The Adventure Of A Lifetime!
In honor of Bob's birthday, I thought you might like to hear the backstory on why he decided to call our ministry, THE EPIC LIFE.
As I re-listen to his sermons, I'm realizing he referenced "The Epic Life" quite often, and always in the context of sharing our faith and discipling. In this segment, I'll share primarily about DISCIPLESHIP. We miss him so much, but I am very grateful that God gave us 35 years together as best friends and partners in the amazing adventure of disciple making! So, if you're interested, read on!
When Bob committed his life to Christ at age 17, he was blessed to have his Bible study leader mentor him, laying a solid groundwork for his faith to genuinely grow. During college, Bob got involved with the Navigators discipleship ministry and was exposed to a lot of great tools such as scripture memory and the Bridge Illustration. But he considered himself a discipleship "flunky" because he wasn't fully engaged and didn't take full advantage of the discipleship experience in college. I guess we were fellow flunkies, as I had a similar experience in college myself!
Over time, it became clear that God was calling Bob into ministry, and he soon became an associate pastor with a myriad of responsibilities, none of which allowed much room for disciple making. He genuinely loved people and was very intentional about encouraging the leaders in particular, thus earning him the nickname, "WALKING HEART".
With a second nickname like "WONDER BOY" (he could do anything and everything), the pressure was on! Like other pastors, Bob was caught in the grind of non-stop church events and maintenance. In fact, he often went without sleep on the weekends--going from youth group on Friday nights, to managing the radio station, then on to church on Sundays. Needless to say, by Sunday afternoons Bob was truly exhausted. He faithfully carried out his duties in keeping the ministry machinery running smoothly yet felt restless and knew something was wrong.
Fast forward a number of years when he decided to "sharpen his ax", heading off to seminary where he could be further equipped for pastoral ministry. Interestingly, no courses were taught in evangelism or discipleship. However, it was during this time, that Bob read Johnny's story in The Lost Art of Disciplemaking (Leroy Eims) and was radically convinced of the necessity of disciplemaking. I'll never forget seeing Bob on his knees, moved to tears with conviction over discipleship. In his later words, "I had been slogging through meaningless ministry, sequestering myself off and not engaging in the mission. I decided to learn to disciple, how to lead people to Christ! I'd never go back to just being a hardworking Christian. The Epic Life is AWESOME!" (The Epic Life sermon, 2014).
And learn, we did! Even though Bob and I had both been discipleship flunkies, we were determined to grow in this area.
Over the next several years, we used various resources and purposefully worked with leaders, equipping and training them to invest in others. One simple, yet powerful tool was teaching people how to have effective "Quiet Times" with God. We "cut our teeth" in New York, learning so much in the process and continued to hone our discipleship skills on Kauai with our church and Kauai Bible College.
Each semester began with Bob's teaching on "The Great Omission" and "The Great Commission". It's been incredibly rewarding and satisfying for us to know that we've invested the BEST of our years in the lives of others. And I can only imagine the incredible JOY Bob is experiencing in Heaven, knowing that he unreservedly gave heart and soul to investing in the spiritual lives of countless people, making a difference in their lives for ETERNITY!
YOU have a story too! Even if you have never been discipled or have been a discipleship “flunky” like we were, God can change that and transform you into a reproducing Christian for His glory! So why not take the plunge today?!
We’re here for you!
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Be sure to check out the various resources we have available for you on our website on Discipleship & Evangelism.