Our communities should be the most palpable expression of the gospel within the church.

The number of seats we fill will not determine the legacy of our churches. The depth to which the gospel penetrates those lives will determine our legacy.

One of the keys to developing opportunity-based community is shepherding your group to be self-organizing. One mistake that leaders often make is that they feel obligated to attend or plan every event. Not only will this fry a leader, but it also makes it difficult for members of the group to develop any sense of ownership. A leader may have to get

The captain of the ship doesn’t hang out in the engine room checking the gauges. He has an engineer for that so he can drive the boat. Moses was the captain and needed to cast the vision and lead the body. Third, when you do all the work yourself, you never develop leaders. Jethro challenges Moses to develop leaders and trust God by giving away

Now, contrary to any Rambo movies you may have seen, wars are not fought by individuals. Armies fight wars.

Keys: Join rather than create. Build relationships. Hold participation as a priority. Emphasize consistency.

Repentance here starts with rejoicing in our salvation. It is gratitude and thankfulness for God’s holiness and mercy. It looks like compassion for our dying neighbors. Repentance is living with a passion for Jesus and a desire to see people worship him. If we can kill indifference, we will remove another barrier to transformational community.

Lifeless community begins when we don’t have a clear understanding of why we are in community in the first place. Yet, when we try to rejuvenate small groups, we generally ask how we can get more people in them, rather than addressing the question of why they exist. It is no surprise that we have a hard time attracting people to such a ministry.

Small groups will thrive when they become the place where we experience life-giving transformation.