Pastor’s Corner“ Life Groups: Come and See”

I am the Vine, y’all are the branches. When y’all are joined with me and I with y’all,

the relationship intimate and organic, the harvest is sure to be abundant.

Separated, y’all can’t produce a thing.

(John 15:5, The Message [Southern Style])

A Life Group provides the grace-full opportunity to experience Jesus’ promise, “If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish and it will be done for you. By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples” (John 15:7-8). Remember each “you” in these sentences is plural, which is why I added the “y’alls” in the opening quotation. The call to abide in Jesus – to live in Jesus, to make him our home, to join in intimate and organic relationship with him – is fulfilled in community, not in isolation.

Jesus’ three years with his twelve closest disciples is the living image of abiding in him: real relationships, mutual serving, teaching and learning, long slow walks and intense ministry experiences, working through conflict and going to parties together – as a small group with Jesus.

When Jesus is at the center of small group relationships – motivating, empowering, teaching, guiding you into love of God and love of each other – life happens. When together you are learning to love by together following Jesus, together living life with him, allowing Jesus to form your attitudes, actions and words with each other – that’s where transformation happens, where genuine relationships deepen, where we experience the real safety of trustworthy friendships, “intimate and organic relation” that even moves us into pursuing the best for our neighbors, communities and nation.

So join a Life Group this fall, beginning the second week of September! Each time you gather you’ll spend twenty minutes or so getting to know each other, and remembering our call to become Jesus’ disciples. Next, after a brief prayer or song, you’ll read selections from the Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) and be guided into revelatory conversations about who Jesus is, what God’s kingdom is really like, and how Jesus calls his disciples to live. You’ll then identify how these insights connect with us in our day, and consider ways of integrating those truths into your own life. You’ll close with a time of sharing and praying for each other.

In a few days you’ll receive an email with a link to register for a Life Group via Realm. Click the link, and review the options for the available Life Groups – when they’re meeting, where they’re located, and who is leading them. Then select one and join!

I encourage you to register and attend at least the first meeting, even if you’re undecided about whether to commit for the full fourteen weeks. Think of it as an invitation from Jesus: “Come, and you will see” (John 1:39).

Your Pastor in Christ,