Over the past few years, my husband and I had been searching for a church to call home. Our “must-have” checklist wasn’t long or unrealistic:

We had experienced it all: the polished but disconnected mega church, the mid-sized church with little sense of belonging, and the small church with lukewarm preaching and surface-level interactions.

After much searching, we finally settled at a church we had previously attended for about a year. Around that same time, a new friend asked me to consider serving at her church’s youth group—San Antonio Heights Community Church (SAHCC). I brought my husband along to a Friday night gathering, and we both quickly agreed that God was moving in that group. Instead of just playing games, the youth were intentionally diving into God’s Word. That focus drew us in, and we began serving as leaders.

After a couple of months, my husband agreed to attend a Sunday service at SAHCC. We went twice, then began praying seriously about whether this was where God wanted us to plant roots. Long story short, within six months of attending regularly, we became members, stepped into key volunteer roles, and were invited to join an Activate(D) Bible study. Little did I know, that invitation would impact our lives in ways I could never have imagined! (More on that in later blogs.)

The invite came from Nick, SAHCC’s Youth and Discipleship Pastor, though at the time he gave very little detail about the group. We soon discovered that we had said yes to something far deeper than a simple Bible study—it was an Activate(D) Disciple-Making Team Training group. Looking back, it was the direct answer to a three-year prayer of mine: to find a community on mission for Jesus, one that functioned more like the early church in Acts 2—with accountability, prayer, and God’s Word at the center.

The Disciple-Making Team Training (DMTT) was a 14-week commitment built around a guided journal. The first four weeks were dedicated to mapping out our individual stories and identifying how God had worked through each season of our lives. The following ten weeks focused on weekly chapters, with the group gathering for intentional conversations about the material.

Ch. 1 – The Vision
Summary:
“An introduction to one another, an explanation of the Team Series format, and a chance to further pursue the vision to see Christ glorified in whole neighborhoods and networks of new disciples.”¹

Impact:
God placed a tender compassion in my heart for the younger generation. I saw how deeply they longed for guidance, love, and encouragement. Now more than ever, they needed the older generation to walk alongside them—not just to listen, but to gently guide them closer to God. My heart ached for them to encounter the hope of Jesus through authentic, intergenerational relationships that reflected His love and grace.

Ch. 2 – The Motivation
Summary:
“An opportunity to help one another identify what has or has not previously motivated us to share Jesus with the lost, and realize that the Gospel in us is the only thing that purely and deeply motivates us to share it with others.”²

Impact:
God showed me the importance of intergenerational discipleship, especially through conversations with church leaders. I became more aware of the roadblocks that had held me back from sharing Jesus: waiting for the “perfect moment,” not knowing where to begin, and feeling like I didn’t know enough. God taught me that these fears didn’t have to stop me—He equips and leads me as I step out in faith.

Ch. 3 – The Need
Summary:
“An authentic identification of one’s personal need for revival and how the Gospel practically covers one’s sin each day, cultivating affection for Jesus and motivating sharing with others.”³

Impact:
God revealed the importance of the question, “Are you in love with Jesus?” This chapter highlighted a sense of disconnection within me. I loved Jesus with all my heart and mind, yet loving Him and being in love with Him felt different. I sensed God inviting me into a closer, more intimate relationship, but I often got distracted and missed His presence. I learned the importance of practicing a daily posture of repentance and turning my heart fully toward Him.

Ch. 4 – The Response
Summary:
“A look at how gratefulness for the Gospel produces a natural desire to be with God, practice spiritual disciplines as ‘want-tos’ rather than ‘have-tos,’ testify to who God is and what He has done, and share those things for joy and His glory.”⁴

Impact:
God brought an awareness of self-care and prioritizing my health. I had planned to fast for 24 hours as a spiritual discipline. When my body gave hunger cues, I initially ignored them and prayed for God to speak. By 1:35 p.m., about 13 ½ hours in, my blood sugar dropped, and I began feeling dizzy with a headache. In that moment of prayer, I sensed God telling me to prioritize my health. He encouraged me to practice healthy habits and care for my whole self so I would be ready and strong for the time He had planned—but the exact timing, He did not reveal.

Ch. 5 – The Bridge
Summary:
“A reframing of evangelism that encourages authentic spiritual conversations, focusing on God’s continuous work to restore our identity in the Gospel, which connects to another person’s sense of need, longing, and identity.”⁵

Impact:
God worked through me that summer by providing opportunities to have spiritual conversations with a coworker who was a nonbeliever. She was open to hearing more about my faith and asked questions over the eight weeks we worked together. I had the opportunity to write affirmations about her and share the Gospel. God used me to plant the seed, leaving the timing of her response in His hands.

Ch. 6 – The Power
Summary:
“A prioritization of God’s glory that leads to embracing complete dependence on Him, listening to His voice, and experiencing His power through prayerful lives of risk.”⁶

Impact:
I questioned whether God’s love overflowed through me when I interacted with others. I had once been known as the person who lit up a room, but I felt as though I had lost that light. Although I depended on Him, it sometimes seemed I couldn’t fully reach Him. I realized there was still work to be done with this chapter, and I sensed God calling me to revisit chapters 2 and 3.

Ch. 7 – The Source
Summary:
“An invitation to a Spirit-led, Bible-based disciple-making approach that overcomes purely cognitive training, allowing one to experientially live their faith in the lives of the lost and teach others to do the same. Introduces Discovery Bible Study (DBS).”⁷

Impact:
I invited a work friend to join me in a DBS before work. We spent about half an hour going through a Psalm, and when it came time to recap truths about God and people, my coworker—a nonbeliever I had shared the Gospel with weeks earlier—overheard. The DBS became a tool God used to share Himself with her. During our closing prayer, a camper joined us, highlighting the Gospel and our dependence on God.

Ch. 8 – The Impact
Summary:
“An opportunity to answer: What does it look like to fulfill your Gospel ambition? What is your realized vision 5–10 years out if you fully lived into your Impact Statement?”⁸

Impact:
My vision, five to ten years from then, was to be a strong believer both being discipled and discipling high school girls and older women on their journey to discovering who God is and who He says they are.

Ch. 9 – The Team
Summary:
“Establishing helpful team practices to equip members to lead their own teams after the series, empowering them with a reproducible discipleship model.”⁹

Impact:
God revealed that a prayer I had been praying on and off for three years had been answered through the encouragement of my team members. After years of searching for a community to help me grow spiritually and remain accountable, I had found five wonderful women willing to be my prayer warriors.

Ch. 10 – The Commission
Summary:
“A celebration of all that God has done together, a reflection of the values and rhythms experienced, an invitation to further support and connection, and a commissioning as disciples who make disciples.”¹⁰

Impact:
God had given me a friend group centered on growing closer to Him, willing to challenge me—even to the point of being awkward for Jesus. The journey had been incredible, but the work was not yet finished. God showed me that there was still much individual work to do, especially in rooting my identity fully in Him. I planned to move forward with another DMTT group, this time focusing on intergenerational discipleship and mentorship. Each one, reach one.

My prayer is that more people would live fully on mission for Jesus. I pray that believers would recognize the hearts Jesus has given them compassion for and courageously say yes to His call, stepping into the impact He’s designed them to make in the lives of others.

Footnotes: