Christian Focus Publications - First Step Series

The First Step books are available as a boxed set of 10 titles or as individual books (see below)

 

Claire grew up living as part of a traveller community in Scotland. Pregnant as a teenager, hooked on drugs and alcohol, living from one crisis to the next, she feels like a failure and is often wondering, ‘Is God even out there?’

 

Gary was a boxing champ back in his prime. He used to be known around town for being a bit of a thug and a womaniser. He is older now and struggling to make sense of life. He goes to bed each night and asks himself, ‘What’s the point?’

 

Jake has a criminal record as long as your arm. Joyriding cars since he was 14, he lives everyday gambling with his own life and freedom. He is chasing after happiness, listening to his mates, his girlfriend, even his crazy aunt’s tarot cards. Yet he keeps messing up. He wonders, ‘Who should I listen to?’

 

Chances are you have met, walked passed, or maybe you used to be just like Claire, Gary and Jake. What would you do if they walked into your church on Sunday? Or if you sit next to them on the bus on the way to work on Monday? Hundreds of thousands of people living in poor communities around the UK feel like the church is confusing, irrelevant, and not for people like them. The church is ill-equipped and poorly resourced to engage the poor with the gospel. Those that do come to faith are rarely discipled and fewer still become leaders in the local church. Is it any wonder that the least reached places in Europe are our poorest places?

 

Mez McConnell is the pastor of Niddrie Community Church. Niddrie is one of the most deprived communities in Scotland. He is the editor of the First Steps of Discipleship Series from 9Marks and 20schemes. Mez has brought together a group of ministry leaders who are actively seeking to make disciples from deprived communities, such as Mike McKinley, Sharon Dickens, Steve Timmis, Isaac Adams and others. Together, they have produced a discipleship resource that is theologically robust yet completely accessible.

 

The series answers the hard questions that someone new to the faith asks:

GOD: Is He Out There?

WAR: Why Did Life Just Get Harder?

VOICES: Who Am I Listening To? 

BIBLE: Can We Trust It?

BELIEVE: What Should I Know? 

CHARACTER: How Do I Change?

TRAINING: How Do I Grow As A Christian?

CHURCH: Do I Have To Go? 

RELATIONSHIPS: How Do I Make Things Right?

SERVICE: How Do I Give Back?

 

First Steps presents biblical truths in a format that is interactive and engaging. Many of us comprehend better as we hear and interact with a story. This discipleship series uses narrative in such a way that keeps the reader’s attention and invites them to interact with a character that feels very familiar to them. Each book in this series tells the story of a different character who is wrestling with the same questions as the reader. First Steps doesn’t dumb down the truth, rather it packages deep truths in a way that can be understood, even by people who may struggle to read.

 

In this series, Mez and others teach foundational Christian beliefs about God and His Church in a way that is clear and jargon free. It works great as a one-to-one discipleship tool, a small group study, an evangelistic resource, or even for a youth group. Biblical discipleship is a sign of a healthy church. First Steps will help you as you seek to grow new believers into mature disciples of Christ.