Written by Katelyn Wharton
Discipleship is such an important word
for followers of Christ. Jesus had twelve disciples, and called us to make
disciples. But when it comes down to it, how do we do this practically? Most
people don’t have time to meet at the coffee shop every morning and do Bible
studies with someone. So, if it’s not that, what is discipleship? I saw a model
of discipleship at Mission Adelante this summer that is modeled after Christ’s
work here on earth. He moved into his disciples’ area and invited them into his
life (Mark 1:16, 19, 38). He walked further and began meeting the spiritual and
physical needs of his community. In the same way, the Mission Adelante staff
has moved into the neighborhood and begun meeting the needs of their community.
Jesus used a come-and-let-me-teach-you approach to invite the disciples to
share his life. Mission Adelante staff did the same thing with the interns this
summer.
My invitation to
share life looked a little different than that of the other interns. In my
pseudo-intern position, I couldn’t stay the whole summer, so Jason and Megan
Schoff invited me to spend the weeks I was in Kansas City, KS with their family.
So began my journey into the mundane, to find out how to be a disciple and “do”
discipleship out of who I am in Christ.
There is nothing
particularly glamorous about family life—I know this from my own family, it’s
simply reality—but I’ve found that there is something special about being asked
to share the mundane moments of life
with someone else! Jesus called his disciples to follow him and share in all
the moments of his life, even the ordinary ones. When they dropped everything
to follow him, I wonder if they realized they were in for a lot of walking?
While I’m sure
that dorm-style life with the rest of the interns would have been great,
staying with the Schoffs allowed me to be a part of the day-to-day life of a
family seeking to follow Christ. Walking with Megan meant the occasional
breakfast or lunch date, morning walks around the neighborhood with the boys in
their stroller, grocery shopping, and talking after the boys went to bed, among
other things. Walking with Jason looked like visiting people in the community,
working with the English classes, and lots and lots of office work. In these mundane moments I learned a lot. Several
times throughout the summer, Megan asked me, “Katelyn, are you sure you want to
come along with us? We’re only going to Costco,” or “We’re not doing anything
interesting.”
But isn’t this the essence of discipleship?
Countless times throughout the New Testament Jesus was going somewhere, and he
took his disciples with him (Mark 2:23, 3:13, 3:20, 5:1, 5:21, 6:1). Jesus
invited his disciples to journey with him, then told them to make disciples; the
Schoffs are followers of Christ who invited me to take part in their journey. Jesus ministered out of
who he was; the Schoffs are ministering out of who they are and are becoming in
Christ. And I was invited to journey
with them in their mundane moments. Most of this journey wasn’t spent in a
coffee shop or doing Bible study, but I have learned about becoming like Christ
by simply walking with them and watching, just as the disciples learned by
walking with and watching Jesus.
So, who will you invite into the mundane
moments of your life?
In other news:
- Six individuals were baptized at the Latino worship service on Sunday evening with the rest of the congregation gathered around the pool. Each of those being baptized shared a confession of faith beforehand, and the depth of the ownership of their faith to which they testified was edifying for the rest of the congregation to hear.
- This week is the launch of our fall trimester, and the Lord provided many of the volunteers that we were asking him to provide. However, we're still a few volunteers short. We need a couple of conversation partners for Thursday evening Latino ESL classes and a male L.I.T. tutor on Tuesday and Wednesday afternoons. Find more information as well as phone numbers of directors by clicking here.
Prayer needs:
- Pray for the continuing faith journey of the six who were baptized. Pray for their faith to be protected and that their love for the Lord would continue to grow.
- The oldest boy in Teens Adelante is taking ownership in welcoming five new teens into the outreach Bible study this fall. There are also three new volunteers. Please pray for each of them to integrate well and be accepted into the group, which developed closeness during the summer.
- Pray for the relationships that God will form between volunteers and program participants this trimester in all of our outreach programs.
- Ask the Lord to give Jarrett Meek and Jason Schoff guidance and boldness as they consider reformatting that way our Latino church worships.
Current needs:
- A small group to provide a meal for 20 people each Monday afternoon throughout the school year. Please contact Megan at meganm@missionadelante.org.
- Fifty-five gallon trash bags.
- A gas stove, dining room table and chairs, a washer, and a dryer have all been requested in our Resource Center. Please contact Molly at 913-281-6274 x 5.
Important dates:
- Latino Trimester Launch: Thursday, September 15, 6:30 p.m
- Save the Date: Saturday, November 19. Mission Adelante Staff Open Houses in the afternoon. More details TBA.