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The Mission of Multiplication

Imagine with me a field of dandelions in all their glory of vibrant yellow. Growing up, my dad did everything he could to keep them out of our yard. I loved them. He hated them.  Why? Because dandelions are perennial weeds that spread rapidly and multiply both from seed and the roots yearly. 

Do you want to reach out to your neighbors but don’t know how to begin? Make a Fresh Start! This 4-week group training will encourage and equip you to take simple steps towards beginning a Bible study. Each seventy-five-minute video call will include training tools, group discussion and application.

Here's what others are saying about the Fresh Start group training...

Have you ever had one of those really awkward moments where words shared with you just hang in the air? 

You want to respond positively, but somehow you can’t think of anything to say. This took place with Elidia during a Bible study she hosted. She was excited to begin a Bible study with a neighbor God had put on her heart. And then this happened...

“The only reason I’m coming to your Bible study is because I want to be a good neighbor,” her new neighbor said awkwardly as she looked down at her notebook.  Elidia swallowed hard.  Oh no, she doesn’t want to come, she feels obligated to come. What good am I really doing? Lord, am I doing this right? She whispered a prayer of faith and decided to move forward. “What did this passage show you about Jesus?” Elidia asked, resuming the Bible study conversation. But inside she felt confused. Why is my neighbor so resistant? she wondered to herself. Well, at least she keeps coming. . . 

Let Your Light Shine This Spring

. . . shine like stars in the universe. (Phil. 2:14-15)

Just as the closest stars shine the brightest, so we can shine the light of Christ into the lives of those near us – our neighbors, acquaintances, friends. In spring we automatically feel more hopeful as the weather warms up and flowers open. We can get outside and connect more with others. As we do, Jesus’ light within draws them closer to us, and ultimately to Him.

I’ve lived in this neighborhood for nearly ten years and will never forget how we got here. At the last minute God opened the door to this house. We had often invited collegians and other groups into our previous home and dreamed of a large gathering space for them. While house-hunting I was pregnant and also had a toddler in tow, and felt so tired. But my husband coaxed, “Just look at one more -- I think this is the one.”  

And so it was! One look at the large living room and the abundant built-in storage space and I was sold. We moved in on my thirtieth birthday.  

We got settled that winter and then had our second baby, and eighteen months later, our third. I was tired all ​the time, trying to be a wife and mom and minister to college students on our local campus. Though my life was full, I felt something was missing.  I just knew that God had placed us in this​ ​house on this​ street in this​ neighborhood as his ambassadors.  I often sat at my dining table reading my Bible and gazing out the front window. The three houses I could see were inhabited by amazing older Christian women. There was not a young mom or a child as far as I could see in my neighborhood. Most of my neighbors were original home owners who had already raised their children. And here I sat, three kids under the age of four and no energy to go anywhere except the grocery store or to meet students on our local college campus. “God, why did you put me here?” I would cry out. “Did you get the address wrong?”  I longed to meet peers and talk about God and even lead Bible studies right where I was.  

The pain and anger on his employees’ faces tore at him. He could feel the wall between them. His decisions earlier that week had affected everyone. He stood at the podium ready to take the blame as he said quietly, “Look no further, the ‘elephant in the room’ is before you.”

What if he had said sarcastically, “I feel sorry for you that you don’t understand what I just decided.” Or if he had responded angrily, “It is what it is – deal with it!”

Isn’t it amazing what tone and a few words can do in any situation?