Article from January 2022 Newsletter
Small Groups at SOTV
Small groups have always had a positive impact on the members in the groups. If you are looking to join a small group, here are some upcoming options: table talk in February, women’s bible study on Tuesdays from January through March, ongoing Saturday Morning Women’s Bible Story, ongoing Tuesday Morning Men’s Bible study, and ongoing Friday morning men’s faith discussion group. Find details and join the groups at sotv.org/events and sotv.org/groups.
Featured Small Group: Tuesday Morning Men’s Bible Study Group
The Tuesday morning Men’s Bible Study group was started in 1995 after many of the men of SOTV attended the first Promise Keepers’ event in the Twin Cities. One of the Promise Keepers’ tenants was the importance of Christian men meeting regularly in small groups to help each other continue growing in faith and meaningful behaviors through elements such as Bible study, prayer, and mutual support of one another. This SOTV group has been meeting for an hour on Tuesday morning, ever since. The early start at 6:30 am allows working guys to participate before they go off to their jobs and prevents any time conflicts with important family commitments in the evenings.
One of the main objectives of the Tuesday group is to provide an ongoing opportunity to spend time in God’s Word. By studying it collectively and using various sources to explore the meaning and context of individual verses, we gain ongoing immersion in scripture and a better understanding of what God invites us to learn and apply to our lives. We generally use Bible study booklets that provide structure and a starting point as we explore themes and individual books of the Old and New Testament. The group is currently studying the book of Romans. Bible study books are usually under $10 and will last many months at our “unrushed pace” of discovery! A person can easily join during the current study, plus missing a few weeks won’t be a problem.
The group spends time weekly in fellowship (often takes the form of sharing current events/issues happening — and within the lives of those we know) as we seek to be supportive of each other’s call to walk faithfully with Christ. This often segues onto our internally maintained prayer list and then the prayer session with which we close every meeting. Our prayer list and prayer time is a key bond to our fellowship and care for each other.
During the pandemic, we met online with Zoom. Currently we’re back to meeting at church, but we are still simultaneously starting a Zoom session each week for participants who are out of town or are not able to make it to the meeting site. This convenient option maintains regular connections and keeps everyone current in study.
For more than 12 years, our group has chosen to be intentional in providing acts of service. Once a month we help provide free meals to community members at a variety of local churches (currently linked with the Loaves and Fishes program at Easter Lutheran Church in Eagan). We find it meaningful to be able to work together in answering Christ’s call to serve our neighbors in at least this one small way. Find information about the men’s group and learn how to join at www.sotv.org/mens-bible-studies.
