For years I did whatever I could to avoid being in a “small group” at church. When it was an “official” program, it just seemed too forced–like when you were in school and the teacher assigns you to a group for a project. As you were walking to your group you were sizing up everybody else wondering how much of the workload you were going to have to carry.

Now, admittedly, the problem was ME. I was being too judgemental of others and too immature. After all, who am I for crying out loud?! Anyway, through excuses both real and imagined, I managed to stay out of a small group for a long time. Then one day in 2006, I was approached about another type of “small group”. It had a timeline–9 months–and a set curriculum. The guy in me liked the set boundaries–it appeared that there wasn’t too much room for this group to get too personal and ‘messy’.

So I said “yes” to the Basic Training Men’s Small Group. It turned out to be one of the best decisions I ever made in my life! Many in that group of 12 chose to stay together even after the nine months was up. In fact, we are still meeting weekly today and looking back over the last 8 years, it is scary to think where I would be today if I had said no to being in that group.

Soon after the group formed, my Mom was diagnosed with ALS–quite the blow for me and my family. My small group of guys helped me deal with the feelings I experienced over the next 18 months as my Mom and family dealt with this disease. Then, when she passed in June of 2008, every one of the guys showed up at the visitation and I knew that I had true friends–not just acquaintances.

Since that time, our group has helped each other through many different times of trials–both large and small. We have been there for each other through major events in our lives. I don’t go into any trial now without knowing that I am covered in prayer by the guys. So many people today–including Christian’s–just don’t have people in their lives that they can talk to about things other than their kids, sports, and the weather. I will talk about how dangerous that can be next week.

Do you have someone or a group of people in your life that you can literally call at any time and they would be there for you? If you do, that’s great! If you want to share about what your group means to you, then post a comment to this blog and tell others! I think hearing about actual stories is so important! If you don’t have a small group, I challenge you to really pray about it. Is there a group you know of that you could join? Would you be so bold as to start a group yourself? I would love to help you with getting started and could pass on some great resources you could use to get a group going. Email me at jeremy.garrett@icloud.com.

Hey, even Jesus chose to be in a small group. If Jesus chose to surround Himself with 12 others, then there must be something to it!

More to come…
Jeremy