Life Groups

I'm excited about the direction of our Discipleship Ministry at City on a Hill Church. We currently offer two Life Groups. We're about to launch a Life Group just for women in the next month. Another Life Group for a specific neighborhood is probably going to be launched in the next 4 to 6 weeks as well.

I've spent the last couple of days selecting our next curriculum that will begin in September. It's looking like it will be something from Phillip Yancey.

I love Life Groups. It's easy for some to want to call what we do a "Bible Study." I genuinely dislike that phrase, though, for describing our purpose for Life Groups. When I think of a Bible Study, I think of one person reading and teaching Scripture, verse by verse. There's very little discussion, if any.

In our Life Groups, the emphasis is on building "body life." Ultimately, it doesn't really matter to me what the curriculum is because that's not nearly as important as the relationships, the connecting and the growing that occurs both vertically (with Christ) and horizontally (with one another) through simply being together discussing the Truth of Scripture and the life that God wants for each and every one of us.

It's not the curriculum that should be motivating our attendance and participation - it's our connection to God and with one another. Our own personal devotional life should inspire us each day. Our Life Group curriculum is nothing more than a supplemental to what God is already doing and speaking into our lives and should never be substituted for our daily time in the Word and in prayer.