CoreGroup Guide | We Just Click - Part 1

From Pastor Charity
Please take a moment to invite your CoreGroup to our One CoreGroup One Day event happening on Tuesday, May 6, 2025, from 6-8pm at the McCausland Site. This is THE CoreGroup event of the year! It’s a celebration of what we’re building together. Expect food, worship, connection, giveaways, and a few surprises. Encourage group participants to sign-up at the link above before leaving your group today.

Welcome
Relationships are an essential part of life. In our spiritual, emotional, and physical health we thrive more fully when we tend to our relationships. Still, sometimes we live as if on auto-pilot, without participating in the work of growing and maintaining the kind of relationships that feed our souls. In this series we will investigate why relationships are critical to our well-being and why, even though we know the importance of relationships, we still neglect them. This week we begin by considering the basic belief that we were designed for relationships and explore ways to prioritize healthy relationships in our lives.

Opening Prayer
Abba, Father. You created us for relationships with you and with one another. Be with us this day in our discussion. Grant us wisdom and understanding that we may learn to be mindful of the gift of relationships. Take away the arrogance in our hearts that leads us to believe that we do not have to work at kindness and gentleness in all of our interactions. Teach us in all things to seek you as our first counsel and to respect the thoughts and ideas of every member here. Amen.  

Ice Breaker
We just click! What does that phrase mean to you? Can you name a time and circumstance when it happened to you in relationship with another person – someone who became a fast friend? Or it could be an activity – something you tried or experienced that brought instant gratification, so much so that it became a part of your regular routine? Or maybe even a food – something that tasted so good, it became a go-to favorite?  

The Head
God has always intended relationships for the created world. The story of creation in Genesis speaks of relationships between light and dark, water and dry land, fish in the sea and birds in the air. Beyond these, God specifically designs human beings to be in relationship with the natural environment and with the animal kingdom. And then, God’s creation culminates with his desire for humans to be in relationship with one another.

Genesis 2:18
"Then the Lord God said, 'it is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him.'"

Ecclesiastes 4:9-12

"Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil. For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow. But woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up! Again if two lie together, they keep warm, but how can one keep warm alone? And though a man might prevail against one who is alone, two will withstand him – a three fold cord is not quickly broken."

• In your own words, briefly retell the creation story found in the Bible. If needed, look back at Genesis 1, specifically Genesis 1:26-31. 
• What do we know about God’s interest in relationships from this story and the reference in Genesis 2:18?
• What kinds of relationships are referenced in the Ecclesiastes passage above? What practical benefit is there to these relationships?  
• What other scripture comes to mind when you think of God’s intention for the way we relate to one another?  
• What are some other examples of relationships in scripture?

Romans 12:4-5
For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another.  

• According to this scripture, what relationship do we have with other Christians?
• What examples of these relationships do you see at the Gathering or in other spaces where you gather together with Christ-followers?

The Heart
From birth to death we are, in one way or another, reaching out for one another. It may be in physical or in emotional need. It may be for companionship or for deeper intimacy. It may be to offer comfort or to be comforted, to serve or to be served. All of these interactions bear witness that we are created in the image of a relational God who desires relationships for us.  

• Describe the qualities of a healthy relationship. What evidence of these qualities do you see in your current relationships with friends, family, and/or acquaintances?
• What do you think is required to sustain a healthy relationship?  
• Where in your life do you experience loneliness, isolation, or broken relationships?
• What barriers do you face that prevent you from improving or sustaining your current relationships?
• Are there specific ways of interacting with someone that you might be willing to change to encourage a more healthy relationship?

The Hands
Prioritizing and maintaining healthy relationships takes some work. We cannot sit back and expect that love will grow without cultivation and nurturing. Even our most casual relationships require some effort. This series offers an opportunity to look at different levels of relational commitment. Let’s use this time to enrich various relationships at every level by identifying one action each week that could be applied. Begin this week with acquaintances or casual contacts.

• Think about one or two people you regularly encounter during the week. It could be someone at work, in your neighborhood, at church, or another community setting. 
• What is one action you could take to strengthen the relationship you have with this person? Maybe an intentional greeting, a wave, an acknowledgement of their presence. Or maybe support for a cause they care about, or a word of encouragement or solidarity. Sometimes a smile is enough. 
• Share with your group what you did, what reaction you got, and how you felt about it.
• Is there someone else God might be nudging you towards? To reach out to, to reconnect with, or to invest more deeply in the relationship? What support do you need from your CoreGroup to move in that direction?

Closing Prayer
God, you made us in your own image to desire relationships. We crave peace, contentment, help, and support from the relationships in our lives. Help us to acknowledge the need we have for others. Break down the walls that separate us, and unite us in bonds of love. Help us to work through struggles and confusion that we may live together. In the name of Jesus, we pray. Amen.

Going Deeper
From the time he began his public ministry Jesus was constantly involved with people. Whether he was teaching in the synagogues or on a hillside, walking on the road, or having a meal, there were plenty of people vying for his attention. Spend some time looking into the ways in which Jesus interacted with people who we would not consider his inner circle of friends or family.  Consider the ways in which he engaged with those who came to him for healing, or to learn from him, or to try to stir up conflict with him. Imagine being there to observe these interactions.
 
What do you learn from the relationships in Jesus’ life and how can this encourage you in your own relationships with those around you?