Articles: Grow

Adult Resource Consultant, Tom Bougher, discusses 10 questions to ask about your small group ministry.

Assistant General Superintendent Alton Garrison begins discussing effective communication from chapter five of his book The 360 Degree Disciple.

Alton Garrison wraps up his discussion on leadership as he finishes going through chapter 4 of the 360 Degree Disciple.

An archive of a webinar event with Dan Stanley that occured on December 4, 2010. This is the third webinar in a series discussing the Acts 2 process and how it incoporates into Sunday School and Small Groups.

Alton Garrison continues through chapter 4 as he talks about the importance of teamwork.

Alton Garrison continues the discussion on leadership by talking about doing the right thing.

Churchwide Study on the Holy Spirit

Garrison addresses the common obstacles people face when trying to spend time daily with God.

Garrison addresses the Importance of daily spending time with God.

Tom Bougher discusses what Christianity and Espionage have in common.

Alton Garrison discusses the building blocks of credibility and compatiblity in the life of a disciple.

Alton Garrison addresses the building blocks of accountability and loyalty in a disciple.

Once discussed often, the topic is mostly missing from Christian conversations.

Garrison talks about 10 ways we can practice dying to ourselves as we learn to follow Christ.

Looking to promote Acts 2 in your church? Here are some logos to help you out.

Garrison continues through chapter 1 as he discusses the behaviors of a follower of Christ.

An introduction to personal Bible study and why it matters today.

Alton Garrison addresses the case for maturity from chapter 1 of his book.

Wes Bartel sits down with 2010 Teacher of the Year, Peggy Southerland, and her husband Jurl.

The Executive Leadership Team discusses the Holy Spirit and Spirit Baptism.

Watch the recording of a Small Group Webinar featuring small group experts Greg Bowman, Randall Neighbour, and Dave Treat.

The Bible stands at the center of Christian education. It is our main textbook, our training manual and the primary source of God's revelation to us. Without the Bible you can't have Christian education.

I became a Christian shortly after I was married. My husband was in the army in Arkansas. He had been saved just before we married.

The central figure of the story you are about to read is presently the Kids’ Church Pastor of Timberline Church in Fort Collins, Colorado where he ministers to over 400 children every weekend.

Teachers: Can you dialogue with your students about these tough Bible questions?

George Wood discusses the second coming of Christ in this iValue video.

By Tom Bougher

Alton Garrison discusses the Holy Spirit in this iValue Video.

Use this survey to help measure the beliefs, principles, and practices the people of your church, small group, and Sunday school keep.

Featuring Jim Bradford, this video focuses on the AG Core Belief of Salvation, and is part of a series of videos knows as iValue.

Ed Stetzer discusses discipleship at the Verge Missional Community Conference.

Overcome Summer Survival Mode

By Mark Hall

Growing Disciples from the Ground Up

New Convert Care: What is it and who is it for?

As Christians, we are all called to be disciples. But a select few are chosen, as Christ chose His intimate followers, to be core instructors.

Here's how to introduce the truths of Christianity in a relaxed, non-threatening setting that can even be fun!

Interview With Scott Davis, Daniel DeLeon, and Randal Ross

By Carey Huffman

My 4-year-old daughter loves to quote Scripture. But reciting, “I can do all things …” is one thing; actually facing the dark is another. She’ll even remind herself “Children obey your parents,” as she proceeds to ignore my instructions. Perhaps such behavior is understandable with little children. But there is a similar detachment of faith from behavior in society...

Change! Change or Die. Dare To Change. These are titles of recently published books and articles. Isn’t it true that the only hope for the future of any organizations is the ability to change what is already being done?

An ancient question is new again for 21st-century Christians.

Enthusiastic proponents of Christian education share a desire with the Psalmist when he said, "I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you" (Psalm 119:11, NIV).

by Marlyn B. DeFoggi

When Pastor Wendel Cover steps into his pulpit on Sunday mornings, he greets worshippers from 70 different nations. "Years ago it would have been unusual to have one or two internationals in a congregation," he said. "But today, it [a multi-national congregation] is the norm for us." Word of Life Assembly, Springfield, Virginia, opens wide its doors to people of all races, cultures, and backgrounds who worship and serve together.

That question has birthed a publishing phenomenon. Ministers' libraries are filled with books that portend to give advice on "How to grow a church in five easy steps" or "How to grow from 70 to 7,000 in 7 months."

Use the following quotes to help cast a vision for the potential life-long impact of ministry to young children during the first six years of life. Include Bible quotes in bulletins, newsletters, and other printed materials to remind Christian adults that God wants all children to love, trust, and obey Him all their lives from the beginning of their lives.

Proverbs 22:6 says: “Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it” (NIV). Many Christians interpret this to mean if you train a child in spiritual things, that child will grow into a God-fearing adult, too. But how can you tell if the child is truly embracing the greater truths of the Bible as Jesus taught? How can you help strengthen children spiritually so when they are grown, they will live for the Lord?

Great teachers use class time well by being effective teachers. And they know that time outside of class — not as teachers but as students — is just as important.

An easy way for your Sunday School to reach out to the surrounding community is to take care of the needs of the people who live there. Use any of these outreach ideas in your Sunday School class, or join together as an entire church.

In the classic film, Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner, a prosperous white couple faced the prospect of meeting their daughter’s black fiancé and his family for the first time. Suddenly confronted by this drastic change in their lives and faced with a new reality, they were forced to choose between their values and their fears–the security of their past and the risks of the future.

For many young families, a summer ideal is spending time in the sun, creating memories, and relaxing with one another. Limited time and money sometimes turn that ideal into a dream, rather than reality.

Dave A. Goetz of Leadership magazine lists multigenerational emphasis as one of the top 10 trends in the church world. He quotes Lyle Schaller, who said of this trend, "The only agreement among generations in the church can be captured in the statement, ’I want to leave more hopeful than I came.’ Worship styles, theology, technology—all divide. Churches that do well unite around a common cause. Too often, though, to try to make everyone happy, many churches unite around, ’Let’s take care of each other.’"

A question haunts many conscientious leaders. Although many people make commitments to Christ, few seem to remain. Their new birth often proves to be more of a stillbirth. How can we reduce the number of stillbirths and lead newborn Christians into meaningful relationships with the Lord and the church? Scripture is clear that we are to make disciples, not just decisions.

Admiral Perry planted the American flag at the North Pole. To accomplish this feat, he employed a dog sled, three Eskimos, and an African-American named Matthew Henson. Years later Congress awarded Henson a medal for being part of the expedition. The medal’s inscription expressed Admiral Perry’s reason for selecting Henson to be part of the team: "I can’t get along without him."

The church and the Sunday school are vital to reaching and keeping people. The pastor’s class for newcomers is one strategy we cannot get along without if we want to reach and keep people.

by Gina Lee

Summer may bring vacationing Christians to your church. They may be just passing through on their way to some other destination, or they may be staying in your area for a week or more. Besides having an official greeter to meet them at the door, why not present each guest with a visitor’s package? Here are a few items you might want to include.

by Billie Davis

A sad dark face seemed to accuse me as I opened my morning paper. "Tears rolled from the eyes of the African-American teen," the front-page story began. She had found ugly racial words scrawled on her art-class project. The article called black/white relations in the school a "racial divide," and asked, "What can we do to bridge it?"

This year when Pentecost is fully come, your congregation can come together in one place for a Sunday evening that will help young and old look at the birth of the Church in new ways. The following idea was developed and used at Evangel Temple in Springfield, Missouri.

By Thomas E. Trask

"I was in an overhead bucket working on power lines and was electrocuted with 14,400 volts," says Dirk Sharp, 43, whose arms had to be amputated at the shoulders. "God worked a miracle, because I should be dead." Sharp, who worked as an electrical engineer for 20 years, says physicians can’t figure out why the electricity didn’t flow through his entire body. Sharp left hospital rehabilitation with his new prosthetics in two months, prompting doctors to take blood tests to determine why he healed so quickly...

The rags-to-riches story of a man who found his passion

Some know him as the legal counsel for the Assemblies of God. Others, as a graduate of Harvard Law School. Some know him as an expert on tax law or the author of 40 books. In Springfield, Missouri, a group of fourth-grade boys know him as their Sunday School teacher. Richard has made a long-term (read 17-year) commitment to discipling boys so they will know and live by God's Word. Each week via e-mail, Richard updates parents about their sons' Bible lesson. Enjoy this sample.

Joy is one of the outstanding identification marks of the true believer in Christ. More than 500 times Scripture records such words as joy,joyfulness, rejoice, and gladness. The apostle Paul lists joy second in cataloging the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22).

First in a series of devotionals based on the fruit of the Spirit

By Stefanie Reubell

By William J. Martin

By LeRoy Bartel

By Billie Davis

by Billie Davi

by Leroy R. Bartel

By Charles T. Crabtree

What will it take to reinvigorate a fading emphasis on discipleship?

by Charles T. Crabtree

Learn the secrets of authentic living from the Master himself.

(PDF) by Dr. Debbie Gill

Jesus’ New Kind of Teaching—with Authority that amazed the people, penetrates ones character and spreads like a contagion; this New Kind of Teaching—with Authority not only may be reproduced, but must be reproduced, over and over again; This New Kind of Teaching—with Authority is called discipleship.

by Dr. Debbie Gill.

(Download includes PowerPoint, Teaching Notes, Student Notes, and Answer Key)

(Download includes PowerPoint and Teaching Notes), and watch video by Dr. Debbie Gill

by Dr. Debbie Gill

by Greg Herrick Th.M., Ph.D.

by Stephen Lim

Flawed ministry paradigms sabotage the church’s efforts at disciple making. Consider this approach that is sure to improve the quality of disciple making in your church.

by Greg Ogden

Here is a simple, reproducible way to grow disciples that will forever change your practice of ministry and leave your church with self-initiating, reproducing disciples of Christ.

by Stephen F. Olford

by Vipool Patel

Do the people you are making into Jesus’ disciples have a basic understanding of Jesus’ commands, core teachings, character, crucifixion, and interactions with real people? Are you sure?

by Pablo Polischuck

Here are six concrete guidelines that form the ingredients of an integrated, caring, and loving congregation.

by Shane Warren

A pastor’s role as spiritual leader in the discipleship process is imperative if it is to be effective.

by Michael J. Wilkins

Consider these essential features of biblical discipleship that must characterize our attempts to develop a disciple-making ministry.

By Charles T. Crabtree

A program for introducing the basics of Christianity to those interested.

Recently, my family and I moved to a country in which Christians are a minority. After a dozen years as a pastor and a church planter, I now find myself in the position of being a prospect for people of other faiths. Friends and strangers regularly try to convert me to the major religion of our community. Being on the receiving end of their efforts has given me a new perspective. Here are a few things I wish I could communicate to those who have evangelized me—and some questions I've begun to ask myself as a result.

by Charles Arn

Nearly every pastor can testify that not all decisions result in disciples and responsible church members.

by Myron Augsburger

Integrate evangelism into every hour of the week, so that Christ is carried into people’s lives, into our work, play, and socializing.

by Wes Bartel

What should an effective discipleship ministry look like in the 21st century? There are at least four necessary ingredients needed to create an effective Sunday School or Christian education ministry.

Interview with Henry Blackaby

Read what the author of Experiencing God has to say about how walking in an intimate relationship with God impacts the pastor’s life and ministry.

by Robbie Castleman

Sometimes patience is the key to a fruitful harvest.

by Tim Downs

If no one responds, it doesn’t mean you’ve failed.

by Bob Jacks

All you need to reach the people around you with the Good News is a living room, a few paperback Bibles, and faith.

by Ian John

We’ve got to leave the safe, secure environment of the Enterprise.

So often we measure people by their extraordinary moments, but the ordinary moments are what we should pay attention to.