Write About Now

I spent my Saturday evening at a Waffle House with Marcus Bigelow from Stadia and Bobby Harrington from Harpeth Community Church and Church Coaching Solutions, discussing a potential book project scheduled for early next year. You had no idea the writer’s life was so glamorous, did you?

In addition to lots of talk about church planting, the conversation included a discussion of small groups. I’ve shared my views on this before; while these groups might (might) be pleasant, they seem artificially intimate and spiritually shallow.

Except for one exception. Several years ago I joined a group of women who decided to read through the Bible together in one year. That was it: no purchased curriculum, no videos, and no summers off—just a dozen women, ranging in age from 24 to 64, who followed a reading guide during the week and met each Monday night to discuss what they’d learned.

In the process, these ladies spontaneously, naturally did all the things small group members are always being encouraged to do—prayed for each other, delivered hot meals after the birth of a baby or death of a loved one, and developed friendships. Older ladies informally mentored the younger ones, moms of small children sought advice from more experienced mothers, and single gals banded together to find roommates or spend holidays together.

Even better, the group members grew spiritually. In addition to welcoming women of all ages, the group welcomed women of every faith background and maturity level. Some had Bible college degrees, while others had never read the Bible. But everyone read the assigned chapters (most weeks), everyone attended Monday night gatherings (most weeks), and everyone ended the year closer to each other and to God. The group has grown so big it’s spun off at least two other groups and some ladies are on their sixth or seventh year. (If you want to learn more, check out Diane Stortz’s Christian Standard article here. Diane and I both participated in the group its very first year.)

So I’m sharing all this with Bobby, and we’re talking about the many advantages of this kind of relational discipleship and its promise for small groups in the future, and suddenly I had an idea. What if I invited the women in my apartment complex to this kind of Bible study? I could hang up a few signs in December inviting them over for a short, no-commitment gathering to get more information, then launch the group in January. Together we’d pick a night that worked for the majority, I’d provide the reading guide and some hot drinks, and we’d see what happened.

I’m still kicking this around, and I’d love to know your thoughts. The group I describe above literally transformed several women from baby Christians to spiritual warriors, “just” by providing a safe place to read and discuss the Bible. It’s simple, low-cost, and allows God’s Word to do the work.

But it’s a big commitment for me, not long after I’ve acknowledged my need to say no to some things. I don’t really have time for it. I don’t really know any of my neighbors. And I don’t know what I’d be getting myself into.

Maybe that’s why I should do it.