{"id":257903,"date":"2022-09-19T12:00:00","date_gmt":"2022-09-19T18:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/?p=257903"},"modified":"2023-08-08T12:15:47","modified_gmt":"2023-08-08T18:15:47","slug":"3-ways-discipleship-transforms-lives","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/blog\/3-ways-discipleship-transforms-lives\/","title":{"rendered":"3 Ways Discipleship Transforms Lives"},"content":{"rendered":"\r\n<p>Henry Kitiabi longed to grow and be challenged in his Christian faith as he was when he lived in Kenya.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\r\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"614\" class=\"wp-image-257906\" src=\"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/09.20.22-Article-Web-1024x614.jpg\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/09.20.22-Article-Web-1024x614.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/09.20.22-Article-Web-300x180.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/09.20.22-Article-Web-768x461.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/09.20.22-Article-Web.jpg 1500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>\u201cI attribute my foundation in Christ to these two brothers who were a part of the Fellowship of Christian Unions campus ministry in Kenya,\u201d Henry says. \u201cThey would be at my door at 5 a.m. to help me wake up and go for morning prayer organized by this ministry. They gave me the basics for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/resource\/how-to-study-the-bible\/?sf_ac=w07\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">reading God\u2019s Word<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/topic\/prayer\/?post_type=resource&amp;sf_ac=w07\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">prayer<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/resource\/how-to-begin-fasting\/?sf_ac=w07\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">fasting<\/a>. They would call and text me until I was firm in my relationship with Jesus and could start discipling others.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>When he moved to Athens, Georgia, he wanted to continue his spiritual growth and mentoring others, while completing his Ph.D in Public Health at the University of Georgia (UGA). A friend introduced him to Sam Manthi who is also from Kenya and pursuing a Ph.D. in Horticulture at UGA.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>Sam knew what it was like to be in a different country and culture. He had been there, but quickly connected with Dustin Butler, a Navigators staff and Associate Director of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/blog\/men-who-change-the-world\/?sf_ac=w07\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Noblemen<\/a>, a ministry focused on godly manhood and how to live that out in all aspects of their lives. Dustin discipled Sam and encouraged him to invest in someone else when Henry came along.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>Sam invited Henry to join the Noblemen. This became a group where Henry could once again be encouraged and challenged in his Christian faith.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>\u201cThis group renewed me,\u201d Henry says. \u201cI\u2019m grateful to benefit from discipleship through Dustin and Sam.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>All three men recognize the ways discipleship transforms their lives.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-intentionally-leading-your-family\">Intentionally Leading Your Family<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>Henry is a new father to a baby boy, Sam has a 3-year-old son, and Dustin has two young children. With busy schedules, they each realize how important it is to intentionally pour God\u2019s love and quality time into their marriages and families.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>\u201cAs much as I\u2019m trying to reach out to men,\u201d Sam says, \u201cI need to look within my family and ask how I\u2019m directing my son and loving my wife as Christ loved the Church. It\u2019s important to realize this is where it all starts.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>Henry and his wife spent a majority of their first six months of their marriage apart as he needed to prepare their transition to the U.S. before she arrived. While this wasn\u2019t easy, he recognizes how being discipled has encouraged him as a leader in his family.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>\u201cThrough discipleship, I wanted to focus on how to really love my wife, to understand and know her,\u201d Henry says. \u201cI\u2019m learning how to lead, serve, and provide, especially as we welcomed our first child.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-changing-your-habits-through-scripture-memory\">Changing Your Habits Through Scripture Memory\u00a0<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bible.com\/bible\/compare\/GAL.2.20\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Galatians 2:20<\/a> is one of Sam\u2019s favorite Scriptures that he memorized through The Navigators <a href=\"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/resource\/how-to-memorize-scripture\/?sf_ac-w07\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><em>Topical Memory System<\/em><\/a> (TMS). Memorizing Scripture became a catalyst for his spiritual growth through being discipled by Noblemen. It changed the way he spent his time around what matters most.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>\u201cWhen I memorized Scripture and meditated upon it,\u201d Sam says, \u201cI\u2019d be in situations and realize through Scriptures, <em>This is what God is telling me!<\/em><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>Sam started picking up the TMS verse cards whenever he had a free moment. The more he did this, the more energized he became about growing in Christ and even sharing these Scriptures with others. This changed some former habits.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>\u201cWhen I have free time, I\u2019m looking at my TMS,\u201d Sam says. \u201cI used to look at my phone or even social media. Now, I want to look at my TMS and memorize Scripture.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-starting-spiritual-conversations-with-your-co-worker\">Starting Spiritual Conversations With Your Co-Worker\u00a0<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>Being discipled through Noblemen challenged Sam to take the first step in starting conversations about faith even when he\u2019s scared. While working, he felt the nudge of the Holy Spirit to ask his co-worker about his faith. They had talked before, but never about Christianity.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>\u201cI directly asked if he was a Christian,\u201d Sam says. \u201cWe\u2019re very direct in Kenya, which is different from discipleship in the U.S. He said he was a Christian, but hadn\u2019t been to church in a while. This gave me the opportunity to invite him to a Bible study. It\u2019s encouraging to continue asking him questions when we meet at work.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>Sam sees how taking the first step will easily lead to the next because the Holy Spirit will give you the words to speak.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>Even though Sam and Henry currently live in Georgia, they still find intentional time for discipleship conversations with young men in Kenya via technology. They both desire to follow God\u2019s lead after they finish their studies, but could see themselves back in Kenya and sharing Jesus in the workplace there.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>\u201cBeing a public health specialist,\u201d Henry says, I could find myself anywhere. I want to be a Christian in the marketplace and show it through my life. Through that there might be an opportunity to speak to someone and introduce them to Christ. You never know who that person will be someday and who they may reach. They may reach thousands.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n<blockquote><!-- \/wp:post-content -->\r\n<div class=\"wp-block-group\"><!-- wp:heading {\"level\":3} -->\r\n<h3 id=\"h-discipleship-tip\">Discipleship Tip:\u00a0\u00a0<\/h3>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\r\n<p>All you need are index cards and your Bible to get started today. Look up your favorite verses and write them out on index cards with a topic on the top. Tape one of the verse cards to your mirror so at morning and night you can memorize it.<\/p>\r\n<\/blockquote>\r\n\t<aside class=\"cta\">\n\t\t<h3>Do you want to hear God more clearly?<\/h3>\n\t\tSam realized how God spoke to him through Scriptures he memorized. It became a free-time filler instead of picking up his phone or scrolling social media. Maybe you have habits that could be replaced with Scripture memory, too.\r\n<br><br>\r\nThe Navigators <i>Topical Memory System<\/i> (TMS) is easy to use and a perfect resource to begin your Scripture memory journey. Click the link below to order your TMS today.\t\t<p style=\"text-align: center; margin-bottom: 0;\"><a class=\"button orange\" href=\"https:\/\/www.navpress.com\/p\/topical-memory-system\/9781576839973\">Click here to order the complete Topical Memory system by NavPress<\/a><\/p>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\r\n<!-- \/wp:paragraph -->","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Henry Kitiabi longed to grow and be challenged in his Christian faith as he was when he lived in Kenya.\u00a0 \u201cI attribute my foundation in Christ to these two brothers who were a part of the Fellowship of Christian Unions campus ministry in Kenya,\u201d Henry says. \u201cThey would be at my door at 5 a.m. [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":257906,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_helpful_pro_status":1,"_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_hide_content":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":"","inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[265,263,1,262],"tags":[1483],"mission":[150],"topic":[44],"class_list":["post-257903","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-christian-living","category-community","category-disciplemaking","category-the-word","tag-disciple","mission-navigators-collegiate","topic-discipleship"],"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/09.20.22-Article-Web.jpg","author_info":{"display_name":"The Navigators","author_link":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/staff\/thenavigators\/"},"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/257903","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=257903"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/257903\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":257924,"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/257903\/revisions\/257924"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/257906"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=257903"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=257903"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=257903"},{"taxonomy":"mission","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/mission?post=257903"},{"taxonomy":"topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/topic?post=257903"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}