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Discipleship University

Burning Bush Application

Thanks be to God that discipleship is a priority for your congregation!

We invite you to consider prayerfully whether or not your congregation might benefit from sending a team to Discipleship University’s core curriculum, Burning Bush. The core curriculum is a two-year learning experience (five weekends) focusing on the development of a congregational plan for discipleship appropriate for your context. Your team would include three to five persons from your congregation, including at least one clergy person and at least one lay person.

The key strategies of Burning Bush include:

• Helping all professing members fulfill the baptismal covenant, personally and corporately
  
  
• Developing a shared congregational identity and purpose
  
  
• Living out of an awareness of God’s abundant love and grace
  
  
• Creating a plan that helps the congregation “watch over one another in love”
  
  
• Forming healthy, effective lay-clergy partnerships to provide spiritual leadership for the congregation

Preparing to Apply

As you consider this opportunity, you may find it helpful to gather a small group of leaders in your congregation to consider the following questions:

1. How does our congregation understand Christian discipleship?
   
   
2. How do we communicate our understanding of Christian discipleship through worship, study, and service?
   
   
3. In what ways do we support the development of spiritual gifts and spiritual leadership in the congregation?
   
   
4. How is God calling us into the future as God’s people in this place?
   
   
5. What encourages us to respond to God’s call?
   
   
6. What currently hinders us from responding to God’s call?
   

Application

After discussion and prayer, if you discern that your congregation would benefit from participating in Burning Bush, please complete the application.

You may contact Mary McDonald at 615-340-1760 or mmcdonald@gbod.org for more information.