| North Downs House Group | Back |
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More About Us ... | ||
In its current format the group has been going since September 1999 with some members joining from Alpha groups. It was started as a result of our minister's, Paul's, suggestion that house groups are a valuable way to develop and share our faith.
We meet at 7.45pm on the second and fourth Thursdays of each month. We originally met at Autumn Avenue but now our base-home is at the home of Charles and Emma in North Downs. We currently have a dozen members but new members are always welcome. |
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At first glance, the cast list looks to be dominated by married couples. Whilst this is coincidental, and we would welcome anyone who would like to join us, the fact that partners are preparing and leading sessions together is evidence that they are developing their faith and Bible-knowledge together. This is one of the group's true strengths.
Another strength is the wide range of experiences, backgrounds, personalities (and ages!) within the group. It develops our understanding and helps us to appreciate each issue from different viewpoints. At a typical meetings the best part of the first half an hour is spent drinking tea and coffee and eating some sweet delights whilst exchanging anecdotes from the past two weeks. With morale and team bonding having been firmly established, the formal part of the meeting gets underway. We like to share the leadership. This is another success of the group as it builds confidencein individuals to lead worship, prayers and Bible-study. |
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A variety of leadership styles have been used. Communal singing has been tried - either to the accompaniment of a keyboard or piano, or relying on the obvious vocal talents (?) of the group. A Christmas Album will NOT be released this year! We have also listened to CD's as the background for prayer.
Also, a variety of prayer-styles have been used. Sometimes, there is a simple opening and closing prayer; other times the group have discussed both personal and general prayer needs before going into prayer - either being prayed for by the leader or as a group. A time for silent prayer has also been effective, giving members the opportunity to have a quiet time with God. Possibly the most radical style of prayer yet has been to write down prayer-requests and put them in a hat, sometimes without the source being known. Each member then picks one out and takes that request home to use in their daily prayers. As for the study-part of the meetings, one of our options has been to follow Paul's sermon-notes. These have proved excellent discussion starters and help to provoke ideas and interpretations that the group can share in. |
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However, sermon notes have not always been the material used by the group. We started off using some of Nicky Gumbul's Alpha follow-up material but we then went on to books such as:-
The future: We would welcome new recruits as we all acknowledge that everyone has something to give. What is for sure is that within this group we all have so much to learn from each other - so we thank the Lord for his continuing development in our lives and for bringing us together.
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