In Malcolm Gladwell's book, Outliers: The Story of Success, he makes the case that to gain mastery in any subject or field, you need 10,000 hours of deliberate practice. Whether you're playing chess, shooting hoops, trading stocks, or building a multi-billion dollar tech company like Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, or Jeff Bezos, 10,000 hours of intentional growth in that area is the mark of a true master or accomplished specialist. 

While contemplating the implications for the church and our current circumstances in western-cultural Christianity, I considered the discipleship journey that's been so exhaustively discussed in the church.

Consider the disciple's three-year journey with Jesus and what Gladwell's theory holds. If the disciples spent an average of ten hours every day for three years learning from and gaining experience with Jesus, they would have reached ten thousand nine hundred and fifty hours at the end of their third year. By the time they'd arrived at the upper room, they'd achieved "mastery-level" status in their knowledge of what it had looked like to be a disciple of Christ.

Suppose the average church-goer spends three hours a week intentionally living and growing in their relationship with God (which is way more than most people). In that case, it will take them sixty-four years to reach the "mastery level."

 For two hours a week, it would take ninety-six years. For one hour a week, it would take one-hundred and ninety-two years before they felt that they had the sufficient knowledge necessary to, with confidence, begin teaching others what it looks like to be a disciple of Christ.

It's no wonder the churches, denominations, and Christian organizations are struggling through effective discipleship strategies for the interdependent parts that make up the whole body of Christ. But thankfully, there is a holistic strategy for helping people live into God's unique great commission call for their individual lives. There is a way that you can begin discovering God's dream for your life and achieve mastery over what it looks like to be, and make disciples of Christ.

We, human beings, tend to silo our lives into four basic categories: Work, Play, Relationships, and Spiritual. Work includes anything you do to earn income for now or in the future. The play category includes all the things you wish to do during work: Golf, Fish, Hunt, Cook, Farm, Watch Entertainment, Vacations, etc. The relationship category is best described as the regular person-to-person interactions you have on an ongoing weekly basis. Spiritual includes all elements of your spiritual development/life: Church, Devotion, Prayer, etc.

If we stick to the average human tendency to silo our lives into the four primary categories, it is likely; we will never achieve the "mastery-level" goal necessary to fully live out God's call on our lives to make disciples as we are going. Instead, we'll stick to a sub-standard level of spirituality devoid of God's transformative power in our lives. Eventually, this individual life drift towards mediocrity in the spiritual category creates an apathetic attitude in the church and impotence toward our effectiveness at reaching people with the gospel. The watching world then sees the church as a country club gathering of 'good' people united around a common preference rather than a royal priesthood focused on Christ's purpose.

To shift ourselves, our churches, and our community out of our comfort zones and into God's divine direction, we must understand the holistic perspective of God's call on our lives. That first step out of your comfort zone is the first step into your calling!

In Ephesians 2, Paul tells us the story of God's rescue and redemption for our lives. He tells us about the life of redemption we find in Christ. Before Christ, we're dead in our transgressions and sin–through Christ, we find that God has reconciled us to him. Then, in verse ten, Paul tells us this imperative truth: God's story of rescue and redemption reclaims God's dream for our lives.

Put another way, God has had a dream for our lives since the beginning. The work of Jesus forgives us of our sins and sets us free to become who God has always dreamed us to be.

Let's clarify it again: God has had a dream for your life. God has a dream to permeate all the silos in your life (Work, Play, Relationships, and Spiritual) and unite them around Himself. When we understand our Ephesians 2:10 call of why God made us, incredible things will happen in our churches and communities!

As Jon Bloom says, "When Paul says that you are God's "workmanship," don't think of your clunky seventh-grade shop class project. Think of The Odyssey, Beowulf, The Divine Comedy, Paradise Lost, or The Faerie Queen — great works of epic poetry."

Ephesians 2:10 - For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time for us to do. 

The word 'workmanship' is from the Greek word 'poiēma,' where we get the word poem.' This is the beautiful understanding that we are God's poem, his masterpiece. We're God's work of art.

"created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time for us to do."

 We're art created to do the good things He had in his mind since the beginning of TIME. God's been having a dream about our lives from the beginning of time. Regardless of what's happening, no matter what kind of crisis you've gone through or where you are in the journey of life, the good news is that the journey to begin living into God's plan can start today. He hasn't given up, and He's not finished with you.

God's holistic perspective over our lives is that of Romans 12:1 "I urge you to present your bodies as a living sacrifice..this is your true worship."

When we allow the Spiritual category of our lives to infuse and permeate all the other areas of our lives (work, play, and relationships), reaching a "mastery level" of ten thousand hours becomes attainable. This can happen when we know and name God's dream for our lives–when we can articulate it outwardly to others. When we express that calling, we'll begin to live into our unique call in how we do our work, enjoy our play, and engage in our relationships with others.

Imagine what would happen if a local body of believers could articulate the workmanship call that God has for their individual lives. Can you conceive the impact they would have on the world around them if they submitted themselves to God and lived out their gospel call in every aspect of their daily life?

When the individuals who make up our churches can say with absolute clarity, "I exist to glorify God and help others/disciple others by fill in the blank," and then begin living that out daily, it will begin the process of transforming our world.

At the Reinolds Group, we exist to glorify God and help others by Discovering Next. Helping conscientious cultivators construct strategic solutions for future growth–individually, organizationally, & spiritually. 

What's God's dream for your life? 

Imagine what could happen if you and the interdependent parts that make up the whole of your church could each define the individual call that God has placed on you. Imagine if the body of Christ began to articulate and actualize God's dream for each member. Imagine the revolution that could take place if we all recognized and lived into our ultimate contribution. 

Our worship would look different. Our missions would be done differently. Our finances would be spent differently. Our objectives in ministry would be more attainable. Our world would feel the impact of the gospel in a real and tangible way. If you are ready to discover what is next in your life or church, we can discuss how to make that happen through the Prism Journey for Churches.