T
ime passes by quickly. The second phase of Discipleship Training
 is about to come to an end. At the beginning of the training, we felt both excited and worried at the same time. On one hand, we were worried that we could not live up to the responsibility of being a disciple. We also felt that we were inadequate, as we found that being a mere believer was not enough. On the other hand, we were excited. We longed to know Lord Jesus more – His words, His plan, His Great Commission, and how to follow His footsteps.

In the past two years of our participation in Discipleship Training, God’s grace has been building our faith every single day. We have been greatly blessed, and we have been growing. We are more proactive in reading the Bible, and praying for ourselves and for others. God has taken away our laziness. In the process of the Discipleship Training, though our hearts are not completely renewed instantaneously, we feel that we are challenged and renewed by God’s words gradually. We get to know Him more, and our hearts long to know Him even more. Each session pushes us to reflect on our relationship with God. God also continually shatters our old selves. The Holy Spirit constantly guides us, not only to get to know Lord Jesus more deeply, but also to experience true freedom in God. Our relationship with each other improves. We have learned to fully depend on Him. Whenever we face hardships and weakness in our body, mind, and soul, we will not grumble anymore. We have learned to turn our eyes to our Lord.

We have never experienced this kind of changes from the inside out. Internally, we become more sensitive to sin. Though we are still weak in the flesh and we often stumble, we firmly believe that God does not abandon us. He sends the Spirit to alert us continually. This prompts us to repent immediately whenever we fall, and experience His grace with gratefulness. Externally, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, we naturally exhibit more forgiveness, understanding, patience, caring, and love towards others. Whenever we have time, it comes naturally that we think about God’s words. We feel that our Lord is keeping us spiritually alert all the time. Though we may never be like John, Peter, Paul, and other disciples of our Lord, under the Holy Spirit’s guidance, we believe that there will be a day when His will will be done. We will become His channel of blessings, and little shepherds that the Lord loves.

We are grateful that, in the Discipleship Training, brothers and sisters learn and share with one another. We encourage one another, and build our relationship with each other. Now, we are looking forward to Phase III of the Discipleship Training. We are also grateful for God’s servant, our Pastor Chan, who has been teaching us wholeheartedly over the past two years. We really appreciate that he always gives encouragement, and shows patience towards us, so that we understand God’s will more deeply. The Discipleship Training helps us greatly in our spiritual growth. We do encourage brothers and sisters to participate. May all glory be to our Lord Jesus Christ.