The journey that God has launched each one of us on, from the moment He conceived a thought of our individual being, is one of a loving relationship. Through each of our personal journeys, in the string of relationships we call life, He brought us to a point where we heard His calling and became a Christian. As a Christian, it is our responsibility and purpose to become more Christ-like.

In striving to be Christ-like, we should focus on the things that He taught us. Jesus asked us to be in a loving relationship with God and with each other. He also asked that we be life-long learners and teachers along the way (discipled /disciplers). Jesus also spoke of faith and works, being versus doing. Therefore, in our “Christian Journey” of becoming more like Christ, we must focus on Being God lovers and Being God’s people lovers, as we disciple. Our actions must focus on creating authentic relational environments that foster Biblical discipleship and in that process learn what it means to be Christ-like and help those around us to become the same. This journey we embark on typically requires a change in our hearts.

Within each of us is a “Moral Compass” which directs our motivations and behaviors. As Christians we try to set this compass towards Christ. Our life’s experiences have formed this compass which directs the alignment process. The problem with this compass is that life may have dealt us obstacles which act like mini-magnets and draw us off course. This compass is comprised of our principles, values and beliefs. Life experiences and those around us may have taught us “I must be good at Everything” or “Everybody must Love me” kinds of beliefs. These beliefs are false, but then subsequently drive our motivations and behaviors.

We know how things are supposed to feel when we are in alignment, we are at ease. However when we become mis-aligned we feel dis–ease. Our conscience might give us a pang if we exaggerate an accomplishment. Inversely, when someone pays us a compliment, we may feel undeserving or our conscious again denies the words spoken. These are examples of mis-aligned or emotional dis–eased responses.

When we have been mis-aligned for so long, and God brings about situations where He re-aligns us, we feel this same dis-ease. This is called “Getting out of our Comfort Zone.” When we are in our comfort zones, we have no reason to change or learn anything new, there is no motivation to change. However, if we look at the simplest definition of Christian – it is being Christ-like. I know I am not yet like Christ in all ways, so I must be discipled out of my comfort zone to bring about alignment with Christ and not my world. Soon I will re-align with Christ and that dis-ease will be healed. My job as a discipler is to help nudge those around me out of their comfort zones, so that they will seek God to discover where they, and the things that their motivations and actions involve, are mis-aligned.

As you can see God wishes to speak to us individually, so that we may bring about corporately the things He wishes in His Bride. Therefore to begin this journey, we must evaluate where we are. The DMP does this by utilizing a series of assessments. These assessments are individual and organizational, some are self-assessments and some are 360° assessments. A 360° assessment requests others to assess what they see in you or within the church. This type of assessment allows people to share how they perceive you or the church, not define who you are or the church is. Accompanying each of these assessments is an associated Summit Experience. A Summit Experience is defined as “the highest level of knowledge available within the scope of your vision.” This experience allows us to reach a current summit and discover if there is another one in front of us. We retreat from our daily life and evaluate what God is trying to show us through the data shared in the assessment. Typically this provides us with new insight, define skills we need to learn, shows us blind spots we were not aware of, or exposes sin we were not aware of that influences how we relate to others. These Summit Experiences are facilitated with a heart of peace, not a heart of war, meaning we will not force you to change, but walk along side of you and ask if you wish to change. Each participant decides how far out of their comfort zone they wish to journey. It will always remain a safe place to discover what God wishes to show you. The Summit Experience concludes with a game planning phase to help you choose the next step, individually or corporately, who will help mentor you and who will help hold you accountable to making the changes you desire to make. As you can guess, such a shared experience with other leaders within your organization creates a sense of relationship.