Discipleship Works

Thirty something years ago, this group of students at Tuskegee Institute became the foundations of many spiritual generations. God led Rich and Jane Berry to move to this Alabama campus of 3,000 to start an exciting ministry. Their prayer was that they could make a lasting difference and leave a legacy of Christ-centered disciples.

The Berry’s shared Christ with students, engaged them in Bible study (often one-to-one), and counseled and encouraged them. They learned how to spend time with God, memorize scripture, disciple others, and make decisions according to God’s will. In those days, there were two other Navigators focusing on African American students across the country: Eugene Burrell in Washington DC, and Bob Price in Urbana, Illinois.

For those of us who have given our lives to discipling others, we believe the way to change society is to change people. And the way to change people is by guiding them into a deep, practical “walk” with Christ. These people will change their world. Jesus taught this in Matthew 28: 19, 20 and Paul modeled it with Timothy. We must be as passionate about discipling as we are about evangelism.

Discipling others must be intentional. While the discipler may use programs, the primary method is life on life. Spending time with people, being involved with their lives will eventually pass on the passion to be Christ-like.

In mid April, the African American Navigator ministry held it’s annual staff conference in Atlanta. Many of those who became disciples years ago were invited to a special reunion dinner. In addition to the “alumni” Navigators from Tuskegee in the early seventies, there were those from the eighties, nineties and the last few years.

For more on the reunion and other ministry events in April, read our newsletter The Urban Disciple.