Yesterday, Ginger took our kids to a bargain store for some shopping and my oldest, Avery (daughter, 10) came home with a Beastie Boys shirt.
And all of heaven and earth rejoiced! And all of God’s people said, “Mmm drop!”
This morning, we were polishing off the typical Saturday morning donuts and listening to some of the great Beastie Boy hits when it hit me… “Uhhh, I need to skip a few of these songs, for now.”
Avery and Ezra’s entry into Beastie Boy songs needed to be slow; just a bit of sampling for now and we will move on to more songs after they realize more about the world around them.
A little bit for now, to get a start. Then more later.
I feel that it is the same way in Christian discipleship. The Christian life is equated to being born again, starting over, unlearning things, etc. One New Testament writer says that new Christians are like newborn babies who need milk in order to grow in their salvation. (see 1 Peter 2:1-3) One of the goals in the early stages of Christian discipleship is developing rhythms of steady growth that promotes sustainability and longevity in the faith.
Different Christian communities have different starting points for their new participants. Some may try to anchor a new believer into a storied tradition while another might emphasize personal Bible Study. Another might lead them to a contemplative life while another a life of social service. Christianity is a big tradition and we should trust that Christ is in the midst of all of it, even among its faults and discrepancies.
This early phase of discipleship is important, a lot of imprinting of what matters most is conceived during this time. We should take great care as we help our young ones with those first, initial steps.
Something to think about: if a brand new believer wanted to learn about Christ from you, what would you want to convey before anything else?
Feel free to comment below. It’d be fun to hear from you.
Joe Skillen 