Mountain Retreat

I’m sitting here in a beautiful mountain on the banks of a river near Elijay GA.  We are at a home group leaders retreat.  Tonight our Senior Leader, Steve Hale, spoke on the importance of these Home Group leaders.  Tomorrow night I get to speak to them, and I will probably address some of the same areas that Steve addressed tonight.  In Acts 2:42 – 48, Luke talks about the early church meeting for dinner continually.  It seems that there was more to their fellowship than Sunday morning service.  In 1985, we met a pastor freom Bedford Texas.  He had come to our church and talked about what they were doing with small groups that met during the week.  I still remember it today because it was one of the first times that I ever felt that God spoke to me about others.  He told me that small groups would revelotionalize the church in my lifetime.  He said that church as we knew it was on it’s way out.  Small groups were the key to the future.

I believed Him, and today I see all over the world where it has come to pass.  It is slower to take hold here in America, but it is taking hold.  We started our first home group in 1985 and up ontil this year, I have been leading a group ever since.  Sometimes it was leading leaders of small groups, sometimes the group was focused on prayer.  But we were leading a group.  So I have been involved with small groups of one kind or another for over 26 years.  That’s a long time, and many of those nights, I didn’t want to be involved.  But when I was faithful to allow myself to work in them, He was always faithful to show up.  His love is always capable to reach even the hardest person, if you allow Him to move.

I have learned over the years that it is not about me, or anything I do.  It’s all about inviting His presence into the room.  The supernatural presence of Holy Spirit, that is what brings life.  It was in 1987 when I began to bring the supernatural into the home group.  I have been doing it every meeting since.   I learned it form the Vineyard and their Kinship groups, and it has grown more and more through out the years.  I couldn’t have home group without the presence of God.  So, here I am, praying that Holy Spirit will open up the deep wells that have stored all that has been poured into me over the years,  I’m confident that He will do it.  Tomorrow will be a fun day, and I know that He will show up.