Small Group Ministry Summary

Galindo analyzes that the fundamental “mission” of a congregation is the same as any other congregation that exists in any part of the world. He argues that though every congregation has a mission and a vision, at the same time, it shares a basic common mission. (43) This reminds me of my home church The First Church of Evanston and my Field Site, The Evanston Vineyard Church. Both churches have a common mission of welcoming people to the church, irrespective of their ethnic, cultural, racial, and economic and, gender backgrounds. The mission is to help people be received in the house of God with due and deserved Christian love so that they feel loved and welcomed. Both these churches encourage church attendees to attend the service and receive the Eucharist.

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 _____ _____

For 17 years God has blessed me to serve alongside my husband as directors of Chi Alpha at the University of Texas at Arlington. During my time here, I have served and mentored hundreds of young women and internationals who now fulfill the mission of Chi Alpha in the marketplace and the world as pastors, missionaries, police officers, nurses, teachers, and social workers. I am especially thankful to walk with those students who came to faith, experienced discipleship, and the Holy Spirit empowered their lives through the ministry.

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

There are many challenges to ministry in today’s world and having a vital and relevant ministry is even harder. Churches across all denominations face drastic declines in both attendees and financial giving. With this as the background, it is imperative that vital ministries seek out opportunities to grow and engage groups and communities that have previously been overlooked, missed or not involved for other reasons including some theological reasons. With this idea and goal in mind, this essay sets out to examine and design a process by which the Churches of Cherokee, Oklahoma can successfully connect with and minster to the new Hispanic community in Cherokee. Using the pastoral cycle method, a process will be designed in this essay to

In August of 2011 I was blessed to become the small group leader of fifteen high school freshman girls. Each one of my fifteen girls had a face and each of those faces had a story to tell. In Grace Baptist Church 's Youth Ministry, small groups are the primary way that we connect with our students. The mission of our small groups are to create a safe and welcoming environment where the students can grow in their relationships with Jesus and each other. In order to accomplish these goals I am responsible for mentoring my group of girls on a weekly basis. I meet with them twice a week for two hours at a time. By starting with this group of young women as freshman in high school and continuing with them through their senior year I was able to form trustworthy bonds with each one of them. During my second year as a leader one of my girls, we will

This paper is the final results of my internship ministry practicum II experiences reflection in my church organization work settings and training. My experiences from different areas of exposure sharpened my skills for my professional role of the Doctor of Ministry Program in the theological field of counseling and teaching. My ministry practicum consists of direct involvements with hands-on, real-life interactions under the supervision of my Supervisor, Chaplain Andrea Fletcher. This Comprehensive Written Review analyzes the full spectrum of my observation and participation in tasks from my Ministry Learning Agreement Form. The opportunity allowed me to view other leaders in ministry exercising their gift and in turns

Once I finished my thought, I sat on the couch and waited for I response. What I received was a blank stare and a look of disbelief. He stated that he would lose me to God and he did not know how to deal with what I just said to him. He collected himself and stated that he would support me in this journey and would try not to pass judgment on what was taking place. He stated that he understood that I had to do the will of God and he could not stand in the way of my calling. He also stated that he was not sure how this journey would look or how he could help me study to become a better teacher and minster. I let him know that his support is all I need at the moment and there would be days I may need his should to lean and cry on.

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.

5.3 The ministry support group will consist of men and women from diverse background and denominations and status dealing with hidden issues with no one to confide in about their circumstances without being judged. They will verbally share information about themselves without being pressured. Hopefully, they will form a bond that cannot be broken and learn to lean on one another at any time.

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.

In this section of the paper, I will characterize one of the new missional communities in Los Angeles that I recently became involved with, the House Church LA. Next, I will use the Appreciative Inquiry approach to identify the change in perspective, focusing on an Affirmative Topic, which in my case is 'Engaging with spiritual seekers'. Then, I will describe a process of integrating new mental models in the further missional transformation of this community, outlining practical implications. There are several new mental models that I desire to share with my ministry context. It includes partnering with the Holy Spirit, listening to God and to our neighbors, building bridges of trust and being outward and

A small church group could be defined as a small community consisting of three, six no more than twelve members at a time if applicable. The group members must be made up of followers of Jesus Christ. Small groups are more personal, leading to a more relational development between the members. This relationship leads to more active discipline of the unsaved. The intent of this paper is show how small groups which, are made up in church are good for discipleship.

This course has had a great impact on my walk with Christ as well as my witness for Christ. I pastor a church and teach two classes and for me I thought that I was doing plenty. However this course has helped rekindle my passion for sharing Jesus Christ with people through personal evangelism. This paper will demonstrate what I have learned throughout this course.