The Daily Growth Discipleship Podcast

"To be human is to be lonely.” Jason Gaboury begins his new book on loneliness with this quote from Friar Ugo. And it says something profound about what it means to be human. We all experience loneliness. We feel left out, like we don’t measure up, or like the odd man out of the group. But this isn’t the way it’s supposed to be. We were created for community, to reflect the relational nature of God Himself. Sin and the loss of relationship has opened a chasm between us and God as well as between us and our friends, spouses, co-workers, and family. We seek deep relationships, like a starving man seeks food. But unless we understand loneliness, we will seek relationships in the wrong way. We will try to numb the pain or to distract ourselves from reality with fake relationships or cheap imitations. And so, loneliness persists. That’s why in this conversation with Jason, we talk about the causes of loneliness and how it can actually lead us to pay closer attention to the most important relationships in our lives.

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Most of us probably think the gospel is something that unbelievers need to hear, those who haven't committed themselves to follow Jesus. But if the good news is good news, shouldn't it always be good news, especially if we're making discipleship a lifestyle? In this episode, Chris gives a great demonstration of why the gospel isn't just for unbelievers. The good news is something that transforms us as we follow Jesus in a lifestyle of discipleship.

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Theology! Many Christians flinch a little when they hear that word. We live in an era where theology has become a dirty word, associated with stiff academics and argumentative dogmatists. But theology is at the core of who we are as disciples. If we are genuine in our faith, theology is unavoidable because we naturally ask questions about who God is and how we should follow Him. So we must work to make sure our theology is done well, rooted in the history of the Church that seeks to worship God. And that’s the approach Dennis Okholm takes in his book Learning Theology through the Church’s Worship. The way we live our life in Christ displays our theology just as our theological beliefs influence the way we worship God in our everyday life. And so theology forms a core discipline that we as disciples cannot ignore.

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In John 17, Jesus prayed, "Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one." You don't have to look far among Christians these days to realize we are terrible at this thing Jesus prayed for in John 17. Legitimate issues of racism and how we can best love our neighbor become an arena in which we attempt to prove our point no matter the cost. In this episode, David offers a solution that we believe hits the nail on the head. Instead of choosing one side or the other, he calls us back to the Christ who saved us and to our calling as Christ's presence in the world.

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God loves you… It’s almost cliche when you hear it, but think about each one of those three words… God… Loves… You… You might be thinking, “Yeah he does, but that’s just who he is, right?” Or maybe, “Yeah, but he doesn’t like me. There’s a lot of me that’s still broken… I don’t even like me.” Or maybe you just don’t believe it at all. In this episode, Josh Havens unpacks how you can find God's grace and purpose in the middle of your brokenness.

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Making disciples is one of the crucial components of a lifestyle of discipleship. We are called to reproduce disciples. It's normal for Christians to think of spiritual disciplines and other practices as part of our own discipleship, but we rarely think of making other disciples as part of that process. This is why Paul's latest book is so valuable. John 3:16 is one of those verses many of us could probably quote. We've heard it so many times it's almost cliche. And the depth of the meaning Jesus was communicating to Nicodemus in that chapter is sometimes lost on us. Really, it's an invitation to something more than just getting saved. It's an invitation to God's redemptive work in all of history.

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As we once again talk about Race and Racism on the podcast, we wanted to address this issue from a different perspective. Racism, being rejected and persecuted because of the color of your skin, traumatizes its victims. So how should we as disciples respond? As we learn from Shelia in this episode, people of color need to develop resilience through their relationship with Christ and His community that gives them the strength to withstand the racial injustice they experience. And for white people and others of privileged status, we have an opportunity to listen and learn from our marginalized brothers and sisters. In the fight to see God’s Kingdom come to earth and his will done in our midst, may we mourn with our brothers and sister who mourn and show them love that affirms who they are as Image bears of God.

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Dr. Kevin Folk serves as an international missionary committed to advancing discipleship and training around the world. Through the strategic worldwide network of Global University, he teaches and trains emerging national leaders to reach their local context and beyond. His focus and specialty is the Spanish-speaking world, including Latin America and Spain, although he also partners with local ministry educators and Bible schools in Africa, Asia, and Europe.

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As disciples, worship is an essential part of our life in Christ. It’s more than singing songs or going to church. Worship is meant to be part of a lifestyle of discipleship as we follow Jesus in the everyday moments of life. And this is what we talked about in our first conversation with Dr. De Garmo. But in this 2nd episode, we explore how we can maintain that lifestyle even in the midst of a global pandemic that changes the way the church meets together. 

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The way we respond to an issue says a lot about who we are. And as the Church, we have to make sure that our desire to tell the truth doesn't push us to respond in a way that sours people to the truth we have to communicate. In these tense times we live in, this conversation with Dr. Snavely is exactly what we need to be thoughtful about what we're saying as the Church.

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David is the founding pastor of New Community Covenant Church, a multiracial congregation on the South Side of Chicago. He also serves as the CEO of New Community Outreach, a non-profit organization working to reduce causes of trauma and raise opportunities for equity in Chicago. He previously served as a Director of Church Planting for the Evangelical Covenant Church. David and Maggie have been married for 21 years and have two amazing sons.

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Chuck DeGroat is Professor of Counseling and Christian Spirituality at Western Theological Seminary in Holland MI, and Co-Founder and a Senior Fellow at Newbigin House of Studies in San Francisco. He is a licensed therapist, author, retreat leader, and spiritual director. He's spent the last 20+ years in a dynamic combination of pastoral ministry, seminary teaching, and clinical counseling. His books are practical and pastoral, meeting readers at the intersection of our spiritual journeys and the very real struggles we experience.

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