Your Personalized Disciple Making Makeover

You don’t need to create a brand-new ministry to see meaningful movement—your church already has informal disciple making and a few people reproducing. The most stabilizing next step is to give leaders a simple, shared definition and an intentional pathway that ministries can align to without feeling disrupted. As leaders begin to model it visibly and consistently, your confidence should rise because the church will be able to see clearer outcomes and a more repeatable process.

Quick Snapshot

Overall Disciple-Making Strength
0 / 35 · Early
Your church has some informal disciple making happening and you can point to “a few” people who have begun to disciple others, but the overall approach is not yet clear or unified across ministries. Right now disciple making is often carried by curriculum-driven groups with topical Scripture engagement, and leaders have low confidence that the current approach is producing the kind of disciples you hope for.

What's Working Well

You already have real signs of multiplication—at least a few people are reproducing—which means there is something worth strengthening and building on rather than starting from zero. – Some disciple making is already happening (informal but active) – Replication is occurring in at least a few cases – There is at least some measurement happening (even if it’s partial)

What May Be Challenging

Several core pieces that help a church reproduce disciple makers consistently are currently unclear or inconsistent: you shared there isn’t a defined method, Scripture use is mainly topical and curriculum-based, application is mixed, and different ministries do disciple making differently. On top of that, senior leader modeling and leadership alignment are mixed/limited, and concerns about disrupting existing ministries create hesitation to change. – No clear, shared disciple-making method (method clarity is none) – Discussion tends toward general application rather than personal application – Holy Spirit reliance is not a consistent part of the process right now

Why It Matters

When a church doesn’t share a simple definition and method, disciple making becomes dependent on the best individual leaders instead of becoming a reproducible pathway the whole church can follow. A clear, Bible-anchored, application-forward process—modeled by leaders and aligned across ministries—reduces disruption over time because people can see exactly what is changing and why, and it increases the likelihood that “a few” reproducers becomes a multiplying culture.

— SEVEN SUCCESS STRATEGIES —

WHAT DOES SUCCESS
LOOKS LIKE?

Contrary to popular belief, the best measure of success is not multiplication because if you multiply immature disciples no one wins. The best measure of success is life change (transformation)—which oddly enough always results in healthy, big multiplication.

Making disciples is a “get to” not a “have to” or “should do.” It’s a natural result of being a mature believer. It’s the BE comes before DO principle. Healthy people do healthy things. Here’s your best measure of disciple-making success,

The disciple does the right things for the right reasons, navigates the unknowns of life, and makes disciples long after your influence fades.

The quickest pathway to  success is to stop making makers and focus on making individual healthy followers.  Jesus did not come to make makers, he helped individuals follow and then called them to make. And the most efficient way to do that is to implement the Seven Success Strategies!

You + The Seven

Every successful disciple making effort leverages three or more of seven success strategies. Highly successful disciple making systems leverage five to seven of the strategies. The more you implement, the greater your success—which means the disciples succeed! Your top success factors are The Focus is on Individuals and The Process is Done Along the Way. Based on our conversation, you can see (in red) your depth of implementation alongside each of the seven strategies. 

The Fuel is God's Word

Partially Implemented

Disciples read the entire Bible, cover-to-cover being exposed to all scripture which is useful to guide, correct, direct and prepare them for good works.

The Definition is Simple

Not A Consistent Focus

Disciple makers know exactly what it means to make a disciple, what the end product should be, and how to know when they have succeeded in making a well-made disciple.

The Process Relies on the Holy Spirit

Not A Consistent Focus

Disciple makers embrace the truth that it is the Holy Spirit that sanctifies, renews, and transforms making space and helping disciples hear from Him.

The Focus is on Individuals

Not A Consistent Focus

The process is focused on leading disciples individually even in groups helping them find and apply immediately useful, relevant truths that transform their lives.

The Goal is Application

Partially Implemented

Disciples makers embrace Jesus’ call to help disciples obey (apply) God’s truths to their decisions focusing on transformation not education.

The Process is Done Along the Way

Partially Implemented

Disciple makers model following Christ and make disciples inside and outside weekly meetings over the course of several years giving disciples time to fully mature.

Making Disciples is Done Intentionally

Not A Consistent Focus

Disciple makers embrace disciple making as the primary work to reconcile the world, have a plan to make disciples, and set specific, measurable disciple making goals.

— ONE BITE AT A TIME —

HOW DOES STRATEGY
BECOME SUCCESS?

Strategies are big objectives, big concepts, and the key to implementing them is to align what you “do” with the seven strategies. Your “dos” are your methods.

If you’re just getting started or are ready to try something new, you can implement all seven strategies right from the start. Just build your disciple making plan to incorporate them or adopt some proven methods that achieve the seven strategies.

But when you are already making disciples, implementing all seven strategies can feel overwhelming. In a church setting, moving too quickly can feel a bit too disruptive.  Your leadership might not even be open to a total overhaul! So what do you do?

You figure out which two strategies could use the most makeover and focus your work on them.

As those two strategies become consistently present in your disciple making, then you pick another strategy to work on. Before you know it, you’ll see even more success than ever before!

You’ll find your top two makeover strategies (with some practical steps and “how tos”) below.

And we’ll help you pick your next next
strategies in the last section.

Your First Makeover Strategies

Based on what you shared, disciple making in your church is happening but it’s informal, uneven across ministries, and leaders have low confidence in the results. The highest-leverage improvements are to clarify what you mean by disciple making and to make the approach intentional enough that multiple ministries can align without feeling like their work is being replaced. These two strategies work together: a simple definition gives everyone the same target, and intentionality provides a shared plan that reduces confusion and disruption.

Simple definition that leaders can repeat

Based on what you shared, your method clarity is currently “none” and your definition clarity is only “partial,” which makes it hard for leaders to model the same thing and for ministries to align. A church-wide simple definition doesn’t require new materials—it gives you a shared finish line and a shared language so people can recognize progress and replicate the process. – Draft a one-sentence definition of a “well-made disciple” your leaders can say the same way – Write a simple, repeatable “how we make disciples here” in 4–6 steps (clear enough to train) – Pilot the definition and steps with a small starter group of 3–4 leaders before scaling – Create a short leader tool: “What we do in a meeting” + “What we do between meetings” – Align group leaders on one consistent expectation for personal application each gathering

Intentional plan with measurable goals

Based on what you shared, intentionality is currently “neither” (no clear plan and no specific measurable goals), and different ministries are doing different versions of discipleship, which increases uncertainty and fear of disruption. A simple intentional plan creates a common pathway that ministries can plug into while still keeping their distinct mission, and it makes success measurable beyond attendance. – Define one unified disciple-making pathway that ministries can adopt without major restructuring – Set 2–3 measurable indicators that track life change and reproduction (not just engagement) – Choose a simple Bible reading plan as a shared foundation (even if groups meet around curriculum) – Establish leader expectations: personal follow-up between meetings and a next-step application plan – Identify where replication should happen (who will be trained to disciple others next)

What Success Looks Like

– Leaders can clearly state the church’s definition of a disciple and the basic steps of your disciple-making process – Multiple ministries can describe how they connect to one unified disciple-making pathway – Groups regularly move from Scripture to clear personal application, not only general discussion – Replication increases from “a few” cases to a growing, expected outcome

Early Measurable Wins

– A small starter group of 3–4 leaders agrees on a one-sentence disciple definition and a 4–6 step process – One shared Bible reading plan is chosen and tested with at least one group – Group leaders implement one consistent application practice (each person names a specific next step) – One simple scorecard is used that includes life change and who is beginning to disciple others

— THE BIG FIVE —

HOW WILL YOU
MEASURE SUCCESS?

Most of the methods we research have one of five focuses and naturally measure success based on  that focus. We call them the Big Five.

  • Education (Success = Participation and Knowledge)
  • Assimilation (Success = They Stay and Look Like Us)
  • Behavior Modification (Success = They Fix Their Problems)
  • Multiplication (Success = They Get Others Involved)
  • Leadership Development (Success = They Lead Something)

The Church has been doing the Big Five for, well, forever. We do them because that is what we know. We do them because they are easy and easy to measure. Done well, they will result in some spiritual growth but normally the Big Five just produces “dos.”

The problem is the Big Five only work for 20% of all believers because all five are actually the outcomes of transformation, not the cause.  

Whether you adopt or design an overall plan, your best bet is to pick a method focused on discovering and applying all of the truths in God’s Word that measures effectiveness by transformation. Something like,  

The disciple does the right things for the right reasons, navigates the unknowns of life, and makes disciples long after your influence fades.

Don’t settle for anything less because when they get transformed, they will be smart, be a part of the body, fix their stuff, make disciples, and lead! Remember, healthy followers do healthy things—naturally. 

The team at Sustainable Discipleship uses the
highly Predictable PathwayTM to measure success.
You can learn more below

Ideas + Resources for You

The ideas and resources on this page have been curated based on your Makeover answers and, like your previous “how to” ideas, are based on the Sustainable Discipleship Method—a model that’s fueling a global disciple-making movement.

Our single-minded goal is to share what God has shared with us. But let’s be clear—there are many ways to make disciples. Whether you are evaluating methods or designing your own, we hope these customized ideas help. But definitely check out the Makeover Meetups!

print your makeover report

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Future Strategies to Consider

Once you get your first two makeover strategies going, you’re ready to work strengthen the rest. Based on your makeover answers, here a few next steps that will increase each disciple’s transformation. 

– Strengthen “The Fuel is God’s Word” by anchoring groups in a Bible reading plan rather than mainly topical passages – Rebuild “The Process Relies on the Holy Spirit” by making space to listen, discern, and respond together in a consistent way – Improve “The Process is Done Along the Way” by normalizing follow-up between meetings as part of the process, not an add-on

Seven Success Strategies ➞ How To Methods

The Fuel is God’s Word

The Goal is Application

God designed us from creation to understand the Bible. Brain Powered Bible reveals a reading method that will have folks engaged cover-to-cover, getting immediate value working with God’s learning design rather than against it. It’s like Bill Nye the Science guy meets the Bible!

The Definition is Simple

Making Disciples is Done Intentionally

Even if you are designing your own disciple making model, the proven “how tos” in this book may give you ideas that will supercharge your disciple making. The principles and methods have fueled thousands of disciple making efforts for individuals and churches.

Disciple Making Focuses on Individuals

Making Disciples is Done Along the Way

This free ebook introduces the  Predictable Pathway. It’s fourteen, highly predictable steps that every believer takes as they mature. The beauty of the pathway is that you can know exactly where someone is and know exactly what to give them to get to the next step. It’s the simplest way to measure success and boost transformation.

Makeover Midday Meetups

Want to talk about your makeover plan? Join us (and others!) for a one-hour Makeover Meetup the first Tuesday of each month at noon. 

  • Want to go over your makeover report with a team member?
  • Want to be greater at the one thing God called you to do?
  • Are you an independent maker who needs a tribe?
  • Just want to talk disciple making?
  • Looking to get tips and tricks before you change things?
  • Trying to get leadership buy in for something new?
  • Need to avoid disrupting what's already working?

Makeover Meetups are for you! One of our experienced team members will be there to help you with whatever you’re working on—not to pitch you! See you there!

Welcome to your

Disciple Making Makeover

Your Makeover Webpage is permanent. You may want to save a bookmark so you can revisit or share with your staff or fellow disciple makers.

You can also print a version if you want a pdf or actual paper to mark up. There’s a print button in the last section!

If you have questions or encounter a problem, feel free to reach out to us by email. We do our best to answer the same business day!

You're Important to Us!

We’ve trained this model with thousands of tests to do exactly what we do in a live Makeover. We’d love to know…

How helpful was your makeover?

We understand that sometimes things just don’t go as expected. If your makeover didn’t meet your expectations, we’ll meet with you personally. And if we can’t make it right—we’ll refund your investment!