This is a two-part session. Be sure to register for both Part 1 A-01 and Part 2 B-21.

Session Description
Join Saddleback pastor Steve Gladen for a three-hour, roll-up-your-sleeves breakout on how to plan and execute a new small groups ministry model for your church. Steve has over 20 years of experience in growing groups in "churches of small groups," and in transitioning other churches from "churches with small groups" to "churches of small groups." Be ready to work through the specifics of your own church as this experienced architect, builder, and team leader helps guide you through the hidden dangers, past the bottlenecks and dead ends, to the plans for a vibrant, dynamic new small groups ministry.

Category: Leading a Small Groups Ministry
Venue: Willow Creek Community Church, South Barrington

Session Resources
The handout for this session is unavailable.

You can purchase the CD of this session at the Group Life Store.

Related Resources
Purpose Driven Small Group Leader Resources

Comments
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Steve Gladen Steve Gladen has been on staff at Saddleback Church in Lake Forrest, C.A. since 1998. He has focused on small groups in several churches for almost twenty years. Steve oversees 2,500 adult small groups at Saddleback and loves seeing a big church become small through true community developed in group life. Steve oversees the strategic launch and development of small groups and oversees the staff of the Small Group Network. Steve co-wrote several books including 250 Big Ideas for Small Groups, Building Healthy Small Groups in Your Church, and Don't Lead Alone. Steve does consulting and seminars championing small groups and what it means to be Purpose Driven in a small group ministry. Steve and his wife, Lisa, reside in Southern California, have two children, Erika and Ethan, and have been married since 1989.

Session Description
You have just been commissioned by leadership and given the responsibility of adding a small groups ministry to your church. Before your excitement turns to frustration and you become a church statistic, join us for a breakout that will give you the building blocks to carve out a thriving small groups ministry in a traditional church setting. This breakout is formatted to introduce key principles, and is followed by a processing environment. Bring team members and staff, or join with other church leaders, as you lay the foundation for a successful small groups future in your church.

Category: Leading a Small Groups Ministry
Venue: Willow Creek Community Church, South Barrington

Session Resources
Download the handout for this breakout. This file requires Acrobat Reader. You can download it here.

You can purchase the CD of this session at the Group Life Store.

Related Resources
Willow Creek Small Groups Advanced Training
Maximum Impact
Leading Life-Changing Small Groups by Bill Donahue & Team
Walking the Small Group Tightrope by Bill Donahue & Russ Robinson
Seven Deadly Sins of Small Group Ministry by Bill Donahue & Russ Robinson
Coaching Life-Changing Small Group Leaders by Bill Donahue & Greg Bowman
ReGroup: Training Groups to be Groups DVD by Henry Cloud, Bill Donahue, & John Townsend
Starting Small Groups by Jeffrey Arnold
Good to Great by Jim Collins
Leading Congregational Change by Jim Herrington, Mike Bonem, & James H. Furr

Comments
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Barry Sink Barry joined the staff of Calvary Church in Naperville, Ill. in 2001. His primary focus is in the area of assimilation and communication. He also serves on the strategy and creative teams. His role targets connection strategies, serving opportunities, and communicating the vision and values of Calvary Church. Previously, Barry served as a pastor of small groups for eight years in North Carolina. He does consulting, serving seminars, and small group training and retreats. Barry received his B.A. from John Wesley College and his master’s of divinity from Regent University. He is a licensed consultant with Natural Church Development, Turning Point Ministries, and has developed a ministry placement seminar titled “Serve U.” He also works with the WCA in its small group advanced training events.

Session Description
The impact you have as a coach is directly proportional to the depth of your relationship with the person you are coaching. In this breakout, a professional coach shows how he develops transparent, life-changing relationships quickly. You'll explore a revolutionary paradigm for how to build authenticity and see it modeled. You'll also get a chance to practice several practical storytelling skills that foster authenticity with a peer. Additionally, we'll discuss the practical details of how to launch and structure an effective coaching relationship.

Category: Training and Supporting Leaders
Venue: Willow Creek Community Church, South Barrington

Session Resources
Download the handout for this breakout. This file requires Acrobat Reader. You can download it here.

The CD of this session will be available for purchase at the Group Life Store for 30 days following the conference.

Related Resources
Coach 22
TOUCH Outreach Ministries
Christian Coaches Network
Leadership Coaching by Tony Stoltzfus
A Pocket Guide to Coaching Small Groups by Randall Neighbour
Coaching for Performance by John Whitmore
Peer Coach Training Program by Tony Stoltzfus
How to Ask Great Questions by Karen Lee Thorp
Christ-Centered Coaching by Jane Creswell
Coaching Small Group Leaders by Les Brickman (CD)
Powerful Questions: Problem Solving by Tony Stoltzfus (CD)

Comments
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Tony Stoltzfus Tony is a full-time Christian coach and coach trainer and the author of Leadership Coaching, a ground-breaking how-to book on coaching skills and values. He is a co-founder of a professional Christian coach training school and his passion is building leadership character. Tony develops training resources for bringing coaching into the church through his online resource center at www.Coach22.com. He also coaches pastors and ministry leaders through www.CoachingPastors.com.

This breakout is repeated in A-07 and C-47. Be sure to register only once.

Session Description
Spiritual growth only comes by the Holy Spirit, but there are things that small group leaders can do to create environments that will allow the Holy Spirit to do what only He can do. In this breakout, you'll learn some principles and practices that contribute to emotional health in small groups, so that members have a safe place to experience life-giving and life-changing community. You will have the opportunity to assess the current health of your small group in some key areas and to determine practical next steps to take toward greater emotional health.

Category: Advanced Group Leadership Skills
Venue: Willow Creek Community Church, South Barrington

Session Resources
The handout for this session is unavailable.

You can purchase the CD of this session at the Group Life Store.

Related Resources
There are no related resources available for this session.

Comments
We’d love to hear what you think! To comment on this session, click here.

Beth Leonard Beth has over 10 years of experience leading various aspects of small group ministry in the local church in both volunteer and paid staff positions, including directing the small group ministry in a church of 3,000. Her first love is training and leadership development, particularly in the area of creating transformational environments in small groups. She also teaches and facilitates during WCA Small Groups Advanced Training. Currently, Beth is working with Tapestry Community Church in Roswell, Ga., helping to design their small group and spiritual formation structures. Beth's family includes her husband, Don, two daughters, Hannah and Katelyn, two Shelties, and a cat.

This breakout is repeated in A-09 and C-49. Be sure to register only once.

Featured breakout for session C

Session Description
During this breakout you’ll discover how to enhance your small group experience using a practical and energizing Bible study method. The Liquid Method is a learning model that multiplies leaders, creates energy, and moves small group leaders from being teachers to shepherds. This method helps people observe, understand and apply God's Word to their lives in a way that is both relational and relevant. You will have an opportunity to see how the Liquid Method works and experience firsthand how effective it is in taking God's Word through your life and the life of a small group.

Category: Beginning Group Leadership Skills
Venue: Willow Creek Community Church, South Barrington

Session Resources
Download the handout for this breakout. This file requires Acrobat Reader. You can download it here.

You can purchase the CD of this session at the Group Life Store.

Related Resources
www.experienceliquid.com

Comments
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Chris Lagerlof Chris Lagerlof is the small groups/care/evangelism pastor at Mariners Church in Irvine, Calif. Since 1992, Chris has served in several ministries at Mariners and currently works with hundreds of small groups throughout the church. He is passionate about God's Word and helping others apply it to everyday life. Chris loves seeing a big church become small through true community developed in group life. He is a frequent speaker at conferences and leadership training events.

Jeff Pries Jeff Pries is currently a small groups pastor as well as a member of the speaking team at Mariners Church in Irvine, Calif. Jeff also produces Liquid, a series of four separate films, each based on specific passages from the Bible. The Liquid experience is designed to help small groups take God's Word through their lives. Jeff and his wife, Barbara, have been married for 11 years, and they have four children under the age of 10.

This breakout is repeated in A-11 and B-31. Be sure to register only once.

Featured breakout for session B

Session Description
Soul health determines so much, yet many have never even considered the well-being of their soul or intentionally cared for it. This breakout features time for learning, individual reflection, and honest discussion. It aims to help you better recognize attributes of the soul, understand the process of spiritual formation, and identify practical ways to restore health and life to the soul. The One who restored David’s soul in the Psalms is able to do the same for us today.

Category: Spiritual Formation
Venue: Willow Creek Community Church, South Barrington

Session Resources
Download the handout for this breakout. This file requires Acrobat Reader. You can download it here.

You can purchase the CD of this session at the Group Life Store.

Related Resources
Soul Care
Spiritual Formation Forum
Renovaré
Upper Room Ministries
Discovering Soul Care by Mindy Caliguire
Spiritual Friendship by Mindy Caliguire
The Life You’ve Always Wanted by John Ortberg
Boundaries by Henry Cloud & John Townsend
Write for Your Soul by Jeff & Mindy Caliguire
Renovation of the Heart by Dallas Willard
Journey to the Heart by Melody Beattie
A Testament of Devotion by Thomas Kelley
Freedom of Simplicity by Richard Foster
Let Your Life Speak by Parker Palmer
Power, Weakness, and the Tabernacling of God by Marva Dawn
Hearing God by Dallas Willard
The Way of the Heart by Henri Nouwen
Connecting by Larry Crabb
The Safest Place on Earth by Larry Crabb

Comments
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Mindy Caliguire Mindy Caliguire is the founder and president of Soul Care, a spiritual formation ministry. She was formerly on staff in the area of spiritual formation at Willow Creek Community Church and continues as a member there. Mindy is a frequent speaker and retreat leader, working with groups such as the Spiritual Formation Alliance. Her books include the new Soul Care Series: Discovering Soul Care, Spiritual Friendship, Soul Searching, and Simplicity, Faith Books & Spiritual Journaling (with Sharon Soneff) and Write for Your Soul: The Whys and Hows of Journaling (with Jeff Caliguire). Soul Care provides a compelling vision and practical next steps for increasing personal soul health and for building spiritually formative environments in small groups and ministries through resources, events, leadership development and consulting.

This breakout is repeated in A-13 and B-33. Be sure to register only once.

Session Description
More people now live in suburbs than in cities and small towns combined. But it can be hard to connect with people in suburbia. How do we build community in a fragmented, anonymous suburban culture? This breakout will look at the cultural forces shaping suburban people and explore the challenges and opportunities facing churches and small groups in a suburban context.

Category: Place-Based Ministry
Venue: Willow Creek Community Church, South Barrington

Session Resources
Download the handout for this breakout. This file requires Acrobat Reader. You can download it here.

You can purchase the CD of this session at the Group Life Store.

Related Resources
The Suburban Christian Blog
Missio Dei Suburbia Blog
Moving into the Neighborhood Blog
“A Theology of the Suburbs”
“The Gospel and the God-Forsaken: The Challenge of the Missional Church in Suburbia”
The Suburban Christian by Albert Y. Hsu (Chapter 1)
The Connecting Church by Randy Frazee
Making Room by Christine Pohl
Justice in the Burbs by Will & Lisa Samson
Picture Windows by Rosalyn Baxandall & Elizabeth Ewen
On Paradise Drive by David Brooks
Sprawl: A Compact History by Robert Bruegmann
Superbia! 31 Ways to Create Sustainable Neighborhoods by Dan Chiras & Dave Wann
Suburban Nation by Andres Duany, Elizabeth Plater-Zyberk, & Jeff Speck
Bourgeois Utopias by Robert Fishman
Building Suburbia by Dolores Hayden
Crabgrass Frontier by Kenneth T. Jackson
American Dreamscape by Tom Martinson
The Suburbs by J. John Palen
The Great Good Place by Ray Oldenburg
Bowling Alone by Robert Putnam

Comments
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Albert Hsu Al Hsu [pronounced “shee”] is an editor at InterVarsity Press, where he acquires and develops books in such fields as discipleship, spiritual formation, cultural critique, church and mission, and multiethnic issues. He is the author of three books: Singles at the Crossroads, Grieving a Suicide, and most recently, The Suburban Christian: Finding Spiritual Vitality in the Land of Plenty. He and his wife, Ellen, have two sons, and they serve as worship leaders at their Anglican church plant in the western suburbs of Chicago. He blogs at thesuburbanchristian.blogspot.com.

This breakout is repeated in A-15, B-35, C-55, and D-75. Be sure to register only once.

Session Description
Experience the new ReGroup™ DVD training tool in our hands-on lab. This revolutionary product features four, one-hour sessions with Henry Cloud, Bill Donahue, and John Townsend that are designed to help new and existing small groups develop healthy group skills. In this lab, Project Director Wendy Seidman takes a few minutes to describe the overall tool design and gives you a quick tour of the DVD. You can then interact with the product at computer workstations and ask our roving product experts questions about the tool and potential applications. The lab is open throughout the conference, but you'll need to register to hear the presentation.

Category: Training Lab
Venue: Willow Creek Community Church, South Barrington

Session Resources
The handout for this session is unavailable.

This breakout session is not available for purchase.

Related Resources
ReGroup: Training Groups to be Groups DVD by Henry Cloud, Bill Donahue, & John Townsend

Comments
We’d love to hear what you think! To comment on this session, click here.

Wendy Seidman Wendy is the executive director of content development and training for the Willow Creek Association. She is responsible for the quality of the content delivered in workshops, conference breakout sessions, conference main sessions, and regional training events that the WCA produces in the U.S. She is also responsible for the quality of WCA training products such as: the Network training course for spiritual gifts; Becoming a Contagious Christian training course; Good Sense Budget Course; Good Sense Counselor Training; and An Ordinary Day with Jesus spiritual transformation course. She has been with the WCA since 1991 and prior to that, she worked for Shell Oil Company in the training and development area. She has a master's degree in religious education from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School and a B.S. from Indiana University.

This is a two-part session. Be sure to register for both Part 1 A-02 and Part 2 B-22.

Session Description
The establishment of a thriving small groups ministry is best accomplished in an overall church culture that highly values community. Yet many point leaders find themselves in churches where there is a significant gap between the ideal and reality. Examine the steps necessary to reshape the current culture and to encourage community as a way of life.

Category: Leading a Small Groups Ministry
Venue: Willow Creek Community Church, South Barrington

Session Resources
The handout for this session is unavailable.

You can purchase the CD of this session at the Group Life Store.

Related Resources
There are no related resources available for this session.

Comments
We’d love to hear what you think! To comment on this session, click here.

Scott Christenson Scott was called to start a small group ministry at Prince of Peace Lutheran Church in Palatine, Ill. in 1998. After serving as minister of discipleship for six years, Scott transitioned to the senior pastor role in the fall of 2004. Today, he especially enjoys helping other mainline churches build prevailing small group ministries. He and his wife, Linda, have two sons.

This is a two-part session. Be sure to register for both Part 1 A-04 and Part 2 B-24.

Session Description
What does it look like to intentionally invest in the life of a small group leader? Identify four key practices at the core of successful coaching and walk away with simple tools that you can use to nurture the soul and improve the skill of each of your leaders.

Category: Training and Supporting Leaders
Venue: Willow Creek Community Church, South Barrington

Session Resources
Download the handout for this breakout. This file requires Acrobat Reader. You can download it here.

You can purchase the CD of this session at the Group Life Store.

Related Resources
Promoting Growth in Your Leaders with Mike Hurt (2007 Group Life Conference Breakout)
Responding to People in Crisis with Joe Besenjak & Kyndra Singer (2007 Group Life Conference Breakout)
Extraordinary Coaching Relationships with Tony Stoltzfus (2007 Group Life Conference Breakout; Available for 30 days only)
Coaching Life-Changing Small Group Leaders by Bill Donahue & Greg Bowman
Leading Life-Changing Small Groups by Bill Donahue & Team
Making Small Groups Work by Henry Cloud & John Townsend
Walking the Small Group Tightrope by Bill Donahue & Russ Robinson
Developing the Leaders Around You by John Maxwell
Nine Keys to Effective Small Group Leadership by Carl George
Sacred Companions by David G. Benner
Small Group Leadership as Spiritual Direction by Heather Webb
Spiritual Leadership by J. Oswald Sanders

Comments
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Greg Bowman Greg Bowman has been involved in small group ministry for over 20 years as a small group member, leader, coach, staff member, and consultant. As executive director for adult ministries at the Willow Creek Association, Greg provides strategic leadership for the development of resources and training tools that impact ministries around the world. He also speaks on the topic of small group ministry at national and international WCA conferences and training events. Prior to working at the WCA, Greg served for seven years as a small group pastor for Willow Creek Community Church. Before coming to Willow, Greg built and led small group ministries at churches in Cincinnati, Ohio, and Bloomington, Ind. Greg is co-author of Coaching Life-Changing Small Group Leaders with Bill Donahue. He has a bachelor's degree in Christian ministries from Cincinnati Christian University. Greg and his wife, Connie, have a daughter, Courtney, a son-in-law, Ed, and a son, Chris. They recently became grandparents. They live in Elgin, Ill.

This breakout is repeated in B-26 and D-66. Be sure to register only once.

Session Description
Spiritual formation is our goal for everyone. But what exactly happens in the heart of an individual during the life-change process? How is this facilitated by participation in a small group? This breakout is about spiritual formation in the heart of an individual and how to facilitate life transformation at a personal level.

To learn practical ideas on how to facilitate spiritual formation in a small group setting, see breakout A-06 or C-46 "Guiding a Group to Spiritual Maturity."

Category: Advanced Group Leadership Skills
Venue: Willow Creek Community Church, South Barrington

Session Resources
The handout for this session is unavailable.

You can purchase the CD of this session at the Group Life Store.

Related Resources
The Relational Way by M. Scott Boren
Changes that Heal by Henry Cloud
How People Grow by Henry Cloud and John Townsend
The Life You’ve Always Wanted by John Ortberg
Simple Church by Eric Geiger & Thom Rainer
The Sacred Romance by Brent Curtis & John Eldredge
An Invitation to the Spiritual Journey by John Gorsuch
The Critical Journey: Stages in the Life of Faith by Janet Hagberg & Robert Guelich
The Wounded Healer by Henri Nouwen
Let Your Life Speak by Parker Palmer
Sacred Rhythms by Ruth Haley Barton
The Emotionally Healthy Church by Peter Scazzero
Spiritual Disciplines Handbook by Adele Calhoun
Prayer by Philip Yancey
Invitation to a Journey Robert Mulholland
Here and Now by Henri Nouwen
Renovation of the Heart Dallas Willard
The Great Omission Dallas Willard

Comments
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Rex Minor Rex Minor is Executive Director of Transformational Communities at The Chapel in Grayslake, IL. Previously, Rex was the pastor of adult discipleship at Calvary Community Church in Westlake Village, CA, and was in senior leadership at Willow Creek Community Church as the director for small group leadership development. Rex's goal is to improve the quality of the small group experience and to see that every small group has a vision for reaching out to neighbors and friends to include them in community. He believes that life change happens best in the context of small groups. Before his involvement with small group leadership at Willow, Rex was director for community care ministries, encompassing pastoral care, recovery groups, and support groups. Prior to coming to Willow, Rex was in private practice as a marriage and family therapist. Rex and his wife, Andrea, have been married for 25 glorious years and have three children, Mallory, Paige, and Trent.

This breakout is repeated in A-08 and B-28. Be sure to register only once.

Session Description
Difficult people know how to push all the wrong buttons and can often cause problems in a small group. How can the leader handle these people in a way that helps them grow, and at the same time maintain group unity? Identify how your leadership style can impact group problem-solving. Explore how to employ healthy group boundaries in order to maintain community and provide balance in your group.

Category: Advanced Group Leadership Skills
Venue: Willow Creek Community Church, South Barrington

Session Resources
Download the handout for this breakout. This file requires Acrobat Reader. You can download it here.

You can purchase the CD of this session at the Group Life Store.

Related Resources
Honest to God? by Bill Hybels
Descending into Greatness by Bill Hybels & Rob Wilkins
Changes That Heal by Henry Cloud
Boundaries by Henry Cloud & John Townsend
Leading Life-Changing Small Groups by Bill Donahue & Team
Ordering Your Private World by Gordon MacDonald
Hiding from Love by Dr. John Townsend
Restoring Your Spiritual Passion by Gordon MacDonald
The Lies We Believe by Dr. Chris Thurmond
The Marriage Builder by Larry Crabb
Healing for Damaged Emotions by David Seamands
Telling Yourself the Truth by William Backus & Marie Chapian
The 12 Steps: A Spiritual Journey by Ron Halverson
Birthright by David Needham
You Gotta Keep Dancin' by Tim Hansel
Love Is a Choice by Drs. Robert Hemfelt, Frank Minirth, & Paul Meier
Codependency by Pat Springle
Can Christians Love Too Much? by Dr. Margaret Rinck
Inside Out by Larry Crabb
The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni

Comments
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Ray Ercoli Ray Ercoli has been on the Willow Creek Community Church staff for 16 years and has been a small groups pastor in Community Care since 1997. He is currently the director of all workshops and support groups in Community Care. Ray came to Christ here in 1982. He has been married for 16 years and has three children aged 12, nine, and seven.

Marie Shepherd Marie Shepherd is an area pastor with Neighborhood Life at Willow Creek Community Church. She’s been on staff for 17 years. She is excited to live out the vision of Neighborhood Life at Willow: “Love God and Love your Neighbor.”  Her responsibilities as an area pastor include the leadership, shepherding, and development of small groups as well as neighborhood teams in her geographical area. With such a people-intensive ministry, Marie has had lots of opportunities to practice the values and principles taught in this breakout.  Marie lives in the North Chicago suburbs and has three grown children and four grandchildren.

Session Description
Open groups are vital to a healthy, growing small groups ministry, yet maintaining them is often more easily said than done. This breakout will focus on how to build an open group mindset, discuss practical ways to add people to a group, consider the dynamics when people are added, and facilitate time for peer discussions and planning next steps for your personal group or ministry at your local church.

Category: Beginning Group Leadership Skills
Venue: Willow Creek Community Church, South Barrington

Session Resources
Download the handout for this breakout. This file requires Acrobat Reader. You can download it here.

You can purchase the CD of this session at the Group Life Store.

Related Resources
Church Teams Software for Small Groups
Small Group Leadership: Dramas that Teach (DVD and downloadable user guide)
Seven Deadly Sins of Small Group Ministry by Bill Donahue & Russ Robinson
Walking the Small Group Tightrope by Bill Donahue & Russ Robinson
The Relational Way by M. Scott Boren
The 8 Habits of Effective Small Group Leaders by Dave Earley

Comments
We’d love to hear what you think! To comment on this session, click here.

Eric Camfield Eric is the director of small groups ministries at Christ Church of Oak Brook. A large part of Eric’s role is the development and navigation of building place-based group life in the context of a traditional church in the western suburbs of Chicago. Over the years, Eric has worked in corporate sales, served with Athletes in Action as the director of international baseball, and prior to coming to Chicago, was a small group minister in Ohio, building a small group ministry from scratch while providing leadership in transitioning the church to a church of small groups. Eric is currently finishing his master’s degree in small group leadership from Lancaster Bible College. He is married to Suanne and has two great kids, Sadie (5) and Clay (4). You are most apt to find Eric at Starbucks, Panera Bread, or one of the many Chicagoland golf courses.

Session Description
When you hear the phrase "Neighborhood Hospitality" do you think of over-the-hedge chit-chat? Block parties? Waving goodbye to your neighbors as you drive off to church? Jon and Kelly Peacock describe their approach to hospitality as Geographical Acupuncture. It’s a combination of missionality, incarnational living, and the power of proximity as practiced by Willow’s Axis ministry, where Jon is leading a new wave of twentysomethings to invest their lives in missional communities. It's more than just a strategy for reaching and loving our post-Christian neighbors; it requires a whole-life commitment. If you enjoy the status quo, you might want to choose a different breakout. This one will rock your world.

Category: Place-Based Ministry
Venue: Willow Creek Community Church, South Barrington

Session Resources
Download the handout for this breakout. This file requires Acrobat Reader. You can download it here.

You can purchase the CD of this session at the Group Life Store.

Related Resources
Just Walk Across the Room
Acts 29 Network
Exiles by Michael Frost
The Forgotten Ways by Alan Hirsch