Woodbridge SG is back!

we're really excited. ha. actually, it's been a long time since we got together, and i've heard different members express to me how they've been looking forward to the group getting back together. with the addition of caroline, and timothy the baby, we're really starting to grow.

this thursday will be our first meeting since before the summer. please pray that people would come with a willingness to be open and to share...and a hunger for community. i also haven't seen aaron for awhile, and am looking forward to seeing him come to sg. he's been very vocal about wanting to form a community, and was a little sad when we decided to break for the summer.

we're going to keep in casual - a snack potluck, praise, sharing and prayer. we're also going to be deciding which book to cover this year. we're currently choosing between tim keller's two most recent books - the reason for God and the prodigal God. katerina's english has really improved and i see her as really standing to benefit from this year's discussions.

it'll also be interesting to see the dynamic with a baby in our midst! i'm sure it'll provide a new set of joys as well as challenges, but pray that we'd all be able to roll with the new situation and be gracious in a new set of circumstances. i'm excited for the new small group year, but i also want to remember to give God the reins and the glory over all the joys and trials that will come our way this year.

this week

i thought ben did a good job leading this week. we decided to take turns leading but still contribute to the group conversation. sam lee had more questions than usual, which was a good thing for discussion. we also got into pairs and shared/prayed for one another. my hope is that the small group can be an extension of one of the aspects of the local church, in terms of accountability/discipline. it's somewhat easy to share vaguely without getting too personal. but i think that we can foster an environment to be vulnerable and deeper. i like the analogy that sam got from someone that church should be like a hospital for the sick. if we are scared to share our symptoms, then we'll only get worse. also, not to be cynical, but i feel like small group is almost preaching to the choir. the ones who consistently come out are the ones who are already pretty committed.

Pastrami Sandwiches

Yesterday, Sang bought us Pastrami sandwiches on rye bread and cole slaw from a Kosher deli. It was the best pastrami I've ever had. I always have to intro with what we ate since that is so important to our small group :)

For most of you who have finished the Prayer book a long time ago might not remember what Chapter 8 was about.... Joining In - corporate prayer. I was really encouraged today because our small group committed to meeting up on a non-small group day to have a mini prayer meeting on our own. What was great was that I wanted to mention it, but others mentioned it first. I can't play guitar and wanted a short time of worship, so someone volunteered to play but can't bring a guitar, so someone else going to bring a guitar. We'll probably meet sometime next week to devote time to prayer. (We usually meet every other week, so this is great that people want to come out on an off-week).

After small group, a small group member told me that setting aside time to pray in a group like this was on his heart and wanted to even talk to me about it before even coming to small group. He didn't know that this chapter was going to be about corporate prayer until he got to small group (what a coincidence) and was really encouraged that we've committed to a prayer time. We both agreed that this was divine. It was cool to see how God moves in hearts individually and then manifests things in a group.

Please please pray that this prayer meeting will actually happen and that the time of prayer will be GOOD. I can think of so many ways we could cover each other in prayer as well as pray for larger things.

nyc sg: update

last thursday, the nyc small group finishing j.i. packer's praying. it looks like we'll be joining the rest of the new brunswick groups and starting joshua harris's stop dating the church. since our books won't be here by our meeting time this week, we're going to get together for prayer and dinner.

our group is literally a small group. five of us--me, david, daniel, gina, and rebecca--meet every other week (emily moved back to nj so she's going to join one of the central jersey groups) at my apartment. i think our dynamics have been ok considering the size and it's nice to have familar faces but i worry sometimes about where this group will end up. rebecca is on a temporary "sabbatical" from goodnews and she is considering moving to brooklyn so that might leave our group with me, my husband, my brother-in-law, and gina. this works ok with me, but i think the other members wish our fellowship circle was a bit broader.

the challenge for me has been to reclaim some of the excitement of being a small group leader. preparing the studies in a way that is relevant and meaningful has been a lot harder than i remember from my college days. i think partly it's due to the fact that i've lost a lot of the zeal i once had for God's Word. please pray for me that i would have a bigger heart for these things.

Agenda for Next meeting

Hey guys,

Just emailing to let you know what will be happening on November 22!

The reason why we meet every month is to become more effective fellowship builders who build up a fellowship marked by sharing-in, sharing-out, and sharing-with.

Through our meetings, I want all of us to become more effective agents of change. In order for this to happen, the most vital need that I see for our team is each one of us having a strong, thriving relationship with God. There are other skills needed to become a good fellowship builder, but having a thriving personal relationship with God is foundational.

In order to overflow unto others, we need to know God and grow in grace ourselves! Know. Grow. Overflow.

I want all of us to become more spiritually vibrant. Our heart condition affects our church. So these days, I'm thinking how can we become fellowship builders who are constantly growing and thriving? What needs to be taught? What needs to change in our lives?

So for the Nov meeting, I want to focus on the topic of repentance.
I just heard a great sermon on repentance, and I want all of us to reflect on it.

Please begin praying for the Nov meeting. Let's pray that as we meet, we'll take another step forward!

Love in Christ,
SH

North Jersey SG tonight

hi all,

Today our small group will be having dinner for sangs bday. No bible study today. We are meeting next week for bible study. I don't want to share too much in detail about what people are going through individually but our small group is pretty open with sharing and I hope we can be diligent in praying and supporting each other through hard times. I really want us to be a family. So please pray that even over burgers and cake we can encourage one anoher and those who aren't able to make it. I am stuck on a runway in Toronto and I hope I'll make it home in time for small group. Like I shared during out last meeting, I want to use this quiet time on the plane fruitfully to think of sg, you guys and the church. My computer battery died, as did my blackberry and soon I won't be able to use my phone. God is telling me to be quiet! :)

Let's not forget Mike and Tina

Hello!

During our last meeting, Mike and Tina graciously shared with us some of their struggles as sg leaders. Feeling burnt-out and being stuck in a spiritual rut were some of the things that they shared.

I think that what they did was brave and mature - it was definitely a positive step for our team because I believe they helped to set the tone for our team. It's not easy to share our weaknesses, but God promises in the bible: when we pray for our brothers and sisters, God, through our prayers, comforts and revitalizes the brothers and sisters whom we're praying for.

It takes great humility to share our weaknesses, but as Paul says, we're strong in our weakness for his power is made manifest in our weakness.

Let's not forget to pray for Mike and Tina!

We ALL share in the same struggles. We're ALL running the same race, and beset with same spiritual obstacles. As leaders, we're all under attack. Let's not be ashamed to share our weaknesses and struggles.

Remember God's promise to us:

- "If anyone sees his brother committing a sin not leading to death, he shall ask, and God will give him life." (1 John 5:16)
- "Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working. Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for 3 years and 6 months it did not rain on the earth. Then he prayed again, and heaven gave rain, and the earth bore its fruit" (James 5:16-18).