Follow to Lead Session 6: Making Disciples Secures the Future
by Raymond Sloan
August 8, 2019 · Cornerstone Apostolic Church
Kind: teaching
Scripture: Acts 6:3-8, John 17, Psalm 51, Acts 8:4

Source: https://acts238.life/repository/sermons/raymond-sloan--follow-to-lead-session-6-making-disciples-secures-the-future
Published by Acts 2:38 Life from the sermon transcript on that page.
Free to copy and share with attribution.

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over the last several weeks we've been talking about following Jesus but as we follow Jesus we are helping lead others to him amen and in fact there's a book that we've been going by Stan Gleason's book there's I think one or two more copies out in the foyer for those you want to buy one but it's excellent material on how to become a disciple maker pouring yourself into someone else making yourself available to someone else okay that's what we're trying to ascertain or get to at this place in our in our church environment if you will I don't know how to say that is we're trying to find a way that we can multiply ourselves if you will into others trying to get to the place that we are investing in the lives of other people how many think people matter why do they matter because eternity is at stake I mean is there any more plain than that I mean I'm sorry as much as some folk might think that you live you die and forget it all that's not gonna be the case there are decisions and choices and things that have to be done so becoming a disciple maker means you're learning the word and then you're turning around and helping others because it matters it's over the last several weeks we've talked about through brother Gleason's video series about just making yourself friendly to people opening yourself up to folk he spoke last week about somebody that that was the same they visited the same place and just showed their light there and through that at the funeral there were hundreds of people if you know that came to to show their support because of the impact that consistancy had in their lives well tonight we're going to finish up would make a disciple to secure the future now keep in mind I have to have to make sure we understand this brother Gleeson is in ina Pentecostal Church International pastor he's one of our assistant general superintendents so this material that he's written is focused towards the church okay trying to help trying to instruct so that's what it's focus why he's using the stories he's using that's why he's mentioning what he's mentioning because it helps us as apostolic in our organization and others to learn and to grow into a place where we can really become disciple makers so tonight's presentation for an example he's going to mention several things in our organization now there are many many organizations that are preaching AB star and they following the Word of God it's just he happens to be United Pentecostal church pastor we're gonna go to begin tonight Acts chapter six if you have that you have it in your Bible or even on your handout if you're too occupied to go to your Bible Acts chapter six somebody begin reading please out loud at verse number three please someone help me very good for someone very good five someone oh very good sick someone seven someone keep that's right verse seven and Stephen full of faith and power did great wonders and miracles among the people now a brother Gleason is going to mention this but I want to start the reason I put these verses down Stephen we almost like to think only that the twelve closest friends of Jesus were able to accomplish things and sometimes of course when we talk about the Apostles doctrine and teaching that's what we're indicating but to be a follower of Jesus there's an anointing that goes with that Stephen was a simple disciple he was a follower of Christ he believed he learned he was educated they were teeth Philip the same the names that are mentioned here these are the seven names that they chose out of disciples and the Bible says here in verse number eight Stephen full of power faith and power did great wonders and miracles a disciple a follower was able to be used of God to do great things so the point I'm trying to make here and the point in this whole series of lessons that we've been through over the last several weeks is this is the fact that how Jesus wants us to work he doesn't want us to simply learn the word and then forget it he wants us to understand that through daily living and walking with Him we can make a difference in this present world mmm Joshua ready we got okay this is about 15 minutes long and then we'll get to our questions and answers here listen let's take a look at this so as we approach our last lesson on making disciples I want to tell you about my first experience in making disciples it was perhaps 35 years ago and a woman showed up at church with two little children and she told me her story her marriage was in trouble her husband was an alcoholic of many years he was sort of abusive and belligerent so I asked her if I could come to her house when her husband was there to teach them a Bible study and I'll never forget the first afternoon that I showed up her little boy's name was Jason he was about four or five years old and he had been to church a few times so when I knocked on the door he opened the door and when he saw me his eyes got so big and without greeting me or opening the door for me I heard him as he turned around and he yelled hey mom God's here and I thought you know what he's right I am God's representative here at their house so for several weeks I would teach her and the children to Bible study at the kitchen table he would be around the corner in the living room with the TV blaring would never come and sit and listen to the Bible study she continued to come to church for several weeks I continued to teach the Word of God with very little or no interaction with her husband a few months later I got a phone call from a detox center and it was his sponsor asking me to come and meet with him and so I thought you know what I'm gonna let him get good and dried out so I waited for a couple more weeks because I knew he'd be there thirty days and so after two weeks I went down and I talked with him he said pastor I've been listening to your Bible studies around the corner and I'm ready to repent we got down on our knees both of us and we started praying and he began sobbing in fact after an hour I was absolutely exhausted I tapped him on the shoulder I called him by name I said look I'm wore out but you keep praying until you repent all the way and so just a few days later he came to church he was baptized and filled with the Holy Ghost that's been 35 years ago but because of the time we invested in them they are still faithfully walking with God and serving him and turning around and making disciples so welcome to the world of disciple making and once you get a taste of it you will never be the same again so welcome to our sixth and final small group discussion entitled follow to lead the journey of a disciple maker and as we begin this last session I would like to do what I can perhaps to eliminate any excuses that someone might have for not making disciples when I look at the command of Jesus I don't see him you know giving the command to go make disciples to just an exclusive few people but I think this is a command to the church and to every born-again believer individually it's not only a command but it is a calling and it is a privilege I read a statistic some time ago that said the most shy person in their lifetime impacts 10,000 people when I read that I thought about Andrew for example the brother of Peter you know Peter was boisterous impulsive you might even see not even say impetuous you know the only time Peter opened his mouth was to change feet somebody said but now Andrew on the other hand was sort of more of a low-key perhaps an introverted person not much is said about Andrew but it was Andrew that introduced his brother Peter to Jesus and so we need to think in terms of not am i qualified do I have the personality and you know do I have the right temperament to make disciples that has nothing to do with it I think Jesus in his example of turning centers into friends and friends into disciples eliminates all the excuses and here's the deal if we can make friends then we are qualified to make disciples the same skill set that it takes to make friends is the same set of skills is required to make disciples so every born-again believer is called and quoi five to make disciples so how qualified were Jesus disciples to make disciples well not actually very qualified they weren't from universities Jesus plucked him out of trees and found him down at the pier and perhaps he would have wished that his disciples would have smelled more like heavenly phosphorus and less than mud and dead fish you know Jesus disciples were a ragtag group you know of and a very diverse group of people in fact Jesus only spent 42 months with them he didn't have a lifetime to disciple them and as they were making disciples the disciples did not have dedicated meeting spaces they did not have the New Testament to use to make disciples transportation was not easy and yet they went to the four corners of the earth and they impacted their world when we look at the scripture we find people that were very suited to make disciples who had great stories but let's think for a minute about at least one person who didn't have such a great story but yet made a disciple her name was Naomi heard her husband lived in the Land of Israel until there was a famine the Bible says that they took their two sons and they went to Moab while they were in Moab their sons became married and over a period of time Naomi's husband died her two sons died so now she's got two daughters-in-law who are Moabite is's from a pagan culture the Bible said that Naomi heard that there was bread again and the family was over in in Bethlehem so she decided to go back scripture says that Orpah kissed Naomi but she went back to Moab but Ruth on the other hand clave to Naomi and so when Naomi's coming back with Ruth into Bethlehem they said oh look Naomi's returned and she says don't call me Naomi call me Mara for I went out full but I've come back empty and of course Mara means bitter so this bitter empty broken woman who's buried her husband and her two sons you wouldn't think she would have a whole lot of light shining out of her life but even in this condition Ruth saw more of God than she had ever seen in her whole country in her whole upbringing and she said to Naomi wherever you go I want to go and wherever you Lodge I want to lodge I want your people to be my people and I want your God to be my god don't sell yourself too short even though you you may feel empty and you may have had to deal with the bitter pangs of life and we've all suffered loss but I would say that the the the least apostolic person among us has more Holy Ghost and grace in their little finger than than anyone else that some people in this world have ever met and so Naomi was an unlikely disciple maker but she discipled Ruth and of course you know she eventually came into the lineage of Jesus Christ I grew up with a young man who went to Bible College and then he back slid and even in his back slid condition he made a friend out of a out of a man at work and the man saw something in him and knew there was something different even though he wasn't going to church and even though he wasn't walking with God and finally this backslidden young man said look if you're looking for God I can tell you where to go and he pointed him to my home church and that man came to church he was discipled he became a licensed minister he planted a church in my home district he became a missionary and now he is a pastor in South Dakota and so don't ever undersell yourself as yourself and say I can't make disciples you are qualified to make disciples and here's why the power of the seed of the word of God is not dependent on the skill of the sower and so when Jesus taught the story and the parable of the sower the seed in the soil that soared just cast that seed indiscriminately on good soil thorny soil stony soil and on wayside soil so don't undersell yourself and your ability to make disciples now on the other hand it's a wonderful thing when the disciple believes in their disciple maker but it's even more wonderful when the disciple maker believes in the disciple some people only need somebody just to believe in them and it's a very important in this world that strips and whips people away from everything that they hold dear that they cherish we as disciple makers have to come alongside our disciples and believe in them and tell them you know they're great and they're gonna do great things for God and we have to keep it real if it's not real we can't help them we can't be ivory tower disciple makers but we have to come down and be on the level where our disciples are living and one more thing when you're making disciples not only keep it real but also don't be afraid to give yourself away give your power away Jesus was not a power broker Jesus wasn't hoarding his power he was always giving his power way he said who touched me he said the things that I'm doing you're going to do he said the Holy Spirit's gonna come on you and and you'll have power to be witnesses and and so let's let's stop making excuses and let's start making disciples and give ourselves away to them now as we close this series on making disciples I want to talk to you about the fact that making disciples secures the future of the Apostolic Church where would the church be today if we still had every person who had ever been born again who had ever been raised and then born again in an Apostolic Church you know Jesus in his priestly prayer in John 17 he said father I thank you that I have my disciples he said because I was with them don't miss that prayer he said I have them because I was with them you say well you know he didn't have all of them because Judas was going to be trained well he hadn't betrayed him yet so when he prayed his prayer he was twelve or twelve and of course eleven out of twelve I think is about 92% so that's not bad so making disciples is a proven way of holding and retaining the harvest I believe that backsliding is a discipleship issue now that does not mean that you know that good disciples the people that have been discipled never backslide but I think if we would do a better job of disciple believers and coming alongside them and helping him through the tough issues and wrestling with the cares of life and family and marriage and work and and overcoming sin and just taking the journey with them we can help them to overcome these things so that they will be prepared when temptation comes against them sometimes when I'm teaching my disciples I tell them three things number one love the truth truth is a person before it's ever a list of doctrines and understanding of the scripture and of course that person is Jesus who said I am the truth secondly I tried to teach them to respect and build relationship with the elders I see this somewhat as lacking in a millennial generation that is resonating only with their demographic but we need to build relationship with the elders I think this is very key to feel responsible to to feel accountable to elders this is very important and thirdly keep sin out of your life if you can keep a daily fresh ledger of your relationship with Christ Jesus Christ is the greatest accountability person you can ever have and and so it's very important that we keep sin out of our life because here's what I've learned morality will dictate your theology if you've got sin in your life it will impact your theology so it's very important that you keep a clean heart and a right spirit which was David's prayer and Psalm 51 I just want to honor my parents just for a moment who were the greatest disciple makers I ever knew they discipled for children my brother my two sisters were all yet in the apostolic church were endeavoring to make disciples ourselves and I thank God for my parents who who were authentic my father was not one thing behind the pulpit and another thing at the kitchen table he was a true-blue apostolic Christian everywhere he went and everyone he talked to and so when we are making disciples let's keep it real especially when we're deciding our children so when we make disciples of our children and the next generation we are securing the future of the Apostolic Church now I want to just point out as I close this session we won't have first century results until we have first century behavior and when I read the book of Acts narrative I see a definite shift in Acts chapter 6 the Bible says that the Apostles had to make a decision and that was to appoint seven men to serve tables because of a problem that had arisen and I won't take the time to rehearse that story but you can read it in Acts chapter six so the scripture says that they laid hands on these seven men and they release their authority into these men to do ministry now they were not just ordaining them to serve widows in the daily ministration because the Bible says that immediately stephen began to do miracles in the streets in fact he stirred up the religious elite of that day let's say and the Bible says that they took him and they stoned him Stephen was the first martyr but not before he was ordained by the Apostles and had a powerful ability to communicate truth and was having miracles in the streets Philip one of the other seven went to Samaria he was having miracles and he was baptising so these men were not just ordained to serve tables but the Apostles release their authority what were they doing they decentralized the authority and the leadership of the early church this decision was powerful they did not bottleneck the church but they equipped and empowered and released others to do ministry so they shared ministry now the Bible's is an interesting thing in Acts chapter 8 verse 4 earlier in the chapter says the disciples stayed or the Apostles stayed in Jerusalem but verse 4 says and they that were scattered abroad went everywhere preaching the word so if the Apostles stayed in Jerusalem who was it that was going everywhere preaching the word I'll tell you who it was it was every believer every believer was a minister in the first century every believer was a preacher perhaps not a licensed preacher but they simply were rehearsing what the Apostles and the prophets and the other members of the fivefold ministry had been teaching them when the persecution came they fanned the flames of revival and went everywhere preaching the word it's no wonder that they've reached their generation so let's put this in a 21st century context speaking for a United Pentecostal church we have approximately 10,000 licensed ministers now we don't need a pulpit to preach all we need is a hungry heart all we need is a disciple to share the Word of God with what would happen first of all if every one of our 10,000 licensed ministers would begin to preach the word everywhere but not only that what would happen if all 800,000 United Pentecostal church members in North America not just 10,000 but what if 800,000 would go out every day and preach the word and make disciples how quickly could we impact our nation and then I've also been thinking about who did all the baptizing on the day of Pentecost the Bible says that 3,000 were added after the 120 initially received the Holy Spirit I puzzled and puzzled about that until one day I was in the Holy Land standing on the south steps of the temple and our guide who is a and I'll call him an apostate Jew he doesn't choose to worship God today but he said have you ever wondered where they baptized at 3000 he said look down below and we saw these mikvahs which was a large ceremonial cleansing pool he said this is where they did the baptizing on the day of Pentecost and I thought the twelve couldn't have done all the baptizing so who did the baptizing I'll tell you who it was it was the disciples making disciples it was the twelve baptizing and then others baptizing and then others baptizing until after the end by the end of the day three thousand had been baptized now of course this is a pastoral decision and whoever your pastor says is qualified to baptize is the one that's qualified to baptize but when I look at the book of Acts I see a decentralization of the Twelve Apostles giving power to the church just like Jesus gave power to them and I think when we believe in people when we believe in our disciples when we empower them to do the work of the ministry to preach the word baptize to do whatever God has called them to do it's not until we have first-century behavior that we will have first century results so I'm clapping and cheering for all of you that are engaging in the great opportunity that Jesus has given us to go make disciples of all nations we can do this we can reach the world if we will do it the way that Jesus Christ taught us to do it may God bless all of you as you go make disciples of all nations all right interesting the again he's he's got a lot of experience if you will in starting churches and disciple and so that's why we're trying to learn from him according to what we read earlier Acts chapter six there was a great job to be done and it took followers to accomplish the task there's no way for an example that myself my wife or brother Doron or whomever could do everything in the church but it takes everybody agreed if that's the case and the work of the church gets bigger and more to be done it takes more people to accomplish the task Eman here on your paper number one with the feeling I Blake has anyone ever believed in you even when you could not believe in yourself does that question make sense has anybody ever believed in you when you weren't really reliable dependable capable what if that person how did they change your life they encourage ya what else yeah all right yeah do you hear she had a high school teacher that told her she need to marry a guy that was better than her and that was just that's translation now that needs to be in leadership and so she'd be vote rain for the office and she was elected the class president there you go but otherwise if that teacher had not encouraged or she probably wouldn't have done anyone else yeah sometimes it's hard to believe in people they let you down they disappoint you they don't they don't make the gravy they don't they don't know what you're doing but if you'll take time to pray about it maybe somebody that you've befriended or somebody that you're that you're that you're close to whatever what would it be like in your life if you were to I don't know take a chance on them and just begin to share your love share your testimony what God has done in your life what about the second how would you encourage someone who feels unqualified or unworthy how would you encourage them to make a disciple what words would you use what what scenarios would you paint yeah to help them with their positive trait sure what else true ok very good anyone else how do you encourage somebody who's who needs it oh you can do this get up lazy good-for-nothing now that's probably not gonna be doing pretty good right well what if you just telling them well honestly what do you have to lose do you have to defend Jesus do you have to defend this word no you know what if God's been good to you you've got something you can tell if God's been good to them they have something they can share amen in the Bible what character best reminds you that in spite of problems in spite of whatever they're in they made disciples and he mentioned for an example Naomi and her daughters-in-law but but who else in the Bible on what we're looking for here's examples that perhaps you can use what's an example Paul very good somebody else David certainly someone else would you have picked Matthew tax-collector jesus did and make look what he did would you have chosen Andrew would you have chosen some of these others maybe not but Jesus didn't took a chance on them right you can go the Old Testament what would you have picked Samuel to be the one if you would that would come up under Eli I mean he was an only child at that point I would have been tough wouldn't it but God knew exactly what he was doing so the fact of the matter is as if your study for an example just mentioned if you look into the scriptures and some of these stories of the individuals the men and women the the the groups of people that God used for incredible I would have never picked Gideon he was hiding behind a rock trying to scrape together food to feed his family and God called him what a mighty man of Valor the point is this if you'll look into their lives I think you'll probably see some of you in there now some of us guys want to consider us to be all Bible character II like Sam's or something you know but just first so you know they didn't know where his strength came from so he could have looked like this I'm just saying tell me I'm wrong where do strength for life he'd have been all muscular like you know some of these others you know I know that's where it is but anyway I digress they're on the next one I want you to take just a few moments and think about I'm watching our clock we're okay what are your greatest strengths in making a disciple what can you use that you currently have as your strength to help somebody else want to know Jesus what do you have what is your greatest strength to make a disciple yeah but what's that well does that mean something sure and you know by and large think about this by and large people that come to a point of decision in their life listen to me just a moment they come to a point of decision in their life they're living life they've got their job their stuff their things their money their families whatever it is typically not always but a lot of times there's a trial there's a test there's there's a catastrophe that happens some making their family passes away or close friend gets hurt whatever and it brings them back to a place where they begin to think am i right mommy I better change my bed more if I don't you know it's typically that that's how things transpired in people's lives well the fact is if they if they know somebody that got sick and passed away because of that disease but yet you have been sick and God touched you can you not share that with them I mean the worst thing for them to say is yeah but then why didn't God heal mine or this family why did that help I can tell you why because he's God and you're not God is faithful order he makes sense or not God is righteous whether we understand it or not I share again my pastor growing up could barely breathe he had to use the inhaler thing because of his asthma emphysema that he had it was very very challenged if you will but I've watched him many times as a young boy growing up and as a teenager I watched him stand in the pulpit and pray and pray and preach and preach and and somebody I watched him turn around and do the thing in his mouth so he could breathe and somebody come to the altar and need prayer need healing and he pray for them and God healed him instantly and hymns go sit down because he can't hardly breathe and time and again I would ask why can't God heal you he says whether God ever does or not doesn't mean he can't I just simply keep moving on until he decides to or not I will live with this until God decides otherwise because he will not put on me more than I can bear understanding that God's well able but he may not so you can share that testimony I've got a hundred things that God has done in my life I can share those things you can share those things what about this what are some weaknesses that you may have now you know you may I mean I may need to reword that for for today's terminology what are some areas of needing more instruction now it's a weakness what are some areas of weakness selfish yeah what else yeah social cues oh yeah okay I got had to translate so shogi I got yeah what else fear certainly what else the unknown if you're not in control everything if it don't go your way how you gonna explain it I mean on and on yeah what if they look at me this way or what if what if I Ida minish in their eyes what if they think I'm all of that but then all of a sudden they look at me weird you know the old-timers if I can use it this way the the grand great-grandparents and so forth they were they were called holy rollers they they had tomatoes and eggs thrown at him that's here in the states this is nowhere oh this they had things happening in their starting churches that you and I today we would make headline news in a tent meeting in Chattanooga Tennessee eggs were thrown yes the offspring of chickens was thrown at people or whatever that is you could have a lawsuit and everything but you know what they thought it was the same thing that I would think thought it's working God's moving I remember as a child going to the tent meetings and and people driving by and honking their horns and screaming words out their windows that's not repeatable I remember one time it had a tent meeting when somebody came into the tent come looking for their their wife and kids drunk as a skunk raising a ruckus mad screaming yelling and before they got down to the front God had smashed them to the ground speaking in tongues got sober them up just like that but see today what is persecution in today's church sometimes I'm just telling you sometimes we can think that we're being correct and the fact is is if if you'll just use your testimony it's a story of the good things that God has done in your life that's not abrasive who would you offend saying to someone you know what I used to take this or I used to drink that or you to buy this but now I don't you see my point you can help somebody learn about Jesus just by sharing your testimony the last one here there's there's three lines that I put here from this point forward what are your next three steps to take in order to become a disciple maker once you think about that for just a minute starting tonight when you get home or tomorrow morning you wake up what are the three steps that you need to take to become a disciple maker now some of you may put none I'm already there some of you may put only one some of you may have a list of 10 flip it over on the back and keep writing the reason that I put this one here is I want you to consider praying about what is hindering you and then pray about the wisdom and knowledge to know how to make that next step closer to the Lord you see there's people that you come in contact with every day all they need to know is Jesus loves them I don't know maybe I'm getting old and I'm being more aware but I'm finding it very interesting and some people that I meet throughout the day just daily doing things hey what you know how you how you as guy came out the other day to my house to do some work and introduce myself we started talking whatever and one of the first things that he want to talk about just while he was getting his stuff that was you know we're living in a crazy world and things are just happening so quickly there's got to be something bigger and better out there and I said as I've told you guys before yeah it's a good day to know Jesus buddy you're right and the conversation begins that's just a simple way people are just tired people are weary of the battles of the world because there's no reprieve from it in the world where do they run to where does where does somebody that's in all this mess where are they gonna go to get away from the stuff that's going on we know the answer is in heaven we know the road to get to heaven we understand the Scriptures and how they apply to those who are alive and well today be a disciple maker so this is the point of the last six weeks take time to begin to develop your story and then share it take a chance pray about it Lord lead me today to somebody that just wants to hear your name that's all just wants to hear your name you can be in the worst of situations the worst of jobs and the worst of whatever environment and you simply breathe the name Jesus something will change you can be in a classroom where everybody's falling apart and you pray over that classroom what will happen it'll change the environment you're gonna be facing down somebody that that's mean mad upset at work or in Walmart wherever it is but if you've got Jesus going you can breathe the name Jesus and he can work in that situation I heard a testimony earlier today going back to school it's gonna be tough it's gonna be hard so what are you gonna do I'm gonna pray everyday that Jesus comes into the classroom why because unless he does something it's gonna be a really bad year point I'm making is this guys if you'll do that and just being who you are that's a witness to those around you that's a voice in there darkness and they're in there bad times and the stuff that they're going through that's a voice that says to them there's something out here that's bigger can you come there's something out here that's bigger than you you know what the next generation needs to hear they need to hear the goodness of the Lord you know what these babies need to hear what they need to see is how that God is working in mom and dad's lives or in so-and-so's life and then they'll grow up to expect it to be so when your child gets sick what's the first thing that they ask for hmm mommy run me to the hospital go get the pain medicine out of the cabinet what do they say will you pray for this pray for me now if when I get hurt I asked my wife to to kiss the little boob now it's untrue or our kids they knew him and they were sometimes afraid you know no it's not a pen decide it's just go lay down we pray for you how am i telling you I've shared my testimony growing up many times how that of course it was back in the day when the hospital was the last resort you just prayed it's all you had you just prayed and the power of God would move things would happen I can't ever get past that watching the blood dry up I can't ever get past the fact that God somehow moved into a really bad situation and things changed the phone rang the mailbox had an envelope the doctor's report was wrong and I can't get away from that I know that that many times God does things and somebody will call or text or whatever and they'll say pastor this is what I prayed for you know what God came in and moved and and situation changed and almost almost every time almost every time please forgive me if it's an offense to you but almost every time I say ask anybody who's callers texted me well of course he did why would you have thought otherwise I mean he just blew my mind the way God come in he move it well of course he did didn't you pray well yeah but me boo it just blew me isn't that what God does isn't he just good a disciple maker shares that for somebody stand with me would you please so he goes to teach his Bible study and the little guy at the door says God's here that was his only indication of something bigger and of course the representation of God was who he was but look how it changed that family and you all may have testimonies exactly the same but I want to encourage you let your light shine be the salt candle set up not under a bushel salt that makes the world have a have a flavor if you will I want you to pray with you right now that God will help you help me help us to be what we need to be in this hour Jesus I love you and I believe in you I thank you Lord and I bless your name tonight Lord we are here studying your word God we're trying to become disciple makers people that will talk about you that will we will multiply Lord what you've done in our lives we can share it with others I believe in your Lord and I trust you and I thank you for all of your grace and goodness to us thank you for the miraculous that you have done and every one of our lives Lord it's a tale worth telling it's a it's an account Lord worth sharing with someone I ask you Lord to help us to be disciple makers those God help us to be those who will go out Lord and that will just encourage others to want to know you fall in love with you and serve you in the name of Jesus have your way Lord I pray your glory God would touch every heart in every life we honor and love you the name of Jesus go with us as we go our separate ways we go in you you go with us before us you come after us you're beside us we're thankful for that calm assurance in the name of Jesus I love you Lord and I believe in you and I trust you for great things let God arise let God arise in our midst I pray I plead your blood over each one of us Jesus go with us we're gonna come back Lord God rejoicing in you this weekend in the name of the Lord Jesus we pray be glorified in all things Jesus we love you Lord amen amen