{"id":268476,"date":"2026-02-16T12:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-02-16T19:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/?p=268476"},"modified":"2026-02-17T09:40:26","modified_gmt":"2026-02-17T16:40:26","slug":"a-command-worth-following-disciplemaking-at-whidbey-island","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/blog\/a-command-worth-following-disciplemaking-at-whidbey-island\/","title":{"rendered":"A Command Worth Following: Disciplemaking at Whidbey Island"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"A Command Worth Following: Discipleship at Whidbey Island\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/B5l9J8iwlmk?feature=oembed&#038;enablejsapi=1&#038;origin=https:\/\/www.navigators.org&#038;rel=0\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/donations.navigators.org\/s\/fund\/7011Q000001axMZQAY\/whidbey-island-navy-ministry\/?sf_ac=w07\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Clay Miller<\/a> always knew he wanted to be an astronaut. When he was a kid, he told his dream to his father. His dad challenged him, sharing that most astronauts were Navy pilots, and most Navy pilots went to the Naval Academy at Annapolis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>So that\u2019s exactly where Clay went. In 1978, he joined the Navy and became a flyer. Little did he know, his time in the military would be a catalyst for his future work with The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/ministry\/navigators-military\/?sf_ac=w07\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Navigators Military<\/a> ministry on Whidbey Island, Washington.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Growing up, Clay\u2019s mother raised him to know God and His Word. However, it wasn\u2019t until he was 17 that Clay gave his life to Christ. Later, he discovered The Navigators, who helped him grow and develop in his faith.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>One important verse The Navigators taught Clay is <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bible.com\/bible\/111\/MAT.28.18-20\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Matthew 28:18-20<\/a>: <strong><em>\u201cThen Jesus came to them and said, \u2018All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.\u2019\u201d<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Though he has read that verse hundreds of times, the word \u201ccommand\u201d struck him into action. As a military servicemember, Clay was familiar with commands from his commanding officers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI looked up the word \u2018Lord\u2019 in the Greek, and it means two things: master and commander,\u201d Clay says. \u201cAnd so I knew that I had this military command that Christ had given to those 11 men after the resurrection, to go and make disciples of all the nations. And so just like other areas of my life that I had turned over, I remember telling the Lord,<strong> \u2018Yes, Lord, I will spend the rest of my life obeying the command to make disciples of all the nations<\/strong>.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Multiplying to the Next Generation<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Bob Blakley spent 35 years in the Navy, first enlisting in 1968. At one point in his service, Bob was stationed in Japan, where he was miserable and living in sin. \u201cNothing seemed to go right, and things weren\u2019t going in the right direction,\u201d he recalls. But in 1996, Bob gave his life to Christ.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Though Bob came to Christ later in his military life, he now wants to give others a chance to come to Christ earlier than he did. Living on Whidbey Island, he has seen the Lord provide that opportunity through The Navigators.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI was introduced to The Navigators Military team when they came to chapel,\u201d Bob says. \u201cI asked Clay if he\u2019d baptize me, and he did that one Wednesday night with the Navs.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Every Friday, Bob, Clay, and other men gather for breakfast, where they discuss their lives and how to pass on what they have learned to others. It\u2019s a time of fellowship and discipleship, where the men can meet and grow together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cLike Clay and his wife, Bev, did with Lucy and I, we want to do with other people,\u201d Bob says. \u201cWe want to put our lives into their lives by intentionally growing believers into fully devoted followers of Christ.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Command to Make Disciples<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Clay and Bob\u2019s experience is just a small picture of what God is doing on Whidbey Island. Following God\u2019s command to go and make disciples from Matthew 28, they have created a chain of generational impact.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThe concept of generational disciplemaking is all over the Old and the New Testament,\u201d Clay says. \u201cThe Lord is very interested in not just our children, but our children&#8217;s children. He&#8217;s interested in not just me coming to Christ, but other people coming to Christ through me. And He doesn&#8217;t have to use any of us, but He chooses to do that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><em>\u201cYou did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit \u2014 fruit that will last \u2014 and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you\u201d <\/em><\/strong><strong>John 15:16 (NIV).<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Discipleship Tip:&nbsp;<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Clay\u2019s story illustrates how God can use our individual life experiences to reveal new insights into His Word. This week, thank God for the wisdom He\u2019s given you through your life experiences \u2014 and ask Him to show you how you can share what you\u2019ve learned with those around you.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<br>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group cta ticss-63dda377 has-cool-gray-background-color has-background\"><div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-flow wp-block-group-is-layout-flow\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-group\"><div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\">\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\" id=\"h-cta-headline\">Trusting God in the Storm<\/h3>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group\"><div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\">\n<p class=\"has-text-align-left\">When we\u2019re anxious about the future, to whom do we turn? Over thousands of years, God\u2019s people have faced setbacks, even disasters. Their experiences show us ways we can respond and how our faith in God can remain intact \u2014 and maybe get even more real. Check out the resource, <em>Trusting God in the Storm<\/em>, to gain more insight!<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons alignwide is-horizontal is-content-justification-center is-layout-flex wp-container-core-buttons-is-layout-499968f5 wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link has-white-color has-orange-background-color has-text-color has-background wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/resource\/trust\/?sf_ac=w07\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">LEARN MORE<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Navigator Clay Miller\u2019s military background helped him see Jesus\u2019 commands in a new light, inspiring him to dedicate his life to multiplying spiritual generations.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":268468,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_helpful_pro_status":1,"_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_hide_content":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":"","inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,6337],"tags":[1483,221],"mission":[1060,62],"topic":[44],"class_list":["post-268476","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-disciplemaking","category-ministry-impact-stories","tag-disciple","tag-featured","mission-navigators-first-responder","mission-navigators-military","topic-discipleship"],"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/021726-Article-Web.jpg","author_info":{"display_name":"The Navigators","author_link":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/staff\/thenavigators\/"},"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/268476","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=268476"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/268476\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":268507,"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/268476\/revisions\/268507"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/268468"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=268476"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=268476"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=268476"},{"taxonomy":"mission","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/mission?post=268476"},{"taxonomy":"topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.navigators.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/topic?post=268476"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}