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God’s own essence is a communion of persons. Our faith is rooted in the mystery of the Trinity: the divine relationship between the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We too are called to live this Trinitarian reality of self-giving love.

Created in God’s image, we too are social beings. It is through community that the dignity of every individual is realized. And it is out of the community that we are sent to love and serve the world.
 

In the book, Becoming a True Spiritual Community, by Larry Crabb. He states, "We are human beings, the unique creation of a divine community of three Persons who enjoy being together more than they enjoy anything else. Persons who want to share their joy with other people. We long to rediscover true community, to know it in our experience; we were built for it."

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1.    A healthy small group can provide an environment for spiritual growth, especially when the small group members are comfortable, open, vulnerable, and accountable as they journey together in their Christian faith. 

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2.   The key to provided such an environment is to create trust and foster comfort in the following ways:

 

a.   Sharing your God moments with one another - Everyone has a story to tell. Everyone likes to listen to stories! Real fellowship begins to develop as connections, similarities, doubts, tensions, and perhaps failures surface. Sharing stories early in the life of the group is part of the "getting to know you" process that begins the bonding and building of trusting relationships.

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b.   Be authentic - By being yourself, you are giving others permission to be real. In sharing some deeper details of one another helps the group to trust, and helps the group to connect in a safe environment.

 

c.   Be thoughtful and affirming to one another – It takes courage to share your personal God stories, and struggles. This is not a counseling or opinion session, it is a encourage one another to holiness session. A healthy small group does not have a critical or judgmental spirit. The focus is to point one another to God.

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d.  Be quick to listen and slow to speak. Be aware of time as you share and try to keep the conversation going so that one person doesn't dominate the discussion. 

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Matthew 18:20, “For where two or three gathers in my name, there am I with them.”

 

Next week I will not be doing a Facebook Live, instead I will post a video on Chapter Six. I will be out of town that evening, so stay tuned for the upcoming video.

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Pray Psalm 133 in regards to community.