Small Groups
Who’s trekking through the highs and lows of life alongside you, encouraging your spiritual growth, serving and celebrating with you?
God never intended us to live the Christian life alone. We’re called to love one another and encourage one another, not abstractly or superficially, but in a personal, life-on-life way. The early church modeled this for us in Acts 2:42–47.
When we get together with people on a consistent basis to study the Bible together, pray together, and fellowship together, we grow in our relationship with Jesus, looking more like Him.
A Small Group is a group of people who…
- Meet weekly
- Study the Bible
- Participate in biblical discussion
- Pray for one another
- Care for one another
- Serve the community together
- Fellowship together
Each year, Northwest has three Small Group terms. Terms last 12–15 weeks with purposeful breaks in between. Groups take Term 2 “off” to rest and refresh.
- Term 1: January to April
- Term 2: May to August
- Term 3: September to December
During each term, a Small Group will meet for Bible study and group discussion a majority of the time; however, each term, every group participates in at least one hangout night (i.e., bowling, dinner, movie, game night, cookout, etc.) and at least one local community serving opportunity.
- Rotate caregiving among group members
- Share childcare costs
- Have older kids care for younger kids
- Have the kids join in
- Any additional ideas a group may be comfortable with
Each group uses a different study determined by the Small Group Leader. Some studies are video-based, some are book-based, some focus on books of the Bible, and others use material based on Sunday morning messages.
Our groups range from 6–14 adults, with some groups having children. We do our best to connect you with others in the same stage of life. We believe this helps us in walking through life with one another.
We want each person to consistently attend their group to form long-lasting friendships and experience spiritual growth. Over time, a group may grow and reach the point of multiplying into two separate groups. This creates opportunities for new people to join groups. We celebrate this process because we retain friendships from the multiplied group and have the opportunity to create brand-new friendships, too!
Every group is a bit different, having their style and personality. Most find that their group becomes like family and look forward to doing life with one another. However, sometimes it’s just not a fit, and that’s okay. If you need to leave a group, let your leader know and contact the Pastor of Groups and Discipleship for assistance connecting with a new group.
