About, Worldwide Discipleship Association

A global leader in disciple building since 1974

WDA began as a campus ministry, with an emphasis on replicable discipleship (spiritual mentorship) and Christian maturity. Now, WDA operates in more than 50 countries to equip disciple-building leaders who think, feel, and act like Jesus and who are developing life-long followers of Jesus Christ.

Based on Jesus’ ministry to His own disciples, WDA has developed an intentional and progressive growth curriculum for Christians, training pathways for disciple-making leaders, and virtual tools and platforms for discipling & training in a digital age.

Read about WDA’s history

WDA’s mission is to serve the Church worldwide by developing Christlike character in people and equipping them to disciple others according to the pattern Jesus used to train His disciples.

Download and read WDA’s Master Plan to find out everything about our vision, our philosophy of ministry, and strategic ministry growth.

WDA Master Plan

WDA Annual Report

The 28/20^® Project

The 28/20® Project is an initiative to help churches and disciple builders employ all of the approaches, content, and material they need to fulfill the whole of the Great Commission, as modeled by Christ.

Matthew 28:18-20: “And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you.”

28/20^®Delivered through 4 Ministry Platforms

designed for every phase of spiritual growth

Cornerstone

Establish a solid faith foundation

Getting Started
Knowing God
Understanding People
Growing Spiritually

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Restoring Your Heart

Help your church members & leaders heal emotionally

How Emotional Problems Develop
Processing Pain
Understanding Emotions

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School of Ministry

Teach practical ministry & serving skills

Healthy Relationships
Spiritual Warfare
Evangelism Training
Positional Truth
Ministry Principles
Inductive Bible Study

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Leadership Institute

Provide a pathway for those who want to grow as disciple makers & lay leaders

1 year certification courses
Relational learning through cohort groups
Christ’s Method for Building Disciples
Developing New Leaders
Developing Mature Leaders (coming soon)
Life Coaching / Mentor Training
Built in application & accountability

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OUR STRATEGY

We Cast A Vision

(We Emphasize The Priority Of Christian Maturity, At Both The Individual And Congregational Level, Unto The Glory Of God.)

Our first task involves communicating the priority of growth to spiritual maturity and the accompanying need for progressive disciple building. (Maturity Matters!) This task also involves forming a network/association with others who share our conviction.

We Show the Way

(We Train Others How to Build Disciples.)

Our second task involves developing training approaches, paradigms, and resources that can be offered to churches, individuals, and other Christian organizations.

We Do It

(We Build Disciples Ourselves.)

Our third task is face-to-face discipleship: meeting people where they are and helping them take the necessary steps toward maturity.

Our History

WDA was founded by Carl Wilson, a pastor, former director of the High School Ministry of Campus Crusade for Christ, International and author of With Christ in the School of Disciple Building. Since its inception, WDA has focused on studying Jesus’ ministry and methods, and applying biblical disciple building principles to the contemporary world.

WDA staff and students from years of ministry on campus have given WDA the experience and wisdom to help build leaders around the world.

Organized as Worldwide Discipleship Association (WDA) in 1974, we are based in the United States and have ministries and partners throughout the world. WDA is a 501c(3) non-profit organization funded primarily by the tax-deductible gifts of those who share our commitment to Biblical disciple building.

Realizing the strategic position held by universities as centers of influence in our culture, WDA initiated its ministry on college campuses. We continue to build disciples on college campuses, but also focus on developing other centers, partnerships, publications and resources that equip disciple builders, both in the US and overseas.

1974 | Campus | Church | World

We envision a worldwide network of interconnected ministries committed to the ongoing process of Christlike sanctification and renewal, and staffed by teams of leaders who are trained using a biblical pattern of discipleship.