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"Jesus commanded us saying: "Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations..."
Matthew 28:19
Small groups are an essential part of making disciples. Jesus invites us to "deny ourselves, take up our cross and follow Him." It is an invitation to a journey into His glorious kingdom. This journey is a process of being conformed to the image of Christ for the sake of others. Our goal in these small groups is life change. - that each of us would be "in process" to be conformed to Christ.
There are several levels or forms these small groups may take. The smallest is "mini-micro" groups. these are very small (two to four people) where the deepest level of trust and community occur. This is very important for life change to take place. For life change to happen, there must be openness ("confessing our sins to another and pray for one another..." James 5:16 HCSB) and love for one another. For this to take place there must be a deep level of trust established which requires a very small group and time.
We desire to give freedom to these small groups as to the personality of the group, but the goal of life change must be kept in mind at all times. We believe the early church grew because Christ was being formed in the disciples and people were attracted to Jesus. We believe that if the church is being the church and living the gospel then people will be attracted to that -- as we live and share Jesus. Church growth will come numerically as it changes spiritually.
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