Small Groups Started This Week
Small Groups started this week. Have you signed up?
Here is a post from Cindy Darnell telling us why she can’t get enough of small groups.
I joined my first small group in 2001. At that time I was “convinced” (to use David’s terminology) that God was real and that Jesus was Lord but I was fairly new to this whole Christian thing and knew virtually nothing about the Bible. Joining a group was a leap of faith for me and I was a little scared that I would be embarrassed at my lack of knowledge but thankfully the girls in the group were gracious and I always felt comfortable. About 5 months after joining that group I was baptized as I felt the Lord telling me it was time.
Looking back I don’t think there’s been a period of more than three months when I was not in a small group. My small groups have been with me through ups and downs, prayed with me through health scares, relational issues, work situations, mission trips and continually encouraged me and pointed me back to Jesus. When I bought my house they were a steady stream of workers helping with painting, cleaning, removing carpet staples, you name it.
Above all this, I love that I have come to know and love the Bible by studying it with others. It constantly amazes me to see how God can reveal completely different things to different people in the same passage of Scripture. He has used others to open my eyes to things I never would have noticed on my own. Additionally, I often joke that “accountability is my love language” so knowing I need to be prepared to discuss something and contribute to a group helps me to be more motivated throughout the week to read on my own and have consistent quiet times.
So, I encourage you to take the plunge and join a small group if you haven’t already and see what God may have in store for you by studying His Word with others. When this trimester finishes, you will likely find that you made some new friends, that you got to know the book of Philippians a little better, and that you feel a lot more connected to Restoration overall.
