C. Scott Bickel,
Physical Therapy,
University of Alabama at Birmingham
[ March 20, 2009 ] —I am a member of a large church that spends a great deal of time emphasizing making disciples. However, I have begun to wonder if the average person sitting in the pew on Sunday morning really knows what “making disciples” actually means. Sure, they could probably quote a line or two from Matthew 28, but do they really understand what it means to make disciples of all nations?
Those of us who are in academia have a unique insight into disciple making. Most of us Ph.D.-trained faculty were “discipled” during our graduate studies. We probably did not call it being discipled, rather we used terms such as “mentored” or “trained,” but in essence our graduate studies were a multi-year process by which our major professors, explicitly or implicitly, imparted training to us the students.
No Lectures
The lessons I learned from my advisor are things that have served me well. I learned how to think critically, analyze data, and conduct specific laboratory techniques, all due to one person taking the time to show me how. I was never lectured by him, nor did I get a five point lesson on how to think critically.
Isn’t this what disciple making is all about? Training believers by showing them how to live by the Word, sharing the love of Christ, teaching them the Word, and ultimately serving them and the rest of the world? We all want to have an impact on our students, but can we really do this in our large classes that meet three hours/week?
Consider that Jesus spent the majority of His time with a small group of believers showing them how Almighty God lives as a man. They learned how to pray from the One who hears our prayers. They learned compassion and love from the One that gives life, all in a small group setting. Sure, Jesus spoke to the crowds and undoubtedly impacted some of them but the ones He had the most dramatic impact on were those who chose to spend time with Him, to follow Him.
So how can we ‘make disciples’ through our various roles in academia? To really have lasting influence I believe we need to be open to individual time with our students.
Taking the Time
When I consider all of the courses that I have taken over the years, there is not one professor that had much of an impact on me unless I got to know them personally. Isn’t this how Christ made His disciples? Sure, He spoke to the crowds, but in the end, there were a small group of men that He knew were going to multiply His Word to the ends of the earth.
I think we know how to mentor in academia, and incidentally the process looks a lot like the way Christ did it 2000 years ago. Can we follow His model in the rest of our lives as well?
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© 2009 Scott Bickel Used by permission of Faculty Commons