Make Your Investment Count-Finding Faithful Men
As we consider the kind of men we ought to mentor or disciple, we have already seen we should invest in men who have demonstrated faithfulness, men who are available, and those who are intentional about pursuing Christ and His calling on their lives. On today’s post we will talk about being teachable.
Several years ago during a Q & A session at a Discipleship Blueprint (Replicate Ministries), I was on a panel and was asked, “What kind of men will you not disciple? I responded by saying,” I can “walk with” almost anyone but I guess the “deal breaker” for me is someone who is not teachable.”
TEACHABLE
Being teachable by definition is “the ability to learn or to be taught” When I talk about someone who is teachable, I am not talking about someone who has the “ability” to be taught as much as someone who has “the desire” to be taught. I want to invest in men who have a desire to learn. You should mentor men who have not only a desire to learn, but a desire to learn from you and others in your group.
At this point, I must mention that those you mentor and invest in are not just listening to what you say, they are observing the way you live. Are you modeling godly behavior before them? It would be a tragedy to say all the right things but live in such a way that your mentee can’t believe what you say because they are watching the way you live.
When I pastored my first church I was blessed to walk with several young men who sensed God had a calling on their lives. Every Thursday afternoon we would meet for discipleship and practical ministry together. It was a kind of life-on-life discipleship and for the practical ministry skills we used Jesus’s model of discipleship.
Jesus did it – the disciples watched
Jesus did it – the disciples assisted
The disciples did it – Jesus assisted
The disciples did it – Jesus watched
During our time together, these young men (teenagers) memorized scripture, learned how to do inductive Bible study, discussed theology, and read books together. They learned how to share their faith using a New Testament, a gospel tract, and how to share their testimony.
In addition they learned and practiced practical ministry skills such as home and hospital visitation, organizing and leading a small group, and serving as decision time counselors at youth rallies.
Today four of those young men (not so young anymore) serve in full-time gospel ministry. One is a seminary professor and three are pastors. One of the pastors earned a Ph.D. in expository preaching.
One thing that they all have in common is a desire to learn!
I love the Scripture Proverbs 9:9 : “Instruct a wise man and he will be wiser still. Teach a man of understanding and he will increase in learning.”
If you want to make your investment count, find men who have a desire to learn and be taught.
