Discipleship Pathway
At The Brook, we strive for the body of Christ to be discipled at every level of our ministries, from children through adults. This pathway is designed to lead you through a cohesive discipleship framework throughout our ministries, highlighting the strategy and the major pillars that form this framework. It can also serve as a guide for parents to intentionally disciple their children through the different seasons and stages of life.
Each section of the pathway is explained in detail below.
The Brook Littles (Birth-PreK)
In The Brook Littles, we seek to help children discover and build a foundational understanding of God and His redemptive story as seen throughout Scripture. This foundation will be built by teaching biblical truths in ways that are age appropriate, engaging, and fun!
The following pillars serve as the framework for discipleship in this ministry and during this stage of life:
Biblical Discovery:
In the preschool years, children will discover God as the Creator of all things and the author of the Bible. This is accomplished by walking our preschoolers through a weekly story-based presentation of the word of God. During this presentation, they will also be introduced to the key people, places, and events of the Bible.
Biblical Foundation:
As our preschoolers are discovering who God is and what’s in His Word, we also want to help them begin to grasp the major themes and core truths of the Bible, such as love, forgiveness, and the promises of God. We know repetition is key, so these themes and truths are introduced through large group teaching, songs, crafts, and reading God’s Word together.
These pillars are emphasized through the environments, events, and milestones of this ministry:
Environments:
Events:
Milestones:
The Brook Kids (K-5th)
In The Brook Kids, our elementary kids will walk through an overview of the entire Bible, from Genesis to Revelation. Through this overview, they will be taught the main storyline of Scripture, as well as the essential truths of the gospel.
The following pillars serve as the framework for discipleship in this ministry and during this stage of life:
Biblical Overview:
We believe Scripture clearly shows us the importance of teaching the “whole counsel of God” to the next generation. One of the primary ways we teach the “whole counsel” is through a chronological overview of God’s grand narrative. This overview will help our kids understand how the Bible fits together, which will also foster their development of a biblical worldview. Our curriculum lays out this overview in a three-year rotation, which allows our kids to go through the Bible two full times while in The Brook Kids.
Biblical Theology:
As our kids walk through the Bible, we want to help them understand and see the main storyline woven through all 66 books, whereby God’s plan of redemption is fulfilled through the person and work of His Son, Jesus Christ. While looking at the Bible’s unified message, they will dive into the character and attributes of God, as well as the redemptive work of Jesus. Both our large-group and small-group settings highlight this storyline and these fundamental truths each week.
Gospel Proclamation:
While our kids grow in their knowledge of God and His Word, they will also be taught and learn to articulate the essential truths of the gospel. We will focus on what it means to be a Christian, answering questions such as: How are we saved? What is repentance? What does it mean to faithfully follow Jesus?
These pillars are emphasized through the environments, events, and milestones of this ministry:
Environments:
Events:
Milestones:
The Brook Students (6th-12th)
Building on the foundations established in The Brook Littles & Kids, The Brook Students focuses on equipping students to understand who they are in Christ, to know what they believe, and to live out their faith daily. Our students will be equipped primarily through Bible exposition, or the verse-by-verse explanation of the text, and practical application. They will also be taught the basic principles of Scripture interpretation, or hermeneutics, and apologetics, so that they can accurately study the scriptures for themselves and they can boldly and confidently defend their faith.
The following pillars serve as the framework for discipleship in this ministry and during this stage of life:
Biblical Identity:
Through the exposition of Scripture, our students will be consistently taught that they are created in God’s image and have inherent value and worth. Our hope is for students to find their identity in Christ rather than in the things of this world. When students have a firm understanding of their identity in Christ, it fundamentally changes their view of the world.
Biblical Community:
Our students will learn the importance of walking in community with faithful followers of Christ. They will be challenged to pursue friendships that glorify Christ. They will also discover the beauty of belonging to the body of Christ.
Biblical Practice:
Students will be encouraged to put into practice what they have learned throughout their time at The Brook. We desire for our students to grasp their purpose as disciples of Jesus and to understand that the gospel calls them to live out their faith. Specifically, they will be challenged to grow in the spiritual disciplines, as well as to use their gifts to serve God and others.
Systematic Theology:
In addition to our students understanding the main storyline of Scripture, we also want to expound upon the foundational doctrines of the Christian faith. We accomplish this by introducing our students to systematic theology, which presents the Bible’s teaching on various subjects, one at a time, and summarizes each topic based on the entirety of Scripture. They will explore doctrines such as: the Trinity, creation, sin, salvation, and redemption.
Christian Apologetics:
In a culture that is increasingly post-Christian, our ministry seeks to arm students with the knowledge to defend their faith. Such knowledge will help them stand firm and remain rooted in the Word of God. Our students will look at topics such as: the existence of God, the reliability of Scripture, and the existence of evil.
Biblical Mission:
We desire to see our students live out the Great Commission to go and make disciples. Throughout their student ministry years, they will be equipped in how to share their faith and how to disciple others. They will also have the opportunity to put this instruction into practice through local, domestic, and international missions efforts.
These pillars are emphasized through the environments, events, and milestones of this ministry:
Environments:
Events:
Milestones:
Adults at The Brook
Our mission at The Brook is to see every adult live intentionally to bring God’s kingdom everywhere they go. To help them live out this mission, we focus on expositing the scriptures so they grow in their knowledge and understanding of the gospel. We also provide them with ways to apply the gospel in everyday life through discipling, service, and fellowship.
The following pillars serve as the framework for discipleship in this ministry and during this stage of life:
Biblical Literacy:
Biblical literacy, which is the ability to rightly read, study, and understand the Bible, is essential for the believer’s growth. One of the primary ways our adults will develop biblical literacy is through the expository preaching and teaching of Scripture in our Sunday gatherings. Here, they will be taught the storyline of the Bible, as well as its central theological themes. In addition to the Sunday gathering, our people will be both equipped and challenged to grow in biblical literacy as they study the Word together in our Discipleship Pathways.
Disciple Making:
Christ’s Great Commission is for every believer, which is why we strive to equip our people to grow as disciples (inherently, disciples make disciples). Specifically, we focus on preparing them to show others how to follow Jesus and to teach others how to study God's Word. Such equipping takes place through our preaching, our Discipleship Pathways, and our men’s and women’s events.
Biblical Service:
Every follower of Christ has been gifted by God for the work of ministry. Because of this truth, we help our people identify and learn to use their gifts to build up the body of Christ. We help, first, through the shepherding and teaching from our pastors and elders. We also provide opportunities for our people to use their gifts to serve both in the church and in our community.
Gospel Fellowship:
We desire to see our people walk in deep, Christ-centered fellowship with one another. Such fellowship will lead to disciples looking more like Jesus as he works through the diverse people and gifts in his body. Fellowship is also the context in which we care for each other as brothers and sisters, and we live out the one-another passages of Scripture. These deep-rooted relationships are the foundation of our Community Groups, our Grow Groups, and our Serve Groups, which is why we encourage every adult to commit to a group.
These pillars are emphasized through the following environments and the events:
Environments:
Events:
