Strong relationships with other brothers and sisters are essential to following Jesus. Our God intends that we live life alongside of and with each other as we walk together toward our Savior. Shepherding Groups are the relational hub for our church family and the heartbeat of our life together. In a church our size we can’t know everyone, but we need to know some and be known by them. These small groups are a crucial place for growth in our walk with Jesus. It’s also the primary place where our church leaders watch over us (Elders) and care for us (Deacons). It’s where we bring the Word into each other’s lives and speak of Christ to one another. It’s where we encourage and confront each other. It’s where we pray for each other. It’s where we care for each other.

Participating in a Shepherding Group is something we expect for each of our members, and we welcome others who are learning about our church to sign up as well. If you are not currently part of a Shepherding Group or if you would like to change groups, sign-up for 2021-22 is taking place through February 28. Registration forms are available at the Welcome Center or you can sign up below. We will organize the groups over the next month, and new groups will begin March 21. Group participants who wish to remain in the same group do not need to complete a registration form.

WHAT ARE SHEPHERDING GROUPS?
Places to Follow Jesus in Relationship with Others
We GROW together as a church family as we spend time together focused on Jesus Christ, so relationships are at the heart of our Shepherding Groups. In a church our size you can’t know everyone, but you need to know someone and be known by them. These small groups, usually made up of 15-20 people, are a crucial place for encouragement and growth in your walk with Christ.

WHEN AND WHERE DO THEY MEET?
Homes around Greenville
Groups meet twice a month in homes, typically on the 1st and 3rd Sunday evenings for 1-2 hours.

WHAT HAPPENS?
Speaking the Word, Praying, and Caring
Group members love one another by living out the “one anothers” of the NT. In this setting, we share life together, confess our sins to one another, speak God’s Word into each other’s lives, and pray for each other.

When the group gathers, the discussion focuses on the preached Word from Sunday morning. Through the Spirit’s help we seek to understand and apply the Word which we’ve heard.

Complete the form below if you would like to join a Shepherding Group or change groups.

A.W. Tozer famously said, “What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us.” The trouble is that there are significant barriers to thoughts of God even entering our minds. First, our hectic lives and busy culture hardly allow room for us to think about God. We are inundated with technology, entertainment, and the next urgent problem. If we’re honest, we might have to confess that thinking about God is down the priority list. Another barrier is that thoughts about God seem unrelated to our everyday lives. God feels so far away and so intangible that we may find it difficult to believe that thinking about Him will actually help us with our family relationships, our work situation, or our life goals.

“Truth for the Road” is a series of studies we are launching this year and plan to revisit in coming years. The studies will help us learn more about the foundational doctrines of the Bible. Our goal is to consider significant questions such as Who is God? What is humanity’s problem? How can it be fixed? Who is Jesus, and why did He come? What’s so important about church? However, we’re not going to stay in the realm of the abstract. Truth hits us right where we live, so we’re going to see how answers to these questions change our everyday lives. That’s Truth for the Road.

This spring our Truth for the Road study will focus on the Trinity—the God of the Bible is 3 Persons in 1 God. Why should we care? What difference does this make on Monday morning? Come and find out. You may sign up online or at a table in the Hudson Road lobby at church, January 31 and February 7. Make sure to pick up a notebook for $5 and complete the first week’s work ahead of our first meeting on Thursday, February 11. You can choose to join us on Thursday mornings at 6:15 am or Thursday evenings at 7:00 pm, and our study will last six weeks, ending on March 18.

Email Abe Stratton with questions.

What is our only hope in life and death? Although we know the answer is Christ, after a difficult year, we may be left with many practical questions. Is Christ our only hope even when we are not feeling hopeful or happy? Is our faith enough to sustain us in difficult times? The book of James was possibly the first book written in the New Testament, and it has a word for those who are prone to wander, for those who are doubting, and for those who are seeking wisdom. James invites the Christians to remember their good God, calls the seekers to examine their faith, and shows that true wisdom is in seeing this groaning world the way that God sees it; James urges his readers to remain steadfast in their calling to Christ, to the Church, and to their fellow image-bearers. Come study with us as we dive into this practical and sometimes controversial book!