Becoming a Fully Devoted Follower of ChristSample

Today we are going to focus on the I of Habits: Investing in Healthy Relationships. The truth is if you show me your friends, I’ll show you your future. Your life is only as strong as the people you surround yourself with. To become a fully devoted follower of Christ, we want to be intentional about investing in healthy relationships. 

Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up. Ecclesiastes 4:9-10

Different churches call their smaller gatherings of people different things. Small groups, community groups, LifeGroups, grow groups, or discipleship groups. Whatever they are called, it is important that you find a group of people that you can do life with. Life is truly better together. We gather in a large group to celebrate Jesus and we gather in smaller groups to grow in Jesus. 

WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF GROUPS? Let me list three reasons for you:

1. SPIRITUAL GROWTH: Groups' main focus should be on helping each other grow spiritually. Maybe you gather in a home and talk about the message from Sunday or study the Bible together. Spiritual growth and becoming more like Christ should be your main priority.

2. SOCIAL: Another purpose for Christ-followers to gather is to have fun together. Maybe it’s playing board games, cooking out for dinner, going on a hike, or simply hanging out to watch a football game. Gathering around shared interests creates a bond with you and others. 

3. MENTORING: We all need someone in our lives to mentor us in our relationship with Christ. Paul played a key mentoring role in Timothy’s life. He invested relationally in him, trusted him, and offered him long-term support. As we grow and mature in our faith, we can also be a Paul for someone else. So who is your Paul and who is your Timothy? Who is mentoring you, and who are you mentoring?

Investing in healthy relationships must be a priority if we are going to become fully devoted followers of Christ. I’m praying for you as you take this important next step. 

Next Steps

    1. Pray and ask God to show you a group of people you can do life with.

    2. Find a group to join in your local church.

    3. Thank the person or mentor who has invested in you during this process.