“A cord of three strands is not easily broken” (Ecclesiastes 4:12)
(Click here for Group Instructions, and Click here for Daily Assignments)
These are groups of 3, 4, or occasionally 5 people who are committed to touching base with one another daily for prayer, accountability, encouragement, and friendship. The goal is to create space for group members to check in with one another easily (online/via phone, when convenient, not having to set up a time to meet in person) to pray for and encourage one another, and to hold one another accountable in areas of growth.
Process:
Sign up for a group with Pastor Chris or Justina
We will assign groups, attempting to form groups of people with a lot in common. We’ll create groups based on gender, age, and life situation.
We encourage groups to invite new members. If a new member does not quite match your group makeup, send them to Justina or Pastor Chris, and we will find them an appropriate group.
We’ll try to start with groups of 3. Groups can grow to 4. If a group adds a fifth member let us know and we will try to find a spare person to split into groups of 3 and restart the process.
Groups should meet soon (or connect via text/email/phone) to establish group expectations. Questions for the first group meetup:
- Share names
- What mode of communication is most convenient for the whole group? (group text? Email? Facebook? Other?)
- How do you hope to grow with this?
- Will you commit to doing this for the season of Lent? (e.g. – If your phone changes numbers, you will find a way to let the group know how to get ahold of you. You will respond to messages at some point during each day. You will be honest and forthcoming. You will keep things confidential.) Lent runs from March 1st– April 16th.
- Are there particular areas where you need/want accountability (porn, substance abuse, food issues, etc…)? If so, please briefly share your journey with your need/struggle. How can the group best support you in this?
- Is there something not on this list that you would like to check in about? Does somebody need daily accountability on some issue? Daily encouragement?
Once the group expectations are established, assign days of the week to each group member. The person assigned is responsible for initiating the text/email/facebook conversation of the day, checking in about the topic of the day (and to do so every week). You can find suggested daily questions here, but groups may alter them to suit the needs of the members of the group. For example, if somebody wants to check in daily about a particular issue, then the assigned person should also ask about that issue no matter what day it is.