As mentioned in my previous blog I have begun a new role with Willow Creek Community Church. As we work as a team toward a new future with group life, some key emerging values are becoming central to the process.

Value #1: Community Life is Catalytic: Community life is never sterile or static. Since the trinity is a community “on the move” as I like to say, group life should reflect this. Any community or group should seek to become a catalytic environment that fosters change and growth, movement toward something.

Group life at Willow (our prime expression of community life) seeks to promote redemptive relationships, disciple-making focus and evangelistic activity. Redemptive relationships form in and outside of group meetings. They are relationships that invite the activity of God. Disciple-making is an intentional discipline of group life, one that causes us to “spur one another on to love and good deeds” as the Bible describes it.

In a recent discussion with Dallas Willard, he emphasized that our call to making disciples needs to include the risks and challenges one will face when following Jesus. “Tell them up front that they might be fed to the lions” is not an exact quote, but the spirit of what he said.

And finally, it is catalytic in that evangelistic activity is the natural outcome of committed followers who are always graciously pointing people to ways, life and teachings of Jesus, inviting them to become disciples in His Kingdom.

Post 1 of 4 in this series.