So This Happened

This is a word of testimony from ground zero of Community Group life. 

When we planted Cities Church eight years ago, our heart’s passion was to advance the reality of Jesus’s supremacy in these Twin Cities and beyond, and into every nook and cranny of our own lives. We were going to preach Jesus from the Scriptures on Sundays, and then set up, as best as we could, a discipleship structure that prioritized the Bible in relationships. We believed that meaningful membership in a local church requires that fellow members see one another outside of Sunday services and that those times together should aim for both formation and mobilization. We wanted to be shaped together as disciples of Jesus, and then also equipped as disciple-makers. 

We still believe and want all those things. 

Community Groups is what we called that structure, and Melissa and I started our first one in November 2014 (having helped lead a small group at Bethlehem since 2008). I couldn’t tell you the different people who’ve been in and out of our home since then as part of the numerous iterations of “Community Group.” We spun off new groups that went on to become their own churches. We’ve seen the gamut of relationship stuff, from engagements falling apart to singles falling in love, then getting married and having babies. We’ve seen seekers and skeptics, brand-new Christians and seasoned saints. We’ve seen people really seem to gain value from the group, and we’ve seen our kids’ noise-level stress people out. One time, bless this person’s heart, a guest was so put off by the chaos of kids running around and the screeching sound of a toy car that they simply stood up and said, “I gotta get outta here.” They almost ran out the front door to leave. I have no clue this person’s name and I don’t remember what they looked like, but I felt bad for them, and of course, we carried on. All in all, it’s been pretty wonderful, and pretty wild.

There’ve been times when it got old and felt super lame. Along with some highs, there have been some real lows. The commitment has grown thin at times. (It’s apparently hard to get people to show up for something lame, who knew?) But here’s the thing: We’ve kept going. Little breaks here and there are good, whether schedule conflicts or sabbaticals, but the group is still a thing, and we gathered last Wednesday as it is our custom every other week.

We’re just getting together, updating one another on how things are, and sharing the stories of God’s grace in our lives. It was, by all accounts, about as normal a CG night as we’ve ever had. Well, except that we pushed the start time back 30 minutes because one of our boys had an early basketball game. But it was normal.

And then, out of nowhere, the gathering turned into the most meaningful experience of Christian community that I can remember. I mean that. It was jaw-dropping. Vulnerable conversation. Sacred trust. Deep reverence. High stakes. Gospel hope. It was like the Holy Spirit just pulled up a chair. I believe we experienced his profound ministry through one another.

Of course, that’s not every time we get together, which is fine. But it was last week, and it reminded me why we do this. If the structure is like a sail, the Spirit is the wind. We can’t create the wind, but we should keep lifting the sail. The best is yet to come.