“Will I be laid off?”

“Can my children avoid drugs, violence and promiscuity?”

How will this surgery go? No matter how much we do to ensure positive outcomes, life brims with causes for worry. Anxiety arises whenever we fear possible loss or harm to our person, family, relationships or possessions. If we depend on our own resources, we can’t avoid worry, for no matter how much we have, we never know if it’s enough.

In limited doses anxiety motivates us. The apprehension I feel as I face deadlines focuses my energies, helping me to function at maximum efficiency. Excessive anxiety, however, however, robs us of peace of mind. It reduces our reasoning and learning ability, memory, creativity and productivity. Prolonged anxiety can lead to serious health problems.

How do people keep anxiety at a bearable level? Some avoid sources of anxiety. If meeting people makes us uneasy, we’ll skip it as much as possible. Others try to escape anxiety. Studies show that women tend to cope by overeating, while men favor alcohol and drugs. For many, keeping busy provides relief, yet worry lurks just below the surface.

Instead of relying on inadequate solutions, I have found ten principles to be effective in managing anxiety:

Prevention. We should not allow circumstances to shape our lives if we can do something about them. Instead of worrying about whether our job will become obsolete, for example, we can prepare for other employment options.

People. Talking with others brings our anxieties into the open, where it’s harder for our imagination to magnify them out of proportion. Examined objectively, anxieties look less menacing. When problems merit concern, supportive relationships save us from struggling alone.

Concern for the needs of others helps to take our mind off our own anxieties and put them in perspective. Karl Menninger’s prescription for depression works equally well with anxiety. He advised helping someone with a greater need than ours. Jesus taught, “Love your neighbor as yourself” (Matt 22:39).

At the end of your rope?

Physical Well-being. Physical conditions affect our emotions. When we fail to get adequate rest, nutrition or exercise, we experience low moods and fatigue, intensifying our anxieties; a healthy body, on the other hand, promotes a sense of well-being.

Professional Help. When anxieties persist, we may want to search for deeper causes. Millions suffer from internal conflicts, while others are genetically more prone to worry. For the latter, self-awareness and a sense of humor help. Disease, dietary imbalance or neurological malfunctioning can also contribute to anxiety. Depending on the problem, a counselor, physician or pastor can be helpful.

 Introduction

“Nondiscipleship is the elephant in the church.” So Dallas Willard¹ pictures the obviousness and enormity of the problem. Richard Foster agrees, “Perhaps the greatest malady in the Church today is converts to Christ who are not disciples of Christ—a clear contradiction in terms. This malady affects everything in church life….”² Brian McLaren asks, “Why aren’t we making better disciples?…Why aren’t people becoming more holy, joyful, peaceful, content, and Christ-like?…Why are so few of our good Christian people good Christians?”³

Are these observations overly bleak? Thom Ranier’s survey⁴ of members from many churches asked, “What is your evaluation of the overall effectiveness of the church’s discipleship program?” Only 4.6% rated their church’s program either “very effective” or “effective”. Another survey⁵ found that nearly one-fourth of Christians felt that they were sliding backward in their spiritual growth, while 40% felt stagnated. In addition, it found no correlation between the length of time believers had been Christians and their spiritual maturity. After extensive research into the state of discipleship in America, George Barna concluded that though the vast majority of churches have a discipleship program, consistent spiritual growth is rare, and mourned the fact that in their attitudes and actions Christians appear little different from nonbelievers.⁶

Nudges do not budge pachyderms.
By RegBarc, via Wikimedia Commons.

That Jesus commanded the Church to make disciples is unquestioned (Matt 28.19-20). Once people become believers, they are enabled by God’s Spirit to undergo the process of transformation into the likeness of Jesus (II Cor 3.18), becoming mature (Eph 4.13), complete (James 1.4), and fruitful (John 15.2, 8). As they cooperate with God, this is a present and continuing process; Paul declares, “We are his workmanship ….” (Eph 2.10). The Bible clearly states discipleship’s command, enablement, and goals. Then what has gone wrong? How has the elephant of nondiscipleship made its home in the Church? Will tweaking existing programs produce mature and zealous Christians? Unfortunately, nudges do not budge pachyderms. The effort must match the size of the problem. Failure to appreciate the magnitude of the problem will only result in inadequate remedies. Without comprehensive change in their approach to ministry, churches can expect minimal results.⁷ The first part of this paper identifies six hindrances to discipleship which the Church must seriously engage. The second part proposes nine strategies needed to move the malignant mammal from our midst. Because the goal is to provide an overview for analysis and dialogue, thorough treatment of each point must await a longer work.

Hindrances

Six areas of hindrances to discipleship exist—two each in the Church, in the culture, and within individuals. Specific hindrances will be mentioned in each area.

Inadequate Goals

In many ways churches in this country have settled for goals far short of the discipling component of the great commission. It needs to determine more appropriate objectives for ministry. Below are listed a number of these inadequate goals contrasted with the correct paradigm for ministry. The adoption of one or more of these goals can hobble the attainment of ongoing spiritual growth.

Growing Attendance vs. Life Change

Churches and pastors tend to equate growth in attendance with success. As long as it increases, ministry appears to be effective. Eighty percent of church growth, however, is simply transfer growth. Bill Hull suggests, “The wrong question for the church is, How many people are present? The right question is, What are these people like?”⁸ The goal of discipleship is not numerical change, but life change.