A Life Group is a home fellowship made up of 10-16 people who gather weekly to share, study God’s Word and support one another spiritually – doing life together. A trained leader and host lead each group. An average gathering lasts for an hour and a half, followed by light refreshments.

At Midland Free Life Groups are vitally important. They're the place where the real ministry of the church takes place as we study God's Word, while supporting and sharing our lives with one another. We believe that gathering together on a regular basis is time well spent.

Life Groups gather on various days and times of the week in homes throughout Midland and the tri-city area.

Each Life Group cycle lasts 9 to 11 weeks. We will have Fall, Winter and Spring cycles. At the end of each cycle, you will have the choice of staying in the same group, trying a new group or even taking a break. Most groups stay together throughout the entire year. Life Groups may choose to take a break and not gather during the summer, most of December, spring break etc. Sermon-based curriculum will be provided approximately 30-32 weeks a year. 

Joining a Life Group requires a 9 to 11 week commitment to attend weekly gatherings. Life Groups are sermon-based study groups and it is important for participants to come to the Life Group gathering having heard the sermon. The sermon will be available by 2:00 pm online each Sunday for those who were not able to attend worship. Your attendance at Life Group gatherings is very important as you do life together. Obviously, allowances are made for sickness, vacation, work conflicts and other special events, but not much more. This commitment is the key to a strong Life Group. You have the first three weeks to attend the group to make sure it's a good fit for you.

Closing groups during each cycle enables the group to develop a level of relationship that is difficult to foster with new members present.  It also provides a regular time for members who wish to change groups to bow out and create openings at the same time for new members who are looking to join. These cycles last no more than 11 weeks so that the next opportunity to sign up is never far away.

New to Midland Free? Small Churches and Sunday school classes remain open for new participants on Sunday morning all year round and provide mid-size groups with which to connect.  There are also occasionally Life Groups that remain open for signups during the cycle.  Call or email the church office if you are interested in such a group.

Life Groups will study the theme of the sermon from the previous week. Think of the weekend message as a teaching time and the Life Group as a place where you get to roll up your sleeves and discuss how the weekend's message works in real life. Each week there will be a series of Bible passages and questions on the back of the sermon note sheet that is inserted in the bulletin to study before the gathering.

Sermon-based doesn't just mean rehashing the sermon points, but digging deeper into the topic and the text that the sermon addressed. A big advantage of sermon-based discussion is that most everyone in the church should have heard the sermon or if they missed Sunday morning they can get it online. That means everyone in the church is on the same page, and everyone has had a half hour preparation time just by coming to church, so you don’t get into those awkward situations where only half of the group has read the assigned reading for the week. It also keeps us focused on one topic from Sunday and throughout the week so we can better work it in from our heads to our hearts and into our lives.

Not many things in life are free and Life Groups are no exception! The cost of Life Groups is the cost of commitment. Part of that commitment is the promise to attend each week and to complete the homework as well as to attend any socials and participate in any service projects with your group. You have the first three weeks to decide if your group is a good fit for you. When you join a Life Group, you're promising to attend and be prepared each week. It's this commitment that makes Life Groups work. At the end of each cycle, you have the choice of recommitting for another cycle, trying a new group, or taking a break from Life Groups altogether.

Some Life Groups will choose to be family Life Groups where the whole family unit participates in the group for some or all of the discussion. However, most Life Groups are designed for adults (exceptions may be made for nursing newborns). We leave it up to each family to work out their own child care. Sometimes it works best for families to share a sitter, designate one adult to supervise children on a rotational basis, or to swap child care with another family whose Life Group meets on a different evening.

When selecting a group, we recommend you choose a group based on its leader-host team and station-in-life, rather than its location. Groups seem to do best when members share a common station-in-life and other interests with their leaders, hosts, and other group members. In the end, you'll find it's worth the drive! Our groups are divided as follows:

• Couples
• Couples who have young children
• Families
• Women
• Mixed

If you have any questions (especially if you are new to Midland Free), please don't hesitate to call the church, and we will gladly assist you. Keep in mind that it might take two or three groups before you find the perfect fit, but don't worry, you'll find it!

We will offer sign-ups for the second cycle of Life Groups beginning December 6, 2009, through January 10, 2010, during the Sunday services at Midland Free and online. Watch for upcoming details. Pastors and leaders will be available at a table in the lobby on Sunday mornings to answer any questions you may have as well. During our sign-up weekends we will have handouts available with information on the groups that are offered. Also, you can call the church office at any time to speak to Brenda Neher                         who can assist you in finding and signing up for a group, or answer any questions. Call Brenda directly at 989.631.4411, Ext. 1004.

Yes, our high school and middle school ministries both offer Life Groups (called discipleship groups, DGs) for students. Our high school ministry offers DGs for freshman through seniors. The middle school  ministry offers DGs for seventh and eighth grade students.  >>more

Please contact Shelley Rajewski         at 989.631.4411, Ext. 1011.