Make 2022 the year you expand your life in Christ!
Form a Book Study Group on the
Wonders of Christ Today
HERE’S HOW!
Steve Hall
I am very pleased to share what God has been doing the past several years in a group of five brothers in Christ to profoundly anchor us together in Christ.
For more than 25 years, each of us has had a deep burden/passion for revival of the Church. In our separate communities throughout the State of Washington, we have been actively involved with other Christian leaders to unite the Church in worship, knowing Christ more, evangelism, and prayer.
I met David Bryant in the late 1980s. Since then, he has become the most significant mentor in my life through his consistent declaration of the supremacy of Christ. He has poured Christ into me in so many ways, including speaking about Christ’s greatness at gatherings I’ve hosted with Christian leaders in the Northwest.
David is always challenging (even pleading with) followers of Jesus to “awaken” to all He is—a Christ awakening of the Church—resulting in us “living and moving and having our being” in Him (Acts 17:28, emphasis added).
David invites those who are being awakened to the fullness of Christ to become “messengers of hope” (the boundless hope we have in the Lord Jesus Christ). One very important way to be a messenger of hope is to share what we’re discovering about Him with other believers. That is one of the greatest joys in life, isn’t it?
So, when David’s book CHRIST Is All! Join in the Joyful Awakening to the Supremacy of God’s Son came out, I read through it right away and began urging others to do so too.
Then the Holy Spirit led me to invite four other brothers in Christ, who I knew especially shared my passion for the fullness of Christ, to read, discuss, and pray through it with me. We had half-hour conference calls one morning each week for the next year. We were truly experiencing a “joyful awakening to the supremacy of God’s Son” together.
When we finished CHRIST Is All!, we were still hungry for more of Jesus. We were excited that David was writing his spectacular Christ Is NOW! book. I was receiving copies of the drafts of it, so I asked David if our group could use those drafts to begin going through that book.
When David said yes, we launched into what has been consuming us almost every Wednesday morning from 8:00-8:45 for several years. We have gone through the “Who Christ Is TO Us Today,” “FOR Us Today” and “OVER Us Today” sections. We are about halfway through the printed book so far. We are moving at a comfortable speed for our group. Others could move more quickly or more slowly. It’s totally up to the group members.
Here’s what we do every week:
- At first, we were doing conference calls because we are from five parts of the State of Washington. But when Zoom became available, it was a real blessing. We could now see each other!
- We begin each session asking the Spirit to be in control during our time together. I facilitate our sessions, but the Spirit is our leader. Sometimes, we spend a couple of minutes catching up with each other personally or focusing on an aspect of Christ that has particularly been on our minds recently.
- Then, we get right into the portion of the book for that day. Most of the material in the book is in bullet point format. There is always a very powerful point about Christ and usually a Scripture passage in each bullet. I ask a person to read the bullet, and our hearts and minds soar about Him as we follow the reading.
- After the bullet is read, we have a simple (yet profound) discussion. Each of us feels completely free to ask questions, rejoice in the Lord for who He is as revealed in the bullet, bring in other Scripture passages, say the words of a hymn or song that comes to mind, pray about some part of the bullet, or share experiences in our lives that apply. We often share our longing for others in the Body of Christ or unsaved people to know such things about Christ and our devotion to make Him known.
- We usually do only one bullet point per session in our group. Other groups might meet for longer sessions and/or cover more material each time.
- We always close with each brother praying briefly as the Lord leads us. This “seals the deal” for us.
Here are some of the wonderful blessings we have received as we awaken to and experience more and more of Christ together.
- We are building a very firm, hope-filled foundation in our lives—and always hunger for more of Jesus. Although we are serious about the value of this experience (to us and to the Lord), we are filled with joy and laughter.
- Every session, we discover more of the beauty and vastness of the Son of God and gain confidence in His authority over all the enemy’s distractions around us. Truly, Christ is ALL!
- We are refreshed in the Lord and eagerly go out to be messengers of the fresh hope within us. One of the men said, “We are richer for the time each week.”
- We have become “the Brothers Five.” It’s a safe place—no critiques—just friendship and love, refreshing each other, and iron sharpening iron. One of the men expressed the precious love we have gained for each other this way: “A bond has formed within our fellowship that is so strong and valuable that it far exceeds what comes out of any other activity I have been a part of in many years.”
- We are delighted that we are only about 60% through the book and look forward to the joys we have yet to receive as we continue to work through Christ Is NOW!
You Can Easily Start a Christ Is NOW Group
I believe a Christ Is NOW! (CIN ) group WILL be very hope-building for small groups in your spheres of influence—and could awaken the Church in America (and beyond) to His limitless supremacy. Feel free to contact me anytime at stevehall_irm@msn.com or 206-595-5109 if I can be helpful to you in beginning or maintaining a CIN group.
You can order the book HERE.
Together, let’s build the momentum towards a Christ awakening in the Body of Christ!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Steve Hall
Steve is the representative for International Renewal Ministries in Washington state. He encourages and helps pastors and other Christian leaders to build more of a focus on the supremacy of Christ and prayer into their personal lives and ministries. You can buy Steve’s book I Want to Know More of Christ: A Daily Devotional on His Matchless Names HERE.
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