We hear from Mike Hey again who is introduced to us by one of our leaders Jerry, who along with his wife Katie and their family, are pioneering DMM in South Australia. They are connecting with local leaders like Mike from OM who shares with us what disciple making looks like for him in Adelaide.

Sailing boats blown by the wind of the Spirit  

Mike starts by encouraging us with a picture: We are all building teams of disciple-makers and seeking to see them sail as small boats, catching the wind of the Spirit.

‘Jungle Bible College’

Mike and Ann were trained in what Mike calls an Indian ‘Jungle Bible College’ through sacrificial prayer and key people like Victor John since the 1970s. After leaving and starting to hear of movements happening back in India, they have sought to catalyse work amongst the unreached ever since. 

Adelaide, the city of the church

Mike describes that church as ‘ekklesia’, with all kinds of expressions, is at the heart of DMM. He has learnt how gathering disciples of Jesus is what brings a ‘disciple making momentum’ towards a disciple making movement. Disciples are people who learn to ‘go, gather and grow’ as they engage in prayer, the Word and being led by the Spirit.

‘Beautiful Feet’ in Adelaide’s north

“We were making disciples but not multiplying disciple makers.”

After returning to Adelaide, Mike shares how he and Ann started to pray and engage with others for Adelaide’s multicultural northern suburbs. They joined a church planting team and began to ask questions about building relational connections and pointing people to Jesus. And so began what Mike describes as a ‘Beautiful Feet’ initiative to see God’s people  activated in witness as they walk together to make disciples who will make disciples. He describes it as something that is gathering ‘disciple making momentum not yet movement’.

Mike says how those who are part of this initiative are followers of Jesus from lots of churches who are seeking to simply…

Walk with Jesus. 

Walk with a friend. 

And walk alongside others as they make disciples who will make disciples. 

Mike’s paradigm shifts and lessons learned

From outreach to ‘in-reach’: Seeing disciples made through an insider movement is key.

From addition (get them into the church) to multiplication 

From gathering to grow to gathering to grow, go and scatter

Take your fishing rod (fish for people around you) but remember the Holy Spirit is weaving and casting a larger net, not us (each of us are a strand on this net). 

Keep walking, the river will rise. 

Stay in the mud until it clears. (Don’t jump out when it gets tough.)

Grassroots prayer leads to green shoots of life. Prayer onsite brings insight. 

Its all about relationship - keep gathering to scatter (multiply). 

Taking church to the park

Mike shares how once a quarter, he takes an established local church into their local park to do a DBS. He then helps this church to invite everyone in their neighbourhood to a community BBQ gathering. This is where a smaller group of Christians search for People of Peace. More regular DBS and BBQs can then happen.  

Mike prays for our cities and challenges us

“We pray for green shoots of authentic worship to rise in every neighbourhood across our cities”

“God loves everyone and Jesus is the leader of his church in your city…We just need to catch up with what God is doing…Don’t try and get into the heart of the church, instead get right out on the margins. That’s where you can grow a life of prayer, blessing and disciple making. Multiply ‘oikos’ networks. Be attentive to God, receptive of one another, intentional to bless and innovative in all you do. Find and equip Peace Makers. Discover and walk alongside People of Peace in your sphere of influence. Join Jesus as he multiplies radiant communities of his followers. And seek to disciple nations!”

Mike finishes by asking each of us: