If you don’t already belong to a “Life Group”, then you should try to find a good one.  Ask God and He’ll direct you to one.  We would love for you to try ours to get a firsthand feel for what it’s all about.  It’s the quickest way to connect with people who believe and want the same things as you do.

Churches use life or cell groups in order to stay connected to its congregation; to effectively know what’s going on with its members so that they can serve them more efficiently. For example, let’s say someone needs food, but doesn’t really know anyone at the church and they find their situation embarrassing and are fearful of speaking out. By the time someone finds out, calls the church, and that message gets into the proper hands, the person could have starved to death.  Within a life group, the same person now knows at least one other person. They see each other in church and at the life group meetings, hear others share their problems, and know that the life group environment is strictly confidential so they soon relax, open up and share.  In this way, a person can tell at least the life group leader that they need food. That leader now reaches out to the life group members discreetly about one of their members’ need, and the members come together and meet the need without revealing who the member is. If the need is bigger than the group can handle, the life group leader contacts the church and the church takes care of the need.

In addition to helping with a  member’s carnal/natural needs, life groups help members apply the Word of God to their daily lives. For example, how to determine God’s purpose for your life, how to live right, how to pray, etc.

I’ve led many types of groups and ministries over the last 15 years and there is a common thread among them all.  People want the things God promises in the bible for themselves, their families, their churches and their communities. As a result of that, I love bringing resources to people that will bless and enhance their God experience while making it practical and usable. Sooooo, I invited Rev. James Canada, Leader and co-creator of the POWER Ministry, to speak at one of our Life Group meetings.

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POWER stands for “Powerful Overcoming Warriors Experiencing Restoration” and it explains what they do.  The ministry was started due to the great need people had to free themselves from whatever binds them – any addiction, drugs, food, people, etc. And since you fight spiritual problems with spiritual weapons, the POWER ministry shows you how to do that and walks you through it.

The topic for that evening was “Fellowship – You were formed for God’s Family” and I wanted Rev. Canada to connect that to the POWER ministry and speak to what it really means to be a part of God’s Kingdom and how ministry is supposed to support families and family related issues and concerns.

As we all know all too well, Satan attacks our families in every way that he can. He doesn’t care about attacking our money, our children, our jobs, our relationships, and takes advantage of the fear and insecurities we carry around.  However, we serve a God that has already provided weapons to defeat every attack, every time, keeping our families strong and intact.

The bible tells us in Isaiah 54:17 that no weapon formed against us shall prosper… but many people don’t know how to work this scripture when the pressure is on and high in their lives. They give into the emotional component of the situation and this can be very distracting. Decisions made in an emotional state may not be the best or get you the results you really need and want. The good news is you don’t have to attempt to do this by yourself. So come on out to the POWER Ministry meetings and to our Life Group meetings to learn how. For those of you who have used this scripture to ensure victory over some tragedy, please tell us about that too!

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Last Tuesday night (March 11th) was our first Authentic Life Church’s  (ALC) Life Group meeting! Yeah!

We launched 4 separate meetings across the city in various locations. Our church is only 5 months old and it’s amazing to see how it’s growing! Our God is faithful. Our meeting was held in a room the church rented at a CDC facility in our community.

But, what’s a Life Group? A Life Group is a small group of people who gather regularly to support each other and enjoy common interests. They are known by various names: Growth groups, Connect Groups, Core Groups, Cell Groups, Home Groups or Fellowship Groups.  You may know them by one of those names.

Christian Churches use these groups to not only teach the Word of God, but to also foster more personal relationships amongst its members. Inside these groups members help each other take the Word of God and use it in their daily lives to create success and to weather storms.

In regular church services, the number of people, combined with time constraints, makes it impossible to have an interactive format,  or answer individual questions or concerns. In addition, the Pastor or Leader can’t personally get to know everyone in the congregation. However, in small groups, the level of intimacy is much higher so people can dig deeper into what the Word of God means and how they can use it on a daily basis. Thus bringing God alive in your life, not only on Sundays.

This concept is quickly replacing the standard “mid-week” church service due to its higher level of efficiency and effectiveness in caring for people. People now feel connected to something bigger than themselves and a part of something meaningful.

Life Groups also help people discover and develop their gifts, talents and hobbies into successful businesses. They can share ideas for community projects and the group’s operational needs. As people get more involved, their gifts, talents and skills get used, developed and expanded. For example, in one of the small groups I belonged to, someone who liked to tinker on the computer volunteered to help create a newsletter about the group. That newsletter was seen by many other people and that led to paid gigs. A new business was born! I have many testimonies like them from former members of our group. We also got involved in our surrounding community by feeding the homeless, adopting a woman’s shelter and many other projects like  supporting the businesses of the members who already had businesses in our community. We became a family!

The goal of the ALC Life Groups is the do the same thing. To first provide love, support and fellowship for its members and their families. Secondly, to invite people in the surrounding area who are not yet saved and those who are saved, but don’t have a church home.

At our first meeting last night, we had an engineer who sings like a songbird, a hair salon owner who lives across the street from our meeting location, an executive director of a facility for the mentally impaired, an author, and many others. We also had people on every level of spiritual development from the not saved yet to folks who have been saved for years! All hanging out together eating the Word of God together and having fun while doing it. We even ended the night by doing some line dancing. Check us out!

Thanks So Much!

I want to thank some of  my great friends who helped make our night great: James, Kisha, Tina, Darnetta, Lisa, Anettra, Damon, Susan, Willis, Sara, Shewanda and Krystal.  I want to thank my great husband Bruce for his unselfish love and support and I want to thank the best Pastor in the world, Pastor Lester Brown who supports and pushing us to live our best Purpose Driven Life. Thanks to everyone who attended and I’m so looking forward to seeing you all next week!

Come check out our Life Group! We will be meeting for the next 7 Tuesdays, from 7 – 8:30pm @ the Greater Brewerytown CDC, on the corner of 30th & Master Streets, Philly. See you there. For more information simply reply/subscribe to this post.