Relationships impact lives. For good or for bad the relationships we have in our lives are a factor in how we live and in a lot of cases they determine the choices we make. This truth has be brought to the forefront of my life on several different occasions. The first time was the day after I proposed to my wife. I was in my dorm getting ready to head to class. All of a sudden it hit me that from this point on the decisions I make will no longer just be about me but will now include my wife. A few years later that revelation was expanded when my wife became pregnant with our first child. Now the decisions I make will affect my wife and the three children we have in our family.

A major part of our Life Group strategy is doing life together.  Life Groups are where relationships happen at Calvary. It is improbable for someone to make a strong relationship in our Sunday morning worship gathering because it’s kind of tough to get to know someone in a room of 300 + who are singing songs and listening to the pastor teach. Life Groups take the church at large and bring it to a small and manageable group so that people in like life stages can do life together.

So if people need community then we must be excellent at providing environments where people can come together to share life with one another under the umbrella of strong Biblical teaching. Hopefully you have read section one of Creating Community. From your reading answer the questions below about the idea that People Need Community.


1. Why are people today so lonely?
2. What do you think people are looking for in community?
3. What do you think of this statement from chapter 2, "we live life around many people, but we experience life deeply with none".
4. What do you think of this statement from chapter 2, "sheep are never attacked in herds. Sheep are attacked when they become isoloated from the rest of the flock"
5.What are the characteristics of community that make it attractive to those outside the faith?


Don't forget to remind your Life Groups weekly about the Life Group Celebration Night on Sunday, December 20th at 6:00pm. Childcare will be available for children preschool - K. A dessert and coffee fellowship will follow the celebration.

Jewish history tells us that a disciple of a Rabbi (teacher) had one main objective - to become just like their Rabbi. If we were able to take a step back into time we would see Rabbis leading groups of men around the town with everyone of those men hanging on his every word and mimicking his every move. It has been recorded that as the Rabbi would walk on the dirt roads that if the dust that he stirred up from walking fell upon a disciple that it was an honor because it symbolized how close you were to your Rabbi.

With that said how close are you to your Rabbi? You may say, "well I'm not Jewish". Correct but throughout the Gospels Jesus is referred to as Rabbi or Teacher. He still plays that role in the lives of His followers, His disciples. This semester we are journeying through an incredible book called Crazy Love. The goal is that you will see that your Rabbi is crazy in love with you and he desires that you return a crazy love for Him. My prayer is that you will capture this love for Him.

Thinking down the road a little make plans to be with us on Sunday, December 20th during the evening time when we will a Life Group Testimony and Celebration time. We will worship together and we will give people the opportunity to share what God taught them during the semester. We will also introduce the next semester's study that night. More details will come soon.

Journey On!

Pastor Corey