Two days before I was to leave for college, every one of my plans fell through. My hot “new-to-me” sports car (nearing 20 years of age) was found dead in a parking lot. My private student loans failed to go through due to a mysterious element they referred to as a “credit score”. As a result, my classes were dropped because of my inability to make payment deadlines. So I basically went from having the next six years of my life planned ahead to having no job, no direction, no money, and no plans for the fall. To add insult to injury, my friends all knew that I was leaving to go to college. So this, of course, led me to retell this entire embarrassing story many times over. But how was I to explain that God had ruined everything? I was the one who had it all together. I was the one who wanted to live a godly life in a Christian environment. I was the one who wanted to start my intense study for future full-time ministry. It was God who closed the door to laugh at my expense. He closed the door so that He could spite me (or so I thought).

Well, I wallowed like a little child for a while. At the time, I felt like I was Job: grievously suffering for no reason. Looking back, I was pitiful. Perhaps you know what this looks like in your own life. Perhaps you are even chuckling that this looks very similar to your situation. Well, this was not a laughing matter to me. I, in fact, did not want to take a hint. I began thinking about how I could get myself back into Boyce. Yet it was all to no avail. Finally, after I had grasped at every straw, trying to make the fall semester look good in my own eyes, I decidedly surrendered my future career to God’s will. My prayer changed from “Lord, why have You forsaken me” to “Lord, if this is not the plan, can You show me what the plan is?” As my self-centeredness changed to Christ-centeredness, He showed me the plan. It was exactly what I loathed, but He gave me a love for it. That fall, I went right back to the community college in which I began, driving the same beat-up car that I drove (that is, after we used the defibrillator on it). I had not completely surrendered, but the Lord gracefully reminded me how throughout the semester. I was like many of the Galatians who began in the spirit, but thought they could be perfected through the flesh (Galatians 3:3). I had placed ‘Christianity’ over Christ, falling into the legalistic trap of thinking that I could continue in salvation if I followed the law. And not only the law, but my own laws. That somehow I was a better Christian if I went to a Christian school, had Christian friends, and worked in a Christian environment. And although God calls some to that lifestyle, He did not call me to it at that time.

Although I still desired to be in a Christian environment, the Lord gave me something better: A mission field on a secular school campus. Although I desired to be in a large Bible study with fellow students at a Christian college, the Lord introduced me to Precept Ministries- a place I could study the Word with Christians from all facets of life. He reminded me what it meant to be “still and know that (He) is God” (Psalms 46:10). God taught me that even though I make many plans, He is the one who establishes every step (Proverbs 16:9). He not only changed my spiritual lifestyle, but He also added a nice bonus: That fall semester, God introduced me to the woman who would be my future wife. You see, surrendering might not be a one time decision, nor will it always look like what you expect, but Christ truly has a plan. I thought that the Godliest decision was for me to go to a Christian college-but this was not the case.

If we are to look at a Biblical example, we don’t have to look any further than one of the first apostles called to Christ: Peter himself. Peter was called to give up his entire lifestyle and profession to follow Christ (Matt 4:18-22). Although Peter emphatically gave up his lifestyle, Christ revealed that Peter had not yet given up his all. Despite Peter’s claim that he loved Christ enough to die with him (John 13:37-38), we find out that Peter would not even admit that he was with Christ by denying him three times (Mark 14:72). And even after Peter had seen the risen Savior, he still did not fully surrender his old lifestyle. Paul rebuked Peter because his flesh still led him to try to live by works of the law rather than faith in Jesus Christ (Gal 2:11-16).

Like Peter, Christ has not called us to surrender one thing, but all things. He calls us to surrender our lives, our pleasures, our ministries, our plans, and He calls us to follow Him. Perhaps not once, but many times over. He might even close doors, as he did with me in a very trivial way. Yet He has a promise with this all: “For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.” Luke 9:24

Go to Twitter and this is what you’ll learn about Caleb… Christian, server, drummer, photographer, son, brother, husband, friend, reader,and  Almond Joy lover. That’s me.

There is a cliché saying that we’ve all heard in movies or pop songs, and it is the exhortation to live like we’re dying. Now, there is some truth to this. There is a very real sense in which the time we have here is very short (a mere vapor, the Psalmist said) and we need to be mindful not to waste any of it. However, I think there is a deeper, more freeing truth to be found in the pages of Scripture.

I can be a very insecure person. I’ve grown up being a people-pleaser. For the most part, my goal has been to navigate life in such a way as to stay on people’s good side. Additionally, I hate being misunderstood. I will go to ridiculous, sometimes detrimental, lengths to make sure people understand me. Just ask my family. Why do I feel the need to have the approval of others? Why do I feel it is absolutely necessary that people understand my side of the story?

Sometimes we seem to think that our relationship with God happens in a little vacuum that only concerns us. However, it is in the context of real relationships with those around us that God reveals ways that we are still clinging to attitudes and deeds that belong to the old nature. Why do I feel insecure? Is it not because I think I have something to lose? If I am easily offended and defensive, I’m realizing it is because I am trying to stick up for myself instead of abandoning myself to Him. Doesn’t our Heavenly Father know how to take care of those who are His own? Yet I feel I need to take care of myself, as if I could do a better job!

You see, Christ didn’t come to reform our fleshly nature. He came so we could lay it aside completely and it could be crucified (Colossians 3:8). He didn’t come to improve our hearts. He came to give us a new heart (Ezekiel 36:26). If we’ve died with Christ, we have nothing left to lose. We’ve already lost everything.

Isn’t that glorious!

We could spend our lives trying to hang on to everything we can; yet in the end we will lose it all. Yet, when we let go of our lives, we can take hold of His life. What a trade Jesus offers us! Our life for His. What will perish for what will never be taken away from us. Not too long ago, there was one day that seemed to sum up the spectrum of what I’ve been talking about. I had been cultivating a lot of hopes and expectations around a certain situation coming together the way I wished it to. In a moment, the bottom fell out and I was left with all my guts hanging out (Calm down. They weren’t actually hanging out, but it felt like it). I wrote in my journal that afternoon,

“I’ve got nowhere to go. Would You find me where I’m at tonight? The bottom is falling out and I’ve got no other remedy, no saving grace if not for You. I’m totally lost.”

Later that evening, I took a walk and the Lord gripped me as I looked into the vastness of the stars in the heavens. I was humbled in light of His incomprehensible wisdom. With tearful eyes I remembered the cross Christ bore in my place—the definition of surrender. After that, I wrote,

“Thank You Jesus! Thank You for the freedom that comes from surrender! You are the air in my lungs—I feel like I can breathe again! You are my Vision and Clarity—I feel like I can dream again! You are the wind in my sails—I feel like I can move again! Lord, take me wherever You want, just let me be with You Jesus! I won’t pretend this still doesn’t hurt, but I’m trusting You to bring Your healing over time. I love You because You first loved me! Thank You again and again!”

What happened between those two prayers? Maybe something dying. And resurrection life springing up in its place. His life. Sure, it’s true that we should live like we’re dying, but that doesn’t compare to living like we’re dead! We’ve already lost everything so we can gain Christ! What an exchange!

“But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.”  Philippians 3:7-11

If you have been to any of our events in the past few years, you’ve most likely bumped in to Zach. You can find him either  leading worship, teaching a small group, or working as a Boot Camp counselor. We love working with Zach because of his heart for students! Fueled by a vision to see students using their God-given gifts  when he graduated high school he ventured out into starting a youth worship team. The rag tag group slowly learned to tune their own instruments and formed the band As Isaac.

a : to yield to the power, control, or possession of another upon compulsion or demand

b : to give up completely or agree to forgo especially in favor of another

 To yield, to give up?! Why… even the thought is…un-American. I mean come on; we live in the home of the American dream (the idea, not the wrestler). We live in the land where all of your wildest dreams can come true; where you just need to think more positively, lace up your bootstraps, use a little elbow grease, and (fill in your own cliché here). I read The Little Engine That Could to my youngest daughter at bedtime recently. The theme of that book is pretty much “I think I can, I think I can, I think I can.” In the very next book I picked up to read to her, the author thanked his dad for teaching him that “you can do anything if you stay with it long enough.”

I’m convinced that ideas like this have crept into our doctrine and theology over time, and we are unaware of how these worldly philosophies have influenced us. So what does the Gospel say about this subtle deception?

• The Gospel says: surrender your pride.
  ^{James 4:6} But He gives a greater grace. Therefore it says, “ God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” 

• The Gospel says: surrender  your sin.
  ^{Romans 6:23} For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. 

• The Gospel says: surrender your fears and worries.
  ^{Matthew 6:25} “ For this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? 

• The Gospel says: surrender your very life.
  ^{Matthew 16:24} Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me. ²⁵ For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.”

Surrender is essential to our understanding of the Gospel! How can we know Christ unless we surrender our pride and admit our most basic needs for forgiveness and salvation? How can we know Christ without surrendering our hopes, ambitions, and plans to His will and desire to use us to build His kingdom?

And the surrender is so worth it! We learn in the scriptures that we gain so much when we surrender:

1.  We are adopted as His sons and daughters

2.  We gain entrance into a HUGE family

3.  We get Him (God)

4.  We become co-heirs with Christ
         (Who is the heir of all things according to   Hebrews 1:2)

Keep in mind, that surrender is not simply a once in a lifetime decision, but rather a daily struggle to submit ourselves to God’s leadership, to “put to death the deeds of the flesh” as Paul said. So, are you living in a state of surrender, or are you living the dream? This is the beautiful surrender.

Ritchie Johnson
Director, Transform Student Ministries

This very week I have decided to surrender something to God and I am reminded that I am like a sheep that is constantly going astray. I always need my Shepherds staff to grab me, whack me, and set me back in my place. I need the pain because I know that His discipline for me is for my good.

I remember a time when I didn’t want to surrender to God’s discipline. I was in a place of leadership in my church yet secretly I was living another life, a sinful life. I was caught in my sin and as a consequence I was asked to step down out of my leadership role for a while. I was bitter. I became angry. I loved doing what I was doing within my position. I resisted and slandered the person who caught me in my sin. How evil my heart was; and notice I wasn’t angry with my sin. I was angry I was caught. I remember one night being so angry with God and I opened up the book of Job and read: 

“Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will leave this life. The Lord gives and the Lord takes away. Praise the name of Yahweh.’ Throughout all this Job did not sin or blame God for anything.” Job 1:21-22

That did it for me. I broke. Here I was caught blatantly in my own sin, guilty, blaming others and God while this sinless man lost everything because of nothing and still did not sin against God. The book of Hebrews continued to give me understanding:

 “My son, do not take the Lord’s discipline lightly or faint when you are reproved by Him, for the Lord disciplines the one He loves and punishes every son He receives. Endure suffering as discipline: God is dealing with you as sons…No discipline seems enjoyable at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it yields the fruit of peace and righteousness to those who have been trained by it.” Hebrews 12:5-7, 11

 The Lord had to deal with the sin in my life; not only with the blatant sin, but with the hidden idols within my own heart. I loved that position more than I loved Him. I had placed idols in my life without even knowing it. He was sanctifying me to give me an eternal perspective. I can look back now and see how He was preparing me for the future. Notice what Hebrews says, “Endure suffering as discipline.” As my pastor has said, “Even if we suffer for the rest of our lives, it’s just the rest of our lives.” If anything, God is continually disciplining me to remember the kingdom perspective. Nothing in this world will bring hope like the hope of the gospel, and if we set our hearts on anything else they will fail us because one day we will die and live in eternity with God or without Him.

 “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his own father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters-yes, and even his own life-he cannot be My disciple. Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after Me cannot be my disciple.” Luke 14:26-27 

Though this truth is hard to grasp, I believe this is the point of our suffering. I believe that God is sanctifying us through the means of suffering to discipline us to have an eternal God-kingdom perspective; whether that is a hard job, sickness, failed relationship, lack of satisfaction in a great relationship, and so on. We must learn to surrender whatever we are grasping onto and allow His discipline to lead us to the house of God forever. Please do not resist when He uses his shepherd’s staff to grab our attention and say, “No, no, not that way. Follow me.”

Ryan Thomason has been around Transform Student Ministries for many years. Ryan is a former Boot Camper, Staffer, and Intern.

On Wednesday, we introduced you to Micah. He told us about the Bible study he has been leading with his peers. We wanted to share with you a little more about how his study works! Our hope is that you’ll be able to take some of the ideas here and implement your own study! If you missed part 1, you can find it here.

There are countless people who are more qualified than I to give “tips” on how to lead a study. This I know for sure, because the most important quality I can think of for a leader to exhibit is the very thing I am possibly the worst at: humility. With that said here are 5 things that come to mind that have helped me over the past 3 years:

War against pride by constantly fixing your eyes on the cross of Jesus

As C.J Mahaney put in Humility: True Greatness, “The cross never flatters us.” He then goes on to quote John Stott who said that “the cross undermines our self-righteousness, and we can stand before it only with a bowed head and broken spirit.” By fixing your eyes on the cross and ultimately our Savior, your eyes will be redirected to the Holiness of God and the greatness of His mercy and grace to us in Christ Jesus; by doing so, you have no other option than to be humbled. (Much easier said than done, but necessary to be done)

“Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time, casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.” 1Peter 5:6-7

 Always remember that you are 100 times
more of a student than you are a leader or a teacher

This one is HUGE! It is when you start to think that you are chiefly a leader that you start to rely upon yourself and your knowledge to lead and instruct. That is NEVER a good place to be. In John 10, Jesus is very clear about his relationship to all believers. When speaking of the shepherd, Jesus says that “the sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out… the sheep follow him because they know his voice” (verses 3-4). Listen for the voice of the Shepherd and be attentive to His every word!  Never forget that you are a sheep and the one who is leading is the Great Shepherd and Guardian of our souls. John Calvin said, “It is evident that man never attains a true self-knowledge until he has previously contemplated the face of God, and come down after such contemplation to look into himself.” Contemplate the face of God more than you lead because you are a follower and disciple of Jesus!

“Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” Hebrews 12:1-2 

Expect Warfare

We are to resist the devil (James 4:7). Pray continually for your mind and the minds of those who are in your study. Seek out what Scripture says about our adversary so you may know how to resist him. The Lord did not leave us ignorant of Satan’s schemes and his end. A phenomenal truth that the Lord has taught me through one of the most influential pastors in my life is the concept of sovereign joy. John Piper uses this phrase that was originally coined by St. Augustine to describe satisfaction in the Lord severing the root of any fleshly temptation and sin. This has proved to be true and instrumental in “destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God” and in “taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ.” (2 Corinthians 10:5) By seeing more of the Lord in His Word and truly loving Him more and more, I have found myself most satisfied by Him and that Joy makes all temptations seem frivolous and ridiculous. I have found this to be so helpful in warring against the evil one because I know that the Lord is my joy and if I desire nothing on earth other than the Lord, then the nearness of God is my good and the Lord is my refuge. (Psalm 73: 25-28) When discussing warfare it is essential to discuss the greatness of God and so I leave this point with a quote from one of my heroes:

“God is the highest good of the reasonable creature, and the enjoyment of him is the only happiness with which our souls can be satisfied. To go to heaven fully to enjoy God, is infinitely better than the most pleasant accommodations here. Fathers and mothers, husbands, wives, children, or the company of earthly friends, are but shadows. But the enjoyment of God is the substance. These are but scattered beams, but God is the sun. These are but streams, but God is the foundation. These are but drops, but God is the ocean.” –Jonathan Edwards

If you don’t already have one, pray for the Lord
to send you a Godly Mentor.

Have someone pour into you who has been a believer longer than you, sought the Lord diligently, and knows the nature of God because they love the Word of God. The mentors I have in my life are indescribably influential in my growth because I see the faith that they’ve had for so many years and it encourages me to continue to trust and strive after Jesus. Several of my mentors are not even alive and haven’t been for over a hundred years, but their biographies are beautiful tapestries of God’s faithfulness. (Recommendation: Hudson Taylor’s Spiritual Secret) Living mentors are necessary and ask for them from the Lord. I prayed for the Lord to send me a Mentor for over a year, and He sent me several. Their influence has helped to war against my pride and push me on to continue even in weakness. Ask of the Lord, He is so faithful to provide!

As an example of mentorship within the body of Christ, I think of Paul’s spiritual adoption of Timothy. Pray for a mentor that will admonish you and instruct you in truth like Paul does for Timothy:

“You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. The things which you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, entrust these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also. Suffer hardship with me, as a good soldier of Christ Jesus.” 2 Timothy 2:1-3

  I cannot write out “tips” for leading a study without talking about accountability and staying above reproach.

NEVER EVER be alone with someone in your study of the opposite sex. That is not some ridiculous old-fashioned rule; it is key to maintaining hedges against temptation and assuring yourself that no one will speak evil of you falsely. You answer solely to the Lord and His standards are great and holy. We are a sanctified people, set apart for good works and righteousness. Do everything you can to not allow that to be called into question in your life. The definition of the Greek word for “above reproach” or “blameless” according to Dr. Zodhiates is “One who has nothing which an adversary could seize upon with which to base a charge.” Be a living example of that definition.

I came to know the Lord by studying the book of James and this verse has resonated with me ever since the Holy Spirit came into me. I find that this verse truly clarifies any questions about being above reproach:

“Therefore to one who knows the right thing to do and does not do it, to him it is sin.” James 4:17 

I have seen a glimpse of God’s faithfulness and I know there is much more to be learned. With that I want to encourage you to trust the Lord with any study that He may appoint you to lead. His Word must be proclaimed, but how can it be proclaimed if the people of God do not know it for themselves? If the Lord has taught you how to study the Bible for yourself, pray about leading because discipleship is needed desperately. Remember brother or sister, He is faithful!

 
Micah has been attending Transform Student Ministries Events since he was 13 years old. Micah graduates from High School this year and will be heading off to Moody Bible Institute in the fall!

I spoke with several people about the study and I made an announcement at a meeting. One person came up to me and told me that she was interested and that she might have some friends that were interested as well. We organized an informational meeting at her house and ate baked ziti while we talked about Inductive Bible Study and more importantly the value of God’s Word. We simply discussed why studying the Word of God is essential to a life close to the Father and I gave my testimony of what I’d learned from Inductive Bible Study. Two weeks later I had two young believers and one unbeliever at my dining room table wanting to learn to study the Word of God. We studied 1 Peter using the Inductive Bible Study Method from August to the beginning of June. Through the course of that year, Jess (the unbeliever) became a believer and to this day studies the Word of God adamantly. All three students are some of my closest friends, and our faith grew by seeing each other mature tremendously over that year.

The next year, the four of us were eager to get started in a new book of the Bible, and the Lord placed Ephesians at the center of the study. All four of us prayed for that year and four more students came along to join. Two of those students left after about 1 month, and that was a trial that the Lord really taught me through. He is Sovereign over who He brings into the study, and His will is good. Now there were five students. Jess, Sahar, and Mary (the original three) were ready to jump into Ephesians but Blake and Alexandra were intimidated.  The first three were gracious and patient as we went back over the basics of the method and they proved to be instrumental in encouraging the new ones about the reward of diligent study. Over the first several months, the Word united us and Ephesians altered the way that all of us perceived the world and our position in Christ. By the time May came around, there were five believers rooted in the Word of God seeking in other books of the Bible for their own personal study. They have a foundation that cannot be taken away. Praise be to God who is so faithful to teach and guide in His Word!

This year Blake was the only one who could stay because the other four were going off to college. I was close to devastated because the Lord had taught me so much through these God fearing individuals. The Lord showed me that He is the only constant and that He will be with me until the end; He appoints people to come into our lives for a season, but He is the One who will always be in every season of our lives. As He was faithfully teaching me that, I was praying for the Lord to send the people to the study that He wanted to be there. To make a very long story short, eight new students came along and I had only personally talked to four of them before the first official Bible Study day in August. This year has been phenomenal as I have seen rapid growth in the lives of Shanette, Amanda, Thomas, Christian, Anna, Sammy, Michael, Jess, and Blake. The entire Word of God is changing our lives as we focus on a study in James. We also have gained a true understanding of fellowship.

Micah has been attending Transform Student Ministries Events since he was 13 years old. Micah graduates from High School this year and will be heading off to Moody Bible Institute in the fall!

I looked up from doing dishes with my mom to see three young men in their early 20‘s huddled around my dad and my pastor. I was curious what was going on that was so important. As I listened in it didn’t take me long to figure out what was happening. My dad and my pastor were explaining the importance of letting scripture speak for itself and studying it intently. For me this was not anything new, but for these 3 young men it was like gold.  They like sponges soaking up every word. These guys go to church and most of them grew up in student ministry, but for them, this was the first time anyone explained the importance of allowing the text to speak for Itself and why context is king.

 I sat across the table with a girl from my small group who had distanced herself from me.  She sat under teaching in a church that was false and believed what was taught because it appeared to be true. When I sat with her and tried to put a passage of scripture she threw at me in context, she looked at me stunned. It was clear to me that she had only read a few verses and never the full story.  No one had ever shown her the importance of context.

I sat in a local mega-church service with my family.  The pastor clearly spoke things that were not Biblically true from the pulpit. People cheered because they didn’t know truth.

Each of these stories happened to me recently and each renewed a passion inside of me.  These stories remind me why it is important for us to teach the next generation to study inductively.

I’ve worked with students for almost 10 years and I have seen a growing trend that scares me and makes me nervous for the future. The trend is a generation that is illiterate when it comes to the Bible.  We have a growing generation that does not know Truth. They don’t know who Moses, Abraham, Joshua, or Daniel are, what Covenant , sacrifice, the feasts, or the Exodus are.  Are you alarmed yet? You should be. This generation is the group of people that in the coming years will direct our politics, lead our churches, and teach our children and grandchildren. If they do not know Truth, if we have not taught them the importance of scripture, then we have failed.

What are your thoughts toward the next generation? How do you view them? Do you see them as lazy and loud kids who dress funny, wear jeans to church and can’t sit through a sermon? Or do you see them as hope, salt and light, and your brothers and sisters in Christ who desperately need to be discipled because they are our future? It is OUR responsibility to train up the next generation. I’m so grateful that Precept Ministries International believes in training up the next generation. I am so grateful that they haven’t lost hope in the coming generations.

I’d like to share with you some things I have learned about teaching the next generation Inductive Bible Study:

1. They can handle it. Yes these are the same students that study Chemistry, Physics, Anatomy & Physiology, British & American Literature.  If they can handle those things then they can handle studying God-breathed and inspired Truth.
2. They don’t know how to think for themselves. This may sound like I’m contradicting myself, but hang in there with me. These students are used to being spoon fed. They are used to someone feeding them information that they then memorize and spit back out on a test somewhere. None of this involves actually thinking on their own. So you will probably have to teach them how to think for themselves. DO NOT feed Truth to them. Allow them to discover Truth for themselves.  It is when we personally deal and struggle with Scripture that it also gets written in our heads and on our hearts.
3. Care about them as people. Students probably won’t care a thing about you if you don’t care about them.  And they most likely won’t listen to what you have to teach them if they don’t think you care. Don’t PRETEND to care, really care for them and about them, and even love them.  Students need a lot of encouragement. Most students I work with are dealing with things so much harder than I had to deal with as a student. So love (the agape kind) them and show them you care!
4. Realize the importance of Truth in their lives.  They are being told what to think and what to believe every minute of every day. The media, tabloids, tv, and even their friends are overloading them.  If they don’t know Truth they will be tossed about by every wind and wave of doctrine (Ephesians 4:14).
5. Be patient. This goes along with number 2. Be patient with them as they learn to think for themselves. Don’t give them the answers; allow the process to be slow. Allow truth to sink into their heads and their hearts. Continue to press on!
6. Teach them the basics by doing.  Most students will learn best if you don’t just teach at them, but lead them through Inductive Bible Study by allowing them to do it. So, don’t just tell them about marking a passage or making a list. Mark a passage, make lists, do cross-references and word studies TOGETHER. Show them how to find a key word. Walk them through asking the 5W’s and an H. Allow them to do it and experience it, not just hear about it.
7. Repetition is Important. Don’t just show them once and expect them to get it.  Just like any of us, they may not get it the first time. It’s okay, don’t allow them to give up. Keep on practicing and learning together.
8. Make them SLOW DOWN. Most of us, but especially students, want to fly through things.  Most students want things to be easy and to come easy. Slowing down makes them think and makes them process through the text. This is KEY in Inductive Bible Study. I know you know this, but it is important to emphasize. Slow down, read the words on the page, process the words on the page. This is not their history or English homework, this is life transforming TRUTH.
9. Have fun. Studying the Bible is exciting…so ACT like it. Be excited about studying it and allow students to be excited about what they are learning. Celebrate victories with them and encourage them when they feel defeated.

This is in no way an exhaustive list, but these are some main things that I have learned as I have led students in Inductive Bible Study.  I hope in some way I have bent your heart toward the next generation. I know I am so very grateful for the people that invested in me. The people who had faith in me, challenged me, spoke truth into my life, held me accountable for truth, and encouraged me to train the next generation. You see, I had the benefit of growing up learning how to study inductively.  I started going to Boot Camp when I was in the 9th grade; I’m now 28 and training the next generation. I now know as an adult that learning to study the Bible for myself was the number one determining factor in who I am today.

I want to take you back to the first story I shared with you.  These three young men are now learning to study inductively.  I have had the joy of walking some of them through the process.  These guys are hungry for Truth and to have it written on their hearts. They are not only studying, but owning Truth for themselves and encouraging others around them to do the same. My precious husband is one of these three men and I have watched Truth flood into every part of who he is. He is studying Titus inductively and the Holy Spirit is convicting and urging him toward sound doctrine (Titus 2:1 & 2:6-8). Sound doctrine, how fitting. It is so important as believers that we allow the Bible to speak for itself, that we seek out pure doctrine as Titus says in 2:6-8. The second two stories I shared with you are examples of what happens when people do not care about or simply do not know sound doctrine. Are you concerned yet? If you really care about the next generation, then please teach them to seek out the Truth and to allow the Bible to speak for itself. That is exactly what teaching them Inductive Bible Study does. So…. please GO and train the next generation, they are our future!  If we do not stand up for the teaching of Truth and become intentional about teaching it, then who will they listen to? I don’t know about you, but from what I have experienced, it is pretty scary to leave the training of Truth to those who do not really care for Truth and don’t protect the purity of it.

SO….what are YOU going to DO about it? Please join me and let’s impact the next generation!

Ashlee is a native New Mexican living as a missionary in Texas. She is a small group leader in the youth group of her church and has been involved with Transform Student Ministries for 13 years. She knows she brings nothing to the table with her relationship with God and any ministry He allows her to be a part of.  She is a hostile enveloped in the grace of God.

Leadership is something that I think about, read about, and talk about a good bit. In fact, it’s something that I think I’ve been gifted with (Rom. 12:6-8) to some degree by the Holy Spirit for the purpose of building up the Body of Christ (Eph. 4:12). God helped me to discover this gift of leadership by always putting me in situations where I was required to lead to one degree or another from the time I was saved at age 18. By His grace, I’ve found that I’m able to make tough decisions, decisions that some disagree with, and to be accountable for them. I actually enjoy the responsibility of taking a group of people from point A to point B along a journey of some kind. Leadership is the reason I often enjoy writing, or speaking, or mentoring.

But there are great risks for leaders. And I think the greatest risk, perhaps the root of all of the risk symptoms, is summed up best by one word – pride. God states very clearly in James that He “…opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” (James 4:6) What is pride? It’s the desire to see ourselves honored above others, or in other words is the exact opposite of Jesus who humbled Himself to death on a cross for the redemption of sinful man to the ultimate glory of God. That’s humility, putting others before ourselves! This is the ultimate example of servant leadership, and it is so contrary to the nature of our flesh.

So with pride as the foundation of what we need to war against so that our leadership is a reflection of Christ, let’s discuss some practical challenges to biblical, consistent leadership.

1.  Submission to authority.
One of the great challenges I see every day in young and old(er) leaders in various settings is in submission to authority. You see, every leader first has to be a follower. Every leader, even Christ Himself, has an authority structure, and all authority is God’s authority (Rom. 13:1). So when looking at things through a biblical filter, we begin to realize that we answer to more than a man or a woman, but that our submission or resistance to our authority (pastor, teacher, boss, etc.) is actually our submission or resistance to God Himself. That changes one’s perspective in a HUGE way!

2.  Conflict avoidance.
As a society, we seem to hate conflict, even run from it in the opposite direction. To be a leader, you must be willing to have the hard conversation! I think the root of this problem can be traced to ideas that our culture values and that often seem to be without harm. Take the way we view rights for instance. We typically honor a person’s rights, within reason, right up until the point that they start to intrude upon another person’s. We’ve also applied this philosophy to systems of belief, and it sounds something like this: you believe what you want to believe, and I’ll believe what I want to believe.

We’ve even gone so far as a society as to say that each belief system, no matter how different, can both be true to the individual. It’s like saying 1 + 1 = 2, and 1 + 1= 3 can both be true, as long as you believe. And the next step is the really scary one, that if you disagree with someone’s conclusion or belief system, then you automatically become judgmental! It’s been said many times that the most well known verse in all of Scripture is Matthew 7:1 (“Do not judge so that you will not be judged.”).  This represents a serious misunderstanding of the biblical context of judgment. Here’s the short version, since this is a blog after all. Judging really comes down to 2 things: hypocrisy and desiring that another be found guilty. It is not judging to exhort brothers and sisters in the faith to live according to biblical standards! And it is not judging to share Jesus with those who do not know the Gospel. That, my friends, is LOVE!  

3.  The “happy rule.”
I completely made this title up by the way, so let me clarify. One thing that drives me crazy as much as anything else is decision making based on what makes the most people…happy. As leaders, our decision making process should run through the leadership of the Holy Spirit, God’s desires and not our own. And just to be frank, often the right decision is the exact opposite of the one that will make the most people happy. And really, who is it that thinks they can make everyone happy anyway? My three children have different desires that would make each happy, how many desires would you have to meet to make everyone happy in your business, or church, or other organization? Bottom line, it can’t be done and shouldn’t be pursued even if it was possible (which it isn’t J).

4. Loose lips.
Was anyone else thinking they sink ships? But I digress. Ima (slang for “I will”) keep this one simple. Gossip is sin. Late night phone calls, facebook messages, and hushed hallway conversations regarding others not included in said conversations are rude, inappropriate, and ungodly. And my honest experience is that the ability to go straight to others to express your concerns can actually gain trust. 

As a youth pastor, I worked for three years under the authority of a pastor who had a very different theological foundation, leadership style, and personality than I did. Those things can be a recipe for disaster! I’m happy to say that at the end of my time at that church, although we still didn’t see eye to eye on many issues, we had developed a respect for one another, a trust. What did I do to foster that relationship? I showed him respect in simple ways such as asking for permission to do certain things rather than telling him what I was going to do. I walked into his office, closed the door, and expressed my concerns in our church, programming, and decision making in private. I respected his position of authority as established by God and for His purposes. And I did not participate in slandering him behind his back or power-grabbing.

If you are a leader, these are things you must practice in humility to truly be able to lead others. And make no mistake; the things I’ve mentioned in this post are neither comprehensive nor formulaic. There are no guarantees here that if you perform them you will be rewarded through your circumstances. I’ve seen others who have been unapologetically fired for being honest in the ways I’ve expressed here. But rest assured, the One who rewards is well aware of our integrity (or lack thereof) in situations like these and will repay accordingly. As leaders, let’s respond to our circumstances in integrity and let God be in charge of the results!

Ritchie Johnson
Director, Transform Student Ministries

I thought I knew a lot about leadership, then God called me to be a pastor. Sifting through all the things I thought I had to do in order to be a leader and develop leaders was almost like sifting through things on an episode of hoarders. It was overwhelming. Things had become cluttered, as I looked at various tools, and expectations, I had to determine what to keep, what to save for later, and what to toss out.

A little context; Jesus saved me from a life of self-righteousness and grotesque sin when I was 17 through an inductive Bible study of I John. Though I was growing in grace, I was one of the disciple-makers that pointed at the church in accusation instead of rolling up my sleeves in mission participation. I didn’t understand God’s grace demonstrated to His bride, the church. In my mid-twenties, the Lord graciously humbled me of this cancerous thinking, recognizing that change happens within the community of faith. Now, I’m a little partial to developing leaders, especially forging male leaders, within the church.

Rather than starting with the “How To’s” to implement inductive study, or hooking you up with a few steps that I’ve learned along the way, the most important thing for you is to wrap your mind around the WHY.

Why are we to develop leaders within the local body of believers?

Once we understand God’s why to this question, we are much more likely to be motivated for the right reasons and passionately pursue them. Training and developing leaders or disciples is not just another program within the church, this is THE calling for shepherds to equip the body toward this end. It is the general call of all believers–glorify God by making disciples. If the church is launching more programs, events, and groups, without training disciples how to study and teach the Word to others, the church has experienced mission drift. Beyond knowing how to study the Word and teaching others, any good Bible student knows it comes down to application. Not just knowing how it applies, but applying truth not only to grow personally but also to edify and build up the church. Doing life with people and growing in grace and truth with a community of believers where you are known is essential as a disciple-maker.

As we understand His priority and God’s imperative to make disciples, we’d be well served to focus on the why–God’s ultimate mission in our lives and in the life of the church.

God is on mission to bring Himself glory.
All things exist and are being worked according to His pleasure and plan (Ephesians 1:11), which displays His glory. Glory is just the weighty awareness and recognition of who God is. Everything He does is toward the end of His glory covering the earth as the waters cover the sea (Habakkuk 2:14). God’s mission is to bring Himself glory, that He might be known and enjoyed for His nature and character, especially as the author of redemption and reconciliation. His great plan of rescue in Jesus in order to buy us out of slavery was for glory. (Isaiah 43:6-7, Isaiah 48:9-11, Ezekiel 20:14, Ephesians 1:3-24)

His mission has a church.

God’s mission and the purpose and mission of God’s church are inseparable. Since God’s mission is to bring glory to Himself, the church is the primary means of accomplishing this end. If God’s mission is to be glorified through the redemption and reconciliation of a people, the Church’s mission must seek to glorify Him through redemption and reconciliation (2 Corinthians 4 and 5). The overwhelming mission, then, of the church throughout the globe is to glorify God by making disciples through the gospel of Jesus Christ. Each of us that have been changed are now ambassadors of reconciliation–representing our King to a lost and broken world. We agonize with the energy that God supplies to present every man whole and complete through the proclamation and demonstration of the gospel (Colossians 1:28-29).

In light of God’s and His church’s mission, how is inductive study a means to fulfill the mission?

I’d love to grab a cup of coffee and talk. There are things that Jesus is teaching me right now through the Word, in community with other men and through a lot of mistakes. If you’re not a pastor or decision-maker in your church, rather a mom or group leader, and you long to have more emphasis on inductive study, you’ll be well served by some of the other articles that will appear here in the next few days. My only suggestion to all of you is, don’t force it. Remember, I pointed the finger of accusation, so I know where you are. Pray for your pastoral team, serve them well, show them through your life and conduct the effectiveness before coming into their office demanding inductive study. Remember, as a believer and a disciple of Christ, regardless of where your church is in regards to inductive study, you can respectfully continue to use inductive study to make disciple-making disciples by the power of the Holy Spirit on your own and with others the Lord impresses upon you to disciple.

If you’re a part of the pastoral team, let me make a few humble suggestions that have been forged as I’ve determined to glorify God by making disciples in the local church:

Clarify the gospel

Never, ever assume the gospel with anyone. You, like me, may be in the Bible-belt where everyone says that they’re a believer. When in dialogue with those in your church, even in leadership roles, ask them about the gospel. More than what it is, ask them how it changed them when they believed and how it has changed them recently. Live, breathe and find courage through 2 Timothy and 2 Corinthians.

Have a plan; Go for the long haul

When I first arrived at my ministry post, I knew I had to not only clarify the gospel but see where people were in their knowledge of the Word. Though many people knew things in the Word, they had to grow into learning how to study the Word for themselves.  I started teaching them inductively from the platform, in one on one leader training, and in small groups through the 40 Minute studies and NISS studies. Some were resistant at first. It was a struggle to graciously encourage them to stick with it, as some were stubborn, refusing to grow in grace. But they persevered. In a short time, the Lord has created an appetite within them for the Word, the application of it, and the multiplication of disciples with it. They are now leading studies in their apartment complexes, dorms and cafeterias at work as ministers of reconciliation.

The gospel hermeneutic

Countless authors and speakers have been noting the effects of what has been called Moralistic therapeutic deism. Get read-up and caught-up on this one. Stand guard and combat it as a shepherd. Every story and every command in the Bible can fit within the gospel-hermeneutic, the unifying and overarching story throughout each page of the Word. Be diligent to put things into context, but don’t forget the context of redemption. If you’re teaching on immorality, generosity, love, forgiveness or any “do this” text, please make sure that you explain the gospel-motivation. For example, if you’re teaching the imperative “walk” portions of Ephesians chapters 4-6, make sure that you show that it is in connection with the gospel indicative chapters of Ephesians 1-3.

Go for the heart

Please, don’t just try to modify someone’s behavior. If the guy comes to you that is addicted to porn or if the girl you’re discipling, ladies, has an issue with finding her identity through dating around, please don’t just deal with the behavior. Look past the fruit and behavior and allow the Spirit of God to take you to the root. What idol or wrong belief about God has captured their imagination to make them act in that way? Teach your people to use the Word of God to discover the why behind the what, the heart idol behind the action. For example, why did the guy feel the need to look at porn? What root-idol in his heart–comfort, power, control or acceptance–has captivated Him more than Jesus? In grace, go there. Apply the gospel there. Expect repentance there.

Don’t get cluttered with calendars and programs

Making disciples is tough. It requires face-time and authenticity. Making disciples in the community of the church is difficult and messy, yet Jesus gives us the model of entering into the mess. Develop a dependency upon the Holy Spirit for the disciple-maker to get involved in the life of the disciple. Yes, they need to hear you proclaim and teach the Word, but they also need to see you live and demonstrate the Word. Both Jesus and Paul modeled this for us. They taught, but they also shared their lives with their disciples. Fight to free your people from the hoarding mentality, thinking that they need to be at church every night of the week. Help them see how good things might be robbing them of the best in the area of making disciples.

To sum up, use of inductive study for gospel -centered discipleship with the right heart and motivation is the time proven way of making God-glory getting disciples. Keep the mission of God and the mission of His bride ever before you as you fulfill the call to “entrust the gospel to faithful men who are able to teach also (2 Timothy 2:2).

Jeremy Lucarelli firmly believes that the gospel of Jesus Christ changes everything—individuals, families, groups, churches, neighborhoods, and cities. He is a grace-addicted, compelled disciple-maker, currently serving as both a Precept Trainer and Pastor to 18-35 Year Old Singles in the Dallas / Fort Worth metroplex. He lives in big Texas with his beautiful wife Becky and his two kiddos–Isabella and Josiah, but calls the Tarheel state his home.

Being a home school mom and a Precept Upon Precept Bible study leader, I was very excited when I heard PMI was coming out with Discover for Yourself for young readers. That was several years ago. Our sons are now in high school, but the joy over their excitement to be able to learn to study the Word for themselves is still fresh in my mind!

When the boys were in 2nd grade, we made the decision that our whole family would do a study from the D4Y series after dinner. We cleared the table, brought out handfuls of coloring pencils, our Bibles, our D4Y books, a dictionary, and Concordance.  Since I’m a PUP leader, I chose the “How to Study the Bible” book.  We worked a lesson each night and we ALL learned!  Our boys got so excited that they could actually learn the inductive method, that their dad was doing the study with them, and that studying the Word was fun!  When we finished, they asked to do another!   We worked thru two more D4Y!  These set us on the path of God’s vision for our family.

Our vision for our home school came from the LORD God Himself:  my husband and I are to be stewards over the sons He has given us, to raise them so they will be men of the Word. We are to focus all the studies, every subject, to give glory and honor to the LORD and His Word and “His Story.”    We school in a Charlotte Mason-unit studies style following the Biblical timeline. Studying this way allows us to study the timeline of the Bible, moving chronologically thru history, learning God’s Word “Precept Upon Precept” and line upon line, stopping as long as we need to cover any time period. Within a particular time period, we study God’s Word (Bible is our first subject each school day), the people of the era, the nations and conquests, literature, geography, languages, lifestyles, inventions, science, and discoveries, art, music, foods, clothing, customs, etc. The inductive method is a beautiful part of this learning style with all its questions and detective work in studying the text!
The best part of the inductive method (speaking as home school mom now) is they learned so much English grammar while studying the Word!  Sssshhhhhh!  Don’t tell your kids about that part, they just think they’re having fun discovering God’s Word for themselves!

After the three D4Y studies, we did a couple of 40 Minute studies and several of the Lord series. Then, we tackled the book of John.  Almost each week, there would be questions about covenant within the lesson. The boys asked if they could do the PUP Covenant next. So, in their sixth grade, we dove into Covenant, lesson by lesson, day by day.  I was amazed at their hunger for Truth!  We did the lessons, looked up words in the Concordance, made lists, and watched Wayne at the end of each week on DVD for the lecture. (The boys nicknamed him Doc Barber!)   And it didn’t  stop here!  We did Genesis with Dr. Kurt Wise along with our Creation Science units. Two years ago, we started the King & Prophets series, adding Isaiah in its proper place (fabulous study!!!), and now we are on the last K&P book, which will end with the Babylonian captivity.  The Lord has shown us to do Romans and Hebrews their last two years.

An opportunity to teach history thru literature opened up at a local home school co-op when the boys were in middle school. I had ten weeks for the class. I chose a Christian book series based on an era in history. Within each class, I taught the inductive study method. There was a large whiteboard in the classroom that we filled up with their answers to questions about the text. I made up word studies and etymologies of word families in the story. I showed them how to work a timeline for the story. All the activities pointed to answering the 5 W’s and an H questions. Parents gave me many testimonies of their children reading great amounts of materials and being able to think better. I got to share with them the Precept materials they could use within their own homes.

I also lead two PUP groups aside from home schooling. We have been focusing on studying Daniel, and I and II Thess before getting to Revelation. The boys are part of this group and have done the studies with the PUP group as well. The best part of being home schoolers is that the Lord has us all studying the same things. Our life lessons are interwoven and our discussions are very in depth. We have God’s vision as a family and have committed to live in such a way that we try to be holy and excel still more because He has empowered us to do so. Oh, no, we are not perfect!  We know that very well, but we have put away the worldliness as much as possible, striving to live a committed life unto our Lord and Savior.  In two years, our home school journey completes for our two sons…they will graduate with the blessing of having studied a lot of the Bible inductively since they were in second grade, following God’s vision for our home schooling, for our  family. Glory be to the Lord for giving us His vision and the tools to be able to accomplish it!

Iaci Figueiredo Flanders was born into a Brazilian Jewish family that didn’t participate in any Jewish religious activities.  Because of that void, education, the arts, sports, and worldly pursuits were sought fervently until at 29 1/2 yrs old, after making a mess of her life, the Lord Jesus Christ had mercy and revealed Himself as Messiah, Lord and Savior, to her. After being radically born again, the Lord led Iaci to study the Bible in depth using the inductive study method found in Precept Ministries studies and several other ministries’ Bible studies and trainings.

Iaci Figueiredo Flanders was born into a Brazilian Jewish family that didn’t participate in any Jewish religious activities.  Because of that void, education, the arts, sports, and worldly pursuits were sought fervently until at 29 1/2 yrs old, after making a mess of her life, the Lord Jesus Christ had mercy and revealed Himself as Messiah, Lord and Savior, to her. After being radically born again, the Lord led Iaci to study the Bible in depth using the inductive study method found in Precept Ministries studies and several other ministries’ Bible studies and trainings.