YUNNAN, China - “I was stunned to learn that there are more than 5,000 promises in the Bible. That’s a lot of promises!” Sun Zhen was fascinated by the topic of living by the promises of God when she attended her first discipleship group leader training based on the Life of Jesus about two years ago.
This four-part Training of Trainers (TOT) programme, based on the Gospel of Matthew, was organised by the local provincial Christian Council, with support from the United Bible Societies (UBS), to equip discipleship leaders to train other leaders in disciple-making.
One of the urgent needs facing the Churches in China now is the proper shepherding and discipling of believers. To do this well, full-time church workers need to be resourced and trained. They also need to take on the role of trainers to impart what they have learned to others who would do likewise (II Tim 2:2).
Quoting from Isaiah 50:4, “The Lord God has given me the tongue of those who are taught, that I may know how to sustain with a word him who is weary” (ESV), Sun shares, "When we are being discipled ourselves, we can then disciple others better."
Sun began her ministry in an urban church in Yunnan province early 2022, following her graduation from Huadong Theological Seminary in Shanghai. She confessed that she felt anxious and disoriented initially. "It seemed like nothing I had studied in the seminary was useful or relevant for my work in the field."
However, things got better after attending the TOT training. It dawned upon her that it is not always effective to lead Bible studies by solely giving instructions. As she reflected on what she had learned, she realised "what matters is when participants could fully grasp the content themselves and apply Biblical truths to their lives."
"Through the training, I discovered that there is so much more we can explore and so many engaging methods we can use to study the Bible with believers..."
"Through the training, I discovered that there is so much more we can explore and so many engaging methods we can use to study the Bible with believers. Providing more context, such as giving more information on the historical, social, and geographical background, has been helpful for us in gaining a complete understanding of God’s Word."
In addition, she gleaned much from the discussion sessions when other participants shared their wealth of experiences and differing viewpoints. "The needs of congregation members differ. Therefore, it has been beneficial for me to learn from others as they share their own faith journeys when we run through questions from the materials. We also shared how we are better able to apply biblical truths in our Christian journey together."
"It has been beneficial for me to learn from others as they share their own faith journeys when we run through questions from the materials. We also shared how we are better able to apply biblical truths in our Christian journey together."
The lesson which highlighted the many promises in the Bible brought an emotional response from many of the participants. Sun said, "Some were tearful as they shared that they can now cling on to these promises in the face of trials in their ministry."
"As preachers, we know how important it is to give our congregants encouragement through God’s Word," she added with empathy. "Sometimes we tend to forget we ourselves too need to remember and cling onto His promises so that we can share with others."
Sun reflected on the TOT training saying, "We have had some great insights and reflections throughout the training. I believe that what we learned and shared together will help equip us for possible challenges we might encounter in our own discipleship sessions."
Sun has just begun her journey as a ‘disciple-maker.’ We pray that she and her coursemates will continue to persevere for the next three parts of the group leader training on The Life of Jesus. May God empower them as they prepare themselves to be faithful in teaching others.
Story: Marcus Xiao and Pamela Choo
Photos: UBSCP
2024©UBS China Partnership
