Once a Covenant Discipleship group has formed and the members have agreed on a day and time to meet, the first task is to write a covenant of discipleship. The covenant will serve as the agenda for the weekly meetings. The covenant follows the pattern of the General Rule of Discipleship:
To witness to Jesus Christ in the world and to follow his teachings through acts of compassion, justice, worship, and devotion under the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
This will focus the covenant on all the teachings of Jesus rather than on the strengths or preferences of the group members.
The covenant has three essential sections:
1.A preamble
2.Clauses covering particular acts of compassion, justice, worship and devotion everyone in the group is willing and able to do.
3.A conclusion
You will find sample covenants, preambles, clauses, and conclusions here: Samples. Several points about these sample clauses are worth noting. First, while they are arranged according to the categories of the General Rule of Discipleship, not all of them can be clearly defined as acts of compassion, justice, worship, and devotion. Indeed, in many instances there is considerable overlap and duplication.
This illustrates an important principle of the General Rule of Discipleship, and of Christian discipleship: We should not get caught up in method for its own sake. It is far more important to have clauses that are meaningful and relevant to the Christian life than to have clauses that are neatly classified. When we walk with Christ, we are on a journey with a real person; and while the teachings of Jesus give us important guidelines, our discipleship will always be relational and, therefore, full of surprises.
Another point worth noting is that a number of clauses illustrate ways in which the ongoing accountability of Covenant Discipleship groups deepen the insight and conviction of its members. This is reflected in clauses that become more specific and challenging either in the frequency or by the directness with which the clause identifies particular practices. Some of the examples indicate this development. This is not an expression of over achievement but merely an indication that grace is at work in the lives of the group members as they chew on the solid food of the gospel.
One final word, these examples are included in the hope that they can assist you in writing your covenant. They are certainly not meant as rigid rules for your discipleship or that of you group. Together you must develop your own covenant, which Christ as the model for discipleship; and the Holy Spirit as your guide.
The Preamble
The preamble states the nature and purpose of the covenant. It makes clear the covenant is not a set of rigid regulations but rather a shaping of Christian discipleship in response to God’s grace. The writing of the preamble often raises significant points of faith and practice, so it is important to encourage members to express opinions freely as the preamble is developed.
You may write your own preamble or use one of the samples found here: Samples. If you use one of the sample preambles, feel free to change the wording to fit your context. If you choose to write your own preamble, the process may take several weeks. But it is important to avoid getting caught up in discussions around minor details.
Because writing the preamble is typically the most difficult part of covenant writing, I suggest you write your covenant clauses first. The process of discussing and coming to consensus on the clauses helps the group get to know one another. It is good preparation for the work involved in writing the preamble.
The Clauses
Although there is no hard and fast rule, covenants typically contain eight to ten clauses. Groups should limit themselves to no more than 10 clauses. This will assure that all group members will be able to give their account of each clause within the allotted hour meeting time. A good guideline to follow is to make sure that your covenant fits on one side of one 8½ X 11 inch piece of paper (1” margins, 12 point font).
The clauses reflect the teachings of Jesus Christ as summarized in the General Rule of Discipleship. The most important guiding principle for the group as you write the clauses is to limit them to works of piety (acts of compassion and justice) and works of mercy (acts of worship and devotion) that everyone is willing and able to do and to include as regular practices of each persons’ discipleship.
A helpful principle to keep in mind as you begin to write your clauses is: “Begin where you are, not where you think you should be.” A common mistake new groups make is to fill their covenant with acts of compassion, justice, worship, and devotion they think they should be doing. For example, some members of the group may be of a mind that faithful disciples of Jesus Christ should pray and read the Bible for at least two hours every day, just like John Wesley. However, the likely reality is that daily prayer and Bible reading itself will be a challenge for many in the group. Committing to two hours of prayer and Bible reading every day is likely more than most group members are willing and able to do. They will come to meeting after meeting and admit to their peers that they did not keep that clause. If the covenant has several similar clauses that are beyond the willingness and ability of most of the group members, some will begin to feel guilty, some will feel like failures in discipleship. These disciples will conclude that this Covenant Discipleship process is just too hard and they will quit. To prevent this from happening it’s important to resist the temptation to fill the new covenant with clauses that members are not actually willing and able to incorporate into their practice of discipleship. It’s okay to include in your covenant works of piety and mercy that are already part of your regular practice. The difference now will be that the Covenant Discipleship group will help one another be more dependable disciples.
To return to the illustration of including a clause that says “We will pray and read our Bible two hours each day.” A more practical way of reaching the goal of regular daily prayer and Bible reading is a clause like this: “We will pray and read our Bible every day.” This wording leaves it up to each person to decide how much time they spend each day in prayer and Bible reading. Begin where you are, not where you think you should be.
The covenant clauses must reflect the balanced discipleship contained in the General Rule of Discipleship. This means the group needs to identify particular acts of compassion, justice, worship and devotion everyone is willing and able to include in their practice of discipleship. It is essential that the covenant is written in a way that helps the group to follow all the teachings of Jesus. Our natural inclination is to emphasize our preferences and strengths and to neglect the teachings of Jesus that may lead to embarrassment or suffering. We’d rather stick to practices that suit our temperament than do things that move us outside our comfort zone. However, when we commit to following Jesus in the world, we need to understand that he will take us to places and to people who will be outside our comfort zone. He does this because when we follow Jesus into places and the company of people who challenge us our hearts become more open to grace and its power to form our character more and more into the character of Jesus. We also need to always remember that Christ goes with us to places like the homeless shelter, hospital, nursing home, jail, soup kitchen, etc., etc. In fact, he is there waiting for us.
Making the commitment to regularly engage in acts of compassion and justice (works of mercy) is the first step to removing the blockage to grace and allowing grace to flow into and through you. It is the first step to becoming the people Jesus describes in Matthew 5:13-16, “salt of the earth” and “light of the world.”
Groups are strongly encouraged to place the clauses in their covenant in the same order given by the General Rule of Discipleship. This means that the first clauses will be the acts of compassion; followed by the acts of justice; followed by the acts of worship; followed by the acts of devotion. One reason for this is that all groups have the most difficulty with practicing acts of justice. Their natural unease with this important part of the covenant causes them to deal with it last and place it at the end of the clauses. Scripture makes very clear that justice is central to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. This is why it is placed near the top of the clauses when the order of the General Rule of Discipleship is followed. Acts of compassion and justice are together because they are closely related to one another. They describe in practical terms what John Wesley called “works of mercy.” They are the “holy habits” Christians take on to follow Jesus’ command to “love your neighbor as yourself.”
Following the “works of mercy” are the “holy habits” Wesley called “works of piety:” acts of worship and devotion. They are the practices that equip Christians to follow Jesus’ first commandment: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.”
The order is not intended to indicate that any of the practices are more important than the others. Rather, it is a practical reality that “loving your neighbor as yourself” with acts of compassion and acts of justice is much more challenging and difficult than loving God through acts of worship and acts of devotion. Therefore, Covenant Discipleship groups are strongly encouraged to begin their weekly accountability with the more challenging parts of the covenant; the parts that some in the group would just as well skip.
The Conclusion
The covenant conclusion is a short statement reaffirming the nature and purpose of the covenant. It expresses the intent of the group to shape their lives according to the covenant and reaffirms their dependence upon grace. Covenant Discipleship groups are not striving to maintain standards of performance. They are seeking to follow the teachings of Jesus in their daily lives under the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
The covenant conclusion should be no more than a sentence or two in length. Some groups word it in the form of a prayer that can be used as the closing prayer for the weekly meeting. Here’s an example: Open my eyes to your presence, O God, that I may see the sorrows and joys of your creatures. Open my ears to your will, O God, that I may have the strength to keep this covenant. Open my heart and my hands in mercy, O God, that I may receive mercy when I fail. Amen.
When the group has written its covenant each member is given a copy. All members sign and date the covenant. The completed covenant is then brought to every meeting. Some groups reduce their covenant to a small laminated card, making it convenient to carry in a pocket or wallet.
Showing posts with label Pastoral. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Pastoral. Show all posts
Dynamics of Grace in Covenant Discipleship
David Lowes Watson
One of the most difficult concepts to grasp in the Christian life is the discipline of discipleship, and for three very good reasons.
First, the word has a negative connotation in many parts of our contemporary culture. It is associated with the sort of upbringing which few parents would wish to impose today on their children; or with the rigid mindset of a dated militarism which most military personnel today would likewise wish to disown.
Second, the word has a negative connotation in the church. It has frequently been identified in Christian tradition with rules and regulations which, for no lasting reason, have denied church members the simple pleasures of life. And perhaps those of the Methodist tradition have felt more deprived than most in this regard.
The third, and more significant reason, is that the word troubles many deeply committed Christians, who feel that an undue emphasis on the works of the Christian life tends to denigrate the grace of God, which is properly the form and the dynamic of Christian discipleship.
It is this last objection which merits our attention in discerning the true purpose of Covenant Discipleship Groups.
We must begin with the very nature of Christian discipleship. The word disciple comes from a Latin word meaning one who learns. This was the nature and purpose of Christ's relationship with his first disciples -- to teach them about his work and his mission. This required commitment and obedience, for which Christ himself was the perfect role model. Throughout his ministry, he was committed and obedient to the God whom he called Abba, Father; not a blind obedience, but a faithful obedience, a trusting obedience, a consistent openness to the will of the One whose purposes alone could be affirmed as right and good.
It was this same obedience which Jesus taught his disciples (Jn.13:1 - 17:26). It was not restrictive, since it was grounded in a relationship of love. Yet because it would be tested (Jn. 16:16ff.), it required discipline in order to withstand the testing. True discipleship could not be the effortless elation of self-indulgent emotion; nor yet could it be the mindless obedience of self-alienating legalism. The realities of human sin and a fallen world required an obedience that is at once more gracious and demanding.
It is at this point that Wesley's understanding of grace provides us with remarkable insight.¹ He identifies the dynamics of grace as a constant tension in the Christian life. God makes endless, limitless initiatives towards us, inviting us, drawing us to be reconciled, so that we might enjoy the freedom which Christ so clearly described as the relationship of a large family.² Yet God's grace is so gracious that we are always given the choice of accepting or rejecting these initiatives; and our sinful habits are such that our first instinct is to reject them.
This is why so many of the hymns of early Methodism are couched in the language of resistance and surrender. For the critical moment in Christian discipleship is the decision to quit resisting, to accept God's gracious initiatives, and to return to the family which is incomplete without us (Luke 15:4-7):
His love is mighty to compel,
His conqu'ring love consent to feel;
Yield to his love's resistless power,
And fight against your God no more.³
Once we have made this critical surrender, the path of discipleship is the refining of our new relationship with God as we learn to be open to the gracious initiatives of the Holy Spirit. We have two major handicaps in this learning, of course: Our own residual resistance which, in spite of the indwelling grace of the Holy Spirit, subjects us to countless temptations and struggles; and the continued resistance of the world to God's grace, with its misplaced wisdom, its entrenched injustice, and its chronic neglect of the poor and the powerless.
The challenge of Christian discipleship, therefore, is to learn to be open to grace, so that the freedom of our obedience to God can supplant the captivity of our self-centeredness, and thereby equip us to withstand the pressures of a sinful world. We learn this by trial and error -- by discovering each day how to let grace come into our lives with more power, so that we can avoid the pitfalls of resistance in ourselves and in the world.
Here we have the purpose of Covenant Discipleship Groups. By asking ourselves each week what has happened in our lives, and shaping the questions around the time-honored disciplines of the Christian life, we learn from each other how not to say no to God, how not to resist grace.
This is not an exercise in rules and regulations, nor yet a pursuit of heightened well-being. It is a confident trust in the One whose business it is to save the world, and a deep devotion to the unfinished task.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
¹ Early Methodist Class Meeting, pp.52‑65.
² See, for example, his sermon, "The Scripture Way of Salvation," in The Bicentennial Edition of the Works of John Wesley: Volume 2: Sermons II: 34‑70, ed. Albert C. Outler (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1985), pp.153‑69.
³ The Oxford Edition of the Works of John Wesley: Volume 7: A Collection of Hymns for the Use of the People called Methodists, ed. Franz Hildebrandt & Oliver A. Beckerlegge, asst. James Dale (New York: Oxford University Press, 1983) p.82.
One of the most difficult concepts to grasp in the Christian life is the discipline of discipleship, and for three very good reasons.
First, the word has a negative connotation in many parts of our contemporary culture. It is associated with the sort of upbringing which few parents would wish to impose today on their children; or with the rigid mindset of a dated militarism which most military personnel today would likewise wish to disown.
Second, the word has a negative connotation in the church. It has frequently been identified in Christian tradition with rules and regulations which, for no lasting reason, have denied church members the simple pleasures of life. And perhaps those of the Methodist tradition have felt more deprived than most in this regard.
The third, and more significant reason, is that the word troubles many deeply committed Christians, who feel that an undue emphasis on the works of the Christian life tends to denigrate the grace of God, which is properly the form and the dynamic of Christian discipleship.
It is this last objection which merits our attention in discerning the true purpose of Covenant Discipleship Groups.
We must begin with the very nature of Christian discipleship. The word disciple comes from a Latin word meaning one who learns. This was the nature and purpose of Christ's relationship with his first disciples -- to teach them about his work and his mission. This required commitment and obedience, for which Christ himself was the perfect role model. Throughout his ministry, he was committed and obedient to the God whom he called Abba, Father; not a blind obedience, but a faithful obedience, a trusting obedience, a consistent openness to the will of the One whose purposes alone could be affirmed as right and good.
It was this same obedience which Jesus taught his disciples (Jn.13:1 - 17:26). It was not restrictive, since it was grounded in a relationship of love. Yet because it would be tested (Jn. 16:16ff.), it required discipline in order to withstand the testing. True discipleship could not be the effortless elation of self-indulgent emotion; nor yet could it be the mindless obedience of self-alienating legalism. The realities of human sin and a fallen world required an obedience that is at once more gracious and demanding.
It is at this point that Wesley's understanding of grace provides us with remarkable insight.¹ He identifies the dynamics of grace as a constant tension in the Christian life. God makes endless, limitless initiatives towards us, inviting us, drawing us to be reconciled, so that we might enjoy the freedom which Christ so clearly described as the relationship of a large family.² Yet God's grace is so gracious that we are always given the choice of accepting or rejecting these initiatives; and our sinful habits are such that our first instinct is to reject them.
This is why so many of the hymns of early Methodism are couched in the language of resistance and surrender. For the critical moment in Christian discipleship is the decision to quit resisting, to accept God's gracious initiatives, and to return to the family which is incomplete without us (Luke 15:4-7):
His love is mighty to compel,
His conqu'ring love consent to feel;
Yield to his love's resistless power,
And fight against your God no more.³
Once we have made this critical surrender, the path of discipleship is the refining of our new relationship with God as we learn to be open to the gracious initiatives of the Holy Spirit. We have two major handicaps in this learning, of course: Our own residual resistance which, in spite of the indwelling grace of the Holy Spirit, subjects us to countless temptations and struggles; and the continued resistance of the world to God's grace, with its misplaced wisdom, its entrenched injustice, and its chronic neglect of the poor and the powerless.
The challenge of Christian discipleship, therefore, is to learn to be open to grace, so that the freedom of our obedience to God can supplant the captivity of our self-centeredness, and thereby equip us to withstand the pressures of a sinful world. We learn this by trial and error -- by discovering each day how to let grace come into our lives with more power, so that we can avoid the pitfalls of resistance in ourselves and in the world.
Here we have the purpose of Covenant Discipleship Groups. By asking ourselves each week what has happened in our lives, and shaping the questions around the time-honored disciplines of the Christian life, we learn from each other how not to say no to God, how not to resist grace.
This is not an exercise in rules and regulations, nor yet a pursuit of heightened well-being. It is a confident trust in the One whose business it is to save the world, and a deep devotion to the unfinished task.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
¹ Early Methodist Class Meeting, pp.52‑65.
² See, for example, his sermon, "The Scripture Way of Salvation," in The Bicentennial Edition of the Works of John Wesley: Volume 2: Sermons II: 34‑70, ed. Albert C. Outler (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1985), pp.153‑69.
³ The Oxford Edition of the Works of John Wesley: Volume 7: A Collection of Hymns for the Use of the People called Methodists, ed. Franz Hildebrandt & Oliver A. Beckerlegge, asst. James Dale (New York: Oxford University Press, 1983) p.82.
Covenant Discipleship Groups: An Introduction
Steve Manskar
Mutual Accountability & Support for Discipleship
A Covenant Discipleship group is 5-7 persons who meet together for one hour each week to hold one another mutually accountable for their discipleship. Groups tend to form based on the day and time people are available for a weekly meeting.
There are no rules about the composition of groups. Many groups are composed of women and men together. Some are all men. Some are all women.
Groups are usually composed of people from the same congregation. But, particularly in the case of a multiple church charge or circuit, a group may comprise people from several congregations.
The purpose of the weekly meetings is mutual accountability and support for discipleship. The group is guided by a covenant they write, shaped by the General Rule of Discipleship:
To witness to Jesus Christ in the world
and to follow his teachings through
acts of compassion, justice, worship and devotion
under the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
The covenant serves as the agenda for the weekly meeting. It keeps the focus of conversation on discipleship; what each member of the group has done, or not done, during the past week to follow the teachings of Jesus in their daily lives.
Weekly Compass Heading
Covenant Discipleship groups are where Christians “watch over one another in love” by giving each other a weekly compass heading. If you have ever used a compass you know that, when used with a map, a compass will point in the direction you need to travel in order to reach your destination. Occasionally, life and the world put obstacles and choices in our way that cause us to get off course. This is why it’s important to frequently check our map and compass so that we can get back on course and make progress towards our destination.
The goal of discipleship is to become fully the human beings God created us to be, in the image and likeness of Jesus Christ. Our map is the Scriptures which contain the teachings of Jesus Christ, summarized by him in Mark 12:30-31
… you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength. … you shall love your neighbor as yourself.
Our compass is the General Rule of Discipleship. The mutual accountability and support that happens in the weekly meeting of a Covenant Discipleship group provides the regular compass headings that help us to make the course corrections need to keep us on the way of Jesus that leads to our desired destination.
Task-Oriented Gatherings
Covenant Discipleship groups are task-oriented gatherings whose task is to help each other become better disciples. Members are responsible for one another. Covenant Discipleship groups are one way congregations help their members to keep the “new commandment” Jesus gave to his disciples in John 13:34-35
I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.
One of the ways Christians love one another is by helping one another to become the persons God created us to be; by helping one another to become more dependable witness to and workers with Jesus Christ in the world.
Forming Leaders in Discipleship
Covenant Discipleship groups are trustworthy and effective means of identifying and nurturing leaders in discipleship for mission and ministry. It’s important to understand that the mission of Covenant Discipleship groups is to develop leaders in discipleship who help the church to faithfully live out its mission with Christ in the world. While individuals certainly receive great blessing when they participate in CD groups, those blessings are secondary to the main purpose of building up the body of Christ for participation in God’s mission for the world.
Congregations that take seriously their mission to “make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world” need dependable leaders in discipleship. They are women and men who are intentional about their vocation of following Jesus Christ in the world. As members of Covenant Discipleship groups they form holy habits that open their hearts and minds to grace. Their habitual encounters with grace forms them into persons whose natural response to the world is love. They are leaders in discipleship because others see in them and the way they live and serve in the world embodiments of Christ’s love.
Forming Dependable Disciples
The weekly Covenant Discipleship group meeting is not where your discipleship happens, but it’s where you make sure that it happens the rest of hours of the week. The mutual accountability and support you receive in your CD group keeps you mindful of what you need to do as a follower of the way of Jesus Christ. The weekly sharing that happens in the group helps you to be intentional about doing the things Jesus taught his disciples: prayer, worship, the Lord’s Supper, reading and studying the Bible, doing no harm, and doing good to everyone. Over time these basic practices of discipleship become habits that transform your character into a reflection of Jesus Christ.
Dependable disciples are the people who lead churches in their mission of making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.
Covenant Discipleship Groups Are NOT...
•Bible Study Groups
•Prayer Groups
•Encounter Groups
•Cell Groups
•Sharing Groups
•Neighborhood Groups
•Service Groups
•Advocacy Groups
•Growth Groups
•Outreach Groups
•Caring Groups
The dynamic of Covenant Discipleship groups is mutual accountability and support for discipleship. Group members certainly read and study the Bible. But when the group meets the conversation is focused on discipleship, with the group’s covenant serving as the agenda. Many groups open their weekly meetings by reading a passage of Scripture and with prayer. But Bible reading and prayer are not the primary purpose of the meetings. Rather, they are more likely to happen in the lives of group members because of the weekly group meeting.
Congregations need a variety of small groups that meet people where they are and help them to grow and mature in faith, hope, and love. Covenant Discipleship groups provide mutual accountability and support for discipleship in a way that forms persons as leaders in discipleship. Some may serve as leaders for Bible study, prayer, cell, service and other types of small groups that serve as part of the congregation’s disciple-making system.
The Covenant Discipleship Group Meeting
The Leader Facilitates
The weekly meeting is a process of question and answer gives the leader a directive role. The leader offers a brief prayer and the group reads the covenant preamble in unison. The leader begins by giving his or her account of how she or he did with the first clause, or group of related clauses (acts of compassion, acts of justice, acts of worship, or acts of devotion). The leader then turns to another group member and asks, “How did you do with this (these) clause (clauses). After the person has finished hiving his or her account of that part of the covenant, the leader may go to the next person or he or she may ask a question to get the person to say more about their experience with that part of the covenant that week.
The leader determines gives each person an opportunity to give their account of how they did with each part of the covenant. He or she must also keep track of the time and make sure the group does not run over time too much. He or she also manages the time so that no one in the group monopolizes the time. It’s important to keep everyone focused on mutual accountability and support for discipleship in light of the covenant written by the group.
No Permanent Leader
Leadership of Covenant Discipleship groups is shared by the group. Members take turn each week. This way the task of leading week to week does not fall on the shoulders of one person. Shared leadership also helps members develop leadership skills.
If any group member does not feel ready to lead the group, that’s okay. Let them pass when it is their turn to lead. In time they will learn by observing their peers as they lead. In time they will take their turn with the others.
Finally, the last order of business of each meeting is determine who will lead the next meeting. Some groups set up a regular rotation of members. Others select weekly leaders from week to week. Either way is okay as long as everyone knows who is leading the next meeting.
Begin with prayer. Then go through the Covenant.
Leading a Covenant Discipleship group meeting is simple and straightforward. The leader opens the meeting with prayer. This may be a simple extemporaneous prayer or it may be a prayer from a book (The United Methodist Hymnal, The Book of Common Prayer, Praying in the Wesleyan Spirit: 52 Prayers for Today by Paul Chilcote are good resources for prayers.). The leader may include with the opening prayer reading a brief passage of Scripture. Some groups use Disciplines: A Book of Daily Devotions from the Upper Room.
Following the opening prayer, many groups read the Covenant preamble aloud in unison. Some groups read the entire covenant together. The unison reading centers the group in the business at hand and physically reminds them of the covenant, which is the meeting agenda.
The leader then walks the group through the covenant. This may be done several ways. The preferred way is to deal with each clause, one at a time. The leader always begins by giving his or her account of a clause and then inviting others to give their accounts in turn. This process is repeated until all the clauses have been covered.
The order in which the clauses are covered is up to the leader. Some like to start at the top of the page and work their way down to the bottom. Others may like to be more random and take the group through the covenant in no particular order. As long as the entire covenant is covered each week, the order is not really important.
One Hour Meetings
The group member leading any given meeting must always keep her or his eye on the clock. Meetings must begin and end on time. One hour. No more. No less. This means the leader is responsible for keeping the conversation focused on the covenant. It also means that the leader must help guide the conversation in such a way that each member has time to give an account of each part of the covenant within the allotted hour. More talkative group members need to be given gentle reminders to be brief in giving their account of each part of the covenant so that everyone will have time to participate within the hour.
Try to leave the last five minutes of the meeting free for members to briefly share prayer concerns. Then the leader concludes the time with a brief prayer, blessing and dismissal.
Be certain that everyone knows who will lead the next meeting before anyone leaves the room at the end of each meeting.
Covenant Is The Agenda
This means that the focus of conversation during the one-hour meeting is discipleship. In particular, the practices the group has agreed to incorporate in to their life together and individually contained in the clauses of the covenant. The leader in any given week needs to be mindful of this important dynamic. Occasionally the group will get distracted a comment or begin discussing recent events in the morning news or recent gossip in the church. When this happens the leader needs to gently intervene and bring the group back to the purpose of the meeting: mutual accountability for discipleship shaped by the covenant written by the group shaped by the General Rule of Discipleship. The covenant is the agenda. Limiting conversation to the agenda will help to maintain focus and keep the meeting to its agreed upon one hour time limit.
Develop an Atmosphere Of Trust & Sharing
Over time, as the group meets faithfully week after week, an atmosphere of trust and sharing will develop. This trust and willingness to share develops and grows when meeting leaders faithfully keep the weekly conversation focused on the discipleship contained in the covenant (the meeting agenda) and regularly begin and end each meeting on time. Trust is built when the discipline of accountability and support for discipleship is routinely maintained.
Confidentiality is also essential to build trust and sharing within the group. The group needs to agree from the beginning to keep confidence with one another. This means that all that is said in the group stays in the group. Nothing that is said in the group meeting may be mentioned to anyone else, ever. No group member should ever hear something he or she said during a meeting outside the context of the group. Confidentiality within the Covenant Discipleship group helps to build trust and deepens the level of accountability and sharing.
Catechesis: Question and Answer
“The most important reason for the sharing of leadership is that the format of the group meeting is what the early church called catechesis, a process of questions and answers. In other words, the distinctive dynamic of covenant discipleship is a dialogue between the leader and each member of the group. This is how the primitive Christian community taught its new members and its children: the catechist was the questioner, and the learners were called catechumens. To this day in a number of denominations, learning one’s catechism is still the first step toward being accepted into full church membership.
“Of course, cont content of the catechesis in covenant discipleship groups is practical rather than doctrinal. But the method is the same, and it is a good one. It means that important aspects of Christian discipleship are first of all agreed and written into the covenant. Then the leader appointed for the week voices them and asks each member to do likewise. In this way the axioms of living a Christian life are written, heard, and spoken.
“A good illustration of this dynamic is what happens in an airplane cockpit before takeoff. There is a basic checklist—so basic that most pilots prior know it backwards. Yet the routine is established. However well they know these basics, the pilots go through them, one by one. They read them out to each other, they physically check that each control is properly set, and they say out loud that they have made the check. The procedure is rudimentary yet very necessary, for human error is always a real possibility.
“How much more, then, should Christians do the same for their discipleship. After all, serving Jesus Christ in the world is the most responsible duty assigned to human beings in this world. It surely merits meticulous checking, for human error is an ever-present possibility” – from Covenant Discipleship by David Lowes Watson (pages 145-6).
Recommended Resources
Covenant Discipleship: Christian Formation through Mutual Accountability by David Lowes Watson is an essential resource for congregational leaders and Covenant Discipleship group members. The first half of the book is a brief review of the theological, biblical, and historic foundations for CD groups. Part Two is a practical guide for organizing a Covenant Discipleship group, writing a covenant of discipleship, leading a weekly meeting, and answering common questions and objections. Ideally, everyone in a CD group should have a copy of this book. They will find it to be a practical and useful resource.
Forming Christian Disciples: The Role of Covenant Discipleship and Class Leaders in the Congregation by David Lowes Watson is written for pastors and other congregational leaders. Watson describes the nature of the congregation and how Covenant Discipleship fits into a disciple-making system. This book is an essential resource because it provides the step-by-step process for introducing Covenant Discipleship to a congregation and the process for supporting and sustaining the ministry over time. This is a good book for Church Councils and pastors to read and study together.
Both books are available from Cokesbury and at Amazon.com.
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Help each other to become like Jesus in their lives - love God, love neighbors - by sharing their life and difficulties and encouragement by meeting on the weekly basis.
It needs a leader to prevent from the digressed conversation.
Mutual Accountability & Support for Discipleship
A Covenant Discipleship group is 5-7 persons who meet together for one hour each week to hold one another mutually accountable for their discipleship. Groups tend to form based on the day and time people are available for a weekly meeting.
There are no rules about the composition of groups. Many groups are composed of women and men together. Some are all men. Some are all women.
Groups are usually composed of people from the same congregation. But, particularly in the case of a multiple church charge or circuit, a group may comprise people from several congregations.
The purpose of the weekly meetings is mutual accountability and support for discipleship. The group is guided by a covenant they write, shaped by the General Rule of Discipleship:
To witness to Jesus Christ in the world
and to follow his teachings through
acts of compassion, justice, worship and devotion
under the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
The covenant serves as the agenda for the weekly meeting. It keeps the focus of conversation on discipleship; what each member of the group has done, or not done, during the past week to follow the teachings of Jesus in their daily lives.
Weekly Compass Heading
Covenant Discipleship groups are where Christians “watch over one another in love” by giving each other a weekly compass heading. If you have ever used a compass you know that, when used with a map, a compass will point in the direction you need to travel in order to reach your destination. Occasionally, life and the world put obstacles and choices in our way that cause us to get off course. This is why it’s important to frequently check our map and compass so that we can get back on course and make progress towards our destination.
The goal of discipleship is to become fully the human beings God created us to be, in the image and likeness of Jesus Christ. Our map is the Scriptures which contain the teachings of Jesus Christ, summarized by him in Mark 12:30-31
… you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength. … you shall love your neighbor as yourself.
Our compass is the General Rule of Discipleship. The mutual accountability and support that happens in the weekly meeting of a Covenant Discipleship group provides the regular compass headings that help us to make the course corrections need to keep us on the way of Jesus that leads to our desired destination.
Task-Oriented Gatherings
Covenant Discipleship groups are task-oriented gatherings whose task is to help each other become better disciples. Members are responsible for one another. Covenant Discipleship groups are one way congregations help their members to keep the “new commandment” Jesus gave to his disciples in John 13:34-35
I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.
One of the ways Christians love one another is by helping one another to become the persons God created us to be; by helping one another to become more dependable witness to and workers with Jesus Christ in the world.
Forming Leaders in Discipleship
Covenant Discipleship groups are trustworthy and effective means of identifying and nurturing leaders in discipleship for mission and ministry. It’s important to understand that the mission of Covenant Discipleship groups is to develop leaders in discipleship who help the church to faithfully live out its mission with Christ in the world. While individuals certainly receive great blessing when they participate in CD groups, those blessings are secondary to the main purpose of building up the body of Christ for participation in God’s mission for the world.
Congregations that take seriously their mission to “make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world” need dependable leaders in discipleship. They are women and men who are intentional about their vocation of following Jesus Christ in the world. As members of Covenant Discipleship groups they form holy habits that open their hearts and minds to grace. Their habitual encounters with grace forms them into persons whose natural response to the world is love. They are leaders in discipleship because others see in them and the way they live and serve in the world embodiments of Christ’s love.
Forming Dependable Disciples
The weekly Covenant Discipleship group meeting is not where your discipleship happens, but it’s where you make sure that it happens the rest of hours of the week. The mutual accountability and support you receive in your CD group keeps you mindful of what you need to do as a follower of the way of Jesus Christ. The weekly sharing that happens in the group helps you to be intentional about doing the things Jesus taught his disciples: prayer, worship, the Lord’s Supper, reading and studying the Bible, doing no harm, and doing good to everyone. Over time these basic practices of discipleship become habits that transform your character into a reflection of Jesus Christ.
Dependable disciples are the people who lead churches in their mission of making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.
Covenant Discipleship Groups Are NOT...
•Bible Study Groups
•Prayer Groups
•Encounter Groups
•Cell Groups
•Sharing Groups
•Neighborhood Groups
•Service Groups
•Advocacy Groups
•Growth Groups
•Outreach Groups
•Caring Groups
The dynamic of Covenant Discipleship groups is mutual accountability and support for discipleship. Group members certainly read and study the Bible. But when the group meets the conversation is focused on discipleship, with the group’s covenant serving as the agenda. Many groups open their weekly meetings by reading a passage of Scripture and with prayer. But Bible reading and prayer are not the primary purpose of the meetings. Rather, they are more likely to happen in the lives of group members because of the weekly group meeting.
Congregations need a variety of small groups that meet people where they are and help them to grow and mature in faith, hope, and love. Covenant Discipleship groups provide mutual accountability and support for discipleship in a way that forms persons as leaders in discipleship. Some may serve as leaders for Bible study, prayer, cell, service and other types of small groups that serve as part of the congregation’s disciple-making system.
The Covenant Discipleship Group Meeting
The Leader Facilitates
The weekly meeting is a process of question and answer gives the leader a directive role. The leader offers a brief prayer and the group reads the covenant preamble in unison. The leader begins by giving his or her account of how she or he did with the first clause, or group of related clauses (acts of compassion, acts of justice, acts of worship, or acts of devotion). The leader then turns to another group member and asks, “How did you do with this (these) clause (clauses). After the person has finished hiving his or her account of that part of the covenant, the leader may go to the next person or he or she may ask a question to get the person to say more about their experience with that part of the covenant that week.
The leader determines gives each person an opportunity to give their account of how they did with each part of the covenant. He or she must also keep track of the time and make sure the group does not run over time too much. He or she also manages the time so that no one in the group monopolizes the time. It’s important to keep everyone focused on mutual accountability and support for discipleship in light of the covenant written by the group.
No Permanent Leader
Leadership of Covenant Discipleship groups is shared by the group. Members take turn each week. This way the task of leading week to week does not fall on the shoulders of one person. Shared leadership also helps members develop leadership skills.
If any group member does not feel ready to lead the group, that’s okay. Let them pass when it is their turn to lead. In time they will learn by observing their peers as they lead. In time they will take their turn with the others.
Finally, the last order of business of each meeting is determine who will lead the next meeting. Some groups set up a regular rotation of members. Others select weekly leaders from week to week. Either way is okay as long as everyone knows who is leading the next meeting.
Begin with prayer. Then go through the Covenant.
Leading a Covenant Discipleship group meeting is simple and straightforward. The leader opens the meeting with prayer. This may be a simple extemporaneous prayer or it may be a prayer from a book (The United Methodist Hymnal, The Book of Common Prayer, Praying in the Wesleyan Spirit: 52 Prayers for Today by Paul Chilcote are good resources for prayers.). The leader may include with the opening prayer reading a brief passage of Scripture. Some groups use Disciplines: A Book of Daily Devotions from the Upper Room.
Following the opening prayer, many groups read the Covenant preamble aloud in unison. Some groups read the entire covenant together. The unison reading centers the group in the business at hand and physically reminds them of the covenant, which is the meeting agenda.
The leader then walks the group through the covenant. This may be done several ways. The preferred way is to deal with each clause, one at a time. The leader always begins by giving his or her account of a clause and then inviting others to give their accounts in turn. This process is repeated until all the clauses have been covered.
The order in which the clauses are covered is up to the leader. Some like to start at the top of the page and work their way down to the bottom. Others may like to be more random and take the group through the covenant in no particular order. As long as the entire covenant is covered each week, the order is not really important.
One Hour Meetings
The group member leading any given meeting must always keep her or his eye on the clock. Meetings must begin and end on time. One hour. No more. No less. This means the leader is responsible for keeping the conversation focused on the covenant. It also means that the leader must help guide the conversation in such a way that each member has time to give an account of each part of the covenant within the allotted hour. More talkative group members need to be given gentle reminders to be brief in giving their account of each part of the covenant so that everyone will have time to participate within the hour.
Try to leave the last five minutes of the meeting free for members to briefly share prayer concerns. Then the leader concludes the time with a brief prayer, blessing and dismissal.
Be certain that everyone knows who will lead the next meeting before anyone leaves the room at the end of each meeting.
Covenant Is The Agenda
This means that the focus of conversation during the one-hour meeting is discipleship. In particular, the practices the group has agreed to incorporate in to their life together and individually contained in the clauses of the covenant. The leader in any given week needs to be mindful of this important dynamic. Occasionally the group will get distracted a comment or begin discussing recent events in the morning news or recent gossip in the church. When this happens the leader needs to gently intervene and bring the group back to the purpose of the meeting: mutual accountability for discipleship shaped by the covenant written by the group shaped by the General Rule of Discipleship. The covenant is the agenda. Limiting conversation to the agenda will help to maintain focus and keep the meeting to its agreed upon one hour time limit.
Develop an Atmosphere Of Trust & Sharing
Over time, as the group meets faithfully week after week, an atmosphere of trust and sharing will develop. This trust and willingness to share develops and grows when meeting leaders faithfully keep the weekly conversation focused on the discipleship contained in the covenant (the meeting agenda) and regularly begin and end each meeting on time. Trust is built when the discipline of accountability and support for discipleship is routinely maintained.
Confidentiality is also essential to build trust and sharing within the group. The group needs to agree from the beginning to keep confidence with one another. This means that all that is said in the group stays in the group. Nothing that is said in the group meeting may be mentioned to anyone else, ever. No group member should ever hear something he or she said during a meeting outside the context of the group. Confidentiality within the Covenant Discipleship group helps to build trust and deepens the level of accountability and sharing.
Catechesis: Question and Answer
“The most important reason for the sharing of leadership is that the format of the group meeting is what the early church called catechesis, a process of questions and answers. In other words, the distinctive dynamic of covenant discipleship is a dialogue between the leader and each member of the group. This is how the primitive Christian community taught its new members and its children: the catechist was the questioner, and the learners were called catechumens. To this day in a number of denominations, learning one’s catechism is still the first step toward being accepted into full church membership.
“Of course, cont content of the catechesis in covenant discipleship groups is practical rather than doctrinal. But the method is the same, and it is a good one. It means that important aspects of Christian discipleship are first of all agreed and written into the covenant. Then the leader appointed for the week voices them and asks each member to do likewise. In this way the axioms of living a Christian life are written, heard, and spoken.
“A good illustration of this dynamic is what happens in an airplane cockpit before takeoff. There is a basic checklist—so basic that most pilots prior know it backwards. Yet the routine is established. However well they know these basics, the pilots go through them, one by one. They read them out to each other, they physically check that each control is properly set, and they say out loud that they have made the check. The procedure is rudimentary yet very necessary, for human error is always a real possibility.
“How much more, then, should Christians do the same for their discipleship. After all, serving Jesus Christ in the world is the most responsible duty assigned to human beings in this world. It surely merits meticulous checking, for human error is an ever-present possibility” – from Covenant Discipleship by David Lowes Watson (pages 145-6).
Recommended Resources
Covenant Discipleship: Christian Formation through Mutual Accountability by David Lowes Watson is an essential resource for congregational leaders and Covenant Discipleship group members. The first half of the book is a brief review of the theological, biblical, and historic foundations for CD groups. Part Two is a practical guide for organizing a Covenant Discipleship group, writing a covenant of discipleship, leading a weekly meeting, and answering common questions and objections. Ideally, everyone in a CD group should have a copy of this book. They will find it to be a practical and useful resource.
Forming Christian Disciples: The Role of Covenant Discipleship and Class Leaders in the Congregation by David Lowes Watson is written for pastors and other congregational leaders. Watson describes the nature of the congregation and how Covenant Discipleship fits into a disciple-making system. This book is an essential resource because it provides the step-by-step process for introducing Covenant Discipleship to a congregation and the process for supporting and sustaining the ministry over time. This is a good book for Church Councils and pastors to read and study together.
Both books are available from Cokesbury and at Amazon.com.
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Help each other to become like Jesus in their lives - love God, love neighbors - by sharing their life and difficulties and encouragement by meeting on the weekly basis.
It needs a leader to prevent from the digressed conversation.
Funerals with today's families in mind
- Doreen M. McFarlane----------------
Very Practical
Guidance for the pastors, associates, or assistants
Good to read before officiate a funeral
------------------
1. Preparation for the funeral
- Meeting with the bereaved to gather family information
- When people are making decisions, say as little as possible
- Make sure of the name of the dead; be sure to ask!
- Always check out the obituary to be sure you have all the names and of relationships correct
2. On the day of the service
- Be careful not to turn the service into a memorializing of the deceased
- Scripture readings(family member)
- Eulogy(family memeber or pastor)-Music-Sermon / Eulogy&Sermon
- Your words at the gravesite, memoral garden, or mausoleum should include words of commendation or committal - in which you commend or commit the deceased into the loving care of God (ex. Almighty God, we commend your servant Robert Jones into your loving care. Accept him now, a sheep of your fold, a lamb of your flock, a faithful and a good person.)
- Close with a benediction and then some kind of sending forth, such as "Go in peace."
- Reception
3. Special circumstances
- ex. Funerals of gay or lesbian persons
- A funeral is not an appropriate place for this discussion; do not engage with the matter
* Recommended scripture readings
1. OT
- Job 19:25-27 "I know that my Redeemer lives"
- Psalm 23: "The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want"
- Psalm 27:1, 4-9, 13-14: "The Lord is my light and my salvation"
- Psalm 42:1-7: As a deer longs for flowing streams, so my soul longs for you, O God
- Psalm 46:1-7: God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble
- Psalm 90: Lord, you have been our dwelling place in all generations
- Psalm 106:1-5: Praise the Lord! O give thanks to the Lord, for he is good
- Psalm 121: I lift up my eyes to the hills - from where will my help come?
- Psalm 130: Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord. Lord, hear my voice
- Psalm 139: O Lord, you have searched me and known me
- Psalm 143: Hear my prayer, O Lord; give ear to my supplications
- Isaiah 25:7-9: He will swallow up death forever
- Isaiah 40:28-31: Those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength
- Lamentations 3:22-26, 31-33: The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases
2. NT
- Matthew 5:1-12: Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven
- Matthew 11:25-30: Come to me...and I will give you rest
- Luke 7:11-17: Jesus raises the son of the widow
- Luke 12:35-40: Be prepared
- Luke 23:33, 39-43: Today you will be with me in Paradise
- John 3:16-21: God so loved the world
- John 6:51-59: Whoever eats of this bread will live forever
- John 12:23-28: Unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies
- John 14:1-6: In my Father's house there are many dwellign places
- Romans 5:1-11: Justified by faith, we have peace with God
- Romans 6:3-9: So that we too might walk in newness of life
- 1Corinthians 15:20-26, 35-38, 42-44, 50, 53-58: Death has been swallowed up in victory
- 2Corinthians 5:1, 6-10: We have an everlasting home in heaven
- Philippians 3:20-21: But our citizenship is in heaven
- 1Thessalonians 4:13-18: So we will be with the Lord forever
- 2Timothy 2:8-13: If we have died with him, we also will live with him
- 1John 3:1-9: We will see him as he is
- Revelation 7:9-17: God will wipe away every tear from their eyes
- Revelation 14:1-3, 6-7, 12-13: Rest for the saints
- Revelation 21:2-7: A new heaven and a new earth
3. For the death of a Child
- Lamentations 3:1-9, 19-23: God's steadfast love
- Matthew 18:1-5, 10: Greatest in the kingdom of heaven
- Mark 10:13-16: Let the children come to me
- 1John 3:1-3: We are children of God
4. Spouse
- Gen. 2:23, 24-25
- Love me for the empty room that I leave behind me. Love me for the face that's gone and the tears that blind thee. Love me for the years we knew, the sadness and the laughter. Love me with the broken heart, and the silence after.
5. Parents
- 2 Sam. 18:33
6. Relatives who are estranged
- Gen 25:8-10
* A twenty-min. talk is only five pages double spaced, so if you plan to speak for ten min, a couple of pages should do it.
* Grieving at funerals is threefold: 1.We grieve for the deceased most of all; 2.We grieve, at these times, we remember those we love who have died; 3.We grieve at being reminded that we too are mortal
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