It’s football season! As an avid sports’ fan, I love the fall. College football on Saturdays and NFL on Sundays. As a UNC Tarheel fan and a Carolina Panthers fan, I’ve not had much football joy over the last few years, but that doesn’t stop me watching the games and rooting on my team.

Football in particular and sports in general are about processes and outcomes. Practice, training, and preparation get teams ready for games. Ultimately, outcomes are about winning and losing, but nearly every coach has to determine whether or not his team is getting better. If the team improves even without winning, there can still be positive outcomes. Eventually with sports, the only outcome that matters is the win/loss record.

Our Christian journey overlaps with sports in ways of discipline, training, and self-control. Paul illustrated faith with the discipline of running a race:

²⁴ Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. ²⁵ Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. ²⁶ So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air. ²⁷ But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.
1 Corinthians 9:24-27

Notice the goal of Paul’s self-control and discipline–an imperishable wreath or reward.

The goal of Christian living is Christ-likeness and imperishable reward in heaven. This is the journey of discipleship for the Christian. We are to follow Jesus in order to become more like Jesus.

At Wilkesboro Baptist, we’ve defined our disciple-making mission as leading our neighbors and the nations to follow Jesus. We seek to fulfill our mission in four steps: worshiping, learning, serving, and replicating. Each of those steps is met through our programming windows, organizational structure, and relational engagement.

In part, we measure these steps by identifying the number of participants in each arena. Another way of measuring our mission occurs through 8 Journey Outcomes.

Each outcome is a measurable practice that intersects with our mission steps. These 8 Journey Outcomes are repeatable, trackable, and measurable.

Journey Outcome #1–Say or sing praise to God daily from Scripture and in prayer # worship.

Our mission begins with worship. Corporate worship begins with personal worship. Gathered worship starts with private worship. If we’re living our mission, we should say or sing praise to God daily from Scripture and in prayer.

Like I noted in my recent post on the God value, God is always worthy of our praise and thanks. The best thought you will think today will be the true and praiseworthy thought you think about God.

Practicing this Journey Outcome is straightforward. Here are some basic disciplines to imbed this outcome in your life.

• Read the Bible daily. As you read, look for something about God in Scripture to offer thanks and praise. Pause in prayer, song, or statement to offer praise to God. I read Psalm 46 this morning, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” I was able to thank and praise God for the truth of Psalm 46 this morning in my time of Bible reading and prayer.
• Listen to worship or sacred music. Make time in your commute or at home or as you exercise or walk to listen to praise and worship music. Sing along. Praise God for who he is. Singing a hymn, worship song, or chorus at family worship is a good way to imbed this outcome in your home.
• Tell of God’s greatness. In your relationships and interactions with others, look for ways to praise God and thank God in conversation. The more we are mindful of God’s greatness the more we will share him with others. Asking family members to thank or praise God for something at mealtimes is a way to practice this outcome together.
• Daily praise prepares us for gathered praise. As I write this post, it’s Friday. Practice this outcome today and tomorrow and Sunday morning personally. Watch it prepare you for corporate singing on Sunday. Try this for a week and see what it does for your gathered worship the following Sunday.

For the next 8 Fridays (including today), I will be writing about the 8 Journey Outcomes for our 4 mission steps flowing from our mission to lead our neighbors and the nations to follow Jesus. If you’re a part of Wilkesboro Baptist, here’s my challenge to you: embed these Journey Outcomes in your daily life. If you’re leading a Sunday school class or discipleship group, share these posts with your group. Encourage those you’re leading to embed these practices in their lives.

Let’s lead others to follow Jesus today by saying or singing praise to God today through Scripture and in prayer.

Photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash

I would love to hear how you are practicing these outcomes in your life. Share a story or a practice that helps you say or sing praise to God daily using the form below. I might use it in a sermon or blog. I’m always looking for additional applications to biblical truth.