We Are Excavators

"As you go, make disciples." - Matthew 28:19 When Jesus said "make disciples," He was inviting us into the same kind of life He had been forming in the men and women who walked with Him. A disciple is someone who learns from Jesus how to live like Jesus. And Jesus Himself defined what that looks like. At the end of the Sermon on the Mount He said: "The one who hears My words and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock." - Matthew 7:24 Luke adds, "He dug down deep and laid the foundation on the rock." - Luke 6:48 For years I taught that if someone wants their life to withstand the storms they'll face, they need to build their life on the words of Jesus. But that's not what He said. He said the rock is hearing and obeying His teaching. A disciple leans in. A disciple listens deep. A disciple digs- down to what Jesus said, into what Jesus commands. Digging demands engagement, attention. Excavating dirt, roots, rocks- whatever stands between you and the bedrock. This is the work of an Excavator- someone who keeps digging until they reach the rock of His teaching, obeyed. And when the storms come, it's the Excavator's life that stands- not because he avoided the rain, but because he built on obedience to Jesus' words. So making disciples means helping others dig- opening His words together, learning to obey them, and walking with fellow Excavators as we build our lives on the rock.