“What do we do when we finish the course?” is a question people have often asked us. Our primary answer has always been to say that Rooted in Jesus is about discipleship, and that the calling of disciples is to make more disciples: to go and make disciples (Matthew 28.19-20) who will teach others also (2 Timothy 2.2). The aim is that those who have completed the programme will not only have developed a clear understanding of the ministry to which God is calling them, but also gained the confidence to exercise it: for We are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do (Ephesians 2.10).

Over the years, we have found that many group members have responded to this challenge. Some have become group leaders themselves. Some have become Sunday School teachers, training to use Rooted in Jesus Junior with their classes. Some have developed a ministry of evangelism, intercession, prayer for healing, hospitality. Some have embraced new ways of serving others in the church or in the community. All have been able to bring their faith into the centre of their daily lives in a new and powerful way. And through them all, many others have been introduced to a life-saving relationship with Jesus.

“But,” leaders have insisted, “how will we be resourced and supported as we go our separate ways to live out our calling? How will we maintain the strength that we have found in and through one another? How will we ourselves continue to grow, if we are no longer meeting together?”

Our response has been to create a new book called Tools for the Job. This will be the fifth and final book of the Rooted in Jesus programme. It is not a continuation of the syllabus of Rooted in Jesus, but a transitional book designed to enable a group to continue to meet together in a way which will become self-sustaining. It is based on the following principles:

The group is for people who have completed all four books of Rooted in Jesus
Jesus will be at the centre of the group
The group will be a community of care
Each member is committed to growing in their faith
Each member is actively engaged in ministry to others

A New Pattern of Meeting

Tools for the Job provides a detailed plan for a fortnightly meeting in which those who have completed Rooted in Jesus and are now active in ministry can come together in order to encourage one another and continue to grow in faith. Each meeting has the following elements:

1. Welcome and worship
2. Word – Reading the Bible together
3. Fellowship – Supporting one another
4. Spirit – Praying together
5. Exercise – Spiritual disciplines for practice at home

How are the meetings structured?

Tools for the Job provides a template for the structure of each meeting. Detailed notes are provided to guide the group leader through the first three sessions, and a fourth session is provided in outline form. This group leader should then be able to prepare future sessions using the template.

1. Welcome and worship

Group members greet one another and share their news. They pray together, then the group leader identifies one of the Rooted in Jesus memory verses for revision, discussion and evaluation. What difference has it made to the lives of the group? Who have they shared it with? This initial discussion leads into a time of worship.

2. Word – Reading the Bible together

In Rooted in Jesus Books 1-4, Bible passages are considered thematically, following the subject of the week. In Book 5, the group works through a single book of the Bible, focussing each week on 10 to 20 verses. Group members are encouraged to observe, reflect, and respond to the passage, sharing their thoughts and considering the implications for their daily lives. The Gospel of Mark, the Letter to the Ephesians and the Book of Psalms are recommended as good places to start, and a full list of verses and topics is provided.

3. Fellowship – Supporting one another

We know that we cannot be disciples alone; we can only be disciples together. So each meeting sets aside time for group members to share what is happening in their family life and work life; what is happening in their ministry; what is happening in their community – and then to pray together for these things.

4. Spirit – Praying for one another

Through Rooted in Jesus the group will already have explored different ways of praying together. In this part of the meeting, the group pray together for their immediate personal needs, for their ministry and for their community, using whatever pattern of prayer seems best (silent or aloud, individual or corporate; praying for forgiveness, for healing, for guidance, for specific needs and so on). Finally there is time to share ways in which people have experienced answers to their prayers.

5. At Home – Practising spiritual disciplines

One of the best ways to ensure that we continue to grow as disciples of Jesus is to practise spiritual disciplines. We have not used the term ‘spiritual disciplines’ up to now, but through Rooted in Jesus group members have been introduced to the disciplines of meditation, prayer, study, solitude, submission, service, confession, worship, guidance and celebration. The other classic disciplines are fasting and simplicity. Group members are encouraged to look at one of these disciplines each time they meet, and to practise it individually at home. A full set of notes is provided, covering all of the spiritual disciplines and suggesting ways of engaging with them.

What do people say? Encouragement to try Tools for the Job

The Diocese of St Mark the Evangelist in South Africa and the Diocese of Kitale in Kenya are among those to have adopted Rooted in Jesus at the heart of their strategy for discipleship. Bishop Emmanuel Chemengich and former Bishop Martin Breytenbach comment:

“This is a great resource booklet that will ensure the RinJ facilitators are equipped to develop their own resources to their groups but also provides the needed accountability among group members as they share how they are engaging in various ministries and supporting each other, which is our true life-long Christian calling” – Bishop Emmanuel Chemengich, Diocese of Kitale, Kenya

“Rooted in Jesus equips people to grow from beginner disciples in Jesus to leaders of disciple-making groups. Book 5 will help them to continue to grow with their groups, and to use the Bible to address the many challenges of life. The Small Group patterns, principles and processes in this book will equip them to persevere  as disciples of Jesus, in the power of the Holy Spirit, for many years to come” – Bishop Martin Breytenbach, formerly of the Diocese of St Mark the Evangelist, South Africa

What next?

Rooted in Jesus Book 5 is already available in English to dioceses where Rooted in Jesus is already in use. It is currently being translated into Swahili, and we hope to make it available in other languages too. Please contact us if you would like to know more.

For this reason, since the day we heard it, we have not ceased praying for you and asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of God’s will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that you may lead lives worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, as you bear fruit in every good work and as you grow in the knowledge of God. As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.  Colossians 1.9-10 & 2.7

Rooted in Jesus is published and supported by The Mathetes Trust. To find out more visit our websites www.mathetestrust.org and www.rootedinjesus.net.

Posted 1st June 2021.