Make The Journey of Discipleship

The Journey is designed to empower you and your family to become whole through God’s love, establish you in your identity in Christ, open your heart to His transformative grace, and equip you in the ministry of reconciliation. Make The Journey at your own pace, even if it takes a year. You do not have to take these steps in order, but we do recommend completing Welcome to the Family early in the process.

1. WELCOME TO THE FAMILY

Join Clint and Sara Byars for a walk through our Core Beliefs, Philosophy of Ministry, Core Values, and more. We do not have a formal Membership at Forward Church, but we do have a clear vision. This course serves as our Membership course. If you call Forward home, then we call you family. You are welcome to enroll in this course to learn more about Forward. No commitment is required upon completion of this course. However, we hope you put down roots and make Forward your home church. You can call or email us with any questions you have about Forward Church beliefs 770-824-3434 | info@forward.church.

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2. CORE VALUES Series

You heard a little about our core values in Welcome to the Family. This 10-part series will take you deeper into each value. These values affect every aspect of ministry at Forward.

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3. Become established in the gospel

Forward is called to preach the Gospel of the Kingdom of God. The Gospel of Peace, by Dr. Jim Richards is an excellent presentation of the Gospel. We highly recommend reading this book for step 3 in your Journey.

God judged the world's sins in Jesus in His great love for man. Because His wrath and righteous judgment have already occurred, man can now enter a peaceful relationship with a holy God. God wants you to live in a harmonious relationship with Him and a harmonious relationship with people. This can only happen when you have peace. Discover the keys to experiencing the peace of God in your life and relationships through this exciting book. It will change your life!

This book is available at the resource table at church, or you can buy it on Amazon.

4. DISCIPLESHIP 101

God commissioned The Church to make disciples. A disciple applies the teachings of his mentor, boss, leader, master, or lord. Jesus is all of those for us. In addition to engaging in our church community and living a life of service toward others, we offer courses to help you establish your heart in grace as you follow Jesus.

If you are disciplining someone, you are welcome to use our Discipleship 101 resource, which includes Leader and Student guides. Click here to access resource.

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5. establish your heart in grace

One of our greatest frustrations for believers is that much of what we believe doesn’t work. Too often, we spend our lives struggling with the same issues. The feeling of defeat can be unbearable. It is as if we are caught in a maze of formulas and rules. We know something is missing, but we’re not sure what. In our search for truth, we lose our way among religion's dos and don’ts. Christians everywhere have been missing the truth about grace, which results in defeat and frustration.

In this book, you will find the power to overcome instead of repeatedly seeking forgiveness. You will conquer personal issues instead of enduring them. You will discover God’s power of effortless change instead of relying on your best effort to change. Grace: The Power to Change by Dr. Jim Richards will bring you into the dimension of Christian living that Jesus called “easy and light.” If you are ready to discover how to live from the power of God within, get this book!

This book is available at the resource table at church, or you can buy it on Amazon. You can explore the vast subject of grace from Clint’s Essential Grace sermons. There are 5 series in total. Click here for the first series.

6. Put On your IDENTITY IN CHRIST

Jesus is the heir of all things and has been given a name above every name. The most astonishing fact about Jesus’ resurrection and ascension is that he chose to share his inheritance and authority with all who believed. Regarding power and authority, there is no difference between you and Jesus. God has made you His child through your faith in Jesus. You’ve been adopted into His family, in which he shares everything he has. You will not create another world and rule over people like the Mormons think, but in God’s Kingdom and on this planet, you have the full authority of a child of God within your new creation identity. Embrace your true identity and begin representing the true God to the world in the power that Jesus died and rose again for you to walk in.

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7. Foundations of the Faith

This course is based on Hebrews 6:1-2 “Therefore let us leave the elementary teachings about Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith in God, instruction about baptisms, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment.” Every foundation must have a cornerstone, which is Christ himself. In this course, you will become grounded in these foundations and become equipped to move on into a mature faith.

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8. LIVING FROM THE HEART for transformation

Once you are established in the Gospel and your faith is firmly rooted in the finished work of Christ, you are prepared to experience lasting transformation. Romans 12:2 says that transformation comes as you renew your mind. However, there is an essential component to the process of transformation that many believers miss. That missing piece in understanding the seed's parable is found in Mark 4 and Matthew 13.

This series will reaffirm your identity in Christ and the need to rely on grace. But it will take you a step further. This series will equip you to connect with God in your inner man (heart) and nurture the power of His Word. The missing “secret” is that you are already complete in Christ in your spirit, but your heart determines how much of your completed spiritual identity you will experience in this life. Jesus calls the parable of the seed “the mystery of the Kingdom.” This series will bring it all together and give you practical tools to consistently experience transformation and move forward in every area of life.

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9. discover your purpose and Fulfill Your Call

"God, what do you want me to do? What is my purpose in life?" Have you ever prayed something like this? Most of us feel like if God would tell us what He wants us to do, then we'd know our purpose and could fulfill our calling. The problem with that way of thinking is that it emphasizes performance. God has things He wants you to do, but that is not your purpose. Your purpose, or the reason you exist, is determined by something entirely different than your assignments in the Body of Christ. Your purpose is inherent to your identity as a child of God.

Your calling is a journey you embark on with God to rescue people from darkness and bring them into the light of Christ. That is the desire of every believer, but we do not know how to discover our path. Pastor Clint has developed a process that will light the path of your calling.

In this process, you will determine a course rooted in God's love for you and your compassion for others. Clint will walk you through a simple series of questions and exercises, culminating in a workable plan with clear, actionable steps to follow God and ultimately fulfill your calling. It's time to stop limiting yourself and set sail into the calling of God in your life.

This course is FREE for Forward Church members:

Create a free account at: https://forwardschooloftransformation.thinkific.com/users/sign_up

  • Click the small text “create a new user” under the login fields, it can be hard to find.

  • After successfully creating your account, email us at info@forward.church and request access.

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10. How to Study the Bible

The Bible is the written, infallible Word of God. You must learn to plant the living Word of God in your mind and heart to experience transformation, bear the fruits of the Spirit, and walk in the Gifts of the Spirit. Developing a disciplined relationship with the Bible is a must for a successful and God glorifying Christian walk.

Join us on the 2nd Wednesday at 6:30 pm monthly for Bible Study, where we walk through the Bible verse-by-verse and equip you for personal study. Check our Calendar for the next Bible Study.

 11. becoming Equipped

We are a Bible-believing, miracle-expecting church. Attend our monthly Equip sessions on the 1st Wednesday monthly at 6:30pm for Knowledge, Experience, and Confidence in the Gifts of the Spirit on the first Wednesday of each month. The Holy Spirit lives in you and is seeking to move in power through you. Let us help you gain the confidence to step out in the gifts and walk in the Ministry of Reconciliation.

12. Ministry Training

Interested in joining the Ministry Team? Put it all into practice to become a powerful, effective witness for Christ and walk in the ministry of reconciliation. The harvest is plenty, but the laborers are few. Let’s embrace the call of God on our lives by walking in the ministry of reconciliation!

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More Resources

“We will not use you to build our organization, we will use our organization to build you up in your new creation identity in christ.”
— Forward Church Philosophy of Ministry