God's Club

During a question and answer session this weekend a prospect with previous motorcycle club experience asked me "James, is this your club, or our club?"
The question made me chuckle because I understand it so well. It may well be that he's been burned by the actions of the leaders of a previous club.

But the answer is simple. This is God's club. I can't take any of the credit for the dramatic and amazing explosion of growth of Disciple Christian MC, and neither could that prospect, even if he gets his patch, or anyone else. This is not an endeavor for man to control or take credit for.

How is it God's club? Simple, we pray before we act. We take time to consider situations and pray over them. We ask the Holy Spirit to guide us, and the other leaders of the club. I can give many example of amazing supernatural intervention in the path of this club, too many to count.

The simple truth is, God wants to change men. He wants to intervene in their lives, strengthen their relationships with Him, touch their families, and mend broken hearts. He wants to reconcile them to Himself. And He uses this club, and the men in it, to do it.

Trying to possess this club, and make it mine, or ours, would be putting flesh in control rather than the Spirit. Ive found that it's very important to God to be able to reach people,and the moment His servants start serving themselves, and taking control away from Him, God tends to deal with them, or just plain move them aside.

Remember that we may put in work, but it's God who builds. And just like anywhere else in life, the builder owns the house.

If the Lord does not build the house, the work of the builders is useless; if the Lord does not protect the city, it does no good for the sentries to stand guard.  It is useless to work so hard for a living, getting up early and going to bed late. For the Lord provides for those he loves, while they are asleep.
Psalm 127:1-2 GNT

An Ecumenical Club

The foundation of this club is that we are an ecumenical organization. That means we accept people from all denominations of the Christian faith, Baptist, Catholic, Pentecostal, Lutheran, Word of Faith, doesn't matter. The second Foundation is Unity, we do not have divisions and arguments on our internal web pages. End of story. That means if somebody else is a Catholic and you think Catholicism is of the devil, you don't get to mention it on this page. If you want to have a face-to-face conversation with them you can. But if it's a doctrinal debate, it doesn't belong on our pages.

Respecting the traditions of others is vital. I know Catholics who are far more devout and spiritually followers of Christ than certain Charismatics, and vice versa. I also know Catholic Charismatics. Jumping into vitriolic 'I'm right and you're wrong' is neither helpful nor kind. What to you is an evil heresy might simply be a misunderstanding on your part. It may also be wrong, but Internet arguments solve nothing. Seeking to understand others in their walk, seeking common ground is far more useful. Especially if your goal is to accomplish change. And all of that requires personal interaction. 

Go look a fool and argue on someone else's page. Or better yet, learn not to have what  Paul calls useless debates. 

The Christian faith is splintered enough already. Christians point fingers at each other, Christian's push each other away through debates enough. Not here. Our pages are to uplift, edify, and support.

James Disciple Johnson
Natl President and Founder
Disciple Christian Motorcycle Club

When National Comes Rolling In

When National comes rolling into your charter, its important to put your big boy pants on. We arrive with 48 hours to teach you the Disciple Way. That means in a very short time, literally everything you may have thought about Disciple might be critiqued, and you might be asked to change: from how you ride in the pack (never ever pass the front left bike), to how you introduce yourself, to how you talk (cussing is not appropriate), to how you drink alcohol in front of me (dont ever ever do that), to the location of your patches.

If you take offense to things easily, you will not learn the lessons you are being taught. You will wonder why we are so militant. You will eventually leave the club saying we take things way to seriously. The truth is, its because we want you to look good, but more importantly, we want you not to look like a fool when you are in front of the other charters, or even 1%ers.

So, be sure to have your antenna up, listen closely, answer honestly, don't attempt to BS us, learn quickly, and for goodness sake be diligent, polite and calm as you are being taught. Because we are looking to excise pride and anger issues, and they will become the focus of the weekend.

ACCOUNTABILITY BROTHERHOOD

I've been cussing too much the last few months. Some happenings have caused me to take my focus off of heaven, and put it on earth. And if there's ever anything that'll make you cuss, it's the things that happen on Earth.

So I'm working to fix that, but I can't do it alone. I need God, and I need you.

First and foremost I have to focus my attention on the things that are happening in heaven, focus my attention on my Daddy, and Jesus. Daily Word and prayer time, daily worship time, filling my mind with music that fills my mind with the spirit.

But let's talk about accountability. You should never let me get away with cussing in front of you. You should never let me get away with drinking in front of you. You wouldn't be cool with me showing up and smoking pot in front of you would you? You wouldn't be cool with me showing up with some girl on my bike that I'm not married to would you? So why would you let me get away with cussing? We're not in this club tell dirty jokes to each other, we're not in this club to accept each other's faults, we are in this club to push each other further.

That's right, I'm giving you permission to shame me if I screw up in front of you. Let me know, in love, that it's not okay for me to act out in front of you. Just because I'm your brother doesn't mean that you let me get away with things! Brotherhood in the world is accepting someone no matter what they do, brotherhood in the church is helping each other get closer to the cross.

A tool the devil uses, is to make you act like it's okay when other people screw up. After all you wouldn't want them calling you on your screw-ups would you? The world's good at playing the Don't Judge Me card. But we're not judging each other when we sharpen each other.

It doesn't make me angry when you take me aside and say Hey Brother you know you were just cussing over there and that's not really cool for a man of God, it makes me respect you. After all, motorcycle clubs are all about respect, respecting each other enough to hold each other accountable to what Paul calls the "measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ".

James Disciple Johnson
National President & Founder
Disciple Christian Motorcycle Club

Transparency

TRANSPERANCY
Let's talk about it.  Disciple Christian Motorcycle Club is useless if you are all sunshine and God bless you's around your bros when your soul is rotting.
My goal is to be totally legit here. When I'm on, you'll know it, and be in awe of my walk. When I'm depressed, struggling with my sobriety or any other constant struggle for me, you'll know that too, and be shocked. I consider it honorable to not be fake around you men. The men in my charter know all to well what I'm talking about. They know me, as most do, as a godly man careful to speak with grace. They also know me as a loose angry cannon, swearing, frustration and inner pain on my sleeve. I can do nothing less, honestly is important to me.

I can do the whole church face mask, and hide all my trash, but around the brotherhood, why? How will they talk me off the precipice on the mountain? How will they pray for me on the great dark sea in the midst of javelins and arrows? I get the most out of the brotherhood by just being whoever I am at the moment.

My struggles are dark and deep. My sins have been great and horrible, and are constantly before me. The fruit of the knowledge of good and evil is alive and well in my mind. Those who know me best aren't amazed at the consistency of my walk, but by the wild mood swings and radical polar opposite alter egos of James who might show up at any given function.

So please, done be fake ass Christians and hide all your struggles. Carry them in and dump them before the brothers and beg for help and prayer. For sure there is nothing that other men here aren't struggling with. You'll get love, prayer, accountability, and counsel. But you won't get judges and kicked.
This especially goes for you prospects who are moving through the ranks. I'm a rank 1000 faker, and you can't pull the wool over my eyes. Don't play super Christian around me to get your patch. Talk about your struggles and pain if you want my respect. Talk about your sin. Not bragging, but out of repentance.
And that's real talk.

James Disciple Johnson
Natl President and Founder
Disciple Christian Motorcycle Club