The Not-So-Small Matter Of Groups

“So often, it’s others around us who can see where God wants to grow us even before we see it ourselves.” – James MacDonald.

We talk about small groups a lot at Northstar, and rightly so. When we look at the early church, we get a picture of small communities of people who followed Jesus together. The Book of Acts, especially Acts 2:42-47, gives us a great picture of the early church and the components of biblical community, both at the temple and in homes.

These believers engaged in life together through teaching, fellowship, communion, prayer, miracles, radical generosity, and corporate worship. They spent time together eating, learning, celebrating, proclaiming the good news, and supporting each other. I want to make another push to get people who attend Northstar and have been hesitating to join a group, to take the plunge. You won’t regret it.

Small groups connect us to one another. They aren’t a new-fangled concept. As I said, they date back to the very beginnings of church thousands of years ago. In small groups, we get to form friendships, to know and be known, offer support and encouragement, and to grow closer to God. We get to ask big questions and wrestle with tough topics. Most importantly, we get to be together with our brothers and sisters in Christ. We aren’t meant to live life alone. We are meant to journey through it together.

Healthy spiritual growth is a deeply relational process. There are hundreds of moving stories that have been shared with me on the impact of small groups in people’s lives.

Small groups are about life change. On Sundays, people listen to the message; in small groups, people talk about the message. Small groups allow the opportunity for the congregation to respond to the conversation started in the message. This conversation can change people’s minds and hearts. And that can change people’s lives.

Because all people are different and have different needs, we have a lot of different small groups. There are small groups that meet in homes and even at the church. Some are specific to men or women; some are for couples or singles; some share commonalities of life stage or geographic area. Others are a eclectic mix of people. Bottom line, we have a group for you.

Discussion Questions:

What is the biggest advantage of being in a small group? What are the obstacles to joining a small group.
Do the obstacles of a small group outweigh the benefits?
Pray about joining a small group.