How to Start Making Disciples When You Don't Know Where to Begin

You believe the Great Commission. You've read Matthew 28 and said yes to it in your heart. But between that yes and Monday morning there's a gap, and its name is: I don't know where to begin.

If that's you, you're in good company. Most followers of Jesus have been told to make disciples far more often than they've been shown how. The good news is that starting is simpler than you think — and Jesus Himself is the one who showed us the way.

Start Where Jesus Started: With Following

When Jesus called His first disciples, He didn't quiz their qualifications first. "Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men" (Mark 1:17). Notice the order: follow, then He makes you, then you fish.

Disciple-making isn't a skill reserved for professionals. It's the natural overflow of following Jesus closely enough to start looking like Him and talking like Him. If you want a fuller picture of what disciple-making actually is, start with our guide: What Is Disciple Making and Why Does It Matter?

Here's a simple path from "I know I should" to "I've started."

Step 1: Pray for the People Around You — by Name

Jesus said, "The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest" (Luke 10:2).

Before you share anything with anyone, start praying. Ask God to send workers — and be willing to be one of them. Then pray for the specific people in your life by name.

Praying first isn't a delay tactic. It changes your eyes. People stop being scenery and start becoming a field white for harvest.

Step 2: Make a Map of the People God Has Already Placed Around You

Take a piece of paper and write down names — actual names — in six spaces of your ordinary life: work, learn, play, shop, family, friends. Who do you see regularly? Who has God already put within arm's reach?

Most believers already know dozens of people. You don't need to find strangers to make disciples. Disciple-making usually begins with the people around your table, your desk, and your driveway.

Step 3: Begin Genuine Spiritual Conversations

Don't open with a presentation. Open with real interest. Ask about their story. Offer to pray for something they're carrying. Notice what they're wrestling with.

Most people are far more open to spiritual conversation than we assume — we're usually the hesitant ones. If you're not sure how to start naturally, we wrote a whole post about it: How to Start a Spiritual Conversation Without Feeling Awkward

Step 4: Share the Gospel in a Way They Can Repeat

When someone wants to hear about Jesus, have something simple ready. We're not meant to invent the words each time, and neither were the first disciples — Jesus taught them a message to carry.

Two of the simplest tools we use:

The Three Circles: God's design, our brokenness, and God's rescue through the gospel. You can draw it on a napkin in three minutes.

The 411 tool: four questions — Why do we make disciples? Who? What? When? — that turn good intentions into a plan.

A tool you can draw on a napkin does more good than a method that needs a seminary degree, because the goal is not only that they hear it, but that they can pass it on: "What you have heard from me... entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also" (2 Timothy 2:2).

Step 5: Help New Believers Obey, Not Just Know

When someone says yes to Jesus, disciple-making has not ended — it has just begun. In the Great Commission, Jesus didn't say "teaching them to know." He said "teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you" (Matthew 28:20).

So help new believers take real steps: profess their faith publicly through baptism, learn to read Scripture for themselves and respond in obedience, pray, and share with the people in their own circle — right away, before they feel ready. (You'll know you're making a disciple when they start making one.)

Step 6: Teach Them to Teach Someone Else

From the very beginning, train every new disciple to pass on what they're receiving. That single habit is the difference between addition and multiplication: one believer plus one believer plus one believer — or one disciple who equips another who equips another (2 Timothy 2:2).

Not sure whether you're ready to disciple someone yet? This will help: 5 Signs You're Ready to Start Discipling Someone

But What If I'm Not Ready?

When we're not practicing, it's usually one of three barriers:

Head — I need more understanding. Then study. But be honest: most of us already know far more than we're obeying.

Heart — something spiritually unhealthy is in the way. Then deal with that first, with God and maybe with a mature believer who can help.

Hands — I need tools and someone to model them. That's the most common barrier, and the easiest to fix.

The answer to "hands" isn't another article. It's watching someone do it, doing it with them, and then doing it yourself — Model, Assist, Watch, Launch.

Your Next Step

Don't wait until you feel qualified. Jesus started with twelve ordinary people, and He's still starting that way.

At MTC Nashville, we help everyday believers move from "I know I should" to "I'm doing it" — with hands-on training, practice with real feedback, and a community of laborers doing it alongside you. If you're ready for more than a good intention, explore a training pathway at https://mtc-nashville.com.

The best time to start making disciples was the day you believed. The second-best time is this week.

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