The Journey Now Updates – Church in Johnson City, Gray, Kingsport, TN
Grace! Because of Jesus’ Life, Death, Resurrection. Johnson City, Gray, Boones Creek, Colonial Heights, TN, 37615Archive for Cell Groups
1 Corinthians Cell Group Questions
Structure
Just some questions…
Do you like structure? Do you like to know what is coming next?
Or do you “go with the flow”? Do you care if time constraints aren’t met?
As we determine what goes right and what needs changing, structure is a big question.
- What structure facilitates love and authentic relationships?
- What structure prevents true friendships?
- What structure keeps us learning about the love of God?
- What structure creates stale conformity?
These are questions we are asking this month. We will be asking people to covenant and partner together to fulfill the mission of The Journey. Our Cell Group leaders will investigate productive cell structure. The staff is meeting weekly to create healthy structure.
The truth remains: we plant and water, but God makes it grow. (1 Cor. 3:6)
Breakfast and Training, Oct. 5, 19, Nov. 2, 16
Cell Leaders are Persistent Connectors…
You are invited to attend…
This Sunday, October 5th,
a Cell Leader’s meeting,
at 9:45 a.m.
At The Journey.
Breakfast casserole and rolls are served at 9:15 a.m.
So come and hang out.
Bring the kids.
Mary and Charles will help you do what they do best: build relationships and show you how to establish the best meeting routine and practices.
My personal witness: I have grown tremendously since Charles and Mary have been working with us!
Did you know Mary is developing more team building for Shell Oil even though she’s retired!
And Did you know that Charles is directing the Science Hill HS musical, “Seven Brides for Seven Brothers”?
Love you all!
Tom
Cell Group Leaders
Every other Sunday night (Next: April 20) at 6:30 p.m. at The Journey. All leaders and leaders-to-be meet to study, pray and grow in leadership skills.
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Mary and Charles Kennedy teach us on April 20th. She and her husband, Charles, are experts in Small Group interactions. Mary and Charles will fill a room with visuals, fill an hour and a half with fun, turn on the spiritual gifts we all have and leave us with so many ideas that our cell groups will multiply into the hundreds!
Cell Leaders Un-Chained
The army’s motto: “Be All that You Can Be!” promises excitement. Why is church different? “Be Passive in All That You Can!” We fear individuality. We force people to sit in rows, listening, singing in unison, conforming to rigid patterns of ritual. Just read “Why Men Hate Going to Church,” by David Warren. Just look at the number of Bible Study Guides available from one small publisher, Inter Varsity Press! Conformity is the rule. Everybody write the same words in the blanks! Do all Leaders speak like a reference book? Have tons of knowledge? Avoid hard questions? Suppress real feelings? Stay aloof or academic? Never tell corny jokes?
CELL GROUP LEADERS, KEEP READING!
Cell Group Activity
ON the radar and emerging, Cell Groups provide a place to gain momentum and traction in your Christian life. I’ve been involved in Cell Groups since 1979. I remember my first Bible Study in a Cell Group which studied “Basic Foundations in Christianity.” We studied Psalm 139 as our first group study together. I was trained to lead Cell Groups over three weekends in a two year period. I’ve witnessed the power of healing prayer in Cell Groups. I have seen people begin to devour the Bible. Some groups haven’t gone well, but they have been the exception.
Currently we have Cell Groups meeting on almost every night of the week. People in Cell Groups can meet in homes, at work, in restaurants or wherever. Flexibility is the key! How do you think the Chinese Christians have grown so explosively under a repressive government? They are experts at Cell Groups. Americans should take note.
Is Somebody Taken Care of?
How do we know someone in church has their spiritual care met? My first response is to see if this person is in a cell group. Has he connected to other people? Is she making friends within The Journey? This leads me to ask the question: How does the structure of The Journey promote or inhibit friendships? Read the rest of this entry »
Daniel Fast
This information was primarily taken from the book “Fasting For Spiritual Breakthrough: A Guide to Nine Biblical Fasts” by Elmer L. Towns, published in 1996 by Regal Books, Ventura, California.
Our body is
designed to heal itself. When a disease enters our body from bad dietary habits or from the outside, our bodies begin to fight it. Doctors, surgery, or medicines are most often designed to remove the source of the problem, but the healing is done by the body itself. Many common diseases are easily prevented with basic good nutrition and exercise habits.
STEP ONE: BE SPECIFIC
Daniel was not vague in his objection to the Babylonian diet. He defined the problem immediately.
1. The king’s food was against dietary laws.
2. Daniel and his friends had vowed against wine.
3. The king’s food had been offered up to idols/demons.
STEP TWO: FAST AS A SPIRITUAL COMMITMENT
The Daniel Fast involves a spiritual commitment to God. “Daniel proposed in his heart that he would not defile himself” (Dan. 1:8).
Prayerfire
Jesus came to baptize with fire. John the Baptist said so. The first Christians said so. The Apostles said so. Fire. Hot. Consuming. Light generating. Orange/White/Red/Blue.
Set on Fire. (James 3:5) A Consuming Fire. (Heb. 12:29) Quench the Spirit’s fire. (1 Thess. 5:19) Fan into flame the gift given you through the laying on of hands. (2 Tim. 1:6)
First Wednesday of the Month (except July 4th then July 11th), 7:00 p.m. The Journey Church building.
Alpha Testimony
Full Transcript of the Testimony by Rick Warren
“Over 30 years ago in London, England, God began a movement that has now spread all around the world. It’s called the Alpha course, begun by my dear friends Nicky Gumbel, Ken Costa and other friends. We’ve seen this course expand to be used to reach literally millions of people to Christ.
If you have never heard of Alpha, I want to challenge you to check it out. It is one of the most effective evangelism tools for the 21st century.
The Alpha course can be used in three different ways. First, it can be used with people who have absolutely no religious background at all. It can be used with seekers or enquirers. It is a good way to bring people to a small group study who would never be caught dead in a church – they’ll take that first step, they’ll sit on a couch with some friends and examine the claims of Christ and what is really does mean to be a follower of Jesus. Millions of people have come to Christ through this way.
