Book Review: Be a Disciple, Make a Disciple

The Basics

Title: Be a Disciple, Make a Disciple
Author: Ellie M. Littleon
Genre:   Religion / Christian Ministry / Discipleship
Release Date: April 22, 2019

Book Synopsis

The twenty-first century Church has the same Holy Spirit power and many more modern-day resources than the first century Church, yet the first century Church had greater success in making disciples. Why? They followed the plan Jesus gave them, and He blessed it. But the more worldly progress we’ve made, the more we’ve deviated from Jesus’s plan by choosing programs, entertainment, and socials with only surface-level encounters.  

We neglect to make a connection with the lost, and they see no real commitment from the church. So they come and go as we continue to meet and plan more programs. To end the cycle, we must go and make disciples as Jesus taught—investing our lives in the lives of others.  

Do you long to live the Great Commission and make disciples, but you’re not sure how? In Be a Disciple, Make a Disciple, Ellie Littleton offers biblical examples and concepts that break down the hard work of discipleship into sixteen thought-provoking lessons.  

So go and make disciples. “This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples” (John 15:8 niv). 

Click here to get your copy.

My Two Cents

It is so refreshing to find a Bible study on disciple-making that leads you to evaluate your walk with Christ and how you are making disciples. Then it leads you through the basics of being a Christ-follower/disciple and making disciples. The Introduction says this study “will help you understand what a disciple is. It will also guide you as you grow and mature as a disciple of Christ and teach you why and how disciples make other disciples…. It will help equip you with material to share, discuss, and learn as you share life with others who are eager to grow in their relationship with Christ.”

This sixteen-week study is divided into five parts. Each part begins with an introduction and is followed by chapters that lead you to dig into Scripture and learn about the different aspects of being a disciple and making disciples. Questions, charts, and diagrams help you interact with the biblical truths you are studying. At the end of each chapter is a “Scripture of Challenge/Encouragement.” The “Prayer” gives you suggestions on Scripture passages on which to meditate and gives suggestions of specific ways you can pray. I like the suggestion that the prayers be written out. At the end of each part is a Summary that includes questions for you to contemplate and answer.

Scattered throughout each chapter are quotes from Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Ron Hall, Bill Hull, J. Vernon McGee, David Platt, and A. W. Tozer.

The final chapter is a “Testimony of Discipleship” that explains how one woman realized “I was basically a fence-sitter with one foot in the world, one foot in the Word.” Her testimony tells how her journey in discipleship began. Many readers will identify with her “fence-sitter” status.

I heartily recommend this Bible study and look forward to revisiting it when I can take time to work through and contemplate the biblical truths and meditate on the Scripture passages.

NOTE: I received a complimentary copy of this book for reviewing from Ellie M. Littleton. I was not required to provide a positive review. Thoughts in “My Two Cents” are my own opinion.

About the Author

Ellie Littleton has spent most of her adult life teaching both high school and adult Sunday school. She is minister of Vision Teams at her church, and serves as an officer on the planning team of her church’s annual Women of the Word Conference. Her husband of twenty-one years and high school sweetheart, Brad Littleton, serves as minister of music at their church. Their daughter, Hannah Kate, has been active in AcTeens and children’s church. She plans to continue competitive cheer in college. Son, Grayson, is home from a six-month internship at Lifehouse Church in Tokyo, Japan, and is seeking a position as a youth pastor. Ellie and her family love their church, family-and-friend cookouts, volleyball, boat riding, and music. She also enjoys reading, women’s conferences, and sneaking away to occasional girlfriend getaways at the beach. 

More from Ellie

Eighteen years ago, I was blessed to be a part of a church plant in the community where I was raised and still call home.  The new church, South Shelby Baptist, gave me the opportunity to dig in and exercise the spiritual gifts given to me by the Holy Spirit.  As I begin to write and teach Bible lessons, a deep passion arose and bloomed within my heart to grow in the grace and knowledge of our LORD and Savior, Jesus Christ (2 Peter 3:18) and see others grow too.  I am a people-person and find great joy in connecting with people and seeing people connected, especially within the Body of Christ.  In the past five years, God has been and is pulling me out of that comfort zone of lessons into writing Bible studies.  My pastor, David Warren, leads the vision of our church- be a disciple and make a disciple.  He asked me a couple of years ago, to write a Bible study on the topic of discipleship for our folks as a resource to help us grow and activate the call to make disciples.  And that is how Be a Disciple, Make a Disciple Bible study began.  I wrote this Bible study for my church to use as resource to grow in discipleship, because my heart for ministry is in the local church, especially my local church, South Shelby Baptist.  But God.  God began prompting my heart with the dream to have Be a Disciple, Make a Disciple published… and here it is.  God is good and He is faithful; great is your faithfulness, O LORD!  It is my prayer that you can use it as a resource to help you and your local church grow in discipling others too.  To God be the glory and blessings to you in Christ, Ellie

Blog Stops

Book Reviews From an Avid Reader, November 21

Through the Lens of Scripture, November 22

Mary Hake, November 23

Sara Jane Jacobs, November 24

CarpeDiem, November 25

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, November 26

Artistic Nobody, November 27 (Author Interview)

Discipling4Life, November 28

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, November 29

Texas Book-aholic, November 30

janicesbookreviews, December 1

A Reader’s Brain, December 2

Inklings and notions, December 3

Simple Harvest Reads, December 4 (Author Interview)

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Ellie is giving away the grand prize package of a Bible study copy of her book and a $50 Visa Card!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://promosimple.com/ps/ee20/be-a-disciple-make-a-disciple-celebration-tour-giveaway