Guiding Principles Following Jesus Happens Between Sunday Mornings Professional musicians don't just gather for performances. They spend countless hours perfecting their technique between concerts. For Christian disciples, weekly worship is an important practice - but worship attendance is not what marks us as followers of Jesus. Discipleship is about our day to day living. Faithfulness is about the ordinary small and large decisions we make everyday and how they align with the gospel message of good news to the poor, freedom for prisoners, recovery of sight for the blind, and freedom for the oppressed (Luke 4:18). We Learn by Doing You don't learn an instrument by reading about how to play it, you learn by playing it — probably very poorly at first! We believe that churches sometimes slip into emphasizing study over action. Sunday school curriculum, book groups, bible studies, training, and workshops can all be valuable tools, but the best way to really grow in our personal discipleship is to get out and do it! We learn how to follow Jesus by striving together to follow Jesus in tangible action-oriented ways. Formation Happens in Community A single musician can't properly perform a piece that was meant for a trio, quartet, or full orchestra — and ensembles don't practice in isolation. They need to practice their parts together, over and over, in order to successfully create the harmonies and textures of an entire work. The only way to follow Jesus is in community. John Wesley said: "There is no gospel, but a social gospel. There is no holiness, but social holiness." While personal piety is important, Christianity is necessarily practiced together. The Methodist model of Classes & Bands provides us with a framework for intentional discipleship and shared responsibility in community. The Method Has Already Worked! There are tried and true methods and best practices for learning instruments. There are standard exercises and etudes that have been passed down and used by generations of musicians. The Discipleship Project is simply a revival of a very old method. Over two hundred years ago a movement of class & band meetings began. This localized grassroots-organizing approach to discipleship spread like wildfire, reached millions of people, and eventually birthed the many streams of Methodism we know today. It is time we return to our roots and embrace the tried and true method after which we are named!
Reclaiming the Method + Renewing the Mission + Reigniting the Movement
The DISCIPLESHIP PROJECT