Community: Taking Your Small Group Off Life Support
One of the most challenging new books on small group ministry? In my mind it is Community: Taking Your Small Group Off Life Support by Mars Hill’s Brad House.
Published by Crossway, this is not your run-of-the-mill book on groups. Although the subtitle suggests that this is a book for small group leaders, it’s really a very thought-provoking read, focused almost entirely on guiding small group ministry point people toward the reframing of their entire ministry.
Almost immediately you will find in this book something different; something very unusual. There is a thoughtful and thought-provoking quality to the writing. It’s not light reading. Instead, Community is the kind of book that you’ll find yourself re-reading, just to be sure you’ve caught the full meaning. And…if your copy is like mine, it’ll be pretty marked up. There’s a lot here.
If you’re looking for practical, hands-on tips and ideas about how to do small group ministry…this is not it. At the same time, if you want to be sure you’re wrestling with the questions and formative thinking essential to building a quality small group ministry…Community has made my list as required reading.
Part one is a very thought-provoking examination of the biblical building blocks of community. You’ll find some familiar passages referenced. There are also some interesting connections made that you’ll mark up because you want to remember where you found them.
Part two is a section that grouplife veterans will find intriguing, especially when compared to Randy Frazee’s Connecting Church. There is an approach to mission in Community that is quite inspiring and will be a resource that adds to the missional community conversation.
Part Three, a short 30 page section at the end of the book, drops in a couple very practical ideas that are doable, although quite challenging. There’s also an interesting recounting of the history of grouplife at Mars Hill. I think you’ll find some insights in that final chapter that will help you understand strategic choices that have been made.
The appendix includes a helpful set of planning tools and job descriptions; perfect if you’re at the stage where you’re looking for resources.
You won’t agree with every conclusion. I didn’t. There’ll be some sections that will be read again and again. There’ll even be some statements that will resonate so completely that you’ll embrace the language and concepts as you’re own. I found some humdinger lines that will definitely become part of my way of thinking.
Community is a book you’re going to want to read. In fact, you’re probably going to want to read it with a few of your team members and then argue your way through its conclusions. It’s already added some depth to my thinking and I’m sure you’d benefit as well.
Just ordered this book last week. Can’t wait to read it!
Great stuff, Clayton. You’ll get a lot out of it!
just curious, what is your take on the difference between what Frazee wrote and what this book does. I’m really curious, my wife and I attended Pantego Bible, where he was, for four years. My own take is that the theological depth was challenging, not that they didn’t have it in their material that was given, but there wasn’t a depth when we were all together that led to many issues within the community groups. You know, it became more of a personality cult.
Anyways, don’t want to beat a dead horse, just wanted your take. thank you for the review.
Thanks for jumping in here! I’d say, if there is similarity between the two books it is in the neighborhood based methodology. The Frazee book I am most familiar with is The Connecting Church and you can easily see the similarity there. However, and I’m guessing this is what you are asking, the back half of that book offered a fairly prescriptive set of topics to be studied which is well beyond the scope of Community.
Is that what you’re asking?
right, I think that is where the shallow end of the pool existed. thank you for the insight, I’ll be checking out this other book especially since it is so on topic for where we are at in our current local church.
Take care,
Tim
I may be wrong, but it sounds like you’re looking for something that is outside the purpose of most small group systems. I think it’s fair to say that the purpose of most systems is an intentional kind of caring and connection, as opposed to deep Bible study with a twist of systematic theology. At the same time, there can be a very intentional discipleship effort. Truth doesn’t have to be deep to be profound. Sometimes the most effective small group ministries are simply the ones that make next steps easy, obvious, and strategic.
Hey Mark,
Been busy at work and so just got on here and saw the comment. Yes, I would agree and I think that was my point in the last comment. I desire the richness of theology to be expressed in a real context that isn’t so theologically challenging that you need the Hebrew text to figure it out.
I’m not a pastor, small group leader or anything in our current church context. I’m a Christian trying to apply the grace of God wherever I’m at, be that small group or connecting one on one Sunday morning.
I like your strategic thinking, it is good for me to see those thoughts. My comments on “shallow” I did not intend to make you think that all of it was shallow but I guess, as in any small group, that can exist and there are certainly some dangers to avoid there.
Sure that you’ve seen it but this is worth a good laugh.
(http://tinyurl.com/3ome2dc)