Living In Community
By elaineb | November 10, 2008
A discussion board I participate in has recently been wrestling with a couple of issues. One is community vs. individuality. The other is our freedom in Christ. How are these 2 related? Well, because somehow, we have to reconcile our individual freedom in Christ with living in community. This can cause problems, because some people believe their freedom in Christ gives them the right to drink alcohol, while others believe that glorifying God in their lives requires them to sacrifice alcohol, just to give a minor example.
There are two important questions here.
1) How do we live in community when there’s tension over opposing beliefs?
2) Are we willing to live in community with those who hold opposing beliefs?
And just to seed the comment area, I’d like to bring up some areas where thoughtful Christians disagree. Homosexuality. Abortion. Creationism vs. Evolution. War. Swearing. Ordination of women. Communion. Baptism (of children, multiple times). Leadership Qualifications.
Tell me, how do you resolve the tension with those who differ from you in these areas? And how far are you willing to go to be in community with them?
Topics: Uncategorized | 12 Comments »
Shack-Tastic!
By elaineb | November 7, 2008
In case you’ve been under a rock and haven’t noticed, the Shack is a very popular book at Evergreen right now. We’ve got three, THREE, journey groups doing studies of it right now. Once we’re done, hopefully we can get the groups to discuss their experiences with studying this book.
For the groups currently studying the Shack, here’s a message board which might facilitate your discussions: http://theshackbook.com/forums/ There are a lot of different activities on this website, including a discussion board, so poke around and see if any resources match your group.
Topics: Article Link, General, Intellectual Pathway | No Comments »
New Groups!
By elaineb | October 27, 2008
We have two new groups going on at Evergreen, so I wanted to post a little information about them and some prayer requests. Todd is leading a Wednesday night group which is currently studying the book The Shack. They have about 20 people coming, many of whom are new! What great news! When their study is complete, they will divide into 2 new long term groups. On Saturdays, Matt and Alicia are leading a study about how to study the Bible. They have about 6 people and are having a lot of participation and good questions. Their study will conclude in a few weeks and not continue.
Let’s uphold Todd and Alicia and Matt in prayer over the next few weeks. Todd’s prayer requests are that the group will naturally divide into 2 groups of 10 - one led by Todd and one led by Joe. Pray that people will naturally gravitate towards Joe and Todd so that the division is healthy and positive. Also, pray for the Sunday night group which Joe used to lead: pray that people will continue to participate in the group. Alicia and Matt request prayer that the participation levels will continue, and that they will be able to effectively answer all the challenging questions and cover the material they have planned to cover.
Topics: General, Spiritual Pathway | 1 Comment »
The Pathways, Looking Back
By elaineb | October 20, 2008
OK, we finished the Pathways sermon series and Journey Group series a couple of weeks ago. How did it go? What worked well with your group and what didn’t? What new thing did you try and how did it go? When the Pathways sermon series rolls around next year, what would you like to do in your Journey Groups to reinforce it?
Topics: Emotional Pathway, Intellectual Pathway, Physical Pathway, Relational Pathway, Spiritual Pathway | 2 Comments »
Church in crisis part 1
By mattb | September 11, 2008
I was in my group on Tuesday and we were going over the Spiritual pathway. The predominant sentiment in the group was that the spiritual pathway can be ‘taken too far’ and that we can ‘end up like those Muslims, praying on their mats five times a day’. The other concern, was that this pathway will lead us to a Pollyanna-ish attitude that will turn people off and be self-deluding. My immediate response was to turn to Jesus. God had supplied me with some wisdom earlier in the day in the form of Luke 7. Jesus is this guy who is deeply in touch with God and yet he is interfacing with people at the level of their pain and not with some empty prosaic theo-talk that leaves them with a saccharin taste in their mouths.
We have a crisis of Christians who are not looking at Jesus as their examples. They are defining their Christianity by what it is not. Jesus is not a blueprint. He is not an archetype. He is a human being that understand us at the level of the Word and at the level of the Word made flesh. Every pain we endure is a pain that he foresaw and built a capacity for. He knows how the anguish of losing a child feels. Every pleasure we enjoy is a pleasure that he planned. He designed the orgasm and has more insight into it than anyone every has.
So why is the church stuck on living such a stark life?
Well some reasons pop out at me:
- We like rules. We like rules because rules are easy. Red light means stop and green light means go. Jesus is not about rules.
- We like having problems. Problems are the currency of satisfying our appetites. People may complain about the state that they are in, but they are in that state because some appetite of theirs is being satisfied. Jesus is the ultimate liberator.
- We like being our own bosses. Even when you tell someone something helpful they often will rebel against it because of their pride. Jesus asks us to enter in a a relationship that lays aside ranks and rights.
- There are more, but you get the point.
Here is the question. How can we move people from a response of motion and a response of defining their beliefs by negatives into minute-by-minute, day-by-day, hour-by-hour encounters with Jesus?
Get back to me.
Topics: Uncategorized | 2 Comments »
How will your groups grow and multiply?
By elaineb | September 7, 2008
This question has a related question of finding and training new leaders, which will be the topic of our next post. For now, it would be helpful to discuss the different models for small groups out there.
There are four basic models: multiply, grow & multiply, G-12, pioneering.
The multiply model starts with a core group of 8-12 people and sets a date for “multiplication,” or splitting into two groups. So I would start a group with 10 other people and plan to keep the group going for 18 months. During those 18 months, I would train a new leader, and after 18 months, half the group would go with the new leader and the other half would stay with me. Then the 2 smaller groups would be free to grow and incorporate new people. The advantage is that this is very intentional with new leader development and can help prevent long-standing cliques forming. The disadvantage is that it’s very rigid and structured.
Then there’s the grow and multiply. In this model, you start with a core group and when the group has 12 to 16 people, you split into 2 groups. You still intentionally train a new leader so that when your group has grown, there is a leader for them. The advantage of this is that it’s good for quickly growing groups and allows communities to remain intimate. It is also intentional about new leader training. The disadvantage is that the split can be emotionally difficult and become a popularity contest.
The G-12 model works well in a church where people tend to stay for many years. In this model, groups never multiply. Instead, a group of 12 people meet together for an indefinite amount of time. The leader of the group is training all the members in leadership. As group members become ready, they start their own small group without leaving their original group. Eventually, all 12 members are leading their own 12 member groups. This allows for multiplication without any disruption to the original community groups, as well as intentional leader training. The advantage to this is that you can build incredibly deep and rich relationships within each long-standing group, as well as continue to develop new leaders as they lead (rather than simply letting them go into leadership “on their own”). The disadvantage is that each person will be involved in 2 groups during the week, and cliques could easily form.
Pioneering is a model in which numbers are secondary to interests. This can be considered a “free market” model where standards for leadership are much lower. A leader gets 2 or 3 people to join them on a regular basis pursuing a common interest. Sharing prayer requests and praying together provides the spiritual bond, but the interest provides the rest of the activity. So you could have a C.S. Lewis book club, where all the members read C.S. Lewis books and discuss them monthly. Another group could be a knitting club, where members knit together weekly and pray together at the end of the night. Each group is not responsible for covering all the Pathways: instead the groups cover portions of individual Pathways. The advantage of this is that it provides low-level leadership training: people who are good at sign language but have little Bible knowledge can lead a group, giving them leadership experience and time to study the Bible more deeply. It also can prevent cliques, as people form and re-form in different groups fluidly over the years. The disadvantage to this model is that it can become chaotic, and leadership training is less intentional.
The church I attended in DC followed both the grow & multiply and the pioneering models. It was a good combination for that church, which was highly transient and very young. What do you think would be a good model for Evergreen?
Topics: Uncategorized | 6 Comments »
What role will the lead pastor play?
By elaineb | September 2, 2008
Obviously, only Ed can answer this question, but I think our discussion of what Ed “should” do, in our opinions, is a valuable discussion. We should also expand this discussion to the responsibilities and expectations of the elders and ministry team leaders. Here are some questions to consider:
Will the pastor lead the small group ministry himself or delegate? If delegation, how much?
Will the pastor/elder/MTL personally lead a group?
Will the pastor/elder/MTL participate in a group? If so, will the pastor’s family also participate?
Will the pastor/elder/MTL not participate in a small group at all?
We don’t need to be prescribing Ed’s actions, but it is helpful to consider what our expectations are in this area. Also, it’s important to define our expectations for elders and ministry team leaders (MTL). For example, I believe that Ed should have some involvement in the small group system: either through leading a group or simply participating in one, or by his family participating in a group. However, I think it would also be appropriate for Ed to delegate the ministry of small groups to the Relational elder and ministry team leader (as is the case currently). I believe that all the elders should either be leading a group or actively mentoring new leaders. I believe that MTL’s should be preparing to lead their own groups and/or actively mentoring new leaders. What do you all think? What kind of leadership should be exercised? What kind of involvement by Ed fits into the culture and community of Evergreen? Are standards different for elders than for Ed or for ministry team leaders? Should standards be different based on the level of leadership? And finally, are the names of Sarah Palin’s children really relevant to the current election?
Topics: Article Link, General | 7 Comments »
Do you expect every person in your church to join a group?
By elaineb | August 25, 2008
Is Evergreen simply the collection of our small groups: is the “church” part of Evergreen really found in the small groups? OR, are the small groups just one of many ministry opportunities at Evergreen. Is Evergreen a church OF small groups or a church WITH small groups?
If Evergreen is OF small groups - if that is where the church is found - then we should expect everyone to be in a group. Otherwise, they will not experience true community and pastoral care. If Evergreen is church WITH small groups, then some people will naturally not be in small groups - they will find their community and pastoral care within other areas, like ministries, covenant groups, or leadership groups. There is no value judgment here: one way is not better than another way. But the question should be answered…
A final consideration here is the question of where the small groups are rooted. We have college students who attend Evergreen. Are they not a “part” of Evergreen if they are involved in campus ministry small groups? And at the Greenhouse there are students who attend who do not participate in Sunday worship. Are they “part” of Evergreen although they don’t worship with us on Sundays? How flexible is our definition of belonging? How important are small groups? Should we encourage everyone to find a small group, either at Evergreen or within their community? Or should we encourage everyone to participate in an Evergreen-specific ministry/small group? Finally, should we have a small group dedicated to the election of Bob Barr, the only truly appropriate candidate for President?
Topics: Uncategorized | 4 Comments »
What is your culture?
By elaineb | August 19, 2008
By culture, I’m talking about who makes up the congregation. What’s the average age, marital status, number of children per person? How long do people stay around? Where do people live and what jobs do they hold? These are essential factors to how we do journey groups. For example, at my previous church, most people were “transient.” At least half the church turned over completely every 2 years. So that church had a semester system: there were 3 periods each year when groups started and ended, creating easy and natural entry and exit points so new people could easily join a group and commitment shy people could join without fear of locking in for 2 years.
You can see Evergreen’s culture in action already: we have a women’s prayer group on Thursday mornings, which works because we have a number of stay at home moms (or in my case, wives). Our people tend to stick around, so our groups are more long-term in nature. And because of the cloning operation in our basement, lots of people have kids, so childcare is an important factor for any small group.
One good way for us to incorporate growth is to start new groups, since we don’t operate by semesters and many of our groups have very well established relationships. Another option is to have periodic “interest” groups which only last a few weeks or months at a time. What are some of your ideas? Bonus points if you comment on the “controversial” comment I’ve used here…
Topics: General | 8 Comments »
What is your theology of community and discipleship?
By elaineb | August 11, 2008
Whoa, yes, lots of big words in here, but I know we’re all up to the challenge. This post is a discussion of this very question.
To summarize: Evergreen Church has a vision and a mission (read them here). How do our small groups fit into that vision and mission? How do our small groups facilitate and promote what Evergreen is about? We need to think about our definition or picture of discipleship and community, and how that is applied in the groups. Is discipleship best promoted in smaller settings, like the covenant groups, or in the larger, more teaching setting of the journey group? Is community only available in the groups which share meals (or dessert)? Or is community available in a number of different ways? If that’s the case, how do our various group offerings match the ways community can happen? Are we doing small groups simply because we didn’t have a building when we first started out, or are we doing them because of the unique way that they match our vision, mission, and philosophy? Now that we have a building, how can we use that resource to enhance our community and discipleship?
Topics: Uncategorized | 2 Comments »
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