Ready to improve your discipleship training skills? Disciple making is not done in a laboratory. This post will help you see how colorful and lively our interactions should be.

Do you make people mad? Are your friends emotionally moved when you talk? Or are you in the rut of boring conversations that are easily forgettable?

Jesus wasn’t. People became angry when He spoke. Or they were overwhelmed with joy. Or they begged Him to tell them more. He was not easy to forget. He did not speak in dull clichés that are so common in the Christian circles today: “God bless,” “saved by grace,” or “personal Savior.”

You have sensed those times in conversation with people where you knew they needed to move to another level but you were not sure how to get them there. “You need Jesus,” would not work. Most religious people think they have Him. “Come to my church,” was something they agreed to but never did. You needed something more.

Jesus had a discipleship training method, a process to working with people that many believers today have never been taught: storytelling. People love stories. When you tell a story from your life experience or someone else’s experience, your friend (potential disciple) puts his or herself into that narrative and experiences it too.

Stories help people move forward in spiritual development

I have quit smoking at least 30 times. Honestly, I have never smoked a cigarette. I have never had a cigarette in my mouth. But I have quit at least 30 times. Let me tell you why and what I mean.

My dad was a rough dude who started smoking young. From being a sailor to being a truck driver, he cussed, smoked, and all that with the rest of them. He tells the story of how he entered a Pentecostal church one day and the power of God was so strong he just wanted to weep.

He was so moved by Jesus and what he felt there, he decided to change his ways. On his way out the door, he took the pack of cigarettes out of his pocket and dumped them in the trash. That was it. He went from smoking 3 packs a day to nothing. God delivered him.

I have heard him tell that story countless times. Each time, I join him emotionally in that conversion story. I can see myself being that hardened sinner who melted before Jesus and gave up my old ways. I can feel my hand around that pack of Pall Malls, throwing it in the trash in the church vestibule. I have quit smoking countless times with him through that story.

You have a story that can move people

Many of us see ourselves as common and not that remarkable. Yet we have stories of God at work in our lives. These are not boring, clichéd statements about “now I know that heaven is my home” and “the difference in me is Jesus.” Old school discipleship training said to do it that way, but stories are Jesus’s preferred method.

I could tell you stories about how Jesus changed my marriage. How He healed my daughter. How He gave me wisdom in a situation I had no clue how to handle. How He changed me from proud and selfish to caring about others.

You are loaded with stories of God’s grace. But just saying, “God’s grace changed me” bores people. We are hardwired to hear and respond to stories, not factoids and summary clauses. When you tell your story of how you went from religious confusion to clarity and confidence in the Truth, others go there with you.

This does not mean everyone will agree with you right away; they might hate you. Jesus got that, too. But at least they noticed He was there. At least they had to deal with what He said. They were emotionally moved. Stories are one of the quickest ways to get to the emotions, to move people to make a change.

What if you do not have a story?

When I do not have a story that will help move a person closer to Jesus or help them see Him better, I steal one. Okay, not really steal, I borrow it and give it back. I tell someone else’s story (and give credit to the person whose story I told).

Another great tool is a Bible story. Do you realize that the Gospels, our discipleship training manuals, are all story? There are stories in Scripture to cover every issue.

If the person will not be offended by a clear biblical reference, then recap how Lamech killed a young man and then bragged about it. He embodies today’s culture of boasting about sin, rather than just denying it like Cain did or blaming others like Adam and Eve did.

What if one of those kinds of stories will not work for your friend? What about those thorny issues where you are trying to make a point? Jesus mastered that, too. He told parables.

Now, don’t be so dull as to try to tell a person who does not know the Bible or first-century culture about how important sheep or vineyards were to those people. Make up an illustration they relate to: a turbo kicking in on an engine or a home makeover project. Jesus told such stories with great results—those who wanted to know more got closer to Him; those who were guilty got mad at Him.

Stories are practical discipleship training

Are you working with someone who needs help but you don’t know how to mention their problem? Tell a story. If you are kind, gentle, and not invasive, you can share stories that penetrate right to the heart of the problem without that person ever knowing you are aware of their issues.

Got a disciple who is not growing like he should? Tell a story. Got someone who is stuck in taking the next step in their journey toward the Lord, tell a story.

Not only do we win people through our testimonies, but we can overcome the enemy by telling our stories, too. You can and should use stories at every level of discipleship training. Prayerfully ask the Lord for direction on how to speak to the people He has given you to work with right now. What story would He have you use?

I would love to hear how stories have helped you in the past. Did someone make a difference in your life by telling story? Tell us about it. How have you found stories helpful in reaching others?