small groups

It is our deep desire that Fellowship Memphis help facilitate our people toward a deep connection with God and each other. We want to move people from the isolation and individualism that rules our day toward the radical and counter-cultural idea of Biblical community.

discover

our small group philosophy? discipleship!

Jesus was fairly clear on His mandate to the church before He went to be with the Father in Matthew 28:18-20. Go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. And teach them to observe all that I have commanded, and lo I am with you always, even until the end of the age. Our desire at Fellowship Memphis is to fulfill Jesus command to us to reproduce reproducing followers of Christ through our small group ministry. Because of that, our desire is not just community for community sake. Nor is it Bible study for Bible study sake. Our desire is for you to be able to take the community that you build and extend it to others. To take the Bible study you have done and teach it to others. Just like Paul said to his disciple Timothy, our goal is for you to, entrust the things which you have heard from meto faithful men, who will be able to teach others also. It is a goal that is worth giving your life to, and an adventure that is more exciting than any other.

discipleship process
Although we will all continue to grow in our relationship with Christ for the rest of our lives, there does come a point where we are far enough down the road to help someone else in their growth. And there is a Biblical expectation that we each grow toward that point. Therefore, we have a 3 year discipleship process that we are asking our church to engage in with us to equip the saints to make disciples.

1. year one community group

The first year of our discipleship process will be in what we call a Community Group. Because we believe that discipleship is relational, inspirational, doctrinal, and experiential, you will spend time getting to know each other, praying and studying the Word of God together, and reaching out to the city of Memphis together in this group. After all, discipleship is concerned just as much with the heart as the head. WHO: 10 to 20 people, men and women, young and old together WHAT: A Scriptural look at our church values WHERE: In a group members home in your general area of Memphis WHEN: Anytime during the week that the group decides to make their regular time

2. year two and three growth group

The next 2 years of our discipleship process will be in what we call a Growth Group. A Growth Group is still relational, inspirational, doctrinal, and experiential just like a Community Group. You will still share life together, pray and study the Word, and reach out to the city of Memphis together as a group. But there are a few differences. WHO: 3 to 7 people, all men OR all women (In general, the same people from your Community Group) WHAT: A focus on the disciples heart (A vision for your life. Connecting with God. Connecting with others). A focus on the disciples mind (Core Theology, Inductive Bible Study of Romans).

WHERE: Wherever the group decides to meet in your general area of Memphis WHEN: Anytime during the week that the group decides to make their regular time The Growth Group curriculum rounds out the basic pattern of sound doctrine that Paul talks about in 2 Timothy 1:13 that we hope will equip you to pursue a relationship with Christ effectively for the rest of your life. It also rounds out what we feel any new believer needs to know to turn around and teach others to observe all that I have commanded them, just like Jesus told us to in the great commission.

3. the Final step leadership

After spending 3 years with us in this discipleship process, worshipping with us on Sundays, and engaging in other growth opportunities that we offer such as our Fellowship Institute, our hope is that you will be ready to experience the joy of sharing what you have learned about following Christ with others. This can be fleshed out in leading a Community Group or Growth Group in our church, or engaging 1 on 1 with people in the city who God brings your way. After all, Jesus literally told us to make disciples as you are going about your life, and we hope that just as many people are passing on their faith outside of our church structure as inside of it.

Join us!
We believe deeply that people are called to live in authentic community reflecting the Kingdom of God to the rest of the world around us. However, we also believe that our purpose on this earth as followers of Christ is to truly follow Him in making disciples. Therefore our community becomes the context in which we make disciples. We hope you embrace this exciting vision with us for the abundant life to which Jesus calls His church. To engage in this journey, please attend a Discovery meeting to hear more about our church, our small groups, and to sign up to get involved. To sign up for Discovery, visit our info table or email discovery@fellowshipmemphis.org. If you have questions about our small groups, please contact Ben Parkinson at bparkinson@fellowshipmemphis.org.