To have or have not? With the arrival of summer, that becomes the question on every leader’s mind. Do we have summer programming? Do we not have summer programming? Perhaps the better questions to ask are not “do” questions but “how” questions. Not “programming” questions but “discipleship” questions. “How do we do summer discipleship?”
At the heart of all church programming is discipleship. Semester short term Bible studies are for discipleship. Small groups are for discipleship. Semester events are for discipleship. Training events are for discipleship. If discipleship is at the heart of all programming, the next question is, “What is discipleship?” What is it that we as leaders are trying to accomplish?
I looked far and wide for the perfect definition of discipleship. There is a myriad of choices from which to choose! But my favorite did not come from a formal source but rather from my pastor husband. When asked, he defined discipleship as, “Hanging on to the coattails of Jesus!” Since every definition I found for discipleship went to the root of the word, disciple, I would say his definition is amazingly accurate. The disciples of the New Testament were most certainly “hanging on to the coattails of Jesus” as they watched Him perform miracle after miracle. When Jesus called His disciples to “Come, follow me,” (Matt. 4:19, NIV), they left jobs, families, and communities to learn from Him. They learned from His lifestyle, His example, their conversations, and studying God’s laws together. As they learned, He sent them out to be doers of His teachings (Luke 9:1-6). They were disciples under the discipleship of Jesus.
In Hebrew, the word for disciple is talmid, referring to a student but more accurately an apprentice.
There is a difference between being a student and an apprentice. A student learns head knowledge to know what the teacher knows. Think classroom/books. There is great value in that. As a professor, I highly recommend it to my students. As a women’s ministry leader, I highly recommend it to the women I serve and plan weekly Bible studies for that purpose. There is certainly great value in being a student of God’s Word. As a matter of fact, the Bible tells us to know and be students of His Word (Ps 119:11; Col 3:16; John 8:31-32; 2 Tim 2:15).
An apprentice, on the other hand, works with the teacher to learn what the teacher does so he or she can imitate the actions of the teacher. A myriad of trades are learned by being an apprentice: linemen, welders, electricians, plumbers, goldsmiths, and potters. A true apprentice is a blend of both aspects, learning about the work from books and the “how to” of the work by imitating the master. Disciples of Jesus, like true apprentices, were and are both students and imitators. Students of God’s Word. Imitators of the life of Jesus. Apprentices. Disciples. A true talmid.
As ministry leaders, our responsibility is to provide opportunities for women to both study God’s Word and imitate the life of Jesus, leading them to be true talmids. Once assured the women we serve have a personal relationship with Jesus, our next mandatory question is, “Will the women I serve be just another student who knows about Jesus—or a disciple who knows about and does what Jesus did?” (Matt. 5–7).
In this summer season, women’s ministry leaders may be taking a break from some aspects of formal programming, but discipleship itself is never on break. Leaders and followers alike must always be “hanging on to the coattails of Jesus.” As a leader, my goal is to provide discipleship opportunities for the summer, outside the normal formal programming activities, with intentionality that prepares for the next season of more formal learning. Discipleship happens as we share life, pray for one another, offer words of encouragement, step in to help when help is needed, enjoy friendships, laugh, and cry together. (Jesus Himself did all those things with His disciples.) While those things should and must happen in formal programming, they can continue to happen even when programming is on break. And I might add, must happen if we are to model true discipleship accurately, which is always 365 days a year (366 days on this leap year!). Here are a few ideas of ways discipleship can happen while programming is on break:
Pray for one another
- Set up a text thread where prayer requests can be shared (WhatsApp can make this easy).
- Have a designated area for women to leave prayer requests and/or praises at your worship center. Share the answers to summer prayer requests at the first fall kick-off event, celebrating how God continued to work through the summer.
- Provide a summer reading list that corresponds to the upcoming fall study. If budget is available, provide the books as a summer gift along with a sample of coffee, tea, and, of course, chocolates.
- Create a correspondence thread for Scripture memory groups. Summer is a great time to focus on memorizing God’s Word. If the passages relate to the fall study, how much better. Memory cards can be made available in the church lobby for women to pick up on Sunday before or after worship.
Stay connected
- Send cards of encouragement. In a world of text messages and social media, receiving an actual handwritten note or card in the mail speaks volumes. It is a way to let the women you serve know that you are thinking of them even when formal programming is not in place.
- For the leader, summer can be the perfect time for one-on-one conversations around a cup of coffee or even over a load of vacation laundry. Use this time of being off schedule to develop deeper one-on-one relationships with those you serve. Fall busyness will be back soon!
- As a leader, show up. Show up to the events that you would never have time for if formal programming was in place. Show up at little league games, dance recitals, and so forth. If you can’t be there in person (which will often be reality), send a text. There is power in presence in all its forms, most especially over the summer when some may feel isolated.
- Keep track of vacation schedules if possible and send text prayers for safe travels.
- Prior to summer break, lead a session on gospel conversations. Neighborhood swimming pools can be a great place to share the gospel. Equip women for sharing the message of salvation and hope. Celebrate the seeds that were planted and the souls that received Christ when programming returns.
- Be intentional in making disciples by intertwining your summer activities with compassion, care, and concern for the summer craziness that the women you serve may be living. Make disciples by living life in every season; summer, fall winter, and spring, with those you are discipling.
Going back to the original question, “To have or have not?” The answer is a resounding “YES!” Discipleship should and must happen. The how may look a lot different in summer, and that is OK. The busyness of formal organized events can be on hold for a few months. After all, both methods, formal programmed events and scheduled summer breaks, both have the same outcome in mind, helping our sisters in Christ live life “Hanging on to the coattails of Jesus!” After all, that is where real life is found.
Make sure to check out this article by Rachel Lovingood about why your Bible study small should not take the summer off.
ABOUT GAYLA PARKER
Gayla Parker has been married for forty-six years. She has three married sons and seven grandchildren. Gayla holds a degree in family counseling/social work from Jacksonville State University, a Master of Divinity degree from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, and is currently finishing her PhD in Systematic Theology from SWBTS.
Gayla has been in ministry for over forty years, serving as a pastor’s wife, international missionary, women’s consultant for two Baptist state conventions, missions innovator specialist for W.M.U. SBC, Lifeway trainer for the women’s leadership team, chaplain, author, and speaker. Currently, Gayla is serving as an adjunct professor at Ouachita Baptist University in Arkadelphia, AR, and executive director for the Pregnancy Resource Center for Southwest Arkansas. Gayla’s book, Active Compassion: A Calling to Care to care can be found on Amazon with her proceeds going to the International Mission Board. Her devotions can be found online in various blogs and in The Psalms and Proverbs Daily Devotional for Women and NKJV Women’s Daily Devotional Bible, both published through Holman Press, Journey Magazine published through Lifeway Resource Center, and in Because of Hope: Reflections of Faith published by WMU.
