Ethos Communities Guide

January 2025 - Launch Night

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Open In Prayer 

Leader Note: Begin your gathering by praying together – taking some intentional time to breathe, be still, and invite the Holy Spirit to commune with you all as you set aside time to be together. Lead your Community into the evening with a non-anxious and joyful spirit. 

 

Below is an optional liturgy you could pray: 

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"For food in a world where many walk in hunger,

For faith in a world where many walk in fear,

For friends in a world where many walk alone,

We give you thanks, Lord.

As we gather around the table and begin our year-long journey together,

we ask that you would not only grow us in friendship with one another,

but also deepen our companionship with you, Father.

Amen."

 

Around The Table

This is space during your meal to build relationships and enjoy one another. Since it is the first gathering, this is an organic space to have everyone introduce themselves and share why they have decided to make a commitment to join an Ethos Community. 

 

Leader Note: Encourage everyone to begin a session on Aro if they have not already as you prepare to be present with one another. You can continue to utilize your Aro Circle for 60 days beyond our 28 days of Prayer + Fasting. 

 

Leader Note: If you’re struggling to think of ways to spark conversation, consider:

• Highs, Lows, Buffalo (something random/funny that happened in your week). 

• Who are the five people that would make up your dream campfire (dead or alive)?

 

Read This Overview Aloud Together 

Think of our Community like a rowboat: everyone has an oar and we’re all rowing together in the same direction to reach a destination. As you may have experienced, a rowboat trip only works if everyone agrees on where we’re headed. If we all have a different understanding of, or vision for, where our boat is going, we’ll likely just paddle in circles (and probably get splashed in the face along the way). To ensure we are starting this journey united in purpose, we’re going to have a conversation about “the why” of Ethos Communities and talk through expectations & important logistical details that will help set ourselves up well for the year ahead. 

 

Read These Scriptures Aloud Together 

Acts 2:46-47 

[the early Church] “met together in one place and shared everything they had. They sold their property and possessions and shared the money with those in need. They worshiped together at the Temple each day, met in homes for the Lord’s Supper, and shared their meals with great joy and generosity”. 

 

Psalm 68:6

“God sets the lonely in families, He leads out the prisoners with singing.”

 

1 Timothy 4:7-8

“Do not waste time arguing over godless ideas and old wives’ tales. Instead, train yourself to be godly. Physical training is good, but training for godliness is much better, promising benefits in this life and in the life to come.”

 

Mark 3:32-35

“A crowd was sitting around Jesus, and they told Him, “Your mother and brothers are outside looking for you.” “Who are my mother and my brothers?” He asked. Then Jesus looked at those seated in a circle around Him and said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! Whoever does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.”

 

Pause To Discuss: 

What stands out to you in these verses? What feelings of excitement, fear, etc are rising up within you as we discuss these Scriptures?

 

Life Together: Read This Overview Aloud Together

“If you want to go fast, go alone, but if you want to go far, go together.” We are not designed to travel the spiritual journey by ourselves. We’re under the conviction as an Ethos family that it’s actually unbiblical to follow Jesus alone. Spiritual formation is a relational process. 

 

As the above Scriptures indicate, Jesus’ call to community and the design of His bride ought to be more than our weekly Sunday gathering, but it’s never less. Jesus’ desire is not just to form you into a person of love, but to form us into a community of love. 

 

In the words of Dr. Joseph Hellerman, 

“Spiritual formation occurs primarily in the context of community. People who remain connected with their brothers and sisters in the local church almost invariably grow in self-understanding, and they mature in their ability to relate in healthy ways to God and to their fellow human beings. This is especially the case for those courageous Christians who stick it out through the often messy process of interpersonal discord and conflict resolution. Long-term interpersonal relationships are the crucible of genuine progress in the Christian life. People who stay also grow. People who leave do not grow.” 

 

And so we celebrate that we are here today – together, around the table – committing to a journey of intentional spiritual formation in community. 

 

As beautiful as that sounds and is…we all know that family is messy. Community in reality is rarely as simplistic as it is in the “wish-dream” ideal of community that exists in our mind. 

Over this year-long journey together, we must commit ourselves to unity - we must commit to “the long obedience in the same direction” because this won’t always be easy or exciting. 

 

Within our Church, the messy pattern of community is illustrated through what we call the “Disillusionment Cycle”. Leader Note: show everyone the visual below: 

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We’re hopefully all in that excitement stage tonight. But let’s fast forward to April when you’re feeling like you’re not as close relationally to people in your Community as you hoped or maybe you’re feeling frustrated with the time required in formation. When we reach disillusionment, we have a decision to make – will we opt out and repeat the cycle…or will we lean into adjustment and perseverance, which leads to growth. 

 

“Those who love their dream of a Christian community more than they love the Christian community itself become destroyers of that Christian community even though their personal intentions may be ever so honest, earnest and sacrificial.”

- Dietrich Bonhoeffer 

 

Pause To Discuss: 

• Reflect on past or current experiences in community – what are some specific things that shaped that community positively or negatively? 

• Amidst the temptation of division, disconnection, or disillusionment, how is the table a structure of defiance? In the words of Josh Porter, how is faithfulness an act of rebellion within our relationship with God and one another? 

 

How Does Change Actually Happen:

Read This Overview Aloud Together 

Our goal is that Ethos Communities would result in both biblical family and personal formation. We want to be changed as a result of our year of intentional spiritual formation together.

 

But how do we actually change? 

We often think it’s: 

• Information + Inspiration + Willpower = Change 

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1. Holy Spirit 

The journey of spiritual formation, or becoming more like Jesus, is only possible by the power and leading of the Holy Spirit. Ethos Communities will be spaces that intentionally invite the Holy Spirit to dwell and to mold and transform us into His image – we do this through intentional prayer during our gatherings.

 

2. Learning

An aspect of our formation is how we are growing in knowledge and understanding. Our acquisition of knowledge is not about puffing ourselves up, but positioning us to love well. Our end goal is not simply to learn a lot about God, but to know Him intimately. 

 

The content we engage with throughout this year will guide our learning – some months it may focus on a specific spiritual discipline, other months it may focus on a specific book of the Bible, other months it may connect to a series we are currently leaning into as a whole Church. 

 

3. Practice

We aim to learn about Jesus’ teachings and then tangibly try to put them into practice together.

 

A vital part of Ethos Communities is that we are practicing the way of Jesus together – we won’t have “homework” but we will hold each other accountable to follow through on putting our learning into practice through the implementation of spiritual disciplines. 

 

4. Community

We’ve already talked so much about this one…we are recapturing Jesus’ and the early Church’s model of family - which was often structured around the table - and asking the Holy Spirit to transform us as a result, recognizing that our spiritual formation is not for the sake of ourselves. 

 

Pause To Discuss: 

• Which of the four elements within the Working Theory of Change comes most naturally to you and which element over the next year together do you think will present more of a challenge? 

 

Logistics: Read This Overview Aloud Together 

Leader Note: As you go through logistical details, pause frequently to ensure everyone understands and give space for questions. 

 

1. Communicate meeting schedule - share specific dates and times to ensure everyone has them in their calendar (example: we will be meeting every other Sunday at 5pm) 

   1. Include the location details – especially if there is a rotating location.

   2. Be sure to communicate a clear start and end time. 

 

Each season – we’ll be leaning into one mission-oriented gathering (ie: serve together at Bloom, PDHC, our Ethos Food Pantry, etc) and one fun family night (ie: picnic at Alum Creek, PINS, etc). 

 

• If we don’t plan to foster family, our Community will become disconnected. 

• If we don’t commit to outward servant leadership, our Community will become inward focused and isolated. 

 

We won’t be responsible for coordinating our mission-oriented gatherings but we will be planning our chill fun nights together. 

 

Let’s identify 1-2 people who enjoy planning fun gatherings – we’ll call them “The Woo Planner” – this is the person who coordinates our fun family-style outings and comes up with ideas for us to vote on. 

Leader Note: Pause to ask for volunteers. 

Leader Note: Your mission-oriented gathering will take place in the month of March and your first family night should be scheduled in the month of April. 

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1. Decide on a Community communication plan - a space to communicate details, prayer requests, and build relationships (example: during the week, you may share what’s been challenging about implementing Sabbath or something cool that happened a result) 

   1. Suggestions: Normal group chat, GroupMe app, Flock app, etc

 

1. Now let’s address the logistics of meals. Think back to Acts. Luke paints a picture of the kind of church in which everyone contributes to meeting one another’s needs. On a broad level, this is a vision of a Community that meets one another's financial and practical needs. But on a simple, base level, this also means that everyone is invited to do their part, especially with your meals.

 

Leader Note: Talk through as a Community your plan for how to execute meals. 

Different ideas for a meal schedule: 

• A rotating sign-up schedule where 1-2 people sign up to bring the meal for the entire Community (this is the recommended method) 

• Create an A&B schedule so everyone brings food every other gathering

• Have a group fund where everyone gives a certain amount to the meal planner and they take care of meals for that month

• Potluck style meal – schedule the theme of each meal and ask everyone to bring a dish

  • Ie: (ie: Mexican night or chicken + veg). 

 

Let’s identify The Meal Planner – this is the person who coordinates the meal schedule and ensures that we either talk about it in person or in our group text before our next gathering. 

Leader Note: Pause to ask for volunteers. 

 

1. Final logistical detail: what about kids? 

​​Leader Note: Communicate any relevant details to your Community as it relates to the presence of children / childcare at your gatherings. 

 

Ethos is offering childcare assistance – there is $50 a month allotted per family to help cover childcare costs…but you must submit this form to receive the assistance: https://ethosoh.churchcenter.com/people/forms/864265

 

Pause To Discuss: 

• Any logistical questions or any clarification needed? 

 

For Next Week: Telling Your Faith Story

Leader Note: Please pass out the handouts to your Community before explaining directions. 

 

We want to start by sharing our story…both the positives and the negatives. Within the handout you received is a guide that we will utilize to lead us in sharing our stories with a clear structure. 

 

Our goal here isn’t to share everything that’s ever happened to us…but to take time before our next gathering to sit, reflect, and be prepared to share with everyone your faith story. 

 

We ask that everyone shares for 10 minutes or less so that there is space for everyone’s story to be heard. 

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Please read through the handout as it provides specific directions and some examples to guide you…and let’s all come to our next gathering prepared to share. 

 

End in Prayer

Before we leave, let’s spend some time praying for our Community, asking God for the things that came up tonight, and inviting the Spirit to help us become more like Jesus together.

 

Below is an optional liturgy you could pray: 

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Lord Jesus,

There is no greater prayer than yours — make us one as you are one,

in devotion, in living, in love.

Amen.

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