I was watching a cooking show, of all things, the other day and it was an episode of Chopped with Firemen as the chefs. While watching the show, one of the firemen stated that at the firehouse they are a tightly knit group. The people that they work with every day is their family. They eat with them, sleep with them and share the most intimate details of their life with each other. Man, that really got me to thinking; that is what a life group is all about. A life group is a group of people who get together and share their lives, they share their victories, their hurts, their struggles, and their growth. Churches today have become so big and so massive that most have lost the closeness that was always supposed to be part of the body of Christ. The quote that the fireman said was that, “you have to know who you are working with because when it comes to running into the fire, you have to know that you can trust the one you’re fighting the fire with.” That is such a revelation.

It should be the same with the body of Christ. In the New Testament, the believers met in each other’s homes and they developed a relationship that made them stronger and more accountable to the calling that had been placed on them. Nothing has changed, this is how we are still supposed to be. We are still supposed to be making disciples and training up others to go out and make other disciples. The problem we have is that we have relegated a church service to be a meeting on a Sunday morning or Wednesday evening. Now don’t get me wrong, I do believe in meeting together at those times but I also believe that we should be meeting together outside of that set forum so that we are developing our relationships with one another. God has called us to so much more and we need the relationships formed through fellowship in order to withstand the storms when they come. We cannot live a life of isolation and believe that we can withstand the onslaught of the enemy alone. Our brothers and sisters need us and we need them. When we get together in fellowship and we are discussing the word together, there is an excitement that only comes when iron sharpens iron.

I am excited that we as a church body are forming life groups and that in doing so we will become even more on fire and effective for the kingdom. If you are part of a large church body, find out if there are small groups or life groups in your church and become a part of a group of believers that are growing. Think about the firemen and ask yourself, who do I have in my life that I can trust to run into the fire with me?