Practical Discipleship: Faithful Discipleship in the Home and Beyond

*This post is part of the series “Faithful Discipleship in the Home and Beyond” where I chat with friends about what it looks like to balance intentionally discipling their children while also discipling others outside of the home. My prayer with this series is not to give you a plan to follow, but to have the opportunity to be encouraged by and get ideas from others, just like you, who desire to faithfully make disciples of all nations both at home and beyond. In this series you will hear what family discipleship looks like in many different homes and contexts, how to be faithful at home while still making disciples outside of the home, and you will find resources that have helped other families on this road of discipleship. So, let’s jump in!

Today we get the privilege of hearing from one of my dearest friends, Katie, who has made one of the biggest impacts on my life when it comes to family discipleship. She walked alongside me when our first child was born, answering all of my many questions, and her family gave us a rich example of what it looks like to share the love of Christ in the home. Much of my heart for discipling children has come from our early days of motherhood together as we discussed how to share the gospel with our children, as I watched her faithfully do so in her own family, and as we practically lived life alongside one another caring for one another’s families. I can’t wait for you to hear from her today!

Meet Katie and Her Family!

Katie and her husband, Kyle have four kids ranging from ages 13 to 5. They work with the Navigators making disciples in the university context and have many years of faithfully making disciples both in their home and on campus. Katie is a wealth of wisdom and has a beautiful heart for sharing Christ with others through practical discipleship both in her household and with women she disciples. Let’s get to hearing from her!

What does family discipleship look like in your home?

We have worked with the Navigators for 15 years, where we focus on using simple tools to invest spiritually in college students individually.  

I can see how our experience in ministry has fully informed how we disciple our kids.

My husband and I read a book when we were expecting our first child that taught us the importance of “tying strings of fellowship.” While we take discipline and training our kids very seriously, we are always looking for ways to connect with them as well. Our goal is to win their hearts so they are receptive to our correction but also to biblical teachings.

-Practical discipleship involves time together!

One of our biggest tools is time with them (in ministry, we call it “life on life”). I homeschool our four children, so I am with them pretty much all the time and Kyle always amazes me with how he includes them in on anything he is doing. We recently bought 4 chickens and my 7 year old daughter has spent hours helping him build the chicken coop. The time we spend together helps to establish trust and affection and keeps the lines of communication open.

-Simply helping children engage with God’s Word by reading it with them.

As far as content for discipleship in our home, we keep it VERY simple. First of all, our homeschool program is based on a biblical worldview, so that helps build a solid foundation for them to see the world through spiritual eyes.

Our older sons (12 and 13) have been taught over the years how to do a daily time in the Word, using a tool we call the “Sandwich method.” It could not be more simple. The “meat” is the Word and the “bread” is prayer.

I have started having periodic quiet times with our 7 year old daughter where we pray, then read a passage, discuss it a little bit, then pray again. We also have a weekly family Bible time on Sunday evenings. We read through a passage together and then everyone shares their favorite verse and why, before we pray to close. This is not a glamorous time and it is brief. Our youngest son (5) is typically not engaged, but he is there and he is watching.

Our heart is that our children would walk with Jesus for the rest of their lives. We try to pass on to them simple tools to use to grow spiritually in a relational environment based on trust and affection in the hope that the seeds planted during their years at home will produce an abundant harvest in their lives. 

How have you balanced discipling others while still faithfully discipling your children?

Balancing discipling others while also discipling my children has looked vastly different depending on my season of life.

When my kids have been between the baby and toddler ages, I have done less with college students since those seasons are so taxing physically. Now, my oldest is almost 14 and my youngest is 5 which gives me a lot more availability and flexibility. (They can even stay home alone now, which is amazing!!)

-God graciously makes these two parts of life work for the good of one another.

God is so gracious to make these two parts of my life work together.  What I mean is, it benefits my children to see me discipling college students (or anyone outside our immediate family) and it benefits my college student friends to see me discipling my children.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s all so imperfect all the time, but so worth the mess! And it’s also so good for college students to see my mess!

I received a text recently from a woman I had invested in when she was in college. She is a mom to young kids now and shared with me how powerful it was to be in our home, talking while I washed dishes. It brings tears to my eyes even now to think about that, because it didn’t always feel like I was giving her enough, but God still used it.

-Balancing the roles practically…

Practically speaking, at any given time, I am meeting regularly with 2-4 young women. This might be every week or every other week, I have done both. Sometimes they come to my house and sometimes I go out to meet them. I have tried almost every option and God can use it all!

Honestly, after 15 years in ministry I still feel unsure of myself in how I am investing. I do two things when those thoughts and feelings well up:

1. I trust that God will use our relationship for good in whatever way He wills.

2. I am consistently seeking out resources and help in how to grow as a disciple maker.

“The harvest is plentiful but the laborers are few.” (Matthew 9:37) God is so gracious to us and faithful to use anyone who is willing. They don’t call it “laboring” for nothing. It’s hard and takes time and sacrifice, but there is nothing else more worth our time as followers of Jesus. I know I won’t regret a minute of it.

What are your favorite discipleship resources for both discipleship and family discipleship?

I have yet to get bored with the basic Navigator tools. They are simple, practical discipleship tools. A couple of my favorite tools to use during a one to one meeting with a student are scripture memory, doing a quiet time together, and praying through a Psalm together.  

I have discovered a couple books that I love reading through and discussing with college students as well. They are “Holy Habits” by Mimi Wilson, “The Gentle Art of Discipling Women” by Dana Yeakley, and “The Pursuit of Holiness” by Jerry Bridges.

These books would be a great resource to use with someone in any stage of life and are great practical discipleship tools. One of the things I love most about going through these books is that I grow so much too!

As I’ve already said, we use a lot of our Navigators tools with our kids as well, but we also make sure our littles have good quality children’s Bibles like the “Big Picture Story Bible” and the “Jesus Storybook Bible.” We read one of those every night with our 5 and 7 year old. 

I am always learning and growing and re-evaluating how I am discipling my kids and others. I have come to terms with the reality that I will most likely never feel like I have “arrived” in this area, which makes me so grateful for a God who can use even little old me. He can use you too!  

Blessings to you all in your journey to make disciples! 

Katie