Building The Church Together

Last night I shared at the annual meeting that I believe the theme for this year is "Building the Church Together." For those of you who missed the meeting, I'll be posting the report on the church website this week. Let me highlight the five main ways I that I believe God is calling us to "build the church together."
1. Build the Church Together through Prayer. We need to spend more time praying together in order to stay in touch with God and to see Him work in our midst.
2. Build the Church Together through Outreach. Touch every person in the Nashwauk area with the gospel in 2008.
3. Build the Church Together through Organization. We are going to be improving the "bones" of our church so they will support more ministry.
4. Build the Church Together through Small Groups. Belonging to a small group will become the norm for people who call NAC their church home.
5. Build the Church Together at 825 First Street. We'll be moving when the snow melts!

The Joy of Small Groups

I was putting away the coffee cups last night after our small group Bible Study when I began to think about how important small groups have been to my life. These groups have usually met weekly for a combination of Bible Study, prayer and conversation. Some of them have been very "study" oriented, while others have been more "relational." Sometimes we've used a Bible study guide and other times we have just used the Bible. In every case, close relationships have formed as we have struggled to do life with Jesus together.

Over the years, people in my small groups have:

• helped me understand what a Bible passage means...and how to apply it to my life.
• been there to pray for me when I was figuring out if God was calling me to enter the ministry.
  
• challenged me to think more deeply about God.
• fixed my car...I'm mechanically disinclined.
  
• held me accountable when I was doing things that I knew I shouldn't be doing.
• prayed for me when I went on a missions trip.
• laughed at my dumb jokes.
• encouraged me to memorize Scripture.
• gave me courage to try praying in a group.
  
• celebrated when we purchased our first house.
• loaned me good books to read.
  
• decorated our apartment when our first child was born.
• modeled what it meant to be a Christian parent.
  
• given me advice when I was struggling with looking for a job.
• challenged me to grow in my relationship with Christ.

I could go on and on. Simply put, I'm not sure where I would be if it were not for the impact of small groups on my life. I know that they will continue to be a part of my life for years to come. I hope that over the next year more and more people in church get connected and discover the joy of small groups.

Karl

P.S. I want to especially say thanks to those that are a part of my current small group. You are a tremendous source of encouragement to me. I cherish our friendship!