Articles for tag: Authentic Community

Authentic Community

By Rick Lowry God created every person with a “community gene.” We all have a natural longing to be with other human beings. From an early age, we have known the value of being a member of a group. Everyone grew up in some version of a family, a place where we belonged, living with significant others who helped shape us. We are in community, in groups, every day: the staff team at work, the board or committee on which we serve, the Thursday night Bunko ladies group, the guys who gather to watch NFL games—all small groups that satisfy,

February 20, 2022

Real Friends and Real Transformation

Editor Michael C. Mack shares how God used the first-ever small group he joined to change his life.

June 22, 2019

Discipleship & Spiritual Formation

Practicing the Implications of Truth: How We Become Doers of the Word and Not Hearers Only

By Wes Sebree Not even an extremely gifted communicator can rival experience as a teacher. My good friend Mike would add, “Truth is discovered, not downloaded.” In other words, truth must be experienced to take root. If these statements are accurate—and they are—we need to consider whether we want to proclaim the truth or whether we want to equip people to live faithfully. The first can be accomplished without doing the second. Additionally, equating information transfer with spiritual growth robs Christ’s body of experiencing God’s truth and love in tangible ways. This results in a subtle brand of gnosticism where

June 22, 2019

Two Interviews, Two Brothers, One Passion for Making Disciples

By Michael C. Mack I had the privilege to interview Robert Coleman in his home in Wilmore, Kentucky, for our August 2019 issue. It took me back to when I interviewed his brother Lyman Coleman—founder of Serendipity House, compiler and editor of the Serendipity Bible for Groups, and widely known for being a pioneer in the small group movement in the United States—for a cover story in The Lookout in 1993. Robert described Lyman as his “best friend for all these years.” The brothers worked together many times, and each of their ministries often benefited the other’s. For instance, Robert

May 22, 2019

Bible Study Theology & Bible

What Core 52 Is Doing for Us

By Dale Reeves How desperate are you to know God’s Word, what he wants to say to you, and what he wants you to do about it? “I don’t just want to read God’s Word weekly. I am implementing changes in my life—sometimes daily—as a result of reading Core 52.” “When we’re out of town during the week, we love staying on track by reading the same Scriptures many others at Christ’s Church are reading.” “Even in the midst of my busy lifestyle, I am staying committed to a daily reading of God’s Word. The practical action steps each week

December 5, 2017

Christian Living

Dropping the Act

By Chuck Dennie I”ve served in large churches for the past 10 years. These churches do amazing things in people”s lives, their communities, and around the world. They create environments where people”s lives are made whole. The problem is, my life was broken. My mom left when I was 6 months old, and I could tell you about many other sources of my brokenness, but we all have a story we could tell. I came to believe early on that love is earned, and so I began to pursue the approval of others. When you combine these factors and this

February 27, 2017

Church & Ministry Teaching

Raise the Sails to Lead Your Group or Class

By Michael C. Mack As sailing is a partnership between man and nature, spiritual growth is a collaborative effort between you and God. The term for Spirit is the same for that of wind in both the Old and New Testaments. The Holy Spirit is the wind that provides the driving force of all spiritual growth. You cannot bring about spiritual growth in your own life or the lives of those you lead, but neither are you a passive bystander. As the Holy Spirit moves, you must become engaged in that driving force. As a small group leader or teacher,

September 22, 2016

Church Leadership

Four Reasons Every Lead Pastor Should Lead a Small Group

By Michael C. Mack Lead pastors who lead a small group create a win-win dynamic. The pastors and the churches they lead both become healthier and grow as a result. Jim Egli, who has served as a senior pastor, associate pastor, missions pastor, and missionary says that regardless of his role, he has always led a group. He offers these four reasons: Small groups are at the heart of church health. Egli says a healthy church lives in authentic, Christ-centered, missional community, and a church that uses healthy groups””the focus being on the word healthy“”will increase its health, effectiveness, growth,

January 28, 2015

Church & Ministry Church Leadership

An Inconvenient Truth?

By Jim Tune I”ve heard the axiom “Love everyone, but move with the movers!” shared by speakers at leadership conferences. There”s truth in this counsel. I”ve had to encourage people to find another church when they became obtusely stuck on some element of vision or direction. At some point, I”ve had to weigh the value of giving disproportionate amounts of energy to people who refuse to change or compromise. So yeah, there”s some wisdom in moving with the movers. That said, I”m not entirely comfortable with this approach. Sometimes in order to truly love someone like Jesus did, you just

December 7, 2014

Discipleship & Spiritual Formation

In Praise of Pretending

By Eddie Lowen Few values have bigger buzzword status in the Christian community than authenticity. I”m glad. Sincerity is always in season. When churches and church leaders are genuine in motive and style, spiritual seekers find and follow them. Everything written about reaching young adults stresses the importance of “authentic community.” While the phrase now seems overused, the value can”t be overemphasized. It”s crucial. But I do have one caution concerning authenticity. In my own journey with God, growth has not always felt natural. Some of the progress I”ve made has been forced and awkward, rather than instinctive. So, I”ve

August 24, 2013

The Secret to Small Group Multiplication

This is the time of year to plan for the long-term health, growth, and continual expansion of your small group ministry. Here are some tips for making that happen. By Michael C. Mack One of the most “reproductive” leaders I”ve ever known is Laura. I lost count of how many times her group multiplied. Since she was an expert, I asked her to conduct a training session for other leaders on how to multiply a group. Her response offers a clue to the secret of multiplication: “I have no idea what to teach others about this,” she told me. “It

August 28, 2012

What”s the Point of Your Small Group?

By Michael C. Mack Why does your small group exist?Â What”s your purpose? What are your goals? Bill Willits, director of group life at North Point Community Church, Alpharetta, Georgia, tells what happened when that church first began meeting in the convention center in Atlanta. The electronic marquee that thousands of people would see every day advertised the church as “No Point Church.” The sign engineer could not fit the entire name on the marquee, so he took some creative liberties. Of course, Willits says, this became the joke of the night, but it also provided Andy Stanley an opportunity

April 6, 2012

Breaking the Ice

By Michael C. Mack Every good small group leader knows a great first meeting starts with some introductions, usually using a fun icebreaker. One of my favorites is called “two truths and a lie.” See if you can identify which of these are factual and which is fictional: (1) I graduated with a degree in finance from the University of Cincinnati where I was a cheerleader. (2) I graduated from Cincinnati Christian University with an MA in church growth, and edited the school newspaper, The Purple & Gold. (3) I founded a ministry called SmallGroups.com and wrote a column called

November 5, 2010

Smaller Groups, More Disciples

ByÂ Michael Mack How many people can you effectively lead, shepherd, and disciple? Eight? Ten? Twelve? Twenty? Let me ask the question another way: If you are to bear much fruit, fruit that will last . . . if youÂ are to see true transformation of people”s lives . . . if you are to see people develop into leaders so that you are multiplying your leadership . . . into how many people can you invest your life? Jesus formed a small group that would eventually change the world. But first, he called two sets of brothers: Simon Peter and Andrew,

September 15, 2010

Devotionals

Sad Because She Left Us

By Mark A. Taylor My wife and I discovered something wonderful when we returned to our church after three vacation Sundays away: people there missed us. Amid all the friendly pats and hearty greetings”””Welcome back!” “We loved your pictures on Facebook!” “Was your trip wonderful?”””I thought about this column I promised to write when we returned. This continues a discussion begun in last week”s issue. There I reported on and reacted to author Anne Rice”s public announcement of her decision to walk away from Christianity. She said her faith in Christ is “central” to her life, but “following Christ does

June 8, 2008