Encounter Groups get you connected.
If you attend Encounter, you don't show up for the amazing facilities. My parents’ church was so big at one point they had chauffeured golf carts that picked you up in the parking lot and brought you to the front door. No one comes to Encounter for the 50 member band and huge choir that is recording its second Greatest Hits Worship CD. And if you come to our church to hear the Right Reverend Dr. Boehm speak on one of his 25 New York Times Best Seller books, then you are either delusional or hopefully a prophet!
God can and does use all those things I mentioned above in churches today. But what makes a great church and what makes a church really great is when the Holy Spirit is moving and working in the lives of the people. And for you to see God moving, and to experience Jesus Christ really changing you and those around you, you have to do more than show up on a Sunday. You have to be involved in a Small Group.
It’s the difference between asking someone you barely know, “How are you?” at work versus asking the same question after dinner at the house and in the middle of a game of cards. You might on a rare occasion, get an honest and deep answer from the first person—but you are practically guaranteed to really learn about someone in the more personal environment. Coming just on Sunday mornings gets you a polite relationship, like the acquaintance at work. Small Groups get you connected (and often Small Groups are EXACTLY like after-dinner, game-time chats.)
My wife, Sam, and I have been attending Encounter for over 3 years. We have both been either leading or attending a small group for the last 2 years. The first year at Encounter was great, but the two years of being active in Small Groups has been life-changing. Our family hasn’t just made friends—we have connected with friends that we want in our home and our lives. Friends that we want to vacation with. Friends we want our girls to learn about Jesus from and emulate. Friends that we want to raise our kids with. Three years ago, our closest family was over 1,000 miles away. But since being a part of the Encounter Small Group Ministry, we find ourselves with family less than 10 miles away. And that, my friends, is what the Church is about. ~SK
