The Importance of Training

Under pressure, you don’t rise to the occasion, you sink to the level of your training.

Jon Gordon, Navy Seal

We all have areas in our lives that are in need of growth and development, and it is no different in our spiritual walk. In 2 Peter 3:18, Peter challenges believers to “Grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!” We also recognize that certain unhealthy habits are hindering our walk and yet they are hard to surrender to the Lord. If each of us considered the issue seriously, the list might be long. Growth in any area will not come without sacrifice and discipline because everything worthwhile is “on the other side of hard.”

1 Timothy 4:7-8 says, “Train yourself to be godly. For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.”  

The harder you train, the more prepared you will be to handle the many pressures of life and ministry. In the same way, spending the summer overseas sharing the good news this summer has many unique challenges, such as:

• 1. Experiencing a new culture and language.
• 2. Working in close quarters with a small team.
• 3. Engaging socially with new people.
• 4. Encountering intense spiritual warfare. 

For these reasons it is important to commit to training. You will need to “fall back” on your training all summer long.  

Watch this video

This video demonstrates some important principles about training:

Goals of Training

Likewise, we have two main goals in our OneLink Training: 

Three Challenges for Spiritual Growth:

• 1. Am I willing to change?
  • I will resist pride and be quick to admit weaknesses and surrender entitlements. 1 Pet. 5:5-6, Prov. 16:18
  • I will be teachable and learn from Jesus’ example in order to be more like Him; hating sin and pursuing greater holiness in my life. 1 Pet. 1:15-16, 2 Tim. 2:22

• 2. Am I committed to training?
  • I choose to work hard to grow in Godliness for the glory of God among the nations. 1 Tim. 4:7-8, 1 Cor. 9:24-27
  • I will discipline myself and give myself fully to the work of the Lord. Gal. 6:9, 1 Cor. 15:58

• 3. Am I depending on God?
  • I will not trust in my own understanding of things but have faith in the Lord’s ways and His plans. Prov. 3:5-6, Prov. 19:21 
  • I will grow in trusting God by recognizing I can do nothing on my own. John 15:5, Luke 17:5

One of the greatest obstacles you will face in preparing for this summer trip is FEAR!  

Fear of the unknown challenges you will experience, fear of the pain and sacrifice required to meet those challenges; and fear of failure. 

Failure is humbling, and you are sure to experience some failures during the training process. But spiritual growth is a process, and failure is a normal part of the process that helps you recognize areas where improvement is needed. Do not allow the enemy to twist training failures into feelings of doubt, guilt or shame. Rather ask God, “What do you want me to learn from this and what are the next steps needed to grow spiritually?” 

“Failure is not final, it’s feedback!”

Hebrews 12:1-3 says, “Since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.”

• A “great cloud of witnesses” is cheering you on!
• Throw off any sin or idol that hinders you from running well.
• Run with perseverance.
• Fix your eyes on Jesus. 
• Endure hardship with joy.
• Do not grow weary and lose heart.  

Trust in God, be teachable, put in the reps, get those spiritual gains! 

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OneLink Value: Commitment 

“The godly may trip seven times, but they will get up again.”

Proverbs 24:16 (NLT)

Choose one verse for Memorization: 

• Galatians 6:9
• Hebrews 12:1-3
• 1 Corinthians 15:58

Commitment defined:  

1. The state or quality of being dedicated to a cause, activity.
2. An engagement or obligation that restricts freedom of action in another direction.  

“Commitment is what transforms a promise into reality.” 

Abraham Lincoln

A similar word is “Grit.”  From Angela Duckworth’s book Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance, “Grit means you have courage and show the strength of your character…. A person with true grit has passion and perseverance. Grit refers to a student’s ability to persist after setbacks. Goals are set and followed through. A person who works really hard to follow through on commitments has true grit.”

Optional: Take a quick survey to find your level of Grit?  Angela Duckworth’s Grit Scale

When you committed to this summer team, you also committed to the training process required to prepare you for the trip. In short, you are committing to God and your teammates that you will:

• 1. Personally abide with Christ daily through spending time with God regularly, reading your Bible, praying for team needs.  
• 2. Participate in the spring team building process by meeting with your team to complete the lessons and work on assignments.
• 3. Put in the administrative work to raise the funds necessary for your trip.  
• 4. Get reps in “engaging and inviting” people –  

“Eternity is worth the awkward!” 

Your primary goal this summer is two-fold: to engage with lost people in friendly conversation and invite them to learn more about Jesus.

• ENGAGE a stranger in conversation:

• A. Begin training now by making an honest attempt to initiate conversation with one new person before the next OneLink U meeting (7 people total for the spring). Take opportunity to meet other students in class, people living near you, co-workers, or international students on campus. The hardest part is saying “Hello!”
• B. Ask questions about “their story”:
  • 1.) What is your area of study; hobbies and personal interests; family background; difficult life challenges.
  • 2.) Listen to their answers!
• C. Share about “your story”: personal life, family, etc. Connect on shared interests.

• INVITE them to learn more about Jesus:

• A. Guide the conversation to spiritual matters with questions like:
  • 1.) Are you interested in spiritual things?
  • 2.) Do you consider yourself a person of faith?
  • 3.) Were you raised from any religious background?
• B. Guide the conversation toward the gospel:
  • Ask permission to share about your spiritual perspective:
    • 1.) Can I share about why faith is important to me?
    • 2.) Can I tell you how God has made a difference in my life? (testimony)
    • 3.) Would you allow me to share what is the main message of the Bible? (gospel)
• C. Invite them to a campus ministry event, to attend church, a Bible study, or to meet again for coffee to discuss further.

Final Step