Life Together Groups

Life Together Groups (LTG) focus on friendship, fellowship, and “doing life together.”

Each LTG is free to set up their group to function in any way they please, but they generally meet at least twice a month. The groups are encouraged to study God's word or to do a study on Christian living, but that is up to each LTG. A current listing of groups can be found here.

Joel Kuhlmann is the Ministry Coordinator for these small groups. To learn more about them or to participate in one of these groups, please submit the Small Group Interest form or contact Joel at smallgroups@bereancc.org.

Small Group Philosophy

Underpinning Convictions

  • As men & women created in the image of God, the need for community is in our DNA (Gen. 1:26-27; Gen. 2:18-23)

  • Jesus desired us to be one (John 17:20-23)

  • God made us a Body (1 Corinthians 12:14-27)

  • Small Groups is a model of Christian Community that seems the most viable for BCC – only so many "close" relationships one can have and healthily maintain.

  • This is the starting relational unit, (beyond the family) where ministry to one another starts:

    • where we spur one another on to love & good deeds in Christ (Heb. 10:24-25)

    • where we share our joys and pains – where we build trust to do so (Rom. 12:14; Gal. 6:2)

    • where we start to exercise the gifts the Holy Spirit gave us (1 Cor.12:7)

    • where we can practically "love" one another ...and bear witness to Him as a result (John 13:35; 1 John 3:16-18)

    • where we can grow in grace (Rom. 12:9-13)

    • Note Well: these characteristics are not exclusive to the small group unit but small groups is the primary place where ministry ought to begin

  • Our desire is that every one who calls Berean their church home and family will be consistently involved in a small group of some sort here at BCC.

Philosophical Distinctives

Four Session Trial Period: People are weary of committing to a group and being stuck. We are giving people a four meeting trial period to try a particular small group. If they feel it is not a fit, then they may leave to seek another group with no hard feelings. If they commit, we ask that they be committed to the group for at least that school year. They are free to seek another group the following school/ministry year.

While numerical growth is not the goal, growth is our desire. The model we are setting forth is not one of rapid cell growth where the group grows to certain size and divides at that point to continue on in perpetual group mitosis. There is a sense of healthy exclusivity within these groups because love and trust is being built within these groups. A constant inflow and outflow of people into this group is often detrimental to fostering the love, trust and commitment we hope to grow in these groups. However, as these groups mature in their commitment to Christ and to each other, we envision that God may raise up a couple in this healthy well established group (in 3 years or so) to take the good things they have learned and experienced in the group and go out, recruit, and launch their own group.

Small Groups are to be the arena of primary care at BCC. This is similar to the earlier statement that Small Groups is the starting relational unit for ministry to begin. Aside from the family unit, the small group is where one starts when bringing a particular need to the body. If the need is beyond the resources of the particular small group, then it should be brought to the greater church body, preferably through the leadership of the church.