Where are you growing?
“If you became fully involved in a church for the next two years, how would you be different than you are now?” It was that question that led us to think strategically about our process to GROW disciples at Life Valley. Many people – including those who already consider themselves Christians – spend years in a church without knowing where they need to grow in their faith. We visualized three intersecting areas of our lives in which God wants us to GROW in Christlike character, and based on this, we have developed a plan to help you GROW to Know, Love, and Obey God…
1. KNOW God. We cannot love or obey what we do not know. 1 John 4:8 says that if we love not, it is because we do not know God. “The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love.” We must GROW in our knowledge of God by digging into His Word.
2. LOVE God. 1 John 4 also makes it clear that knowing God more deeply will result in loving Him and others more faithfully. We should seek to GROW in our love by spending time in worship, especially with God’s people.
3. OBEY God. Love is more than a feeling, it is an action. As we GROW in our love for Him. Jesus said in John 14:15, “If you love Me, you will keep My commands.” We believe that every failure of obedience to the Lord is due to losing sight of our first love, God. But as we operate in his love, we GROW in our obedience as well.
As we GROW in one of these three aspects, it overflows into the next. As we walk in obedience to God’s ways, we experience God in new, more meaningful ways. This in turn helps us GROW in our knowledge of God, and the growth cycle continues.
At Life Valley Community Church, we have three specific, strategic processes that are sequential, to help you GROW in your walk with God. We call these our Intentional Discipleship, GROW Fellowships, and Life Groups.
Intentional Discipleship. This 12-week, 1-on-1 primer is the beginning point for new believers in Jesus who want to learn the basic values and disciplines of following Jesus and spending time with God. This is perfect for someone new to church, or who just began to follow Jesus.
GROW Fellowships. This is the backbone of our discipleship process. Consisting of 10, 8-week studies written by Pastor John, these classes are designed to walk you through the Bible as one beautiful, cohesive story of God’s redemptive work in humanity. See below for a list of all ten studies we walk you through.
Life Groups. These small groups are intended to help people “Do God’s Word together.” Meeting throughout the week, these groups follow up on the Sunday sermons to apply the message to our everyday lives. Life Groups are the intended outcome for everyone who goes through all ten of our GROW Fellowship studies.
GROW Fellowship Studies. Each of our 10 studies are 8 weeks in length, and designed to help God’s Word come alive to you more than ever before. Pastor John personally wrote each study with the goal of helping every Jesus-follower in our church to know God’s Word better than ever. Here are the ten studies, some of which are still in the process of being written.
In The Beginning
Called Out
Kings & Kingdoms
Poets & Prophets
Our Fourfold Tradition
Sent
When in Romans
Dear Church
Echoes of the Apostles
The Last Amen