Living Stones Church is part of a movement called “simple church”. It may be a misnomer at times because being the Church can be rather complex or simply messy. We have no church choir or praise team, no Sunday school or greeters; in fact we have none of those garnishes that often accompany the Church in America. So what does full participation look like? How does someone get involved? What type of response is desired from a member of the Living Stones family and what responsibility is given? Well we are glad that you asked!☺ There actually is more opportunity to plug-in at Living Stones than you might think. It just may look different (perhaps more messy). The Bible tells us that there is a “priesthood of all believers” (1 Peter 2:9 and others)—in other words, every member is a minister and a missionary. Jesus did not tell us a lot about what his followers’ worship gathering should look like, but instead focused on how we should live and follow Him. So we try to keep our weekly worship gathering simple but purposeful. It’s not our gathering time that defines us however… it is our scattering time: what we do during the other hours of the week when we are not crammed around a table or filling a living room.
We encourage intentional community. On different days and times we meet in smaller groups of 2 or 3 where we share what God is doing in our lives; we encourage each other by helping stay accountable to God’s purpose in our lives, and pray for each other and those whom God has put on our path. These micro-gatherings help shape us into devoted disciples of Jesus.
We also encourage participation in our gatherings! While visitors are encouraged to participate at their comfort level, once you have joined us twice you are considered part of the family. So people take turns bringing our common meal; instead of a sermon there is a Bible discussion where people can respond by bringing their observations and their questions. And worship, service projects, etc. are not planned by a small few in leadership but are part of our response to what God is doing in our lives and God’s call in our lives. And eventually you too will share in co-hosting a gathering at your favorite coffee shop, home or anywhere else God might be calling you.
And much of our responsibility is to people who are not familiar with Living Stones or even Christ for that matter: Jesus tells us to love our neighbor. Part of our response to that command is to help your new neighbor move in, invite your co-worker over for a BBQ, and act on all of those good things each of us would do if we only had more time. Our lack of committed mid-week meetings are meant to encourage people to worship God with their whole lives. The response and responsibilities of those in the Living Stones family are found in the words of Jesus: love God, love others and as you go make disciples. There are no bystanders… everyone’s part of the family!
We encourage intentional community. On different days and times we meet in smaller groups of 2 or 3 where we share what God is doing in our lives; we encourage each other by helping stay accountable to God’s purpose in our lives, and pray for each other and those whom God has put on our path. These micro-gatherings help shape us into devoted disciples of Jesus.
We also encourage participation in our gatherings! While visitors are encouraged to participate at their comfort level, once you have joined us twice you are considered part of the family. So people take turns bringing our common meal; instead of a sermon there is a Bible discussion where people can respond by bringing their observations and their questions. And worship, service projects, etc. are not planned by a small few in leadership but are part of our response to what God is doing in our lives and God’s call in our lives. And eventually you too will share in co-hosting a gathering at your favorite coffee shop, home or anywhere else God might be calling you.
And much of our responsibility is to people who are not familiar with Living Stones or even Christ for that matter: Jesus tells us to love our neighbor. Part of our response to that command is to help your new neighbor move in, invite your co-worker over for a BBQ, and act on all of those good things each of us would do if we only had more time. Our lack of committed mid-week meetings are meant to encourage people to worship God with their whole lives. The response and responsibilities of those in the Living Stones family are found in the words of Jesus: love God, love others and as you go make disciples. There are no bystanders… everyone’s part of the family!
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