*DAILY DEW 1/JUNE/2023* *GROWTH DEMANDS TRAINING* (II) _Key Bible Text:_ *"Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls. And they continued stedfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers."* (Acts 2:41-42 (KJV)) _Bible Insight:_ If your desire for numerical increase agrees in intent with God's desire, then your FOCUS will be on ensuring that you have PROPERLY TRAINED men who will ensure that this discipleship is effectively done. If you neglect this, and just keep going after increase, then clearly, you want increase for ulterior, selfish, and carnal reasons. We are often swift to make reference to the addition of 3,000 souls to the church on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:41), and the eventual increase to 5,000 men (Acts 4:4), and the steady increase from there upward. We want the same. Don't we? After all, it's the same Spirit at work then, who is at work now. But here is something we probably have not properly thought about. According to Luke's account, there were about 120 DISCIPLES gathered together upon Jesus' ascension, awaiting the outpouring of the Spirit (Acts 1:15). Paul puts the number of disciples that Jesus appeared to at 500 (1Corinthians 15:6). Now, think about it. If all they had was 120 properly trained men, that would be ratio 25 new converts to 1 discipler. If we go with 500 trained men, that puts it at 6:1. Point is, they had already trained hands to handle the discipling of that influx of multitudes. The eventual outcome of that is seen in Acts 6:7 *..."the word of God increased, and the number of DISCIPLES MULTIPLIED GREATLY in Jerusalem...."* The platform for discipleship was set and thus, the new converts were well discipled. So, I ask you, dear Man of God/disciple/believer, how many men have you trained today who can EFFECTIVELY disciple those multitudes you want to see come in? There is no Pastor/church worker I know, who aggressively went after the numbers without prioritizing the training of the men to handle it, who did not compromise on proper discipleship process and who did not suffer a leadership crisis. Because the challenge is this: if you have more numbers than the trained men that you have, you will be pressured to appoint emergency leaders, who have no proper training at all either in true followership or leadership, and the consequence is that, such men will eventually become your greatest headache. _MEDITATION:_ *God doesn't just want to add more men to you just so your building can be full; He wants men trained.* *#Popoola_Oluwatobi* *#Daily_Wisdom_for_living* *#Becoming_More_Like_Jesus* *#The_Rise_of_An_Army* *#Daily_Dew_Devotional* *#Hello_JUNE,2023* ❤ *#Guest_Message* Links To Visit: *FB Pages* https://www.facebook.com/DavidJoshuaEgbochuo/ https://www.facebook.com/thedavidgen/ https://www.facebook.com/THEREVIVALCORPS/ *Telegram Group:* https://t.me/joinchat/NzXQlVc9Hx7LfaRSnh9fHg Feel Free to Share with Friends. God bless you...