Dhati Lewis is the lead pastor of Blueprint Church in Atlanta, a congregation he helped start with 25 other individuals in 2009. Lewis’ passions are for church planting and discipleship. He launched The Rebuild Network in 2011 to help plant more churches in urban areas. Lewis and his wife, Angie, have six children.
Lewis will be one of the keynote speakers at the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina’s upcoming disciple-making conference titled, “Reveal: Share your life. Speak the gospel.” He recently took time to answer some questions that provide a preview of what he’ll be sharing at the conference on Monday, Feb. 29 at Lawndale Baptist Church in Greensboro.
Dhati Lewis |
Q: Who or what have been some of the significant influences in your life related to disciple-making?
A: Tom Nelson, pastor of Denton Bible Church in Denton, Texas. He discipled me in a program called Young Guns back in 1998 and 1999. Calvin Clark challenged me and gave me a world vision for both evangelism and discipleship, not just one or the other.
Q: Practically speaking, how do you share the gospel and your life with others as you seek to make disciples?
A: Life-on-Life ministry. Hospitality. Hospitality is the means to building relationships, which is the means for gospel conversations. I’m trying to shrink my world, aiming for intersection, not addition – meaning, how can I find ways to intersect my life with other people’s lives while doing what I would normally do in my life. For example, coaching my own children in basketball so that I can interact with other kids in basketball, and then meet their parents. This is a great way for me to be a good father to my daughters while ministering to the kids and adults in my neighborhood. Another example would be with working out. I work out with others instead of doing so alone and use that as an opportunity to share the gospel and make disciples.
Q: What is the Church’s role in making disciples, and how can churches develop a disciple-making culture within their congregations?
A: Discipleship is not a ministry of the Church, it’s the ministry of the Church. The Church makes disciples by caring for, equipping and mobilizing every covenant member.
(EDITOR’S NOTE – The 2016 “Reveal” Disciple-making Conference is scheduled for Monday, Feb. 29 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Lawndale Baptist Church in Greensboro. The conference is free to attend, but preregistration is required. Lunch is available for $7 per person with preregistration. For more information, or to register, visit: disciplenc.org.)
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