Stronger Together: Pursuing Your True North With OthersSample

When Jesus called His disciples, He made an extraordinary promise: “Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men.” (Mark 1:17 ESV) Notice the phrase "make you become." This wasn't an instantaneous transformation but a long process of intentional preparation.

Jesus could have written books or created instructional scrolls. He could have set up one-on-one mentoring sessions. Instead, He created a community, a group where life-on-life discipleship could flourish.

God teaches us things in community that we would never learn in isolation. Iron sharpens iron, as Proverbs tells us, and the friction between personalities is part of how God shapes us.

Years ago, I participated in a mentoring process with several seasoned pastors from across my city. One pastor shared something I've never forgotten. He had asked his elders and staff about what shaped them into the people they'd become. All their answers fell into three categories: messages, mentors, and models.

Messages were the sermons, books, and teachings that influenced their thinking. Mentors were the individuals who invested time in them personally. But models? Those were the people they watched up close in community—observing how they handled conflict, processed disappointment, celebrated victories, and lived out their faith in everyday moments.

You can get messages through podcasts and books. You might even find a mentor for occasional guidance. But models? They only emerge in close community where you see people's real lives, not just their Sunday best.

As author Jeff Goins puts it, "Every story of success is a story of community."

Think about the disciples. They didn't just hear Jesus teach; they watched Him live. They saw His compassion when touching lepers. They witnessed His patience with crowds and His righteous anger in the temple. They observed His prayer habits and His interactions with outcasts.

This comprehensive, immersive learning environment can't be replicated through books, sermons, or even one-on-one meetings. It requires community—a place where multiple personalities interact with each other under Jesus' leadership.

In my own life, I've learned far more about forgiveness by watching others extend grace than I ever could from reading about it. I've grown more in patience by being in community with people who test my patience (and show patience with me). I've learned generosity by seeing others model it in ways I'd never considered.

Jesus knew what He was doing. By creating a community of disciples rather than a series of individual followers, He established the pattern for how spiritual formation happens best.

Discipleship isn't just about information transfer; it's about transformation. And transformation happens most effectively in community, where our rough edges bump against others' rough edges, and we all become smoother in the process.

As you reflect today, consider: Are you trying to grow spiritually through information alone? Or are you embedded in a community where you can learn from others' examples—both their successes and failures?

Tomorrow, we'll explore the third reason Jesus built community: because His ministry was about serving others, not self-fulfillment.