Conversations as you Go

In this episode, Aila Tasse explores why movements need a tribe—a community united around Jesus, his mission and a shared vision for the unreached.

Drawing on the African proverb, “If you want to go fast, go alone; if you want to go far, go together,” Aila reminds us that we were never meant to pursue movements alone. Sharing both our breakthroughs and failures helps us recognise that we belong to a global movement—from everywhere to everywhere.

Aila also challenges us to distinguish following Jesus from simply defending Christianity as a religion. Jesus did not come to establish a religious institution, but a movement of people whose lives reflect his way.

What might need to change if we saw ourselves first as people of “the Way”?

In this episode, Aila Tasse explores how Jesus modelled leadership and developed ordinary disciples into movement leaders.

Developing Leaders

Jesus invested in different levels of leadership—from his inner three, to the twelve, the seventy-two, the 120 and the multitudes. Likewise, DMM leadership grows from people of peace and DBS facilitators through to movement leaders and catalysts who can be sent cross-culturally to catalyse new movements.

Aila refers to these levels (0-5) of DMM leadership in this episode
Jesus’ Process of Developing Leaders

Discovery scriptures to look at on how Jesus developed leaders
Drawing on Matthew 4:19, Aila explains how Jesus developed leaders through life-on-life relationships. He modelled leadership, trained and equipped his disciples, empowered them, mentored them and eventually released them to lead.

Aila shares how releasing leaders especially involves risk. Yet disciples are learners, so leaders must be free to attempt new things, make mistakes and “fail forward.”

From Jerusalem to the Nations

Acts shows the danger of growing internally (adding) while losing sight of the Great Commission (multiplying). God’s intention was always for the gospel to move from Jerusalem to Judea, Samaria and the ends of the earth.

With people from many nations now living in our cities, Aila challenges us to recognise the opportunity before us: find people of peace, develop them as leaders and release them to reach their own communities—and potentially back into their nations!

Characteristics of Movement Leaders

Movement leaders are marked by passion for God and the lost, vision for the Great Commission, commitment to DMM and their team, and a willingness to remain “learnable.”

Takeaway question: How are you keeping your eyes on the multipliers God has already placed around you?

In this episode Aila Tasse explores how to find and develop the multipliers who will guard the DNA and multiply a movement.

Finding Multipliers

Aila explains that movement leaders catalyse, multiply and sustain movements. Although only a few people may become multipliers, everyone is still encouraged to become a disciple who makes disciples.

These leaders also guard the movement’s DNA, ensuring that simple and reproducible practices—such as the Discovery Bible Study questions—remain unchanged as they are passed on.

Two hands: ‘Becoming’ and ‘Making’ Disciples

Drawing on Jesus’ invitation in Matthew 4:19, Aila describes becoming a disciple and making disciples through two hands: “Follow me” is becoming, while “I will make you fishers of people” is making disciples.

The five fingers of one hand represent becoming a disciple:

Prayer

Personal discovery of Scripture

Fellowship with believers

Serving the community

Sharing your faith

The other hand represents making disciples:

Pray

Engage

Find a person of peace

Begin a Discovery Bible Study

Develop churches and leaders

Aila shares how Margaret, an oral learner, taught him to train others through stories, hand signs like these and simple ideas they could easily remember and pass on.

What we are becoming, we are making. We can’t make unless we are becoming. And we also can’t become unless we are making. 

Takeaway question: How could these two hands help you guard and multiply the DNA of disciple-making movements?

In this episode, Aila Tasse explores what defines a leader in a Disciple-Making Movement (DMM). While leadership is often understood through titles and positions, movement leaders are recognised by action, fruit and multiplication. This can be challenging when multiplication is not yet happening, but Dave encourages listeners not to disqualify themselves. Leadership begins with obeying God and helping others do the same—whether leading one person or many.

Looking for Multipliers

Movement leaders have learned and practised the principles of DMMs and are helping others multiply. Like Jesus, we need to intentionally identify, equip and mentor people who desire to multiply.

Aila challenges us not to focus on those who talk much but do little. The task is urgent, and movement leaders are always doers.

Movement leaders focus on three dimensions:

Length: Is the movement multiplying through successive generations?

Depth: Is the DNA of obedience and multiplication being passed on?

Width: Is the movement expanding into new communities, people groups and/or regions?

Grassroots and regional equipping hubs allow leaders to learn, share and network together. They also help movement leaders identify gaps—including unreached people groups, diaspora communities in our cities and increasingly unreached Western populations.

Shepherding Movements Through Critical Stages

Rather than merely collecting “data,” Aila describes measuring movement health as ‘shepherding’. Like a shepherd caring for sheep, leaders need to know whether a movement is healthy, struggling or declining—and understand why.

Movements can grow rapidly through their early generations but often plateau between the fifth and seventh generations. Without new leaders and intentional action, momentum may decline and movements can eventually die.

Movement leaders are therefore needed at every generational level to guard the movement’s DNA and help it continue multiplying. One leader cannot do everything. Movements are sustained when many leaders are developed, equipped and released.

As the African saying reminds us:

“If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go with someone.”

Takeaway question:

How can you intentionally identify, equip and release movement leaders who will multiply in your context?

In this episode, Aila Tasse explores why finding, developing and releasing leaders is essential for seeing movements multiply. Drawing on his experience of establishing a training institute on the border of Ethiopia and Kenya in the early 1990s, Aila shares how some of the first leaders developed there were sent to engage 14 unreached tribes across the region. Faced with a harvest far beyond the capacity of any one person, Aila began praying not only for the harvest, but also for the workers needed to reach it.

Multiplying Workers for the Harvest

Jesus instructed his disciples to ask the Lord of the harvest to send workers into his harvest field (Luke 10:2). But while prayer is foundational, developing leaders also involves intentionally finding, raising, coaching, equipping and releasing people into the harvest.

Matthew 4:18–22: What Jesus, the Lord of the harvest, teaches us about finding and developing leaders. Jesus began his kingdom ministry with multiplication—calling ordinary people to become leaders who would fish for people.

Acts 13:1–3: How a diverse church in Antioch developed and released movement leaders under the direction of the Holy Spirit. Cultural diversity are essential in teams seeking to reach diverse peoples.

Matthew 28:16-20 (The Great Commission): Jesus establishes, aligns and motivates leaders through the Great Commission. Disciples and leaders must remain aligned with the call to make disciples, while Jesus’ promise to remain with them provides the motivation and resources they need to obey—even when he leads them beyond their comfort zones.

Discovery Bible Study Passages and Questions

Matthew 4:18–22: What can we learn from Jesus, the Lord of the harvest, and his process of developing leaders?

Acts 13:1–3: How did the church in Antioch develop and empower movement leaders?

2 Timothy 2:1–3: What can we learn from Paul’s instructions to Timothy about developing leaders?