·
“I can't come tonight because I need
to study for my mid-term exams.”
·
“We’ll be out of town this weekend for
the Sunflower Festival.”
·
“We won’t be at small group this
week because we’re going to celebrate my sixtieth wedding birthday.”
Week after week, group members miss due
any conflict, and small group seems to lose out. Life happens, conflicts arise,
and small group is not the only priority for members. What if group time together
became so valuable that members would schedule other activities around it? What if small group was so important to its members that they would turn down conflicting events? What if small group could move up on our members’ lists of priorities? Your Heavenly Father created you to be in community with other people. What can you do to gain meaning human relationships (as God intended). Committing to a small group includes…
1. Studying the Bible and praying together
“The believers spent their time listening
to the teaching of the apostles. They shared everything with each other. They
ate together and prayed together.” (Acts
2:42, ERV)
2. Sharing life together
“An enemy might be able to defeat one
person, but two people can stand back-to-back to defend each other. And three
people are even stronger. They are like a rope that has three parts wrapped
together. It is very hard to break.” (Ecclesiastes
4:12,
ERV)
3. Eating together
“We must not quit meeting together, as some
are doing. No, we need to keep on encouraging each other. This becomes more and
more important as you see the Day [of Jesus’ Return]
getting closer.” (Hebrews
10:25, ERV)
“I believe one of the best preparations for
marriage is participating in a small group. If a person has learned to be
intimate and honest with a few friends before they get married, they will have
less reason to fear intimacy after they are married.” (Andy Stanley)[i]
[i] Inspired
by the sermon “Created for Community: Committing to Community” (installment one)
Sunday September 9, 2018 Pastor Dave Jansen CenterPoint Gahanna Church Gahanna,
OH.
Additional source used: “How to Increase Regular
Commitment to Small Groups” by Andrew Wheeler
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