I have been a huge fan of small groups since the very early days of my Christian journey. I suppose I have always been in some kind of small group. (You may have heard people call them home groups, cell groups, Sunday school, life groups, church classes, or Bible studies.) On-going participation in a small group has given me a way to grow in my faith and a way to get to know some of the people I go to church with at the same time. Small groups allow us to move from staring at the back of somebody’s head on Sunday morning to engaging with people in face-to-face conversation.

Small groups at Word of Life Church give you an opportunity to CONNECT, GROW, and SERVE with other people who call Word of Life home. Some of our groups meet at the church facility, while some groups meet in homes or in other places around town. We offer three kinds of small groups:

CONNECT GROUPS: Groups of people gathering around a specific activity or similar interests with the goal of having fun and forming friendships. While all of the groups give you an opportunity to meet new people, our connect groups are specifically designed to help you make new friends. Our connect groups are based around some kind of social activity or interest.

GROW GROUPS: Groups of people gathering around a topic in order to learn, grow, and be transformed into Christ-likeness. These groups will be based on some kind of subject that the group will study. Grow groups will focus on subjects like marriage, parenting, money management, Bible studies, theology, women’s studies, men’s studies, and spiritual formation.

SERVE GROUPS: Groups of people serving together in the community and the church Serve groups are organized by our Social Justice Ministry here at Word of Life. These groups allow you to build friendships while serving together on a team. We have serve groups meeting both at the church facility and at other community service agencies in the area.

Feel free to take a look at all of our small groups. If you would like more information, or to sign up for a small group, use the contact button at the bottom of each  small group page. If you need any help, feel free to contact me or call me at the church office.

Grace & Peace,

Pastor Derek Vreeland
Discipleship Pastor

This month’s Joseph Company meeting will feature the powerful DVD-based session, Humility, by John Dickson. Taken from the 2011 Global Leadership Summit, this is just the sort of high quality presentation we’ll have at the 2012 Summit here in St. Joseph.

John specializes in communicating the enormous sweep of the Christian narrative that has shaped our world and inspired men and women to live beyond themselves. His journey has been an eclectic one: from a career as a fulltime musician/singer/songwriter for an Aussie rock band, to international speaker, author, biblical historian, educator, TV presenter, and director of a multi-media think tank. A busy speaker, John delivers over 100 talks a year in a range of contexts, including corporations, conferences, churches, pubs, and universities.

John has authored a dozen titles, including the award-winning A Spectator’s Guide to World Religions, Investigating Jesus, and a number of academic works.  His book The Christ Files: How Historians Know What They Know About Jesus was made into a television documentary. In addition to his passion for promoting the public understanding of the Christian faith, John is also fascinated by the paradoxical connection between high-level achievement and the historical virtues of compassion and humility, themes explored in Humilitas: A Lost Key to Life, Love and Leadership, his latest book.

Since The Joseph Company is for people of all ages, I truly encourage you to bring a friend or co-worker who has never experienced a Joseph Company session before. They will absolutely be challenged and inspired by John’s presentation. We’ll also enjoy the world’s greatest free home-cooked breakfast. Remember, it’s always helpful when you RSVP below or call Barbara Young at the church office (816.233.6367) so that enough food can be purchased and prepared.