Practice

“I’m not sure. What do you think Jesus would do?”

I felt surprised the first time Brady asked this question. We sat in his office, warm cups of coffee in our hands. These meetings were a regular rhythm for our friendship. He was a professor at my school, but he also served as a kind of spiritual companion. Our weekly conversations were times to process the events of our respective weeks and ponder what God was up to in our lives.

This question—what do you think Jesus would do—grew out of an experience with his son. Brady asked his ten-year-old son, Nathan, his opinion about the ways of Jesus regarding a challenge he faced at school. His father had an idea about what his son should do, but he wanted his child to prayerfully ponder the situation and decide. They talked, prayed through the situation, and Brady honored his choice.

Brady informed me that this discerning rhythm was a regular practice of his parenting. He called these experiments “Jesus School.” He explained that the purpose of these dialogues was to help his children to consider Jesus in their daily lives. He did not want to be the kind of father who micro-managed every decision of his kids. Instead, he wanted to train them in the ways of Jesus through the daily events of life. He would come alongside his son and make space for him to discern the next, faithful step.

A Participatory Model of Discipleship

Brady’s reflection surprised me in the best of ways. This conversational rhythm with his son helped me see a better, broader way of viewing discipleship and formation. I grew up with a different model. My assumption was that there was someone older, in an official position of leadership, who would just tell me what to do. There was little space for my own reflection on what the path of Jesus might look like in my life. Instead, I just needed to do what had already been decided. Do it like it has been done before. Simply repeat the pattern.

However, Brady pointed me towards a more participatory model of discipleship. Instead of telling his son, he was inviting him into the process of becoming a disciple of Jesus. He let him make a faithful decision and see where that might lead him. He was opening his son to a spirit of learning, experimentation, and discernment that could help him navigate the new landscapes of life. All while carrying and cultivating a lens of faithfulness.

Adventure in Learning

I still find this model of discipleship refreshing for how I envision following Jesus. It prioritizes training over telling. It infuses all of life with the spirit of learning the ways of Jesus instead of simply handing someone a few boxes to check off. A participatory view of discipleship helps cultivate a spirit of adventure and learning in the life of faith. We are invited to keep learning the ways of Jesus in fresh contexts and in the unique contours of our lives.

Dallas Willard describes this vision for discipleship as “learning to live my life as if Jesus were in my place.”¹ We allow our relationship with Jesus to influence our real lives. Working at a bank. Raising kids. Starting a new business. Navigating a conflict. Daily events become the soil for learning and transformation into the image of Jesus. Discipleship happens in the mundane and majestic moments of our lives.  

This definition can help expand our view of Jesus in the Gospels. There we see how often Jesus modeled a participatory view of faith. He asked questions more than he gave answers. He sent his disciples out on a mission, empowered to learn and navigate difficult situations. He made space for them to mature and grow. Instead of giving them a few boxes to check off, he invited them into something more holistic. They constantly processed and prayed as they learned to follow faithfully. What a helpful, refreshing model for our churches today!

5 Guideposts for Participatory Discipleship

My experience with this model of formation is shaped by several guideposts. The following ideas are some of the priorities I have tried to implement in congregations where I served.

1. Curiosity

Allowing and encouraging questions in our approach to formation is essential. In a season of working with young adults, I discovered that many of them had deeper questions about faith, yet they were not sure they could give voice to them. Therefore, I made it a priority in my teaching to model an inquisitive approach to faith. I also took opportunities to affirm their questions without always giving tidy answers. Sacred, formative moments can happen when we give space to the curiosity of others.²

2. Consistency

Learning the way of Jesus is a constant process. Each day is an opportunity to attend Jesus School—looking and listening for what God might be up to in our lives. One way to cultivate this daily attention is through spiritual practices. These habits are like lifting sails on a boat that open us to the Spirit blowing in our lives. Encouraging a congregation to participate in these habits can help everyone begin to develop a more consistent awareness of God’s presence in their lives.³

3. Creativity

Language creates cultures within congregations. Therefore, one word I use often in my ministry is experiment. I encourage people to see their discipleship like being a scientist in a lab. We make faithful attempts, see what God teaches us, then try again based on our learning. Embedded in this vocabulary is cultivating a posture of learning and creativity. We try a new spiritual practice and see what God teaches us. We reach out to a neighbor and discern how God might be leading us. Following Jesus is not just about cutting and pasting expressions of faith from previous contexts, but we are invited to creatively and faithfully explore the way of Jesus in our present context. ⁴

4. Collaboration

Disciples are called to learn faithfulness together. The Gospels show us that Jesus did not call individual disciples but a group of them. Why? Because there is much to learn from our brothers and sisters as we seek faithful lives together. We get a mentor. We form a small group. We dialogue about our discoveries. We invite others into our lives as collaborative partners in faith. Like a father with his ten-year-old son, we converse about what living like Jesus looks like, learn from each other, and faithfully improvise together.⁵

5. Christ-Centered

All our questions, experiments, and creative expressions are filtered through the life and ministry of Jesus. We are not aiming for generic faith, but Christ-centered faith. We are not just attending any school, but “Jesus School.” Therefore, this principle serves as a filter for all the other guideposts. Discipleship is about constantly returning to the witness of Jesus as we discern what it looks like for us to be witnesses in our world. 

Learning Never Stops

Last week, I found myself in conversation with my seven-year-old. She was having trouble with a friend at school and voiced her concerns. My first thought was to give a quick answer, but then I remembered Brady and Nathan. I paused and began to ask her some questions about what she could do and how Jesus might respond. This changed our conversation, and it changed me as I listened to her reflect out loud. It was a reminder that Jesus School never ends. Discipleship can become an all-of-life adventure if we open ourselves to God’s work all around us.

1. For more on this broader view of discipleship, see Dallas Willard, The Divine Conspiracy: Rediscovering Our Hidden Life in God (New York: Harper Collins, 1997), 271–310. ↩︎
2. For a look at the power of curiosity in our lives of faith, see David Dark, The Sacredness of Questioning Everything (Grand Rapid: Zondervan, 2009). ↩︎
3. For a helpful guide to spiritual practices, see John Ortberg, The Life You’ve Always Wanted: Spiritual Disciplines for Ordinary People (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2002). ↩︎
4. For an encouraging, experimental view of discipleship, see Mark Scandrette, Practicing the Way of Jesus: Life Together in the Kingdom of Love (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2011). ↩︎
5. For more on the concept of faithful improvisation, see Heather M. Gorman and Mark Nelson, Lunchroom Theology: Pushing Tables Together in a Fractured World (Richmond: 100 Movements, 2024). ↩︎