This is where Jesus hand-picked His disciples to come walk with him. Some scholars believe he may have picked from 500 followers as he was choosing from John's followers at the time. This phase lasts until the "new" wears off.

Your Disciples are excited to have been hand picked and probably have no idea what to expect. Your expectation that they have a healthy "abiding" in their life should probably be thrown out the window here!

You need to respond during this season with high direction. Lay out your plan and move forward without asking for feedback. You are the leader and this is where you establish it. Jesus did not ask His disciples to vote or decide where he would travel next. He was humble and loved them and so this is where you are learning to do the same.

This phase is the most critical stage in the process. This is where Jesus' disciples had to decide if they had made a mistake in following Him, as they were becoming outlaws to the religious system. They were faced with death threats and excommunication while all the time having difficulty understanding Jesus’ teaching. Their confidence in Jesus—compared to the external consequences of following him—was their burden to bear. Some of the disciples progressed through this phase. But even Jesus lost one in this season. Remember, no servant is greater than his master.

Your Disciple’s enthusiasm for group may be low here. They will feel like they aren't making progress and may feel stuck as they are not experiencing any breakthrough. Their warfare may increase here and fear of letting go of the "one thing" that the Lord wants from them may cause even more stress. What's more, based on their maturity, the reason they aren't having mountain-top breakthroughs and are stuck in the valley may be perceived as your fault.

You respond as the visionary/encourager and truth teller. This phase will test you more than any other, and you will begin to question your ability. Your leadership and identity will be called into question by you yourself, your disciples and the enemy. Relational friction may be high and turning back into D1 will be what your flesh wants to do so that everyone will feel good again. DON'T DO IT! Before you reach out to your spiritual parent, reach out to Jesus. He has been there and has promised to never leave you, and how much more when you are being obedient to His Word. He will fight for you and will carry you through this! He will form you into himself here! If you are leading a D-group, and you have never been through this, you have not discipled. It will end and D3 will be sweeter than you can imagine. You know what they need, you have seen it; help them walk through it.

Once Jesus had walked through some hard things with his disciples, and prior to the cross he says to them, "I no longer call you servants but friends because a servant does not know His master's business." This phase is like D1 on steroids. The trust in the room has grown to where being open, honest and vulnerable are the norm and conversations are Spirit-filled and Spirit-led.

Your Disciples are now experiencing something they may have never known—true fellowship with other believers. With Jesus on the throne, the pressure in their lives has diminished allowing for a new freedom. Even if this freedom is small, they have been trained how to achieve freedom in other areas of their life.

You can now begin to move to a more democratic style. Allow the Spirit to guide your conversations and enjoy what the Lord has done in and through you as you watch the sacrifice of your time pay massive dividends through Jesus. Begin to relinquish control, letting them lead the conversations. Up, In and Out will all be sweeter here.

Finally, Jesus sent out His disciples, promising that He would be with them and that, "all authority in heaven and earth was given to him" so that they (we) could do this. This is a powerful statement for all involved with disciple-making. The disciples knew what to do because Jesus had shown them. Now the disciples became the vehicle that allowed you and I to know what Jesus did, does, and continues to do. If the disciples had not gone out as Jesus commanded, and if Jesus had not equipped them, how would you or I know Him now?

Your Disciples may not want to leave the nest. In fact you may hear them say that they are not ready to do this on their own and more transformation is needed. Or they may beg to be let go so others can experience the same transformation. Regardless, they are on the verge of multiplication, and their next step of growth is pastoring the few to which the Lord has called them. Just think of the amount of growth you experienced in leading them!

You help them bridge the gap between this level of intimacy. You may wish to meet every other week or monthly for a short time as they begin to gather their people and lead. Remember, the opportunity for them to do for others what you have done for them is their Kairos, not yours.