A month under our belt by the grace of God! We have thoroughly enjoyed meeting together on Sunday mornings for corporate worship and gathering. Sunday’s are my favorite day of the week! But still…I see people that I only get to talk to for maybe a few moments 1 day a week. I want to know them more. I want to see them away from the glorious chaos that is a Sunday morning. We have a few options – invite them over for lunch or dinner, hang out another time at a smaller gathering or party…or be more intentional about being in community together and a great way to do this is small groups.
I see the look of terror on some faces when I encourage some to attend a small group. I know, I get it. I was there. I can recall many years ago people encouraging me to attend a small group. I remember thinking two words “No. Way.” I had visions in my mind of forced, awkward surface level conversations, stale nachos and salsa, super lame attempts to sing worship songs, and a prayer time that just wouldn’t end. OK, maybe not that bad…but still I certainly had my negative impressions.
Small groups are what we make them to be. But, let’s be clear, they aren’t designed to be awkward and painful, they are designed for community and growth. Let’s look at these:
- Community. I’ve said it before, we are an increasingly individualistic society. Especially in America…just try talking to someone in a grocery store…you’ll get stared at. The funny thing is that, I truly believe under all the “leave me alone” Jersey exterior, is a person who deeply desires to be known by others. God created us this way. We need each other. We are designed to be in community…you can’t do church by yourself. Why? It’s just no fun alone. One of the best parts of planting this church has been the friendships that have been deepened, and started. Another reason – eventually we will need each other. At some point, due to the effects of sin in the world, we will be punched in the soul. A serious trial will occur and the natural instinct will be to call for help, and we want to be there to help with the love of Jesus. You might be thinking of Ecclesiastes 4 and you’d be right: “Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil. For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow. But woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up!” (Ecclesiastes 4:9–10 ESV). Straight up – we need each other, whether you want to admit it or not.
- Growth. It’s super easy to attend church (OK, well maybe not that easy, but it’s mostly easy), drink some java, say “Hey” to a few folks, listen to a sermon and then bounce and come back next week. But wait…hold on…if God inspired His Word (which he did), it’s Him speaking to us today (which He is), and we need to listen (which we do), and that’s hard. (Which it is). We need help understanding and applying God’s word. We need support when we fall. We need encouragement to repent, to turn into God’s loving grace in Jesus and not away. We need each other to grow, because we won’t by ourselves.
This means letting each other in. I know. Scary. What if I get hurt? You will. Sorry, don’t mean to be negative, but we are all human and weak. If you let people in, there will be miscommunication, hurt, and some drama. But that leads us back to the gospel, God’s grace, and love. We need to have that with each other as we seek to make and mature disciples of Jesus. We need to love each other well. That can be messy, but community and growth are too – and we do it all together.
“And this is his commandment, that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he has commanded us.” (1 John 3:23 ESV)
For information on our small groups – check out our Care Groups and Bible Studies pages.
