Growing Out: From Disciples to Disciplers

Thanks for clicking this page. I’ll make it worth your while. First, let me give you the quick sales pitch, and then you can move on to the vital info below:

“This isn’t a fix everything and everyone series…. This is a realistic series, meeting each person where he/she is and equipping each person to grow in his/her relationship with God, and, as an outflow, with others…. The Growing Out series doesn’t just grow disciples…it guides disciples to disciple others just as God intends.”—Susan Lawrence, author, Pure Purpose

“You’re going to love… Growing Out: From Disciples to Disciplers. Here’s why: The purpose of the Growing Out series is to allow your group to jump into whatever ‘season’ your group’s at in its path of spiritual formation…. The best of both worlds: engaging and knowledgeable!”—Stephanie Caro, smallgroupministry.com

• To buy Growing Out directly from Group Publishing — which, frankly, means more money for me — go here. (Free sample lessons are available for each; just click on the book you’re interested in, then hit the link reading “FREE SAMPLE CHAPTER.”)
• To purchase from Amazon.com, visit my author page here. And leave a review if you like it.
• No matter what you decide, join our Facebook community here, and get in on the conversation!

Growing Out is more than a series of Bible studies—it’s a progression that will take you and your group from becoming disciples of Jesus to becoming disciplers of others in Jesus. As you move through each season, you’ll grow from the inside out—and as you grow, your life in Jesus will naturally expand and branch out to others in your world. And here’s the best part: As you grow out together, you’ll realize how much you’re already discipling others—starting with each other!

Growing Out is designed to allow you and your group jump in where it’s most appropriate. To help you discover your entry point, here are descriptions of each season (along with tags where you can find devotions on this site based on those lessons):

Season 1: Growing in Jesus (tags: growing out, spiritual formation) focuses on developing your relationship with Jesus. Because, let’s face it, the first person you have to disciple is yourself. More to the point, you need to learn how to let Jesus show you how to be His disciple. So in this season, we focus on your relationship with Jesus and how to deepen it through spiritual disciplines such as prayer, worship, Bible study… and, not least of all, your relationships with other Christians (such as the ones you’re sitting with).

After you’ve been grounded in your relationship with Jesus, how does that shine into the rest of your life? That’s where Season 2: Growing in Character comes in (tags: growing out, character). This season focuses on how you can invite Jesus into your most important relationships—your family, friends, the people you work with—and how to keep Jesus at the center of all of them.

Season 3: Growing in Your Gifts (tags: growing out, spiritual gifts) focuses on discovering the gifts, talents, and passions God has given you and how God might want to use them to serve others—whether that’s inside or outside your church walls. After this season, you’ll have a better sense of who God has created you to be, and why.

If you’ve gotten this far, you’ve developed and deepened your walk with Jesus, you’ve learned how to actually live it out among those people you most care about, and you’ve begun to discover how God has uniquely built you. Now: How do you take what God’s shown you, and help others walk through the same process?

If you’ve completed Seasons 1 through 3, you should already know the answer—because it’s exactly what you’ve been doing with your group. And with that, you’re ready for Season 4: Growing Others (tags: growing out, spiritual friendship). Season 4 will help you reach out even further, and more deliberately. Call it mentoring, discipling, coaching, or just being a good Christian friend to someone who needs it… after Season 4, you’ll be ready to come alongside anyone who’s ready to have a deeper relationship with Jesus. Just like you in Season 1.

In the final two seasons, you’ll explore what it takes to lead others where God wants you and them to go next. Because as you’ve walked through the first four seasons, guess what? You’ve been growing. Others know it. And God is honoring it. So whether you see yourself that way or not, God has matured you to the point where you’re ready to lead. And we’re going to help you get more ready.

Season 5: Growing in Leadership (tags: growing out, Christian leadership) focuses on how to stay functional even as you learn how to lead. You’ll walk together through the foibles of leadership—communication, conflict resolution, consensus-building, learning how to adjust your ministry, and learning to stay focused on God instead of “your ministry.”

And as you keep growing out, God may well put things on your heart that you’ll need to be the one to initiate. That brings us, at last, to Season 6: Growing in Your Mission (tags: growing out, God-given vision). God has given you a specific vision for ministry, and now you literally need to make the dream real. We’ll help walk you through the issues that come with a God-given vision. Things like: First of all, how do you know it really is God, and not just you? How do you get others on board (and praying—a lot)? And how will you keep growing, even as the vision continues to grow and take shape?

Because, no matter where you are, you never stop Growing Out. God will always see to that.

Enjoy Growing Out, and may God bless you as you grow out together!