Small Group Bible Study Benefits Essay

I was able to attend three church services at the Athens First United Methodist Church and gain insight on what it was like to be a weekly congregation member. While focusing on the members of the congregation and their mannerisms, the pastor and the way that the congregation was being addressed, and the overall routine of the service I was able to write-up the way that I felt and the things that I noticed while being present. I feel as if the Catholic and Methodist church are different and attending the mass was not something that I was used too. I was experiencing a different religion and church service. I felt like there was a sense of community at each service and I really liked the way that I personally felt welcome each time I went. I am not saying that the catholic church does not have a sense of community, maybe it is because Athens is a small town and members get to know each other very well or what but I felt a strong community vibe. I was able to focus in on the members specifically and the way that they interacted with one another and the pastor. Friendly, is the word that I would use to describe the members. Each person had a smile on their faces on entering and exiting the church. Reverend Robert McDowell did a wonderful job interacting and engaging with the congregation throughout the service. He wanted his people to listen and reflect on the words he was saying not just blankly listen to. Going to the Methodist church was an eye opening experience to me, realizing that going to church and being in college is not a bad thing. It takes up one hour of my time one day a week. This project made me realize the difference between religions and unfamiliar places and how it can be educational and exciting to

I understand that the gifts of the Holy Spirit will help me build up the church, and I wish to share in building up the Church by helping my friends come closer to God. Building up the

As human beings we are naturally introduced to a natural family, every Christian is naturally introduced to God's spiritual family. God is the Father of all his children. In the church we are like a neighborhood and in our neighborhood church, we have fathers, moms, more established and more youthful kin, and new infants being conceived in our spiritual family. We get benefits as relatives, however we likewise have responsibilities.This impacts our needs and how we treat each other. We have a similar respect and responsibility and love for our heavenly families as we improve the situation our own families. We would prefer just not to get together once per week—we need to confer our lives to each other.

I have attended Fellowship Bible Church for many years so have heard about this service for a long time, but never knew how large the congregation truly was. At the beginning of the meeting I did not think it would be effective because of how big of a group it was, but when the open-groups broke out I saw that this is a good way for people to be more comfortable and able to share about their experiences with smaller groups.

Small groups are the proper environment to develop and grow disciples of Jesus. The purpose of a small group is to develop sacrificial, relational, transformed people who can continue the cycle of disciple development. Small groups must be intentional, individual and missional. There are five primary passages that can be used to form a small group ministry philosophy. Each of these passages have accompanying principles that we can apply to our small group ministries.

According to Ministry Is…, chapter 29, "A healthy Christian small group is a gathering of three to fifteen people who meet regularly together for the purpose of spiritual _____ _____

In recent years, God has become a very important part of my life. I am determined to learn more about God and look forward to seeing what he has in store for me and my family. At one time God was not a big part of my life, I did not attend church regularly or feel close to him. I have always believed in God and Jesus Christ as our savior, but did not actively seek a closer relationship with him. I feel that much of that changed when I accepted my current job in a church based preschool program. After taking the position in the preschool, I was then offered a position in the church’s nursery on Sunday mornings. I accepted this position also and my son and I started attending Church every Sunday. In the time since, my husband, myself, and our children have all joined the Church, been baptized, and become very active in our Church. I feel that this was God’s plan for us all along. I feel that God guides our decisions each and everyday, and I now use prayer to seek his guidance for our lives.

Our relationships with other people give a strong sense of what our relationship with God is like. How we interact with people on a daily basis and the relationships that we build goes a long way in showing just how we feel about them. In Romans 1:10 we see that Paul wanted desperately to come to Rome to teach, to interact, to fellowship, and build relationships with the Christians that were there. Just as God wants a personal relationship with His creation we all feel a deep need for relationships with each other. It was not meant for man to go through life on his own without being able to interact with each other. We see the genuine love that Paul displayed toward the people and churches throughout his epistles and it should make us want to have an even stronger relationship with our Creator.

Thompson presents a very convicting treatise on the significance of relationships in the Christian witness. This book causes the reader to examine their own relationships, as well as their lifestyle, in order to evaluate the degree of the reflection of Christ in their incarnational witness. Through his systematic process of self-examination and relational observation, combined with intercessory prayer and discipleship ministry, Thompson offers a simple, yet profound method of using personal relationships to share the gospel of Christ with family, friends, coworkers, and complete strangers. He expounds on the principle that mankind is a relational being, created to fellowship with God and other humans, to develop his approach to personal evangelism and, equally important, follow-up

The church that we used to attend -Wooddale Baptist- was a mega church just outside of St. Paul, Minnesota. Every Sunday, I had the same schedule consisting of Sunday School, snack time, and then “Big Church,” which was with the adults. Due to the unthinkable amount of kids, I was never given the opportunity to make anything more than acquaintances. Every Sunday it felt like I met someone new, plus I only got to know their surface layer identity. Once we started at my new church, Aldersgate Church, my social and religious outlook improved. Starting on the first Sunday, my family and I had made plenty of good friends. We even had dinner plans with two strange families after church that night! Little did we know that these two families became the most supportive and trusted people we would ever meet. Also, the small community within the church and the pastor inspired me to grow in my faith than ever before. I began to enjoy Sunday school, and understand the lessons. Exchanging churches changed the way I worshipped God, and gave me the chance to meet new

2012. p. 306). When people attend church, they have their fellow church members; they can talk with about their problems. The church members can support each other through whatever trauma they may be experiencing.

According to the textbook, social groups are “a group that exist to provide opportunities for group member to enjoy the company of others.” (Beebe, Beebe, & Ivy, 2008, p. 238) The two types of groups she mentioned were a book club and a Biblical Training course. The difference between the two was that the book club was informal in which the 5 members of the group meet at a restaurant to enjoy dinner and discuss the book of the month. With the Biblical Training group this was a formal setting in which the group was more of a formal study group. According to the textbook, a study group, is a group that exists to help group members learn new information and ideas.” (Beebe, Beebe, & Ivy, 2008, p. 236) The study group meets bi-weekly to review the selected book chosen by the Pastor. This is a formal setting in which the Pastor opens the meeting with prayer and reviews the information on the book and backs up the information with scripture for an hour. In this type of setting, the group members only listen and take notes during the meeting and then the meeting is closed with

Relational. The ministry of Jesus was focused on people and meeting their needs. Spending time with others, both individually and through corporate gatherings, is modeled throughout the Bible. Fellowship with other believers in small groups allows individuals to forge relationships and develop accountability at some level. These deeper bonds demonstrate to others their love for God and others by loving God’s Law, obeying it by God’s grace, and allowing it to lead to Jesus Christ for transformation into His image.

Over the years, many models have been developed and implemented to endeavor to make disciples. Some of the models have been effective and others have not. Among some of the most biblical and efficient models are the ones that involve small groups. Within the small groups models, they can be broken down into further detail, such as pastoral involvement, the church’s goal, missions mindedness, etc. In this paper, I will explain my philosophy of small groups in a church and the importance of the relational group in authentic disciple making. I will also explain how missional groups can help the body of Christ move out into the community. Finally, I will summarize my status in regards to living in community with other believers and being missional with that community.

I find myself in a daily struggle with God, fighting through my worldly mindset and constantly questioning and justifying certain aspects of my life. Personally, it drives me to seek wisdom in the scripture but I can see in large groups where the many predispositions might get in the way of a very personal growth opportunity. I know personally when it comes to group discussions I shy far away from being the center of discussion. I leave that business for those braver and more confident than I.