Emotional Discipleship

Recently read a book called The Emotionally Healthy Church. It highlighted some interesting things with regards to how we disciple people within the church.
Often there appears to be a strictly ‘spiritual’ focus to our discipleship encouraging people to study the scriptures and to journey forward in their understanding of the spiritual disciplines: prayer, fasting silence etc. Peter Scazzero [author] makes this confession as the pastor of a church
“I have misdiagnosed people who have come to me for help. When someone who had relational problems or emotional issues, I applied every spiritual remedy I knew. Unfortunately, many people remained sick and some even ‘died’ under my leadership.”

This is a terrible confession to have to make but one I think many leaders of churches or various ministries within the church would similarly need to confess if honest. He continues
“Today, I no longer simply pray and hope for the best. Each of the above people required a level of discipleship that went beyond a skin deep, superficial, quick fix… As a leader I had to undergo a revolution in the way I understood and approached discipleship.
The sad truth is that too little difference exists, in terms of emotional and relational maturity, between God’s people inside the church and those outside who claim no relationship to Jesus Christ. Even more alarming, when you go beyond the praise and worship of our large meetings and conventions and into the homes and small-group meetings of God’s people, you often find a valley littered by broken and failed relationships.”

His points are valid, and, tragically true! This revolution in discipleship is maybe something that many of need to consider. I see it as a need to look into what has shaped people emotionally. We can use the phrase ‘get into the word and pray’ as a cop out for actually investing deep, meaningful ‘Jesus-like’ time with the people we are leading looking into the things that have shaped and moulded them emotionally.
People can often be your poster children of biblical knowledge and church attendance but be immature and dangerous emotionally, tossed about like waves of the sea, as one biblical author would say.
Conclusion? Well let us in no way hinder our desire to disciple people spiritually (if you are not doing it, or involved in it, get started) but maybe we need to take a long look at how we help ourselves and others develop emotionally and work through things (often deep and powerful) that shape us on this level.