Let's take a few moments to explore the important shifts we might need to make in our thinking and practices to plant and grow churches that make, grow, and deploy biblical disciples.
We’ve noticed one shift in the last few years. Churches are increasing technology usage to enhance discipleship. We gathered information from hundreds of churches. Here are a few ways technology can enhance a church’s discipleship, whether it’s a 100-year-old church or a new church plant:
Technology allows you to drive digital discipleship.
Our communities are becoming more and more intertwined with technology. As we continue to move toward a more digitally-driven society, here are four keys for our churches to effectively utilize technology and give us the opportunity for digital discipleship in a world that is more connected and relationally-driven than ever before.
1. Technology allows you to maximize the systems that help make disciples.
There are many things that go into effective disciple-making. One thing technology allows you to do is create the solid processes and systems to truly be effective and measure the impact and discipleship that happen as a result.
"...we must challenge the way we think about making disciples..."
2. Technology can enhance your church's discipleship with consistent communication.
Most churches have a website, but very few have figured out how to use it for discipleship. Your website allows you to connect with church members throughout the week.
3. Technology helps you ensure that no one gets lost.
How strong would your discipleship process be if half the people never fully integrated? Technology gives us the opportunity to avoid the catch and release style of ministry that so many churches have adopted, whether they mean to or not, by ensuring everyone is accounted for.
4. Technology helps you make better decisions about discipleship.
Intuition is a bad disciple-making strategy. With technology, you’re able to record the essential disciple-making data that can ensure you are doing all you can with what God has given you through the people who sit in your pews.
We need to allow ourselves to be challenged in the way we think about making disciples, including the way we use technology, in order to fulfill the Great Commission. Technology can improve the way you steward and disciple the people God has entrusted to you.
