one's weaknesses became your own.

3. Use "Nobody's Perfect" for Justification

We settle at who we are today. We sometimes think that we've already done enough good. And we think that we don't have to do our best in overcoming weaknesses because nobody's perfect. We think there's no point in pursuing victory over weaknesses because it would be an endless chase. And besides, you might think it would make you less human if you have no weakness or two.

4. Point at Others' (not necessarily relevant) Mistakes

They say that comparison to others brings misery. I don't think this applies only when it brings envy. It may also apply when comparison to others brings self-righteousness. Self-righteousness does not only fuel one's pride. It also significantly retards one's growth.

These things, your past, your environment, your imperfections and your insecurities, these are some of the things Jesus's blood covers. His blood gives us freedom from the chains of these things. So when you blame these things, when you try to point the finger to these, it's like saying that these things still have the power over you. It's like submitting to their stronghold and admitting defeat.

Moreover, we do these alternatives when we are too prideful to take off our "honor" for a minute to let God examine our entirety. It could be really hard to take off all the medals, all the achievements, all the ribbons, and be bare-naked before God so He could be able to clean what remains dirty inside. It is hard to suddenly be the worst person you know, and forget all the best parts about yourself.

That is how pride makes it a lot harder.

However, if you think about it a lot deeper, you would be dumbfounded.

Recount your achievements. Don't all these belong to your Father? So why take pride in the honor you don't deserve at all? Rebukes remind us of who we are in reality. We are mere channels of God's power!

So when God wants to change something in you, let Him.

Do not be a hard-headed kid clinging onto his "achievements" so tightly.

God knows how to maximize your potentials more than you do.

And besides,

you don't "perform" for your own glory, do you?

"Repent at my rebuke! Then I will pour out my thoughts to you, I will make known to you my teachings."

Proverbs 1:23

When was the last time you were rebuked? How did you respond?

Even Trees Bear Fruit in Season

Three of my small group members just participated Gencounter last Saturday.

It is an activity in our Congregation that marks the beginning of the new chapter in the lives of believers of God who are ready to be used in ministries.

After years of learning about discipleship, I realize that we cannot force anyone to grow. All we could do is do our best in our little role in our disciple's growth. One's spiritual growth is not from her spiritual mentor. It's not even from herself. A person's growth ultimately comes from God.
And so it's something that would softly come in His time.
Even trees bear fruit in season!
With lots of prayers, Claudine, CL and Hannah participated that activity.

Claudine

"A nice encounter with God :-)

I learned a lot :))

Lord thank you for your unfailing love you :D 

to your blood and flesh you shed in the CROSS

Everyday i thank you for your grace you given to us :D 

I surrender all my life :-)

Let your will be done :))

AMEN"

Hannah

"I'm blessed to have encountered God today! But it's not the last time I'll be encountering him, it's just the start. I'm looking forward on encountering God each day of my life. So excited for what He has in store for me! Don't miss out on God's wonderful plan for your life :D

Live out your faith and SHARE it."

CL

"Things happen for a reason whether it's good or not, my past experiences is really a nightmare, indeed! i thought it was the end, "giving up" to follow God is next to my mind, but know what? God is Good! cause He never stop loving me, He never stop calling me and He never give up on me. He is my healer. All the brokenness inside, all the wounds, he heals me. And today, i had a great ENCOUNTER with Him again. I'll praise God for giving me this opportunity. He brought me this far, and now, i want to follow God and brings all the glory and praises to Him. My Lord and Savior..He takes me out of the dark :)) ♥"

I do not see being these girls' spiritual momma as a strenuous duty.

It was a great privilege, an undeserved opportunity, a beautiful encounter with God.

There were times when I almost gave up as I saw how weak I was. It scared me. I was worried that my weaknesses would affect these girls negatively, and that my lapses would cause them to stumble. For almost 2 years and more, God taught me a lot of things in being a small group leader.

Being a small group leader is never about me!

It is ultimately about God.  

They are just three of the girls I love most! 

I know my face looks like it's about to burst in this picture, but I don't care.. It's that one picture I had with the three of them during Gencounter so I'm posting it! Hahahahaha

Best to keep distraction away. FOCUS to encountering God.

Saying good bye to distractions to wholly absorb everything.

Snaaaaaaaaaaaaaacks!

With some of our friends, Michelle, Je Ann and Schae. 

I am so so so blessed to witness your journey with the Lord!

You have taught me a lot of things about humility, servanthood, and op cors, love.

There are a lot more to learn for all of us. I am so blessed to have the opportunity to do it with you!

You know how much of an open book my life is for you. Haha I'm willing to bare all of me, to make every part of  me available to you. My goal is to impart to you every little lesson I learned (and am still learning) from my personal journey with the King. With these parcels of wisdom, along with the lessons you learn from your own personal journey with God, grow deeper in your faith.

I love you! Now that God has led you this far, offer Him your best. I know He has great plans for your lives, He has ministries prepared for you to do.

Just keep fighting, lady warriors! 

P. S. If God touches your heart to pray for them, please do so. Let raising up Christ-like leaders be ever in our hearts.

So Much, I Can't Contain It

This is a guest post from one of my small group members, Hannah Valdeabella.

          Have you ever felt like having thoughts pop out into your mind and then have another completely different thought come one after another? That's what I have been experiencing ever since this week started! So much thoughts have filled my mind and they still keep coming in and to be honest I don't think I can handle anymore thoughts so I'm gonna pour some of them down here instead!
          It's really amazing how God reveals a lot of things to you. Each single day, God has been revealing a lot of things to me and I come to understand and learn a lot of things with each experience. From the moment I open my eyes in the morning to the moment I lay my head in bed at night, God continuously shows me many wonderful things about life. Each experiences then becomes an encounter with God and with each encounter with Him, I come to know about Him more and more. I find myself excited of what new things He'll show me and happy to know that He loves me more than I could.
          I remember when I was a child, I often hear the leaders in my church and even my parents say things like "I heard God told me..." or "God showed me..." and to be honest, I didn't understand them! I thought "How did they know that it was God?" and wondered how I wasn't able to hear God's voice. I thought they were weird since they kept saying things that seemed impossible. But now that I experienced it myself, I say that it wasn't at all impossible. All things becomes possible when it comes to God ☺
          So, how do you know God reveal things to you?First of all, we must be able to encounter God. He won't be able to reveal things to you until you get to know about Him! Like every stranger outside, you won't really pay much attention to what they do or what they say simply because you don't know them. But once you knew who they were, a simple gesture would make you notice them even at a distance. And even if you try to ignore them, you would still know that it was them.
          And by knowing God, you'll understand how He works in you. And believe me or not, God works in a very simple way actually. He doesn't order you around or control you. The choice is entirely up to you, if you're willing enough to be used by Him to do greater things! When God works in you: you'll be able to see things differently, you'll be able to do unimaginable things, and you'll be able to experience wonders and miracles. All it just takes is a lot of faith!
          But admit it, it's not that often we see what God wants us to see and do what He wants us to do. God isn't at fault. It's just human nature to complicate things to the point that we miss every chance to do so! We tend to look at figures and facts which gets in the way. For example, when you see a beggar at the streets, one could simply think "He's begging for money because he doesn't have any job to earn his own money.". While we cannot deny this fact, we also cannot ignore this! A person who lives close to God would think of the beggar as a recipient of God's love. He wouldn't just think, he'll also act to show him God's love!
          Because you love God, He'll let you see the beggar in a way which most people don't. And it's unusual for someone to spend time with a beggar you know! People may throw some glances at you, but that won't matter. What matters most is you do the will of God. And I believe, that's how God reveal things to you. It just comes naturally. All we need to do is just fix our eyes on Jesus, and you'll be able to see things which you haven't seen before. Isn't that exciting?          
That doesn't stop there. This week, I had a lot of encounters with God. And like I said, I've been overwhelmed! Each things that I learned with each encounters piled up, filling my mind with thoughts about different things. It's kind of hard to organize them all actually. My mind is now already full and new thoughts still keep coming in. I realized that if I keep them all to myself, the new things God reveals to me spills out and I miss the chance to experience them wholly! Like how a cup of tea would overflow if you keep pouring tea in it, the tea would be wasted. You need to empty your cup to receive. And that's why I decided to write them down here. It's so much, I can't contain them all and that's why I need to share them! I don't want to waste any encounters I had with God. I need to share them to empty my cup! And I hope by doing so, I help a lot of people become more closer to God. It may be selfish of me to say it like that, but I love God and that's why I do these things. 

I am so overwhelmed at what God is doing in her life. She was my first small group member! Haha. Yes, pioneer. And today, here she is, blooming, growing.. as she encounter God deeper and deeper every time.
I am so blessed to witness all that! 

Hannah made this! Check out some of her other works in DeviantART.