Small Groups
Trinity small groups represent a beautiful and essential facet of our life together as a congregation. These groups meet weekly in homes for the course of the school year (September-May). For more information or to connect with a group, contact Julie Hunt.
What is the purpose of Trinity small groups?
Our small groups are designed to provide a context in which to live out the promises of our membership covenant more effectively. There we promise to care for and watch over each other. We promise to encourage each other to forsake sin and pursue holiness. We promise to pray for each other, to bear each other’s burdens, and to seek discipleship for and from each other. In this light, our small group system is tailored towards three goals:
Deeper relationships: The kind of encouraging and challenging care we wish to give to each other is only possible where there exists a solid relational foundation. Our groups provide a structured opportunity for individuals to know and be known, and they devote a significant portion of time each week to that end.
Spiritual accountability: Because spiritual growth is a lifelong process and our battle with sin is unending, we must help each other analyze our lives with grace and careful discernment, always considering how we can urge each other on towards love and holiness (Heb 10:25). We believe serious, grace-filled accountability is a powerful tool; facilitating it is the primary purpose of our small group system.
Mutual care: Our small groups are meant to be the front lines for meeting the physical, emotional, and spiritual needs of our people. From basic counsel to specific prayer to meals for those who need them–these things happen here first.
What do small groups look like week-to-week?
Though some variety in each group is encouraged and inevitable, the core is shaped by what we want the groups to accomplish.
To foster deeper relationships, our groups put a premium on quality time spent together. This usually involves a shared meal each week.
To foster spiritual accountability, which requires freedom to share vulnerably, the discussion portion of each meeting is usually divided by gender. Guided by male and female leaders, this accountability time emphasizes prayer and encouragement in spiritual disciplines.
Finally, these goals demand that our groups remain small and stable. They’re capped at roughly 15 adults, who are asked to commit to regular attendance.
Who should join a small group?
The answer is simple: anyone interested in life-shaping community who is able to commit to regular attendance.
Inevitably, things come up and everyone will have some weeks where they’re unable to attend. But in a group with our specific goals, inconsistent attendance patterns, especially if they are group-wide patterns, significantly undermine the vulnerability and trust necessary for meaningful accountability. For this reason, we recognize these groups aren’t for everyone or for every season. Other small group discipleship options are available where regular attendance is not nearly so important, including Sunday Bible Study, men’s and women’s groups, and occasional short-term curriculum-based studies.
However, those who know their schedules are unstable but would still like to participate in a small group should certainly sign up. Just let us know about your schedule up front so that we can avoid concentrating too many such schedules in a single group.