First listen to the sermon (posts Sun. afternoon). Then use the ideas below to help you and your group apply what the Lord is teaching you.

 

Icebreaker idea: What's one act of kindness you've experienced or seen recently?

 

A way to pray: Spend some time together as a group praying based on the Pursuing Unity question below.

 

For discussion:

• Treasuring God: How have I experienced God as "merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness"?
• Being Transformed: Why do we tend to want God's kindness for ourselves but not for others? When have I personally struggled with this?
• Loving Others: What will I do this week to pass on to others the kindness that God has shown me?
• Pursuing Unity: Who in my life is far from God? Who can join with me in praying for them to experience His kindness and forgiveness?

We're so grateful for the many leaders who came to Grow Group Leader Ignite on Monday evening! It was a great time of encouragement, connection, and looking ahead at what God is doing in and through us here at Berean.

 

Over the course of the evening, John laid out for us a clear vision of how incredibly crucial each and every Grow Group leader is – each of us a stick on the fire we're asking God to ignite as we seek to reach 2,000 people by 2022. If we're going to see this vision catch, it will take all of us leading, caring for others, and doing our part to engage people with the Word and prayer in the context of Christian community.

What's your next step?

If you'd like to find out more about how your group can be involved with serving together through the Salvation Army community dinners or the Care Portal, or if you have any other questions about Grow Group Leader Ignite, please contact us. We'd love to share more details and answer your questions!

Here are a few highlights from the evening:

 

• We reviewed our mission (leading people into a growing relationship with Jesus Christ), our vision of what that growing relationship looks like (Treasuring God, Being Transformed, Loving Others, and Pursuing Unity), and our God-given means for growing in this relationship (the Word, prayer, and Christian community). For details, see the video on our What we believe page.
• We reviewed our 2,000 by 2022 initiative: By 2022, through God's grace and power, we will see 2,000 people baptized and growing in relationship with Jesus through the Word, prayer, and community.
• John shared about just a few of the many crucial logs we've seen God placing, one by one, as He lays the kindling for this fire. In particular, each Grow Group and each of us as a leader has an essential part to play in seeing this vision catch fire and in actually carrying out the details. God's mission for us is simply too big to be accomplished through a pastor or church staff – it takes every part of his body playing its part; it takes Christian communities spending time together – in the Word together, praying together, and sharing God's work in their lives with one another. That's why we need Grow Groups. And it's why our groups need to keep working to launch leaders who can start more groups to welcome in the many people we're asking God to awaken and call into a growing relationship with Himself.
• We split up into small groups to study together three keystone passages for the Grow Groups ministry: Matthew 28:18-20, 2 Timothy 2:1-2, Colossians 3:16-17. We pondered what the original hearers would have thought/felt, what these passages make us think/feel, and what we already do and could do to live out these passages practically.
• We looked at one another's lists of practical ways to live out the three key passages, and John shared a few ideas that he and Dan have been putting together over the past few months. Below is a chart of the Already Do/Could Do ideas we discussed:

Already do:

• One in One​
• Group resources​ page
• 10:02 alarm​ (see Luke 10:2)
• “Generosity is the new evangelism”​
• Grow Group leader involvement in the Partnership recommendation process​
• What's Next​
• Volun-tour​
• Word & prayer in context of community​
• Be transparent
• Teach
• Make disciples
• Be visible / meet in a public place
• Acts of service (be intentional)
• Encourage one another
• Talk to coworkers
• Train / intentionally cultivate new leaders
• Multiply to start new groups
• Read at school
• Invite neighbors
• Reading at Lincoln -> invitations to Maranatha Camp
• Share authentically
• Model vulnerability
• Tell what God has done – testimonies

Could do:

• Salvation Army community dinners – 3 more this year (contact us if your group would like more info or to get involved)
• Care Portal (more info on Care Portal web site; contact us if your group would like to get involved)
• Prayer walking​
• Possible T4T training​
• Study prayer books (e.g. Keller, Frizzell, Miller) as a supplement to studying the Word
• Possible prayer conference​?
• Focus on connection
• Get everyone in group baptized
• Accountability partners
• Invite new people
• Memorize Scripture
• Provide meeting opportunities outside of regular group time (e.g. Super Bowl party) – everyone invite a potential group member (be intentional)
• Prayer (be intentional)
• Reach out during the week (call/text)
• Group outings – have fun together
• Meet someone new – be friendly
• Get rid of preconceived ideas about people (they grow and change!)
• Volunteer in the community
• More community get-togethers (e.g. Thanksgiving dinner)
• Group ministry for young adults after high school to late 20s (including mentoring program)
• weekly Bible studies at jail (for men & women)
• Periodic Grow Group game nights to invite visitors
• Go toward people who are different from us
• Recruit next leader(s)
• Sing together
• Invite unbelievers
• Mission trips
• Invest deeply in individuals
• Door-to-door evangelism

First listen to the sermon (posts Sun. afternoon). Then use the ideas below to help you and your group apply what the Lord is teaching you.

 

Icebreaker idea: Do you tend to learn more from others (such as through asking for advice, listening to others' experience, and reading) or from your own experience (e.g. "the school of hard knocks")?

 

A way to pray: Pray for each other to turn from sin, turn to God, and share His kindness and patience with others.

 

For discussion:

• Treasuring God: When have I experienced God's kindness or patience?
• Being Transformed: In what area of my life do I need to turn and make a new start right now? How can God help me in this?
• Loving Others: Who in my life needs to experience God's kindness and patience through me?
• Pursuing Unity: What practical steps can we take to support each other as we seek to turn from sin and turn to God?

First listen to the sermon (posts Sun. afternoon). Then use the ideas below to help you and your group apply what the Lord is teaching you.

 

Icebreaker idea: If you were in the belly of a great fish for 3 days, and you could pause one of your senses during that time, which one would it be and why?

 

A way to pray: Pray that, when we experience the Lord's discipline, we will more quickly turn upward to Him instead of inward.

 

For discussion:

• Treasuring God: Read Hebrews 12:5-11. How can discipline be a good thing? In what ways is God's discipline better than any other discipline?
• Being Transformed: Why does God's discipline often turn us inward? What steps can we take to help us choose to turn upward instead?
• Loving Others: Who in my life needs to hear (again or for the first time) God's call to turn to Him? How will I share that with them?
• Pursuing Unity: What is something that encourages me when I'm going through discipline or suffering? How can we encourage one another?