Honesty is a good thing. Being honest, I can tell you I
really think that our brother, Ed Stetzer, is over exposed these days. Especially if you follow him on Twitter, the
pace seems frenetic. Frenetic pace and
accurate research don’t match, for me. Yes,
I know that he has researchers who are doing the majority of the research, but
still…
Being honest, I can tell you that my attitude toward Eric
Geiger was defined by Simple Church. For me, Simple Church was
too simplistic to define the organism, the living thing, that is God’s
church. It ignored the fact that we
don’t just live in intentionality; we don’t just live in the midst of
purpose. We do things like cheer for the
University of Memphis: mainly a hopeless exercise, but I enjoy doing it. Churches
do things because, as living organisms, we enjoy doing them.
Based on these attitudes, I came to Transformational
Groups expecting little. Instead, I
gained much. In fact, I gained too
much. I gained regret that I had not had
this in front of me a little over 9 years ago when I began my last
pastorate.
I’m going to recommend that you run out and get this book,
pastors. OK, I know you’re probably
going to order it online…but if you called Amy at our local Lifeway I know she
would do her best to get you a discount and get the book for you (yes,
shameless plug for local Lifeway).
The reason for getting the book is that it provides solid
analysis both on the why and the how of doing small groups. It gets to the fundamental issue. The issue is not church growth; the issue is
kingdom growth. The issue is not to add
numbers to the bottom line; the issue is to make disciples who effectuate
change in a lost world. How does this
happen? In just a second I’m going to
give you a quote that defines the book, but it needs a setup. The quote contrasts two ways of doing small
groups. The first way is any group that
is centered around fellowship and increasing the participation of
attenders. The second is, for me, more
biblical and more radical. It is what I
wish I had done. The quote comes from
the position of a pastor who wants more.
Here it is: “It is our goal for every person in this church to become a
mature disciple of Jesus Christ. This
happens when you are in a group with other growing disciples where you are
learning the Bible together, holding one another accountable to spend time with
God daily, and living a lifestyle that looks more and more like the lifestyle
of Jesus.”
Be blessed as you seek Him today. I hope you sense the need to read Transformational Groups.