Converting Membership into Discipleship: A Spiritual Formation Program in Discipleship for Rural African American Churches

This thesis project addresses the need for rural African American churches to focus on spiritual formation and discipleship for their parishioners. Churches that emphasize the importance of the gospel and believers’ daily commitment to it represent progress toward discipleship. Discipleship creates a connection between worship and lifestyle. Churchgoers, particularly African American Christians in rural settings, may struggle to understand and practice discipleship. Historically, church worship and attendance have been prioritized in this faith community. However, Sunday worship that fails to provide a plan for daily spiritual formation may contribute to the issue. If the gospel is not the church’s primary mission, the church can become disconnected from the community. This disconnect has caused many young people to leave the church. The disconnection within the church opens the door to alternative ‘gospels’ and deficiencies such as liberalism, social elitism, and other social evils that the Black community is all too familiar with. This thesis proposes a discipleship program for the African American church, including spiritual formation, biblically oriented worship, and a kingdom biblical theology. The goal is to make the gospel the central focus of worship and, in doing so, reclaim our youth for Christ. First, assess the church’s strengths and weaknesses. Next, present a plan based on the assessment, Scripture, and the historical makeup of the church. Train key individuals in the congregation and commission them as facilitators in their respective areas. This model is being tested at the Mount Zion Missionary Baptist Church in Toney, Alabama.