In this week’s edition of the FBC E-News, you will find a blog by Captain Randy Deering. Randy has been brought aboard – no pun intended, so I’ll leave it in anyway – to help us expand the breadth, width, and depth of our small group ministry. Simply put, no matter what we do in other areas of church life, we will forever be limited or unleashed by the degree and manner to which we involve people beyond the morning worship.

As your pastor, I’ll ask you to do a few things in regards to this. First, read Randy’s appeal. It’s the beginning of a lot you will hear from him and from me in the days ahead. Secondly, help us think about forming new small groups, especially in ages and life stages where we are under-served. To that end, don’t be selfish when it comes to releasing people from existing groups to give shape to new ones. Release yourself and replace yourself are worthy battle cries. It’s how things started in the early days of the church, and 2000 years later, we have found no better plan. And for good reason – it’s the way God designed us to be. We were formed for family. Spiritual formation doesn’t happen in absent community. You have heard me – and will continue to hear me –  say these things. Because I believe them to the core of my being.

Last night I talked to my Wednesday night conclave about the five purposes of the church. Worship, evangelism, fellowship, ministry, and discipleship in case you wondered. Guess what? At least four of those are primarily lived out in groups of one form or another. Absent that, we cannot fulfill our purpose and be the followers and faithful church we are called to be. I look forward to seeing where we go from here. It’s gonna be good, I know.