Well, let me start from what it is not. It is not working in ministry. It is not volunteering at a homeless shelter. It is not going to church. These are all great things but they are not by definition a disciple of Christ.
This summer, I thought a lot about what it means to be a disciple of Christ and realized I defined it in my life by "doing." So if I wasn't "doing" then I was not a disciple of Christ. CRAP. On top of a busy schedule, I need to DO something in order be considered one of these? I give up.
Good news. It is NOT doing.
In greek, disciple is maqhthv" (matheˉteˉs) which refers generally to any “student,” “pupil,” “apprentice,” or “adherent,” as opposed to a “teacher.” Now hang with me on this one. When does a student get up in the middle of class and start teaching the other classmates multiplication when he has never done it himself? NEVER. That's impossible! But, that student sits under the teaching of that teacher, learns multiplication backwards and forwards. Then, that student could start helping their peers with multiplication. Pretty soon this student is now tutoring other students. So a disciple learns first, then acts second, spreading the knowledge of what they learned.
Let's look at an example from the bible. Luke 10:38-42
As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. 39 She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. 40 But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!”
41 “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, 42 but few things are needed—or indeed only one.[a] Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”
I love Martha in this. I have been Martha so many times. She is (excuse the language) PISSED at her sister for being seemingly "lazy." Oh the times I have felt that way towards others in my life. I can't stand sitting still and can't stand people who sit still....Yet, what did Jesus say. "You are worried and upset over many things, but few are needed." In other words..."girl, chill out and quit trying to DO without me teaching you HOW to, first. REST." We do not like to rest. We feel lazy, apathetic and useless if we are not doing. YET, Jesus (remember him, the one we are supposed to be like) was telling Martha to sit at his feet, with her sister, and LEARN from him. How often do we get some crazy, exciting, can't-sit-still-or-I-may-pee-my-pants idea and act on it too soon. OR...suffocate something that is good because we got impatient in the wait (ouch!). We are not God...I repeat, we are not God. Is Christ in us, YES, but sometimes we think we know more about the way the world should run than God does. That is just silly but I do it all the time.
So, if being a disciple of Christ is sitting still long enough to listen and learn from the GREAT teacher, then when does action come into play?
The great commission, which I spoke on in my last entry, is to go and make disciples of all the nations. There is indeed action in that. We are not called to just sit at the feet of Christ and never get up to go out and spread the good news of what we were taught. But the key is to learn FIRST. When Jesus gave the great commission to his disciples, what happened before that? They had spent three years LEARNING from him. Now, I am not saying you need to spend three years before you ever go out and do anything for Christ again, but, I am saying that we are INEFFECTIVE in being disciples of Christ if we NEVER sit at his feet and learn from him so that we can be sent out!
In Young Life we have something called Campaigner's. This is a time for the high school and middle school girl's (separately) to get together with their Young Life leader's and study the bible. We talk about life, God and how the two collide. We dissect scripture. We pray together. We laugh a lot. We learn together what it means to be a disciple of Christ. Why? Not only so we can grow in our faith, but so we can go out and tell other's about this love we have found in Him.
I love that I get to tell lost kids about Christ. I love getting to see those kids come to know Him. I love getting to love those kids who still don't know Him. I am passionate about this. But I am called, to make disciples. I cannot just TELL kids about Christ, I need to show them what it looks like to follow him too and to show them the greatest example of it through encouraging them to look at him, Jesus.
So being a disciple of Christ is submitting to his teaching, sitting at his feet to learn and then taking what he has taught us and going and living it out!
I could work for Young Life, see tons of results and "do" a ton, but I will eventually burn out and become ineffective if I don't take the time to stop and learn from him.
I am giving you permission to STOP, rest and learn from him so that you can be the BEST of what he created you for. There will be seasons of feeling useless but trust me...in those "hidden" seasons, you are learning far more that you realize now for those season where you are called to "go out." I wish I would of known this before I started in this ministry....a lot of horrible moments of burn-out could of been avoided :).
So, take courage in knowing that whether you are feeling most effective in what God has called you to or you are in a "waiting" room for what's next, he is preparing you. He is beckoning you to come and sit at his feet (just like Mary) and learn. There is no sweeter place to be then at HIS feet (and his feet DON'T smell...b/c I hate feet and that would just be horrible ;) ).
