I’m surrounded by people at church . . . so why do I feel so alone?

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A Field Guide for Genuine Community

You show up at church every Sunday. You see people you know. You listen to a sermon together. And then you go home feeling just as isolated as you did before. What’s going on?

We all know that a church is supposed to be a community. The trick is to actually make it one. Communities don’t happen by chance—certainly not in our Lone Ranger culture that values independence and individualism. A truly Christian community must be built by intentional practices that allow for deeper connections, centered on the unity that can only be found in Christ.

In A Field Guide for Genuine Community, longtime pastor and discipleship trainer Ben Connelly shows you that the biblical model for community is the family of God. In twenty-five short, practical readings, he takes you beyond the surface and helps you learn to connect with your brothers and sisters as true family members.

Moody Publishers and Saturate joined Ben to create FREE resources to help pastors and leaders, as you equip your church, group, or organization to dive into genuine community.

Access FREE resources

  • Six weeks of customizable sermon outlines & slides

  • Discussion Guide Intro & six video teachings for groups

  • Group & personal exercises referenced throughout the book

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“Life in the family of God is a daily act of worship. So let’s find a group of folks to go with us, and let’s pray for the Spirit’s help in difficult steps on this journey.”

COMMUNITY ARTICLES

Featured
We Are a Spiritual Family
We Are a Spiritual Family

“Family” is hard. But if we look at the images God uses for His people in the New Testament, we see that He refers to the Church as His body, as a temple or spiritual structure in which God the Spirit dwells, and as a field. But by far the overarching metaphor for the Church is one of family.

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There Must Be Something More
There Must Be Something More

In fact, it is impossible to fulfill many of the Bible’s commands outside of deep relationship and shared life with other followers of Jesus. We are designed to be dependent on God and others. We need help reclaiming the depth of that dependence.

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Jesus is Both the Motive & the Goal
Jesus is Both the Motive & the Goal

Above all, life in the family of God is a daily act of worship. So let’s find a group of folks to go with us, and let’s pray for the Spirit’s help in difficult steps on this journey.

Read More →

 

  • “Are you longing for more authentic, biblical relationships with others? Then you must read A Field Guide for Genuine Community. Within a five-week framework, Pastor Ben answers our questions—and our excuses—about developing church connections in your own spiritual family. Through Bible study and pertinent questions, Ben teaches us how to intentionally build intimate and multigenerational discipleship groups that are actually fun to be a part of! Read it, apply it, and see how your church can become less of an organization and more of a growing organism where you can enjoy a deep and fruitful life together. .”

    — Jani Ortlund, Renewal Ministries

  • “If you’re done with the façade of community, tired of shallow relationships, and ready to give up on a Sunday-centric faith, this book is for you. I love the way that my friend Ben doesn’t just present a couple quick fixes or silver bullets to solve your discipleship woes. Rather, he pastorally introduces the concept of church as spiritual family, which is deeply needed for the Western church.”

    — Daniel Im, Beulah Alliance Church

  • “I’m thankful for this book—it demystifies the purpose of Christian community while doing honor to the complexities of it, and centers the grace of God as the unifying and liberating power we need to know it is real. Full of biblical insight and experiential wisdom, Ben Connelly’s Field Guide will help you pastorally understand and practically implement stronger and more relational closeness in your ministry context.”

    — Jared C. Wilson, Midwestern Seminary

  • “Jesus gave His apostles clear instructions to go and make disciples. They went and instinctively planted churches—but this was not to abandon Christ’s instruction to gather groups of believers as loving families who were all to realize their mutual responsibilities. They were not to be mere passive meeting attenders but to gather in vibrant communities, caring for one another’s life and spiritual growth. Ben Connelly has written an incisive, practical, and inspirational book that you will find instructive and motivational as you respond to Christ’s command.”

    — Terry Virgo, New Frontiers