We’re not a church with community groups;
we’re a church of community groups.
The families who started Grace Bible Church chose this name to intentionally communicate how we start a relationship with God, grow in our relationship with God, and go tell others about Him.
What we believe about God is called theology. We shout out, “Grace is a gift from God” to proclaim that our relationship with God begins and is sustained because He gives all we need to both start and grow in Christ.
How do we know that what we believe is true?
What we teach at Grace is whatever the Word of God teaches. “Bible is our middle name” because we want to teach nothing more and nothing less than what God has revealed to us. In a community group, you learn with others how to read the Bible so that you can know how to live the Bible.
How can we live the Bible faithfully?
We are a Church of community groups, and each group is a little church. In little church you are known by others who help you to engage in Godward rhythms such as reading your Bible, praying, sharing the gospel, and serving.
No matter where we are on the discipleship pathway, we grow by studying the Bible, deepening our theology, engaging in Godward rhythms -- and doing this together week by week. We divide our pathway into three tiers so that you can find a community group that will help you grow wherever you are in the process.
Discipleship for All
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God desires for you to know Him. Knowing the infinite One is a delight for now and for all eternity. Our cry to the God who seeks us should be, “Help me to seek you now and forever!” The purpose of Discipleship for ALL curriculum is to guide you toward essential foundations for knowing God and making Him known. Each curriculum venture grows you to know and become more like Jesus.
The curriculum ventures of Discipleship for ALL are recommended for seekers, young believers, those new to Grace family, & basically everyone!
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Rooted engages you in seven Godward rhythms essential to deepening your connection with Jesus, His Church, and your purpose in God’s epic story. In Rooted community groups, we process core Bible truths and engage in authentic disciplemaking; therefore, it is THE community experience we ask all to complete before becoming a member of Grace Bible Church.
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The Whole Story of the Bible helps you gain a basic understanding for the overarching story of both the Old and New Testament, one where Jesus is Central to God bringing us into an eternal relationship with Him. This framework is foundational to learning how to read the Bible as God’s special revelation to us.
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God’s great adventure cannot be lived when we simply do not know how to manage money or are burdened with financial insecurity and debt. In Moneywise you will learn what the Bible says about money and how to apply these biblical principles to create a spending plan that honors God and His purposes for your life.
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re:generation is a 12-step discipleship program that frees us to experience the abundant life in Christ. By working through these biblical steps within an authentic community, people have found freedom from substance abuse, codependency, pornography, eating disorders, depression, fear, control, emotional/physical abuse, same sex attraction, anger, obsessive thoughts and many other personal struggles.
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Whether a couple is just married or has been married for years, re|engage gives them a safe place to work on their relationship together. Together couples learn to practically apply what the Bible teaches about love and respect, including how to resolve conflict in a way that honors one another and God.
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Footsteps is a devotional walking group where faith and movement come together. Whether through quiet moments of scripture, shared devotionals, or meaningful conversation, Footsteps is a space to grow spiritually while caring for our bodies. No pace is required.
Discipleship for
Disciple Makers
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A disciple is always learning Jesus. As we know and follow Him, our love for Him deepens. Core to being a disciple is also being ready, willing, and accountable to help others know and follow Jesus. The purpose of Discipleship for Disciplemakers curriculum is to prepare you to be
Ready – knowing the truth to teach
Willing – persisting in obeying Jesus’ commands
Accountable – walking the Jesus life in community with other believers
The curriculum ventures of Discipleship for Disciplemakers are recommended for those who have completed some of the Discipleship for ALL ventures, in particular Rooted.
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Daniel is a most fascinating book because it includes dreams, visions, and stories that reveal the Living God as the eternal ruler of all peoples and times. This revelation occurs in the midst of Israel’s great crisis of exile from her land. When Daniel is taken from Jerusalem to Babylon, God gives this royal son of the tribe of Judah spiritual gifts and positions of authority in Gentile kingdoms. With words and deeds, Daniel faithfully serves as a witness to the city of his captivity serving dead gods and passions.
As Christ’s disciples, we live as exiles in a world opposed to God’s kingdom rule. In this first semester of Daniel we will focus on how to stand firm in the Word, in prayer, and in witness so that we can draw closer to God and draw others to Him as well.
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In How to Read Your Bible you will apply each core “rule” for studying Scripture while learning how to read its various genres (narration, the Law, poetry, epistles, and prophecy). You will develop the crucial practice of praying through Scripture while you’re observing, interpreting, and applying it. And as you are engaging with others in those practices, you will see how each selection, regardless of genre, reveals God’s patient beautiful plan to make us His children.
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The book of Ephesians affirms your identity and purpose in Christ is the masterpiece of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; you are part of the LIVING building of the Church where each work together to make Christ known. To that end, Ephesians also teaches us practicalities such as how to rely on each Person in the Trinity, break down walls of hostility, pray for one another, serve the local church, live counter-culturally, glorify Christ as a husband or wife, parent or child, employee or employer, and how to stand firm in spiritual warfare.
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Helping our entire church understand how to live as disciples who make disciples is no easy task, but thankfully, Jesus came to show us the way. In Learning Jesus you will study Jesus’ life and teachings in a year-long Bible reading plan that integrates all four gospels chronologically. As you commit this time to walk with Jesus, He will call you to a deeper and deeper understanding of the abundant life He wants for you to enjoy and live for Him. In Learning Jesus you read Jesus’ entire life and teachings.
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Disciplemaker’s Living Guide is that it fleshes out making disciples as the simple and do-able practice Jesus modeled it to be in His own life. This guide would be a good prequel or follow up to Learning Jesus.
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Leading your children to grow in their relationship with God is every parents’ responsibility and joy, but the temporary pressures of this world often drive us from this beautiful eternal work. In Family Discipleship, you will understand the end goal of raising children and create a simple plan for moving your family toward realizing God’s purpose for family.
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Prayer is a gift from God to all of us, and group prayer binds us to one another in ways that no other activity can. In Together in Prayer we’ll learn how to connect with God more deeply in our personal prayer life and pray more effectively in a group.
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Leading your children to grow in their relationship with God is every parents’ responsibility and joy, but the temporary pressures of this world often drive us from this beautiful eternal work.
Disciple Makers
on Mission
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Disciplemakers on Mission are grounded in Christ and have grown both in their knowledge and skills while making disciples. Now they are advancing in leading others to ground their relationship in Christ and to grow in making disciples. Some may be obeying the call to lay or ministry leadership in the church and others to spiritual leadership in a nonprofit or the marketplace. We have opportunities to develop these leaders both on our campus and through our association with EFCA who supports us in multiplying healthy leaders in our church and city.
The curriculum ventures for Disciplemakers on Mission are for members of Grace who completed some Discipleship for All and Discipleship for Disciplemakers curriculum ventures and have served in a ministry at Grace for at least one year.
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Deeper Daniel is for emerging leaders who want to learn about faithful leadership and handling of the Word of Truth so that they can shepherd a community group, a “little church” to live faithfully for Christ.
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Each the books of the Come and See series is easy to understand yet satisfyingly deep on one theological subject –- The Bible, God, Jesus’s Person & Work, The Holy Spirit, Angels & Demons, The Depravity of Man, Soteriology.
From Genesis to Revelation, the key passages for each subject are interpreted in their context, giving you the words to explain theological concepts you might recognize but do not know how to articulate. The books examine false doctrines and explain where those doctrines contradict Scripture and defy logical reasoning. Should you participate in Gateway or Prepared or pursue seminary, this series will enable you to engage from a solid foundation.
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Spiritual Leadership is a classic, asking us to weigh the need for leaders in the church and to consider stepping into that need. You will examine insights on leadership from Scripture and the essential character qualities of a leader. You will review the spiritual disciplines needed to persevere as a follower of Christ and a leader of His people. Finally, you will review the costs, the responsibilities, the tests, and the perils of leadership.
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In How People Grow, you will discuss the following with your group –
1. The essential processes that make people grow
2. How these processes fit into a biblical understanding of spiritual growth and theology
3. How spiritual growth and real-life issues are one and the same
4. Your responsibility for your own personal growth.
5. The responsibilities of pastors, counselors, and other leaders who assist people in growing.
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GATEWAY will give you a taste of formal theological training and prepare you for ministry leadership or for pursuing higher education for vocational ministry. This one-year online class meets monthly to prepare you to study one theological subject and write a short paper on it. The online class time will strengthen the accuracy and clarity of your written documents on each of the articles of the EFCA’s Statement of Faith and other key issues.
For more information go to http://efcagateway.org/ Contact kpaulson@gracelaredo.org if you are interested in knowing more about the Gateway experience.
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Prepared is for women, locally and globally, currently in ministry leadership or desiring to prepare for ministry leadership in either paid or volunteer roles. This two-year program consists of ten online courses, each six weeks long. Courses include weekly class lectures, discussion, and assignments that focus on personal reflection, community learning and course content comprehension.
For more information go to http://prepared.ministries.efca.org/ Contact kpaulson@gracelaredo.org if you want to know more about the Prepared experience.
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