This is the fourth post in a series of posts about what our upcoming Missional Community gatherings will look like.
As we prepare to launch our two initial MC’s some have wondered if the MC’s will go any deeper than a group meeting in terms of personal spiritual formation and discipleship. While living on mission in the everyday stuff of life is one of the most effective ways for not only mission to happen, but also for us to grow, there is also a need to develop deep relationships and the group setting of an MC is not always conducive to the vulnerability and transparency required to cultivate the kind of accountability and growth that we hope for. To this end, each MC will also contain within it smaller groups of people called DNA groups. DNA groups will usually consist of three people (men with men and women with women) who will decide together on some other regular meeting time and place where they can go deeper together into their life together. The “DNA” in DNA groups is an acronym for “Discover, Nurture, Act”. These three actions are what the DNA group actually practices when they meet.
"Discover” - The group will share what they are currently reading and learning from the Bible with one another, and specifically how the gospel is coming to bear on their life thru what they are learning thru the Bible. The DNA group is also able to encourage one another to be regularly "looking up" as they pursue knowing Jesus more and more thru HIs word.
"Nurture" - After spending time talking about what they have been discovering in the Bible, the group will nurture in one another's hearts the truths that you have just talked thru. This nurturing conversation is a great way for us to care for one another(Look In) and for us to also grow in our own ability to speak the good news of Jesus into the everyday stuff of one another's lives.
"Act" - As the group concludes their meeting time, they will take action together towards repentance and belief. This would most often look like a time of prayer where we repent of the areas of unbelief in our hearts and pray with and for one another to grow in our obedience to the teachings of Jesus. The group also shares how they will intentionally practice this obedience as they are once again sent out into the world.
These groups will be formed over the first couple of months of the MC's beginning to meet. The MC will need time to discover the relationship that may be present in the MC, and then the DNA groups can begin to form as it becomes clear who the DNA groups should be made up of.
Check out the other posts in this series of posts on living as missional communities.