I have to be honest – this is the most difficult section of the Funnel for me to write.  There are several reasons for that:

1. Church Online has a long way to go in this area.  We do the Bring In part well. However, we’ve struggled for some time with how to do discipleship within Chruch Online.
2. It’s also the area that I oversee.  It’s easy to talk about what other people do but it’s harder to talk about what you do.
3. Lastly, I’ve been here for a little over three months and I’m still trying to define for myself how we effectively handle this area.

As you read this, you’ll see me say a lot, “we are still talking about this area” or “we will be changing focus this year, in this way”.  I am not someone who takes decisions lightly.  When I say this is the direction we are going, it’s typically because I’ve talked through all the options and, as a team, we’ve settled on the best option for achieving the goals we are trying to achieve.  I’m writing this section while those discussions are still going on.  As you read this, keep that in mind.  There are many methods for achieving a goal and not all are equally effective.  This section is fluid because of this.

Why Are Build Up and Train Together?

Before we really drill down in to the pieces of the Funnel for Build Up and Train, you’ll notice that I am talking about them together versus individual components like I did with Bring In.  The reason for this is I don’t think you can physically or logically separate the two.  While the image below separates them, it does so merely so we can discuss, measure, and make decisions about specific pieces within the whole.

When Does Someone “Enter” Build Up/Train?

That is a great question! I’m so glad you asked.  I didn’t really answer this question under Bring In.  Is there a definitive point in a guest’s relationship with Church Online that they move to the next step?  Yes and No.  For discussion purposes, let’s just say the most logical point is when someone accepts Christ.  Not all people accept Christ before they begin actions in Build Up/Train.

(I was just thinking it would be soo much easier to use an acronym instead of typing this out but I just can’t bring myself to call this part of the funnel BUT!)

Back on topic – There are instances where someone begins to engage with others or begins to read the Bible or any of the other “things” we do under Build Up/Train before they make the decision to really follow Christ.  On the other hand, there are times when someone finds Church Online and they are already a Christian who may or may not be involved in a local church.

Build Up/Train Boils Down to Discipleship

No matter where someone is when they come to Church Online, the reality is we aim to help a believer become a more fully devoted follower of Christ.  To do that, we must provide resources for them to experience life change.  The opportunities in this part of the Funnel are all about enabling that change.

We could group that change into a few different measurable categories:

1. Fellowship in a LifeGroup
2. Daily time in God’s Word
3. Commitment to tithing
4. Devoted prayer life
5. Understanding how God built us
6. Deepening our biblical understanding

Let’s Look From a Different Direction

Those six measurable items could be looked at another way.

The areas of a person’s life we want to see change are (the outer ring):

1. Relationship with Others
2. Relationship with God
3. Financial Life
4. Physical Life
5. Work/School Life

And in order to facilitate change in those areas, Church Online must be responsible for (the middle ring):

1. Developing Leaders
2. Connecting People
3. Mobilizing People
4. Resourcing Personal Growth

Which must be an extension of what happens in a worship experience.

Next time we’ll start to put these two differing paradigms together.