Waldorf is the leading city in Charles County, one of the fastest growing counties in the country. This objective was measured by a panel of six experts.7 The panel used a rubric to evaluate the biblical fidelity, teaching methodology, scope and appropriateness of the curriculum (see appendix 2). Thirdly, the Scriptures show that Jesus requires Him to be the primary relationship in the life of the believer.
Robert Bratcher writes, "The glorified Christ will no longer tolerate such lukewarm, ineffective believers."18 God's heart is for Christ's church to become a representation of Christ's ways, actions, and disciplines. The foundation of every other relationship in a believer's life is based on a genuine prioritization of Christ as first and center. Church members are constantly exposed to the mindset of an updated self-help culture.
This standard is the driving mindset that must be instilled in the minds of the members of the Christian Unity Baptist Church. The starting point of the self-help culture is that one should simply believe in oneself. The quantum change that takes place in the believer's life will come through Christ-centering.
At the end of the day, preparation is not a bad thing in life; it is quite the opposite. This equipment will mark the beginning of a new era for the church—the era of discipleship will begin.
Forming Expert Panel and Gathering Materials and Gathering Materials
After the first phase was completed, the second phase was to write the curriculum and present it to the panel of experts. If the panel felt confident about the lessons, then that confidence spilled over to the classroom participants and had a greater potential for impact on the students. At this point in the project, the panel was selected, the curriculum was written, and the students were identified.
In phase 3, the pre-test, known as the Discipleship Practices Awareness Survey (DPAS), was administered and lessons began to be given to participants. Within the process of this endeavor, deliberate thought was given not to rush the students and to allow them to enjoy what they have learned to some extent and to mentally and spiritually process what they will take away. The final phase of the project took place over four weeks to allow time for feedback and evaluation.
In this feedback, success was assessed based on the information provided by participants who completed the entire course. Through Sunday morning announcements and special invitations, I petitioned the church body from the pulpit for individuals interested in participating in this panel of experts. To distinguish this specialized course from the weekly Bible study, this class was classified in the new service area to be called the Christian Unity Bible School.
The expert panel decided to be called the Christian Unity Bible School Team (CUBS Team). This new area of service made it conducive to continuing with ongoing education and training after the project was completed as a pilot class. Members of the CUBS team were selected by the Board of Elders from the pool collected during the solicitation period.
These individuals, who consisted of three ministers with seminary experience and three teachers with professional teaching experience, were selected as a panel of experts. The expert panel members were asked to return for the next four weeks to review the materials to be developed as a curriculum.
Writing Curriculum Materials and Submitting to an Expert Panel Submitting to an Expert Panel
This pool of candidates was voted on by committee members with the expectation of future participation outside of this project. The completed learning materials and curriculum were submitted weekly to the expert committee for editing and approval. Over a period of four weeks, CUBS team members met weekly to evaluate the lessons written for the discipleship course.
The reference materials used to write the curriculum were Thomas Higel's Journey to Discipleship and an article from Bible.org. The CUBS team evaluated seven weeks of materials such as curriculum and course materials. Given the existing structure of the weekly Bible study, the expert committee encouraged me to use weekly handouts so that students could fill in notes from the course discussions.
The expert panel also encouraged me to have the panel members as members of the CUBS team help co-facilitate the curriculum materials over the next few weeks. The CUBS team developed an encouraging Community Accountability Statement to ensure that all participants understood the expectations for attending the course. One way to outline the direction of these lectures to those who will be participating was through the course outline.
The purpose of the review was to emphasize to the students that when someone chooses to follow Jesus Christ, that individual has made the most important decision of their life. This review had an immediate effect on those who wanted to understand the distance class. The course, previously reviewed by the CUBS team for classroom approval, aimed to (1) articulate biblical and theological principles that provide participants with a foundation for the qualities and characteristics of disciple-making; and (2) exemplifies a commitment to a life of personal integrity and spiritual growth.
These goals are tangential to the message of the course review in terms of developing a more disciplined mindset and outlook on one's life. Providing an overview and objective of the course maintains the integrity of the project methodology and remains true to the purpose of the lectures.
Administering DPAS and Teaching Weekly Curriculums Teaching Weekly Curriculums
The class then needed a clear definition of discipleship to understand the relevance of the course. Because the students' hearts were spiritually massaged and loosened in the week 1 lessons, the participants were able to talk about a sensitive area in the minds of most believers. The class was then ready to move on to the next lesson in week 3 of classes.
Week 3 was a two-part lesson titled, "How to Know the Will of God and Accountability Mentoring." The students began to engage, and their minds seemed to retroactively turn inward. This understanding gives a platform to the previously taught idea of the balance of spirituality and practicality. Week 5 was a lesson entitled, "What is the Bible?" The highlighted topics were instrumental in the interpretation of whether the Scriptures were simply inspiration or the Bible.
Higle writes, "While the word Bible simply means 'book,' the words 'Bible' distinguish it as the supreme, unique, and incomparable Holy Bible."6 This statement set the tone for the rest of the lesson to establish authority. of Scripture. The students were responsive to the fact that the word "the" changes meaning from "a" Bible, which is broad in its attitude, to "the." Students were given the opportunity to learn the weight of authority carried by the sixty-six books of the Bible.
The weekly assignment was to memorize the names of the books of the Bible in the Old Testament. The gist of the lesson was that one should get by only knowing the Bible. The first part of the lesson emphasized the need for prayer and what it looks like to have an effective prayer life.
Students would not only understand the definition of faith, but they would also understand the need for a faith walk with God. Three questions were addressed during the faith portion of the lesson: (1) what is biblical faith.
Administering Post-Test and Accepting Participant Evaluations of the Participant Evaluations of the
The effectiveness of the church's witness seemed only superficial, as the void of intentional discipleship training within the congregation was realized. An increase in the church's annual budget is not the only sign of a thriving and revitalizing church. This planning is the first attractor of the participants' attention span throughout the program.
Believers must learn to be intentional disciples within the church so that the church can model that discipleship and be the necessary examples outside the church. As mentioned, this deliberate discipleship and isolated training has not been widespread in the life of CUBC. The first objective was to assess the current knowledge and practice of discipleship among the members of the class.
The importance of the project was not only teaching and training members in seven weeks. Because of the momentum gained by those who participated in the class, it will be difficult for future classes to maintain the group size. The church does not have to die when the members of the older generation die - the church can progress and prosper with the generations coming after it who will be intentionally taught the principles of discipleship.
More time could only have improved what had already been gained in the project's output. There was a sense of excitement on the part of the moderator, as much as there was on the part of the participants. This closeness would be necessary for the teacher's passion to be indelibly transmitted to the students.
That same passion had to be felt towards the CUBS team which aligns with the aim and objectives of the project. Members of the class expressed how lacking they were in their giving before the session. The challenges of this project paled in comparison to the obvious impacts made in the lives of the project participants.
CUBC has experienced unprecedented growth in church history in recent years.
