At Messiah, people are growing!

In keeping with our vision, our process of spiritual growth is designed to help you become loving, mature and equipped followers of Christ for the sake of Family, Community and Global transformation. Our intentional spiritual growth process involves the following steps:

Connect

Connect Groups provide places for people to develop relationships with one another and to have a group where they belong (to be known and to know others). Connect Groups are also intended to be fun, relaxed, and comfortable Christ-centered environments for you to invite and build relationships with your friends and neighbors and learn more about and draw closer to Jesus.

Anyone is welcome! See Ministries for opportunities to connect.

If you are interested in reaching out to us about getting connected to Messiah, please click here.

Life on Life Discipleship ​

“Christianity without discipleship is always Christianity without Christ. – Dietrich Bonhoeffer”

What Is Discipleship?

To all people of all nations and all walks of life a disciple should be:

Obedient to the Father
Loving to all Seeing people through God’s eyes Biblically instructive Pursuing Emotional Health and Spiritual Maturity Seeking first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness (Matt.6:33)
Operating through the leading of the Holy Spirit Following His instructions in regard to the people He has placed in your life/path Representative of Christ A witness of what Christ has done for you personally

DISCIPLESHIP MADE SIMPLE

“Living your life as though Jesus Christ were living your life for you.”

Why Do We Value discipleship?

Because Jesus calls us to make disciples (Matt. 28:18-20). During His ministry on earth, Jesus invested deeply in a few – loving, teaching, and equipping them. We desire to follow His example.

What Does Discipleship Look at Messiah?

Life-on-Life Missional Discipleship at Messiah happens in one-on-one and small groups of 4-5 people who commit to meet together for a period of time. The goal of discipleship is to discover what it means to have an intimate relationship with Jesus through the practice of silence, prayer and the study of scripture, so that you can be a disciple who make's disciples. Discipleship is about learning to Live and Love like Jesus. It’s not just a Bible study, a social circle or a small group. You will focus on: Seeing the Goodness of God, Practicing Stillness and Silence in order hear the voice of God, Being obedient to what you hear God saying to you, and learning to Love the People God places in your Life.

When is Discipleship at Messiah?

Groups meet throughout the year and are taking shape as wanted and needed.

Matthew 28: 18-20

And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

“We are all just walking each other home.” – Ram Dass

Invito-Spiritual Direction

What Is Spiritual Direction?

It is the practice whereby one person (Director) invites and helps another (Directee) to pay attention to God’s presence, voice, and sanctifying work in his or her life. Invito is an Italian word which means invitation and reflects the welcoming atmosphere of the Italian culture where by all are invited in, whether in celebration or in mourning, surrounded by the presence of God.

What Goes on in Spiritual Direction?

The Directee is invited to give their attention to God, as both the Directee and Director listen together to the Holy Spirit’s presence and ways rather than the Director telling the Directee what to do or convey knowledge. Spiritual direction is God-oriented rather than goal-oriented. It is about listening with–together noticing senses of God’s voice and direction–rather than talking to, and this distinguishes it from Messiah’s discipleship program in which there is more teaching and a nurturing of various spiritual disciplines.

What can I expect?

Spiritual Direction meetings between a Director and Directee usually occur once a month, for an hour to an hour and a half each time. Spiritual Direction occurs in an atmosphere of prayerful listening. We pause together reflectively. Often beginning and ending in silent prayer, to create an awareness of God’s presence with the Director and Directee, it’s common for the Director to ask a Directee to return to a few moments of silence in the middle of a session, again to clear away the clutter of talk and notice more deeply what the Holy Spirit may be saying.

Stories

Lee and Mary's Story

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Mike and Karens Story

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The Traves' Story

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Eric and Barbara's Story

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Tony's Story

I didn’t come to Christ; He came to me!...

Donna's Story

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