Overall Plan of the Series

The Joy of Christian Discipleship Series is being developed by Dr. Bill Morehouse and his experienced team as a coordinated sequence of seven concise but thorough study guides on living Christian faith and discipleship that can be used as personal devotional guides or, even better, for small group study.

The first three guides, published in October 2020, constitute Course 1, a full course that goes in depth into the Celebrate Salvation approach to discipleship, starting with conversion to Christ in Saved, then progressing to maturing in grace in Sanctified, and reaching out to share with others in Sent. Based on personal experience and molded by the time-honored insights of previous successful revivals like the Oxford Group movement and the effectiveness of 12-Step and Celebrate Recovery programs, this approach outlines and describes the stages and steps that characterize God’s activity in the awakening of living faith and how we can participate in fruitful discipleship. An optional companion book of Handouts written by Dr. Morehouse and posted individually on this website is also available.

An 8-week devotional guide, Essentials of the Christian Faith, which will be composed almost entirely of Scripture verses that cover the 3 Stages and 7 Steps in Course 1, is under development and due out in 2023.

The remaining three study guides in The Joy of Christian Discipleship Series make up Course 2. The first two have been published and the third is underway, starting with Awakening, an introductory study of the history and process of spiritual awakening in individuals, groups, and entire communities, followed by Kingdom and finally by Heaven, due out in 2023, which go in greater depth into the goal and ultimate destiny of living faith developed through discipleship.

Books 1-3  — The Joy of Christian Discipleship Course 1

Course 1: Established in 3 Stages and 7 Steps is a three-part group study series that may either follow Essentials (see below) or stand alone. Each of the of three small 68-page workbooks covers a Stage in the discipleship of a committed Christian believer, starting with the first 3 Steps of conversion to faith in Saved, followed by the second 3 Steps of growth in commitment, holiness, and maturity in Sanctified, and finishing  with the 7th Step of sharing the Great Commission in Sent. Each guide contains twelve 4-page weekly studies: four studies on each of the three Steps in the first two booklets and four studies on each of the three dynamics of carrying out Step 7 in Word, Deed, and Power in the third. The course workbooks are designed to serve as study guides for small ministry-sponsored discipleship groups of 2-12 members (ideally 3-8 committed). Each of the three guides can be completed in about 12 weekly group sessions over a 3-month period. This way the complete course can be completed in 9-10 months with breaks for holidays. New small groups may gather and start at any time with leaders who have already gone through this or similar material themselves.

Status: Available now! Click cover images below to read more about each book and purchase your copies.

Handouts 1

Each book in the course has a number of supportive handouts linked on our Resources page as printable PDF files. This volume contains 26 of the major course handouts and worksheets.

Full Course 1 plus Handouts in 1 volume

Full Course 1 includes all three workbooks along with their associated handouts and worksheets in one convenient and economical 8.5″ x 11″ coil bound volume, especially appealing to group leaders. Individual study guides have the advantage of being smaller in size and allowing groups to start with the first volume and download their handouts before committing to the full course.

By consolidating all the material in one book, this volume has the advantage of convenience as well as a larger format that allows more room for participants in the course to record their responses.

Price considerations: The 3 individual workbooks presented above are list priced at $10.00 each, and the Handouts volume adds another $12.50. Our new Course 1 plus Handouts is listed for $35.00, which represents a $7.50 savings before applying any of our generous volume discounts.

Books under development in The Joy of Christian Discipleship Series

Books 5-7  — The Joy of Christian Discipleship Course 2

Course 2: Equipped with Understanding is being developed in a similar way to that in Course 1 as three books, 5-7, which will complete the Series, the first about the Awakening of living faith, the second our citizenships in the world and the Kingdom of God, and the third our ultimate destiny as inheritors of eternal life extending into Heaven. These workbooks are designed to serve as study guides for individuals or small discipleship groups of 2-12 (ideal 3-8 committed) members. Each of the three studies can be completed in about 12 weekly sessions over one semester or 3-month period with breaks for holidays.

The material presented in Course 2 will overlap and go beyond that found in Course 1 in a somewhat denser writing style. As such, the course will easily stand alone and is designed to be studied either before or after Course 1 by mature believers, relatively new believers, or even members of churches who might not consider themselves to be “evangelical” in their focus or traditional affiliations. New groups may gather and start at any time with motivated leaders who have good reputations in their local churches. Unlike Course 1 which relies on having separate groups for men and women to preserve safe sharing of sensitive personal material, Course 2 material can be handled well by mixed groups.

Status: Books 5 and 6 are available now – Click on images below for more information. Book 7 is in the writing phase preparing for Full Course 2 and Handouts to be completed and published in 2023. 

Handouts 2

Key Supporting Material

Pending completion
The supportive handouts for each guide in Course 2 will be gathered and published in this book.

Coming in 2023! Full Course 2 plus Handouts in 1 volume

FullIn a similar fashion to Course 1, once all three workbooks in Course 2 are published they will be combined and included in this convenient and economical 8.5″ x 11″ coil bound volume along with their associated handouts. Individual study guides have the advantage of being smaller in size and allowing groups to start with the first volume and download their handouts as PDFs before committing to the full course. However, by consolidating all the material in one book, this volume will have the advantage of convenience as well as a larger format that allows more room for participants in the course to record their responses. Especially appealing for group leaders.

Price considerations: The 3 individual workbooks displayed above will be list priced at $10.00 each, and the Handouts 2 volume will add another $12.50. Our new Full Course 2 plus Handouts will list for $35.00, representing a $7.50 savings.