[fusion_builder_container background_color=”” background_image=”” background_parallax=”none” enable_mobile=”no” parallax_speed=”0.3″ background_repeat=”no-repeat” background_position=”left top” video_url=”” video_aspect_ratio=”16:9″ video_webm=”” video_mp4=”” video_ogv=”” video_preview_image=”” overlay_color=”” overlay_opacity=”0.5″ video_mute=”yes” video_loop=”yes” fade=”no” border_size=”0px” border_color=”” border_style=”” padding_top=”20″ padding_bottom=”20″ padding_left=”” padding_right=”” hundred_percent=”no” equal_height_columns=”no” hide_on_mobile=”no” menu_anchor=”” class=”” id=””][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”][fusion_text]r12-story-150x150Have you ever had the feeling that the church you belong to is stuck in a rut? Ever had the nagging question, “How much spiritual growth have I experienced?” Have you ever taken stock of your spiritual life, and come up short? Ever felt that there is no spiritual movement in your life?
The How to run a r12 Campaign Toolbox training event held at the Walk Thru the Bible offices on 12th January 2011 answers these questions, and more. The event saw 41 participants attending, all representing 12 local churches.

What makes the r12 campaign so effective, is that the campaign focuses on discipleship, while examining our relationships with others and reviewing our spiritual lives. The core aim of the campaign is for us as Christians to strive to be creditable disciples of Jesus Christ by living out our faith as set out in Romans 12.

The campaign examines the 5 key relationships in our lives, and provides Biblical answers to the questions around these relationships, as outlined below :

How do I give God what he wants most? Relationship with God – Surrender to God – Romans 12:1 How do I get God’s best for my life?

Relationship with the world – Separate from the world’s values – Romans 12:2 How do I come to grips with the real me?

Relationship with yourself – Sober in self assessment – Romans 12:3-8 How do I experience authentic community?

Relationship with believers – Serving in love – Romans 12:9-16 How do I overcome the evil aimed at me?

Relationship with non believers – Supernaturally responding to evil with good – Romans 12:17-21

Pastor Vincent Kandan, one of the 41 participants in attendance, had the following to say, “…sermons from the pulpit reaches only a few people, and if I can reach eighty percent of the congregation, then the program will help grow people into becoming disciples who require depth spiritually, and by focusing on one theme per week, the Romans 12 campaign then starts involving the entire church.”

This view is in line with the r12 objective, which aims to hone in on one important theme per week, and reinforcing it considerably during the week. This approach ensures that the message reaches deeper, and the congregation embraces the theme more closely.

Pastor Praise Nkosi added that, “ This strategy which will impact not only the local church, but the wider community, while empowering pastors to be relevant in their communities, as well as…being a contemporary church, adding value, numerically as well as spiritually.”

Pastor Pholoso Matjele felt that the campaign was, “…a powerful tool as it provided – measurable strategies which measures the growth of a person, and advocated measurable outcomes…” which hitherto had not been implemented in churches. He further stated that, “ …many churches have been managed haphazardly…” and that, “this campaign addresses those issues, and provides real and practical solutions to those problems.”

With the focus on spiritual growth within the church, Pastor Reggie Sibiya expressed his admiration for the r12 campaign in these words, “ What I  admire most is the fact that the  focus is on things God expects us to do as Christians in a dynamic, practical and engaging way. The campaign provides structure, and gives everyone a platform without moving away from spirituality. My fervent prayer is that God helps us in winning over the members in our church to think along the same lines to achieve an unprecedented level of spiritual depth within the church.”

One pastor (Paul Diale), had the opportunity to kickstart the campaign at his church last year, and is currently on the “Separate from the world” theme. He could not contain his excitement about the transformational impact the r12 campaign had on the church. He commented that, “…the youth are discussing scriptures, specifically around discipleship, and are keen to learn more. We have identified areas which are important, and the fashioning of the entire campaign to ensure that it becomes a success. We will multiply numbers, flood cell groups and train cell group leaders on Romans 12 for results to be gained through discipleship.”

The contingent concluded the training and departed, eager to delve into the r12 campaign, and impart the knowledge and insight gained, to their respective churches. Martin Deacon addressed the attendees at the seminar, and drove home the idea that, “…to resolve an exponential issue, one has to tackle the problem exponentially…”

Through these words, all felt encouraged to go out, and through discipleship, make a lasting, transformational impact on their communities.

For more information on the r12 campaign, or to order the r12 Church Campaign kit, please click here.

Chip Ingram’s passion is to help Christians really live like Christians. Today, he serves as senior Pastor of Venture Church in Los Gatos, California, and President of Living on the Edge, an international teaching and discipleship ministry.[/fusion_text][/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]