At Heritage it is our dream and desire, even our expectation, that every member will participate in a small group on a weekly basis.

The groups are made up of people who, by being together weekly, develop a real sense of family, having a place to belong - where everyone is loved, cared for, significant.

Some have banded together because they live near each other geographically. Others are together because of common interests (parents of young children, parents of teen children, empty nesters, ladies only, young singles, etc.).

Each group sets its own weekly meeting time and place. It sets its own agenda for the meeting, even chooses its own discussion material. (A study guide is provided for groups that want one. Other groups select their own.) Most meet in homes, though some meet at the church building.

The groups are all alike and they are all different. Each group develops its own personality as each member contributes to the life of the group. New groups form as more people participate and as current groups grow and divide.

So, you might want to visit several. Likely, one will fit!

In a congregation of over one thousand, one can only know so many people "up close and personal." A small group is a community where anyone and everyone can belong - where church is people, not just a place.

Through time spent in Bible study, discussion, reflection, and sharing of life experiences and needs, group members develop a sense of belonging, a sense of family. The small group is the place where everyone is needed. It’s a place to share joys and hurts. It’s a place to discuss Biblical themes, a place to share ideas. It’s a place to bring prayer requests, and a place to pray for those requests. It’s the place to be together face to face and heart to heart. (And sometimes we even share snacks or a meal together.)

A regular, weekly small group is the place where there are those who’ll watch out for us, miss us when we are absent, check on us, care about us, pray for us. It’s the place where each one is needed and significant, where every one is indispensable. It is the place to be an integral part of the Body of Christ, a member of the Family of God.

It is really difficult to accomplish this sense of "belonging" while meeting only in large groups, where we can almost be anonymous to each other. So, the small group becomes vital as the place to belong, "where everyone knows your name." It’s church on an "up close and personal" level - people loving, serving, teaching, worshiping, and praying with one another.