K Groups at First Church
What does Koinonia mean to you? To Elizabeth DeVore, one of First Church’s Koinonia Group (K Group) leaders, Koinonia means holy, covenantal fellowship. “K Group friendships are just that. We are able to be open and honest with each other and share in diving deeper into God’s word,” Elizabeth said. You might not know it, but every week, small groups are meeting in homes across town, changing the spiritual lives of its members as they become closer to Christ, and each other.
To Jan Miller, a member of Cam Campbell’s K Group, “Having people that you can really be vulnerable with is what God had in mind when he saw friendships. Really doing life together, not just surface friendships, not friendships based on what you can do for one another,” Jan said. Cam has been leading Jan’s group at Dennis and Jan Lee’s house for about 20 years. “I think a small group is really important, especially in a church the size of ours. It gives us a chance to have closer personal relationships. The people in that group are some of our best friends, that is what has happened over the years.”
“We are just going through life together sharing joys and concerns, praying for each other while we are there.”
– Cam Campbell
God’s work in Cam’s group was never more apparent than when one of their hosts, Jan Lee, was diagnosed with lymphoma. She told her husband Dennis, “I want to keep working and I want to keep my study group.” That paid off in a miracle. Jan was unable to keep her platelets up for treatment. After having a blessing done by the group, she never had trouble with her platelets again, and was able to get the treatment she needed. Even the nurse in Houston called it a miracle.
Bette Cromer and her husband Phil came to First Church just four years ago, but they jumped into small group leadership very quickly. “I just don’t have anything else in the church that gives me that personal bonding, the ability to learn about someone’s faith walk as this small K Group … whether that is being a better listener or sharing a little deeper, it is peeling layers away and sharing deeper and deeper,” Bette said about her group.
Vickie Matthews, a member of Bette’s group summed it up like this, “It reminds me to be in the body of Christ and to stay in it, because sometimes it is easy when you are busy to be in your own world, but that group keeps me thinking of others, it is such a close family. It is a group that takes you outside of yourself, keeps you praying for others, it is such a special group.”
If these kinds of relationships are missing in your life, they might be waiting for you in a group you have yet to join. Find some friends or acquaintances, ask them if they would like to meet and learn about Christ. There is no substitute for true Christian community. Find out what Koinonia means to you.
Contact Phillip Bowman, First Church’s K Group coordinator for assistance leading or finding a group today. We are called by God to live in fellowship, start doing that today. Reach Phillip at 918-630-1786 or pbowman@firstchurchtulsa.org.
About the author:
Phillip Bowman serves as the K Group coordinator for First Church, and also runs our Little Lambs and Downtown Theological Roundtable groups. Before joining the staff of the church, Phillip was a stay-at-home dad and also served as a history teacher at Town and Country School.