A Deeper Walk
By: Marcus Warner
ISBN: 978-0802428714
READ: March 2025
RATING: 6/10
Summary: The problem the author presents is “half-brained Christianity” which results in ineffective discipleship that happens by assumption and focuses on academics, behavior, and church activity. He seeks to incorporate emotional and relational maturity into spiritual maturity. This is helpful and builds on Peter Scazzero’s work. However, for me, this book didn’t hold a tight focus on the problem or provide convincing reasons why his particular “holistic model” is the solution. Still, the book does provide lots of short lists of what’s important for a disciple to know and do. These comprise the majority of the book and include the five Gospel foundations, values of a Kingdom worldview, a common model of wounded hearts, how we reclaim surrendered ground, new covenant identity, building blocks of biblical theology, and walking in the Spirit (listed in Appendix 1). It felt like a lot to me and I was disappointed that generational disciplemaking and multiplication wasn’t included in his holistic model of discipleship. That being said, there are some valuable insights in the book along with sound and helpful perspective. Overall, though Warner’s approach wasn’t as helpful as other books seeking to address the same issues.
Chapter titles are: Foreword, Introduction, 1. Half-Brained Christianity 2. Heart-Focused Discipleship 3. Discipleship on the Back of a Napkin 4. Dealing with the Wounds of the Past 5. Freedom through Spiritual Warfare 6. Identity in Christ 7. The Other Half of Identity 8. Spirit and Scripture 9. Living in the Spirit 10. Heart-Focused Community 11. Mission Epilogue Appendix 1. Summary of Memory Devices Appendix 2. Bible Memorization Tips Appendix 3. One-Year Transformation Plan Appendix 4. A Ministry Model
Introduction:
A New and Holistic Discipleship Model
“…God brought all the pieces together as He led me to a holistic model of discipleship. I call this model heart-focused discipleship, and it is built on five core elements of the gospel—freedom, identity, Spirit, heart-focused community, and mission.” Pg. 17
“The goal of this book is to meet you where you are to help you develop a new level of maturity in your walk with God.” pg. 17
So the goal of the book is discipleship, not disciple making. Despite the author’s statement, his goal of a holistic model of discipleship isn’t something he fully develops in this book.
Chapter 1: Half-Brained Christianity
“…I was the product of traditional discipleship, or what I sometimes call half-brained Christianity. I call it that because traditional discipleship is extremely left-brained in its focus. It stresses truth, choices, and discipline as keys to successful Christian living. It also emphasizes the importance of volunteering and evangelizing, but it doesn’t really address matters of the heart. Traditional discipleship tends to outsource issues of the heart to professional counselors.” Pg. 19
“Discipleship by osmosis is sort of like discipleship by assumption. It assumes that if you join the church and hang around long enough, you will get discipled.” Pg. 21
Warner is using “get discipled,” but hasn’t yet defined it—specifically the context in which it happens.
“The process (of discipleship) usually looks like this: You start attending a church, and after awhile, someone ask you to volunteer. If you are faithful as a volunteer, you are soon asked to lead. If you are faithful as a leader, you can find yourself in the inner circle of power in a church without ever being discipled.” Pg. 21-22
“The traditional discipleship model with which I was raised stressed will power, academic training, and church activity as the keys to living a successful Christian life. So, when I talk about traditional discipleship, I often think of the ABCs of most discipleship programs: academics, behavior, and church activity.” Pg. 22
“The harder I worked at behaving well, the more it exposed the fact that something was broken inside that kept sabotaging my efforts.” Pg. 23
“One of the assumptions made by the folks who produced the study from Willow Creek was that church activity would lead to maturity. It turned out that it doesn’t.” pg. 23
“Too often, church activity just turned into a duty to discharge rather than a point of deep and energizing connection.” Pg .24
“Traditional discipleship focuses on what Jesus called ‘the outside of the cup’ (Matthew 23:25), but it generally misses the inside.” Pg. 24
“When I was in seminary, a visiting professor asked us, ‘If the church was a factory, what would its product be?’ After a short discussion, we all agreed the product would be disciples….It was good material as far as it went. However, most assumptions about what constituted good discipleship were built on the ABC’s and getting people involved in evangelism. While it is all good stuff, it still misses something that touches on the deeper issues of the heart.” Pg. 24
“The church doesn’t just exist to make disciples. We also exist to bring those disciples to maturity. The goal of the discipleship process is to produce mature disciples.” Pg. 25
“A friend of mine assessed the discipleship situation in the church, he concluded that most churches don’t know how to describe what a mature disciple is, or they operate with faulty growth models. This, they are either aiming at the wrong target or using a flawed process for reaching the target, or both.” Pg. 25
“Spiritual maturity cannot be separated from emotional and relational maturity. If we are looking for a measuring stick of how we know someone is mature, the fruit of the Spirit is a great place to start.” Pg. 25
“If you can reach the ‘pinnacle’ of church leadership without actually developing maturity, is it reasonable to think our discipleship process will create maturity in others?” pg. 26
“Based both on Scripture and neuroscience, Jim [Wilder] has concluded that maturity is the ability to remain relational, act like yourself, and return to joy despite upsetting emotions…the word RARE: Remain relational, Act like yourself, Return to joy, Endure hardship well.” Pg. 26
“But you can tell who the most mature person is in any group by who can handle the most emotional weight and still remain relational and act like themselves. Mature people also excel at returning to joy from upsetting emotions. They are exactly the sort of people you want around when emotions are high because they exert a calming influence on the whole group.” Pg. 27
-Ehh, I like parts of this, but I also know committed Buddhists or Stoics who would fit these qualities greatly, but who don’t know Christ. I think at times maturity does look like losing your cool or instead of calming a group does the opposite. This feels incomplete, yet it forms the crux of Warner’s argument.
Assessing Maturity: Infants, children, adults, parents, elders. Pgs. 27-30
“People who are stuck at infant- or child-level maturity get angry easily, avoid difficult people and hard tasks, and generally find themselves struggling with some kind of addiction.” Pg. 28
“Spiritual adults are emotionally stable and good with relationships.” Pg. 29
“Elders have raised their own children and are available to care for the community….A true elder is well-practiced not only in adult maturity but in helping others fill holes in their maturity development.” Pg. 30
“To be an elder was to be recognized by the community as someone who had raised their family and demonstrated the kind of spiritual maturity that exhibits godly character even during hardship.” Pg. 30
“We need a discipleship process that routinely moves people from one stage of maturity to the next. In this sense, the church is not so much a factory as a family, and this process requires a growth model with a proven track record of producing mature Christians.” Pg. 31
“So, in the pages ahead, I will share with you a growth model that works. It’s called heart-focused discipleship. It is less half-brained and more whole-brained, yet firmly rooted in the gospel. I didn’t invent the model. Instead, it is a compilation of tools and perspectives that have changed lives for generations. I’ve just tried to make it easy to understand and simple to get started.” Pg. 31
The problem the author presents is “half-brained Christianity” which results in ineffective discipleship that happens by assumption and focuses on academics, behavior, and church activity. It separates spiritual maturity from emotional and relational maturity. The solution is to redefine maturity and to define discipleship as maturity development through a growth model that’s more holistic and heart-focused. Although, he asserts it’s built on five core elements of the gospel, he hasn’t yet unpacked that assertion.
Chapter 2: Heart-Focused Discipleship
“There are five core elements to heart-focused discipleship, and they can all be seen in this story: freedom, identity, Spirit, heart-focused community, and mission.” Pg. 34
“The foundation of our Christian life is our identity in Christ….In the same way, when we do not understand our identity in Christ or if the devil’s lies rob us of that solid foundation, it can impede the flow of the Spirit within and keep us stuck.” Pg. 34
“The key to the Christian life is the Holy Spirit….When we are saved, we are born of the Spirit. Our relationship with God is often summarized as walking in the Spirit. If the Spirit is not free to flow in our lives, we cannot bear fruit for God’s Kingdom. Instead, we will feel stalled and dissatisfied.” Pg. 36
“Notice how Paul [in Romans 8:15-18] stressed freedom, identity, and the Spirit as core to growing maturity.” Pg. 39
“While there are many things we can do as individuals to spur our growth, the journey itself is meant to be taken as a people, together.” Pg. 40
Chapter 3: Discipleship on the Back of a Napkin
“Most churches are pretty good at explaining the bridge diagram or something like it. However, far fewer churches have a simple tool for explaining the pathway to a deeper walk with God.” pg. 45
FISH Diagram: Freedom, Identity, Spirit, Heart-Focused Community
“As you can see, the first three elements of heart-focused discipleship—freedom, identity, and Spirit—are clearly anchored in the gospel. We never leave these foundations behind.” Pg. 49
“The reason for distinguishing heart-focused community from some other type of community is to remind us that we need to be in relationship with people who are on a journey of the heart….A heart-focused community is characterized by vulnerability and empathy. It is a place we can correct each other in love. It is a place we can share in safety about our struggles.” Pg. 50
“Too often, small groups serve as the parking lot of the church. Our leaders push to get us connected to a small group Bible study and seem to assume that growth will automatically happen as a result.” Pg. 50
“First, people growing in their walk with God are more likely to be moved by the Spirit in ways that impact the world around them. Second, people who go into full-time ministry will be more effective if their ministry is anchored in the four elements of FISH.” Pg. 51
Chapter 4: Dealing with Wounds of the Past
“Imagine how different your walk with God would be if someone helped you tear down the strongholds that kept you stuck?” pg. 60
“Freedom is not simply a counseling or recovery issue. It is fundamental to discipleship.” Pg. 60
“…no one can run the race of the Christian life if they are in bondage to the rocks that weigh them down and the ropes that ensnare them. The rocks are like the wounds from our past that cause us to believe lies, and the ropes are like the sin that enslaves us. If we are going to run the race, we need to get free from both. All heart-focused discipleship must address these issues.” Pg. 61
“A common problem that keeps us stuck in bondage is unresolved pain from our past. Wounds from the past create fertile soil for the devil’s lies, and lies create bondage.” Pg. 61
“I call this model WLVS: The Demonic Radio Network—Broadcasting All Deception, All the Time. WLVS stands for wounds, lies, vows, and strongholds.” Pg. 62
“The world wounds us. The devil lies to us. The flesh makes vows. The result are strongholds that keep us enslaved.” Pg .62
“Vows are like vines growing from the seeds that get planted in the wounded palces in our hearts.” Pg. 63
“Eventually fruit starts to grow on the vine. It is usually unwanted fruit like anger, addiction, fear, depression, and shame.” Pg. 63
He explains the WLVS model more fully in his book, Understanding the Wounded Heart. Pg. 65
4 Strategies for Recovery: pgs. 65-71
1. Build Joy
2. Forgive
3. Take Thoughts Captive
4. Listening Prayer
“The idea behind building joy is to grow our capacity to live with gratitude even when times are hard.” Pg .65
“The most common metaphor for forgiveness in the New Testament is canceling a debt.” Pg. 66
“Perhaps the most powerful enemy exerts in our lives is deception. The lies the enemy tells us often don’t feel like this.” Pg. 68
“Joy helps us build the capacity to handle hardship. Taking thoughts captive tears down the bars of deception that drive negative emotions. Forgiveness sets us free from bondage to bitterness and the unwanted consequences that flow from it. Listening prayer allows God to minister directly to us, involving Him in the process and making a level of healing possible that cannot come in any other way.” Pg. 71
Chapter 5: Freedom Through Spiritual Warfare
“Deliverance from demonic spirits was such a standard part of Christian culture during the Roman Empire that one bishop, an apologist named Tertullian, was able to claim that everywhere Christians went, they drove out demons. He made this claim like it was a common practice and everyone knew it.” Pg. 75
“In the most basic sense, spiritual warfare is about taking ground back from the enemy.” Pg. 77
“When people live in bondage to the adversary, they need to reclaim surrendered ground. We need to understand two principles to comprehend how this works: permission and authority.” Pg. 77
“Authority is the right to represent power….In the same way, any Christian who confronts a demon is in a position of authority. We represent the kingdom of God, and thus we can speak ‘in the name of Jesus.’” Pg. 78
“Therefore, when Christians address demons, we are speaking down to them. They are not equals. They are not above us….Demons know that if they mess with us, they are messing with the Kingdom of God.” pg. 80
“However, most of the time, permission is given directly by our behavior. We offer the devil a place in our lives when we sin and do not deal with it quickly (Eph. 4:26-27).” Pg. 81
“We also permit demons to torment and deceive us when we enter into agreements with them.” pg. 81
“God wants children who trust Him and obey Him, demons want slaves to control.” Pg. 82
“Karl Payne calls the three C approach to gaining freedom from demons: 1. Confess – Admit you have sinned and entered into an agreement with the enemy. 2. Cancel – Break your agreement and ask Jesus to cancel the permission any demon has to stick around. 3. Command – In the name of Jesus, command the demons to leave and take all of their works and effects with them.” pg. 84
“The battle gets much easier when you don’t have a flock of demon birds harassing you.” Pg. 84
“We added a fourth C – Commit – to the three C’s Dr. Payne uses. The fourth C is simply a reminder that once you are done evicting a demonic spirit, it is important to commit that area of your life to the lordship of Christ.” Pg. 84
“…when we have a spiritual warfare problem, only a spiritual warfare solution will resolve it.” Pg. 85
How to Surrender Ground to the Enemy:
“There are many ways we can surrender ground to the enemy and give demons permission to affect our lives. To keep it simple, I like to summarize some of the most common ways we open doors to the enemy with the acronym SOUL-L (as in, ‘I am in a battle for my soul’). SOUL-L stands for sin, occult, unforgiveness, lies we believe, and lineage.” Pg. 86
Common Ways To Open Doors for the Enemy: pgs. 86-87
1. Rebellion
2. Pride
3. Compulsive Sin
4. Idolatry
5. Lust/Sexual Immorality - “One of the traits of early Christianity was its complete intolerance of sexual immorality.” Pg. 87
6. Deception
“Occult activity can be divided into two sorts – the pursuit of spiritual knowledge from a source other than the true God and the pursuit of spiritual power from an alternative source.” Pg. 88
1. Secret Knowledge (astrology, fortune tellers, divination, spirit guides)
2. Secret Power (Spells, rituals, curses, sorcery)
“The devil’s lies work like propaganda. They establish a narrative that drives our emotions.” Pg. 91
“To combat the devil’s strategy of deception, it is important for us to learn how to practice discernment. One of the tools I use to do this is a simple two-part prayer asking God for clarity. Part one is, ‘Father, would you show me in words or pictures how the devil wants me to see this person or situation?’ Part two is, ‘Please show me in words or pictures how you want me to see this person or situation.” Pg. 93
“Freedom is an essential element of the discipleship process. It is hard to run the race set before us when we are in bondage.” Pg. 95
Chapter 6: Identity in Christ
“Whenever we read that something is true of us ‘in Christ,’ we can think of that as a blessing granted to us in the new covenant. In this sense, ‘in Christ’ statements are like legal clauses in the new covenant. They give us pardon, adoption, citizenship, and sainthood in Christ and have binding authority in the courtroom of heaven.” Pg. 104
“There are many aspects to our new covenant identity, but to keep it simple, I have summarized them under four core blessings. You can remember these blessings with the word PACT. Pardon, Adoption, Citizenship, Title: Saint.” Pg. 105
4 Core Blessings of the New Covenant pgs. 106-116
1. Pardon
a. Justification
b. Purification
c. Redemption
2. Adoption
a. Access
b. Acceptance
c. Authority
d. Inheritance
3. Citizenship
4. Title: Saints
“Notice the parallels between the process by which Aaron and his sons were made priests (Lev. 8) and the way Christians are sanctified as God’s people in Christ:
· The priest was washed with water (Lev. 8:6). We are baptized with water (Gal 3:27).
· The priest was dressed with new clothes (Lev. 8:7-9). We are clothed with Christ (Gal. 3:27).
· The priest was anointed with oil (Lev. 8:10). We are anointed with the Spirit (1 John 2:20, Acts 2:17-18).
· The priest was sprinkled with the blood of the sacrifice (Lev. 8:22-25). We are sprinkled with the blood of Christ (Heb. 12:24).
· The priest was commissioned into the work of the tabernacle (Lev. 8:33-36). We are commissioned by Christ into a new priesthood (1 Peter 2:9).” Pg. 116
“We can measure maturity in terms of our identity. From this perspective, maturity is the ability to act like yourself even under stress. The more mature we are, the more hardship we can endure and still live from our hearts like the people God knows us to be.” Pg. 117
“It is no wonder that our identity is such a battleground. The devil does not want us to live from our hearts.” Pg. 117
Chapter 7: The Other Half of Identity
In this chapter, Warner asserts many things about the brain and draws meaning from those asserted facts. I don’t know if he’s right, but I do know that I was skeptical based on how he presented the material. I do have a close relative that’s a neurologist and asked her to review Warner’s assertions. Her conclusion was that at best it’s overstated and at worst it doesn’t stand up to scrutiny.
“From our brain’s perspective, identity is always relational. This is an important concept to understand. It means there is an element to our identity in Christ that goes beyond what we know to be true and is connected to who we love. This is the other half of identity.” Pg. 120
“The identity center of the brain is located at the pinnacle of its attachment system.” Pg. 121
“It is significant that God chose to make our identity center the master and commander of the brain. This means God places a high value on being ourselves and growing our capacity to act like ourselves even when enduring hardship.” Pg. 121
Pretty strong assertion of God’s motivations that aren’t backed by Scripture.
“According to Jim [Wilder], our brains are designed by God to run on joy. This insight was originally discovered by Dr. Allan Schore, who has been called the Einstein of Psychoanalysis for his work on attachment and the brain.” Pg. 122
Again, no Scriptural support in this section. If it was so important to God, why wouldn’t he reveal it to us in His word?
“From a scientific perspective, joy is a high-energy reaction to a relational connection…Joy is meant to be the foundation of our sense of identity.” Pg. 123
“Nearly everyone who struggles with their sense of identity will find a father wound in the past.” Pg. 129
“A discipleship process that does not address our fear bonds with G will always end up warped in one way or another. Heart-focused discipleship is required to help people move from fear bonds to joy bonds with God.” pg. 130
Always? Another strong assertion without evidence or support.
“Justice-motivated people tend to want to stand up for what is right. Mercy-motivated people want to reach out to those in need.” Pg. 130
“The question of our identity is, at its core, a worldview question. It is about who gets to define reality. Do we let our reality be defined by the world, the flesh, and the devil? Or, do we turn to God for the definitive answer to what is real? If I define myself by comparison to others or based on how I feel, I am using the world’s system. When I look to God and say about myself what He says, I am dealing with reality as it actually is, from God’s perspective. The good news here is that God thinks I am incredibly special.” Pg. 132
Chapter 8: Spirit and Scripture
“…the Christian life is the exciting process of learning to keep your balance. The idea was that Satan is constantly trying to get us to go to extremes and lead us away from the balancing point of truth. For example, Satan doesn’t really care if we move toward legalism or license, as long as he pushes us away from the true fulcrum of biblical grace.” Pg. 133
“When it comes to living in the Spirit, there is a balance that must be struck between the study of Scripture and the experience of hearing the Spirit’s voice. You can think of Scripture and Spirit as two wings of an airplane.” Pg. 133
“Some churches have been accused of preaching the Trinity as Father, Son, and Holy Bible.” Pg. 134
“I want to focus on nine building blocks that summarize the theology of the Bible. Not shockingly (as you can see the way I teach), you can remember these building blocks with an acronym. In this case, I use a web address: www.plaxn.com
WWW represents three foundational elements of a biblical worldview: worship, warfare, and wisdom. Pg. 139
PLAXN stands for: promise, law, anointed one, eXile, new covenant.
COM stands for: COMing Messiah. Pg. 140
“The purpose of life is worship.” Pg. 139
- I think this is too reductionistic. Our earthly life is meant for well more than that (unless we take the broadest definition of worship), especially since we use this mostly in connection with singing and meeting on Sundays.
“If you look at the world, you’ll be distressed. If you look within, you’ll be depressed. If you look at God, you’ll be at rest.” – Corrie Ten Boom Pg. 140
“The Bible is clear on three points: 1. God allows evil 2. God uses evil 3. God overcomes evil.” Pg. 141
“The Book of Psalms begins with the word ‘Blessed’ (Ps. 1:1). It teaches us that if we want a blessed life (one that ends in what is good and in life rather than one that ends under God’s curse so that we experience evil and death), we need to meditate on God’s law and put it into practice. The Sermon on the Mount follows a similar pattern. It opens with eight statements of the kind of life God blesses (we call these the Beatitudes).” Pg. 143
“From a biblical perspective, a fool is one who does not trust God’s wisdom, but relies on his own understanding instead.” Pg. 143
Chapter 9: Living in the Spirit
“…what the Old Testament calls wisdom, the New Testament calls walking in the Spirit. Wisdom always involves a choice. In Proverbs, two women call for us to follow them. One is wisdom, the other is folly. We have to choose.” Pg. 151-152
A simple model for walking in the Spirit: Seek (stop), Look, Obey, Watch [SLOW]. Pg. 154
“Every time we see a sunrise or a sunset, it is a call to worship. It is a reminder that God wants us to stop other things and seek Him. He wants us to have a relationship. He wants us to get to know Him well enough to trust Him so that we can live wisely and receive His blessing.” Pg. 156
“God’s thoughts lead us to the fruit of the Spirit. They bring us peace. They make us more loving, help us find joy, and so on. Through my own experience and the experiences of others, I have learned that God’s thoughts are usually clear and distinct. They are usually surprising. And they always lead me to the fruit of the Spirit.” Pg. 158
-Some interesting ideas (past two quotes), but another example of him proclaiming deep truths about God’s desires without Scriptural support.
“Whereas left-brain hearing is about surprising, clear, and distinct thoughts or images, right-brain hearing is what my friend Jim Wilder calls ‘a mutual mind experience with God’ or ‘thinking with God.’” Pg. 158
“There are even tests you can do to directly challenge the source of a supernatural experience. I usually call this ‘if’ prayers. They work like this. I pray, ‘If this experience is from the God who raised Jesus from the dead, then I thank Him for it and ask Him to help me use it for His glory. But if I have been deceived and this experience is a counterfeit from the devil, I renounce it and in the name of Jesus command that wicked spirit to leave.’ I have seen this prayer both confirm God’s supernatural work and expose the deceptions of the adversary.” Pg. 162
“However, once we realize that much of God’s communication is nonverbal, it opens the door to sensing His presence more often.” Pg. 162
“If our identity in Christ is the foundation of the Christian life, then walking in the Spirit is the engine that runs it.” Pg. 166
“We have emphasized two main ideas on what it means to walk in the Spirit: Scripture and Spirit. In the New Testament, the group best known for their focus on Scripture without the Spirit were the Pharisees. These religious leaders were so focused on the objective that they could not be persuaded to recognize the Holy Spirit’s work that was happening through the ministry of Jesus. No miracle or teaching of Jesus could open their eyes to the work of the Spirit. In the same way, the Bible without the Spirit is not a recipe for success in the Christian life for us today. Throughout history, there have also been groups that got so focused on hearing God’s voice experientially that they stopped caring if it was biblical. I have a friend whose wife divorced him and married someone else because the pastor at her church got a ‘word from the Lord’ that she was supposed to disobey Scripture. People can fall into serious error on either extreme, which is why we need to walk in balance, as we talked about in the last chapter.” Pg. 167
Chapter 10: Heart-Focused Community
4 Key elements for enriched soil that catalyzes growth (from Wilder and Hendricks): 1. Joy 2. Hesed 3. Group Identity 4. Healthy Shame Pg. 171
“The Hebrew word hesed refers to a strong attachment that cares for others.” Pg. 171
“Group identity is formed through belonging and vision.” Pg. 172
“When I can say, ‘These are my people,’ it means I feel like I belong to something bigger than myself that helps give my life purpose and a sense of identity.” Pg. 173
“From a biblical perspective, healthy shame messages are called ‘rebukes’ (prov. 15:31, 2 Tim. 3:16).” Pg. 173
“In the same way, Christian communities need to learn how to keep relationships bigger than problems by starting and ending with the importance of the relationships and not just venting because there is a problem.” Pg. 173
“Many of us need to learn how to show grace to ourselves as we deal with our weaknesses. Disgust, anger, and toxic shame are not healthy motivators, especially not over a long period of time.” Pg. 175
“Church leaders are called to build spiritual families. Too often, we have seen our task as building discipleship factories. The factory approach has merit, but it emphasizes programs and processes and counts on activities to generate growth. The family model focuses on emotional and relational maturity.” Pg. 175
IMO this is a false dichotomy.
Common problems when maturity is ignored or misidentified: 1. Reverse Maturity 2. Elder too soon. Pgs. 176-177
“…small groups often become the second parking lot for the church. We park people there and assume that they will grow without actually having a strategy for growth. I spoke with one small group pastor of a very large church who admitted that they didn’t really care what people did in small groups. He just wanted to know they were connected. The idea was that if they were making relationships, they were going to be okay.” Pg. 178
Deeper Walk Journey Group Program includes: 1. Emotional check-ins, curriculum, and listening prayer. Pgs. 178-179
Chapter 11: Mission
Core values of the Kingdom: Salvation, Stewardship, Spirituality, and Servant Love. Pgs. 184-185
“A well-functioning freedom ministry creates a natural flow of helping new believers find healing and deliverance who then tell others about the new freedom they have found.” Pg. 187
“Not only does understanding your identity in Christ provide the proper foundation for mission, but it is an important part of what we invite people to experience when we share Christ.” Pg. 188
“One of the tragedies I often see in churches is the enormous gap between the leadership culture, the congregational culture, and the recovery culture.” Pg. 194
We need to practice transparency because people have weaknesses. Pg. 194
We need to focus on maturity development as the goal of heart-focused discipleship. Pg. 195
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Find this helpful? Want to grow as a disciple or disciple maker? Check out my books: The Bicycle Illustration and The Foundation of a Disciple Making Culture. Not a reader? Check out my Podcast, “The Practitioners’ Podcast” for short, hyper focused disciple making episodes wherever you get podcasts!