Learning What It Means to Be a Daring Disciple

This past weekend, our Senior High Youth packed their bags and headed out for our annual Fall Retreat. I had the privilege of being able to observe the tension of our students' hectic schedules melt away as we spent the weekend enjoying God's beautiful creation. We enjoyed bonfires, ate way too much food, went pond swimming in sub-arctic temperatures, played outside games (like flashlight tag and our own version of the Hunger Games), rocked out as one of our students and his band played a live show, and spent some quiet time with God in interactive prayer stations.

In addition to all of that stuff, we also spent time learning what it means to be a dangerous or daring disciple for God. Pulling from four Old Testament stories, we talked about the incredible lives of Miriam, Solomon, David, and Daniel. As we dug deeper into these texts, our students began to discover that these followers of God have so much to teach us about radical discipleship.

Something I love most about my job is that so often, I get the chance to learn and grow from the things that students teach me. Over the weekend, as we discussed what it looks like for us to embrace the mission of Christ and become followers of God in our daily lives, our students offered some valuable and practical insight that I wanted to share with you:

• Risk bigger. Relationships and families are complicated. School and work are busy. We are constantly on the move. But to be a daring disciple, we're on the lookout each day for the chance to take risks for good/ God's glory. To love well is to risk big.

• Get wiser. If we're in the business of taking risks, we make sure that we know when it's wise to take those risks and when it isn't. Thankfully, as followers of God, we're not alone. If we're asking God for help on a daily basis, God will give us the wisdom to make good decisions.

• Believe braver. Sometimes God calls us to places where we might need to draw some extra courage. It can be scary, and when we're called to do hard things it's easy to put them off or run away. But we can overcome our fear and make the choice to be brave right now.

• Stand stronger. When we make the decision to be a daring disciple, we'll sometimes find ourselves in situations where we must take action. Do one thing each day that makes you uncomfortable. Stand up to bullies. Reach out in love to the outcasts. We can make a difference today and what we do right now matters. We can change the world.

On behalf of our students, I'd like to challenge you to consider these insights and what it would look like for you to apply these truths to your own life. God calls each one of us to be daring disciples. Don't put it off until tomorrow. Embrace the call today!

God's best,

Sarah Sparks-Franklin
Director of Sr. High & Jubilee Ministries