Relational Discipleship Network

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Relational Discipleship Network Shift your church to one that makes disciples of Jesus through coaching, training and equipping

The Relational Discipleship Network (RDN) is a missions organization. Our mission is to restore The Great Commission to the Church in America and beyond. The RDN stands as a dynamic faith-based missions organization committed to equipping churches and leaders to fulfill the Great Commission through relational disciple-making. Rooted in the belief that Jesus provided the most effective model for discipleship, RDN empowers pastors and church communities to cultivate cultures where discipleship is not just taught—but lived. (Matthew 28:16-20)

A Mission to our Jerusalem, first and foremost! The RDN is a Missions organization focused on our Jerusalem, reaching the American Church! When we forget to look after what we have right in front of us, it can be hard to tell that things are beginning to die. As many of our RDN partner churches have realized, neglecting our mission to make disciples in our home, church, and community comes at a high cost. If we continue to do what we have always done, we will get what we already have! It is our heart to come alongside the American Church and help her regain her first and only commission, to make Disciples as Jesus did.

10/22/2026

Culture always wins.

You can cast vision all day long, but if the culture doesn't support the vision, the vision never becomes reality.

In the podcast Visitor to Vested with Gabe Cleave, we explore what happens when disciple-making becomes the culture of a church. Suddenly, serving isn't about filling volunteer slots. It's about activating people to use the gifts God has already given them.

When 1,200 chairs need to be stacked, the entire body jumps in because everyone sees themselves as part of the mission.

That's what ownership looks like. That's what a disciple-making culture produces.
"Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others..." (1 Peter 4:10)

Listen to the full conversation at RDN.org.

It's easy to measure what people do.It's harder to measure who they're becoming.Attendance can be counted.Events can be ...
10/21/2026

It's easy to measure what people do.

It's harder to measure who they're becoming.

Attendance can be counted.

Events can be tracked.

Programs can be evaluated.

But discipleship often reveals itself differently.

You begin to see people becoming more like Jesus and helping others do the same.

You see selflessness replacing self-centeredness.

People start putting the needs of others ahead of their own.

You see people inviting others into community and developing a Kingdom mindset.

Life groups begin taking initiative, serving their communities without needing direction from church leadership.

Needs are being met before staff and leaders even know they exist.

Spiritual conversations become part of everyday life.

Leaders begin developing leaders.

Disciple-makers begin developing disciple-makers.

These are the kinds of outcomes that reveal a healthy disciple-making culture.

Because the goal isn't simply getting people into groups.

The goal is helping people become disciples who help others follow Jesus.

At the Relational Discipleship Network, we believe the goal of discipleship isn't simply better metrics or bigger ministries.

The goal is helping churches make disciples of Jesus who make disciples. Restoring the Great Commission to the Church in America and beyond.

As churches learn to practice the way of Jesus together, the fruit of discipleship often becomes visible in the lives of people and communities. But the focus remains the same: relational discipleship.

That's why RDN exists. We come alongside pastors and church leaders through coaching, training, and relational support as they work to create cultures where disciple-making becomes a way of life.

If you'd like to learn more about creating a disciple-making culture in your church, visit RDN.org or send us a message.

Shoutout to One Generation Away for partnering with the church to meet the needs in the community. We are so grateful for you and the impact you have on the kingdom. Thank you for the photos!

Which of these signs encourages you most when you see it in your church?

10/20/2026

Are you Busy or are you making Disciples?

It's possible to have a full calendar and still miss the mission.
Programs.
Events.
Meetings.
Activities.
None of those things are inherently bad.

But if we're not careful, we can become so busy doing ministry that we stop asking whether our activities are actually producing the outcomes we're hoping for.

One of the most important questions a church can ask is:
What do we consider a win?
Is it attendance?
Participation?
Activity?
Or is it disciples who are helping others follow Jesus?

The mission Jesus gave the Church wasn't simply to keep people busy.
It was to make disciples and equip others to do the same.

That's why healthy churches regularly stop and evaluate:
Are the things we're doing helping us accomplish the mission?
Or are they simply keeping us moving?

As Mark Messick often says:
"We can be going in a circle in a roundabout. It looks like we're going somewhere, but we're just traveling in a circle."

Activity is not impact.
The goal isn't busyness.
The goal is making disciples who make disciples.

At the Relational Discipleship Network, we help pastors and ministry leaders create disciple-making cultures that move beyond activity and focus on lasting transformation. If you're exploring how to create a stronger disciple-making culture in your church, send us a message or visit RDN.org.

How does your church define success?

Every church tracks numbers.Attendance.Giving.Volunteers.Event participation.Those numbers matter.But if making disciple...
10/20/2026

Every church tracks numbers.

Attendance.

Giving.

Volunteers.

Event participation.

Those numbers matter.

But if making disciples is the mission, shouldn't some of our measurements reflect that mission?

Disciple-making churches pay attention to more than who's showing up.

They pay attention to:

• Baptisms and evidence of life change
• People connected in life groups
• The health of those groups
• The support and coaching of group facilitators
• The stories and wins that reveal spiritual growth

Because what we measure influences what we value.

And what we value eventually shapes our culture.

The goal isn't to create more reports or dashboards.

The goal is to ensure we're paying attention to the things that help us evaluate whether people are actually growing in their relationship with Jesus and helping others do the same.

If disciple-making is the mission, our measurements should help us stay aligned with that mission.

At the Relational Discipleship Network, we help pastors and church leaders create disciple-making cultures that move beyond activity and focus on discipleship. Through coaching, training, and practical tools, we help churches align their mission, culture, and leadership around making disciples who make disciples.

To learn more about creating a disciple-making culture in your church, visit RDN.org or send us a message.

Which of these five measurements do you currently pay the closest attention to?

Every church is discipling people toward something.The question is whether we're intentional about what they're learning...
10/19/2026

Every church is discipling people toward something.

The question is whether we're intentional about what they're learning.

If a new believer spent six months in your church, what would they walk away knowing?

Would they know how to attend?

How to serve?

How to connect with others?

How to study God's Word?

How to share their faith?

How to help someone else follow Jesus?

Those questions reveal more than a ministry strategy.

They reveal culture.

Because culture isn't just what we say.

Culture is what people experience.

It's what gets modeled, repeated, celebrated, and reproduced.

Jesus didn't simply call His followers to gather information.

He taught them how to live, how to love, and how to help others follow Him.

That's why healthy disciple-making churches intentionally help people move beyond attendance and toward disciple-making.

The goal isn't simply to have people attend church for six months.

The goal is to help them take meaningful steps toward becoming disciples who help others follow Jesus.

At the Relational Discipleship Network, we help pastors and ministry leaders build disciple-making cultures where people don't just participate in church life, but grow into confident disciple-makers. Through coaching, training, and practical tools, we help churches align their culture with the mission Jesus gave His Church. If you'd like to learn more, visit RDN.org or send us a message.

Thank you, Spire, for the photos!

What do you think a new believer would learn about your church in their first six months?

One of our favorite things at RDN is celebrating churches that are intentionally loving and serving their communities.Re...
10/17/2026

One of our favorite things at RDN is celebrating churches that are intentionally loving and serving their communities.

Recently, Gateway Church hosted HayDay, a free community event that welcomed more than 2,500 neighbors for an evening of family fun. The event was made possible by over 180 volunteers who served with joy from setup to teardown.

What stands out most isn't just the attendance or the number of hotdogs served. It's the heart behind it.

Gateway's desire is for every family in their community to know there is a local church that is present, cares, and is there for them.

They believe children are a blessing from God and that families deserve safe, joyful places to make memories together.
Every conversation.
Every laugh.
Every game.
Every one of the 1,700+ hotdogs handed across the table.
All of it communicated a simple message:
"You are loved."

As we often say at RDN, disciple-making starts with people. While events don't make disciples on their own, they create opportunities for relationships, conversations, and connections that can open doors for lasting Kingdom impact.

We're grateful for churches like Gateway Church that are intentionally creating environments where their neighbors feel known, welcomed, and valued.

At the Relational Discipleship Network, we're passionate about helping churches create disciple-making cultures that extend beyond church walls and into their communities. If you're exploring how to build a culture where people follow Jesus and help others follow Him too, we'd love to connect. Learn more at RDN.org.

Thanks for the photos and for sharing how God is moving in Gateway Church and the community! We are blessed to have you in the RDN network!

Every church has obstacles that can quietly undermine a disciple-making culture.Most of the time, they aren't obvious.Th...
10/17/2026

Every church has obstacles that can quietly undermine a disciple-making culture.
Most of the time, they aren't obvious.
They develop slowly over time and eventually become "just the way things are."
One of the most common is consumerism.
People begin viewing church as a place to receive rather than a mission to participate in.

Another is dependency.
Ministry becomes centered around a few leaders rather than equipping believers to minister to others.

And a third is comfort.
People become accustomed to attending, but not necessarily growing, serving, or investing in others.

None of these challenges are solved overnight.
But healthy disciple-making cultures intentionally help people move from consumers to contributors, from spectators to participants, and from followers of Jesus to disciple-makers who help others follow Him too.

The goal isn't simply building a busy church.
The goal is building a church where disciple-making becomes a normal part of everyday life.

Which of these culture killers do you think churches face most often today?

Every church has ministry needs.Children's ministry needs volunteers.Small groups need leaders.The welcome team needs pe...
10/15/2026

Every church has ministry needs.
Children's ministry needs volunteers.
Small groups need leaders.
The welcome team needs people to serve.
Those needs are real.

But if we're not careful, it's easy to view people primarily through the lens of what they can do for the ministry.

Disciple-making invites us to think differently.
Instead of asking:
"Where can we use this person?"
We begin asking:
"How can we help this person grow in their relationship with Jesus and discover the ways God wants to use them?"

That's the difference between recruiting and developing.
Recruiting focuses on filling positions.
Developing focuses on investing in people.

Jesus never treated people as solutions to organizational problems.
He saw potential.
He built relationships.
He challenged people to grow.
He entrusted them with responsibility.
He allowed them to fail.
And over time, those disciples became disciple-makers.

Healthy disciple-making cultures help people become more than volunteers.
They help people become mature followers of Jesus who influence others, develop leaders, and advance God's Kingdom.

The goal isn't simply getting ministry positions filled.
The goal is helping people become disciples who make disciples.
When that becomes the focus, leadership multiplication follows.

Thank you, One Generation Away, for the photos.

How does your church intentionally move people from serving to growing?

Every church has a culture.The question isn't whether culture exists.The question is whether it's producing the outcomes...
10/14/2026

Every church has a culture.
The question isn't whether culture exists.
The question is whether it's producing the outcomes we hope to see.

Culture is revealed through what gets celebrated.
What gets repeated.
What gets rewarded.
And what gets reproduced.
That's why disciple-making cultures require intentional leadership.

If we want people to help others follow Jesus, we have to do more than talk about disciple-making.
We have to model it.
Celebrate it.
Share stories about it.
And create opportunities for people to experience it for themselves.

Over time, people begin to adopt the values they see lived out around them.
That's how culture is formed.
And that's how disciple-making becomes more than a ministry.
It becomes a way of life for the church.

At RDN, we've found that culture shifts when leaders consistently align their vision, relationships, and ministry practices around making disciples who make disciples.

The question isn't simply:
"What culture do we want?"

The better question is:
"What culture are we creating?"

What is one thing your church culture is reproducing really well right now?

Photos: One Generation Away

10/13/2026

Every church has a vision.
The bigger question is:
Does your culture support it?
Too often, leaders cast a compelling vision for disciple-making, leadership development, or church health, only to discover that the existing culture isn't prepared to carry it forward.

Culture is what people do when no one is watching.
It's what gets modeled, celebrated, reinforced, and reproduced.

That's why creating a disciple-making culture requires more than a vision statement. It requires intentional investment in people, consistent leadership, and a commitment to helping others follow Jesus and help others follow Him too.

When culture and vision align, meaningful change becomes possible.
When they don't, even the best vision will struggle to gain traction.

What is one thing you're doing right now to strengthen the culture of your church?

At the Relational Discipleship Network, we're passionate about helping pastors and ministry leaders build healthy disciple-making cultures through coaching, training, and ongoing encouragement. If you'd like to learn more about creating a disciple-making culture in your church, send us a message or visit RDN.org.

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