Jerry Lewis of Center, Texas shares how families can rediscover discipleship and purpose in a distracted world.
(Isstories Editorial):- Center, Texas Sep 18, 2025 (Issuewire.com) – The room is quiet, but Jerry Lewis leans forward with intensity, his words landing with the kind of weight that feels less like conversation and more like conviction. “If we don’t know what we’re doing, and we don’t know why we’re doing it,” he says, “then how becomes more important than anything else. And when how matters more than what or why, we may succeed at the task, but fail in purpose.”
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“If we don’t know what we’re doing … we may succeed at the task–but fail in purpose.”
It’s the kind of statement that sounds simple, but in Lewis’ world, it’s a lens for everything: faith, family, discipleship, and the way modern life so often misses the point.
The Distracted Family
Lewis worries that families today are more distracted than ever. Screens buzz, schedules overflow, and even within the walls of the home, silence rarely means stillness. “I know many people who have grown old in Christ,” he says, “but have never grown up in Christ.”
The problem, as he sees it, isn’t that people have abandoned religion altogether, it’s that they’ve forgotten discipleship. “A disciple isn’t passive. A disciple learns daily, becoming, working. All saved people are disciples.”
“Don’t let the world conform you; let God transform you.”
In his telling, the modern family doesn’t just need better time management or a Sunday routine, it needs a transformation from the inside out. “Don’t let the world conform you; let God transform you,” he insists, pointing back to Romans 12. “Conforming happens from the outside. Transforming happens from the inside.”
Beyond Conversion
Lewis takes aim at a common misconception in today’s churches: that salvation and discipleship can be separated. “We’ve taught people to think they can be saved and then later decide if they want to be disciples. That’s just not in Scripture,” he says. “The moment you are saved, you are learning to be more like Christ.”
He flips open his Bible to Matthew 28–the Great Commission–and runs his finger across the words. “Jesus gave only one command: make disciples. As you go about your day, whatever you do, make disciples. That’s not a program. That’s life.”
But Lewis is quick to bring the concept down to the personal level. “Lordship goes beyond words,” he says, pausing for effect. “The best way to guard this is to ask yourself: How has the Lord changed me?”
“It’s not about perfection,…but direction.”
It’s not about perfection, he explains, but direction. Families, churches, and individuals must wrestle with whether God is shaping them daily or whether they’re simply going through motions. “People see Christ formed in you and expressed through you,” he says. “That’s discipleship.”
Teaching, Modeling, and Accountability
For Lewis, discipleship lives in three streams: teaching, modeling, and accountability. He notes that while teaching is crucial, it’s never enough on its own. “You can only teach what you’ve learned,” he says. “The Bible is central, but people also need to see what that looks like lived out.”
He tells the story of Paul mentoring Timothy, pointing out how discipleship and mentoring were woven together in Acts. “It’s about bringing someone alongside you, not just telling them, but showing them, encouraging them, walking with them.”
Accountability, he adds, isn’t about condemning someone’s failures but pointing them back to Christ. “Talk with them, pray with them, encourage them. Focus on what they’re doing well as much as what they need to grow in. That’s how families thrive. That’s how faith grows.”
A Process and a Presence
Lewis admits discipleship is a process, one that unfolds over time. But he’s adamant it’s also more than that. “Discipleship is salvation in motion,” he says. “The nearness of God isn’t something we chase on weekends. It’s in the everyday. It’s how you parent, how you work, how you forgive, how you pray.”
“Discipleship is salvation in motion. The nearness of God isn’t something we chase on weekends.”
And in a world that prizes efficiency and noise, his challenge feels countercultural. “Families don’t need more distractions. They need presence, the presence of God, and the presence of one another in Christ.”
Lewis smiles, almost to himself, before offering a final thought. “Discipleship has never been about making church members. It’s about making transformed people. God is collecting a people for himself, from all nations, and our role is to live as if we believe that’s true. That’s what changes homes. That’s what changes the world.”
This article was originally published by IssueWire. Read the original article here.
