Values-Driven

As soon as you catch the vision, accept the mission, repent, obtain freedom from both the penalty and power of sin in your life, release strongholds, and are empowered by the Holy Spirit, you need to engage in the mission. That means you need to seek and find a disciple upon whom you will cast the vision and continue spreading God’s glory.
So where do you start? Always, start fasting and praying. Solicit intercessors to join as well. Pray 15 minutes a day for a disciple. And I recommend fasting one day per week, specifically for your disciple(s). A good practice is to skip two meals—go dinner to dinner or lunch to lunch. The purpose is to soften the beach before the landing. Changing allegiance from the world to the Kingdom and catching the vision is an act of God, not man. We must tap into His power. This process in not an intellectual exchange. He must be leading the way.
Well the best place to identify disciples is by ministering to needs in the community. Acts of service, helping the poor and oppressed, counseling (marriage, parenting, financial, substance abuse, sexual sin, and so on), prison ministry, soup kitchens, food drives, and so on, are all great opportunities for identifying the person God wants you to personally disciple. The needy are great, because there is tension in their life, and they are looking for a change. Interestingly, people already in a state of transition are always the most receptive candidates. Remember that.
Street evangelism and public preaching is good, but not for everyone. However, be careful not to make converts, but rather be vigilant to follow through with discipleship. Nothing short of a transformed life glorifies God.
The apostolically gifted should seek untapped groups (first convert in a family, community, and so on). The first disciple is the most important one to be sure that they are appointed by God—the “man of peace” (see Luke 10). This person has been prepared by God to reach their sphere of influence. They are typically influential. As a result, their radical transformation gains some attention. These folks are normally seekers, and eagerly digest these things. From there, future generations will target their sphere of influence, or “oikos.” This is the pattern until the future generations of apostolically gifted are raised up and again seek out another “man of peace.”
A healthy cycle for discipleship is to seek a new disciple as soon as two weeks into being discipled (a month at the latest, if they are really struggling to gain freedom and empowerment). Then have a disciple in queue within two to three months, preferably two. The point for the quick turnaround is because the quicker they engage in the mission, the more likely the vision and healthy spiritual DNA will make it to the next generation.
One other consideration in choosing a disciple is the convenience of investing quality time with him/her. Choose folks that live close enough to meet regularly and even just drop in once in a while. If someone lives an hour away, it is far less likely for the regular interaction necessary to disciple someone properly to occur. It would turn into a series of planned meetings, rather than a healthy organic experience.
Now a disciple must also be qualified. You do not want to waste your time on folks who simply don’t want to grow. They will sap your energy, effectively halting a disciple-making movement. These folks do not carry the vision to the next generation (if they did, it would be the wrong DNA). They are sent by the devil to thwart the advance. Simply move on.
A disciple must be fully committed to the vision and mission. They must surrender all to God—demonstrated by the “signing of the blank piece of paper.” Failure on any of these is immediate disqualification.
Your disciple must receive from you. They have to trust you and be open. They will never gain freedom from strongholds without openness. Qualify them with assignments. Satan will work hard to keep them distracted with other affairs. They must hold onto the vision and keep their sites on the mission. Be vigilant in reminding them of this.
Be careful targeting the churched. There is much unlearning to be done if you are trying to instill fresh Kingdom DNA in someone who has a history of “church” DNA. But by all means, for those who have a hunger to go from the reserves to the battlefield, and meet all the other criteria above, go for it! We need all the soldiers we can get.
Lord God Almighty, give your people discernment to identify the disciples you have prepared for them. Prevail, we pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.