Discipleship is a lifestyle. Whether you're at work, school, or driving, every moment is an opportunity to grow.
Episodes
Thursday Apr 23, 2020
Thursday Apr 23, 2020
The research shows that men are failing to be the spiritual leaders of the household. Women are far more likely to be the primary spiritual influence in the family. So we wanted to know why and explore what men could do to help reverse this trend. But what we found is that this is an issue that the entire household can get involved with. So whether you’re a man struggling to be a spiritual leader or a family member who wants to see their husband or father take a stand, Don Evert’s insights in this chapter will encourage you to find new ways to be support your family and help create a spiritually vibrant home.
Check out the full show notes and resources for this episode at dailygrowthdiscipleship.com.
Get your copy of the Daily Growth Journal and start creating a lifestyle of discipleship with the simple practice of journaling.
Wednesday Apr 22, 2020
Wednesday Apr 22, 2020
There are three habits Don found that correlate to having a spiritually vibrant home. In other words, spiritually vibrant homes often practiced three things. The good news is that creating a spiritually vibrant home doesn't mean being perfect. Instead, it often comes from messy prayers together, loud tables during meal times, and open doors of hospitality. In this chapter, Don unpacks a few tips on how you can begin to create a spiritually vibrant home with these three practices.
Check out the full show notes and resources for this episode at dailygrowthdiscipleship.com.
Get your copy of the Daily Growth Journal and start creating a lifestyle of discipleship with the simple practice of journaling.
Tuesday Apr 21, 2020
Tuesday Apr 21, 2020
Have you ever stopped to think about what the decisions you make in your house say about the person you are? Why do you want the lawn to be perfectly manicured? Do you like the aesthetic because it makes you feel good and creates a comfortable place for you and your family? Or do you spend hours each week working on your yard because you don’t want your neighbors to judge you? A mundane decision like mowing a lawn can say something profound about who we are, but we have to be willing to look deeper at the motives that drive us. Because as Don Everts points out in this chapter, once we learn to evaluate the motives behind our home lives, our home lives become an integral part of our discipleship.
Check out the full show notes and resources for this episode at dailygrowthdiscipleship.com.
Get your copy of the Daily Growth Journal and start creating a lifestyle of discipleship with the simple practice of journaling.
Monday Apr 20, 2020
Monday Apr 20, 2020
We want our kids and our homes to be places of safety and well-being. In addition, most of us want our homes to be a place of growth and vibrancy. But when we wake up in the morning and life is there to greet us with all of its chaos, spiritual growth and vibrancy in our homes seems like something we'll never reach. So how is it that we can bring spiritual growth and vibrancy to our homes when it feels like all we can do to keep our family alive from one day to the next? What is it that makes some homes spiritually vibrant while others seem to never quite move past the chaos? This question is one that we wanted to find an answer to and, as it turns out, so did Don Everts. In this chapter Don gives us an overview of his latest research in partnership with Barna on what makes a home spiritually vibrant. And what they found is good news!
Check out the full show notes and resources for this episode at dailygrowthdiscipleship.com.
Get your copy of the Daily Growth Journal and start creating a lifestyle of discipleship with the simple practice of journaling.
Friday Apr 17, 2020
Friday Apr 17, 2020
Our 5 steps in creating a lifestyle of discipleship are meant to help us assess every area of our lives. Whether it's practicing the basics or serving with purpose, each of these steps is also valuable in preventing burnout because they offer us a chance to create a healthy lifestyle. In this chapter, Josh and Chris walk through each of the 5 steps and apply what they've learned from our conversation with John this week.
Check out the full show notes and resources for this episode at dailygrowthdiscipleship.com.
Get your copy of the Daily Growth Journal and start creating a lifestyle of discipleship with the simple practice of journaling.
Thursday Apr 16, 2020
Thursday Apr 16, 2020
You will never be the person God has created you to be all on your own. And this is especially important for leaders to remember. The temptation is to think the more responsibility we have as leaders the fewer close friendships we should have and the less we need to pay attention to our inner worlds. We think we have to avoid showing favoritism or that we need to keep our distance in order to be more effective. But as so many who've gone through burnout know, loneliness is one of the most common feelings we experience when our internal lives are unhealthy. Steps 2 and 3 in creating a lifestyle of discipleship are practicing the basics and walking with others. Another way to look at these two steps are spiritual practices we do with God and spiritual practices we do with those around us. These two steps are really two sides of the same coin. And when it comes to creating a healthy lifestyle that will protect us from burnout, we need private time with God as well as close relationships with other people. In this chapter, John gives us some practical tips on how to put steps 2 and 3 into practice. These practices aren't only for those who are in burnout. Instead, they are practices each of us can do every day to create a healthy lifestyle of discipleship.
Check out the full show notes and resources for this episode at dailygrowthdiscipleship.com.
Get your copy of the Daily Growth Journal and start creating a lifestyle of discipleship with the simple practice of journaling.
Wednesday Apr 15, 2020
Wednesday Apr 15, 2020
How we deal with burnout depends on the severity of the person’s situation. This is why it’s so important to avoid burnout in the first place. Recovery can take several years in some cases. But recovery from burnout is possible! If you are experiencing burnout right now or are exhibiting early warning signs, there is hope for you. One of the most discouraging aspects of burnout is that you feel there is no hope for rest. You feel trapped in a perpetual cycle of striving for something you can’t see because you’ve forgotten the reason you started on this path in the first place. But in this chapter, John Opalewski gives us hope as he discusses how he walks with leaders through the recovery process. You don’t have to feel like you’re stuck on life’s hamster wheel, giving it 100% but not going anywhere. But you must be ready to learn a new way to live.
Check out the full show notes and resources for this episode at dailygrowthdiscipleship.com.
Get your copy of the Daily Growth Journal and start creating a lifestyle of discipleship with the simple practice of journaling.
Tuesday Apr 14, 2020
Tuesday Apr 14, 2020
Our public, external life does not necessarily reflect the state of our internal lives. Gordon MacDonald writes, "We are naively inclined to believe that the most publicly active person is the most privately spiritual. We assume that the larger the church, the greater its heavenly blessing. The more information about the Bible a person possesses, we think, the closer he or she must be to God." We can even make these false assumptions about our own lives. And these false assumptions may lead us to ignore the signs of burnout as leaders. We can be lulled into thinking the good things happening around us are signs we're on the right path in our journeys of discipleship. But it's in these moments, if we aren't paying attention, that our brokenness that we've ignored or covered up will eventually break through. And when that happens we find ourselves face to face with burnout. In this chapter, John pulls back the curtain on his own story of being a pastor and struggling with depression and suicidal thoughts. It's an honest look at what can happen when we don't take the time to evaluate our private, inner worlds. But there is hope if we find ourselves going down that path. And John's story is proof that God is always there to walk with us, and that he wants us not only to recover from burnout but to thrive in whatever position he calls us to fill in life.
Check out the full show notes and resources for this episode at dailygrowthdiscipleship.com.
Get your copy of the Daily Growth Journal and start creating a lifestyle of discipleship with the simple practice of journaling.
Monday Apr 13, 2020
Monday Apr 13, 2020
If you are listening to this podcast, you are a leader. You may or may not hold a leadership position like a pastor or a business owner. But you are listening to this podcast because you’re committed to growing as a disciple of Christ, and that means other people will take notice. If you’re a stay at home mom, your children follow your lead. If you work in an office or are a tradesmen, people will look at you to see how they should act and respond to challenges that come up throughout the day. If you are a pastor, you have the responsibility to lead others spiritually and teach them what Scripture says. Leadership requires us to give our lives to others. But as John Opalewski says in this chapter, leaders can’t give what they don’t have. That’s why it’s so important for leaders to take burnout seriously. As leaders, we must learn to pay attention to these signs so we can act quickly and avoid the devastating consequences of burnout in life and leadership.
Check out the full show notes and resources for this episode at dailygrowthdiscipleship.com.
Get your copy of the Daily Growth Journal and start creating a lifestyle of discipleship with the simple practice of journaling.
Friday Apr 10, 2020
Friday Apr 10, 2020
The author of Hebrews noted that Jesus learned obedience through the things he suffered. If even Jesus wasn't above being shaped by suffering, we won't be either. But we don't have to suffer alone. When we suffer as a Christian, we can be sure God will use whatever we're going through to shape us into his image. In this chapter, Chris and Josh wrap up this week's conversation with Jenny and discuss why suffering is an important part of what it means to live a lifestyle of discipleship.
Check out the full show notes and resources for this episode at dailygrowthdiscipleship.com.
Get your copy of the Daily Growth Journal and start creating a lifestyle of discipleship with the simple practice of journaling.