What are Community Groups?
In a fast-paced, high-demand world, we help you slow down and draw close to God. We understand the challenges of juggling a career, a schedule, a family, and the demands of everyday life. We're not here to add more stuff to your plate. We're here to help. How? First, by helping you see how having Jesus at the center of your life will bring a peace like you've never experienced. Second, by providing support, encouragement and care as you personally seek God's best.
Our Community Groups are how we connect in friendship and grow in faith between Sundays. With lots of groups to choose from, there are many opportunities to get connected and grow.
A wide variety of groups meet at the church and in homes throughout the area. We are forming new semester-based groups, each designed to inspire spiritual growth through caring relationships in different environments:
Home Groups
Meaningful discussion, bible study and prayer in the comfort of a host home.
Learning Groups
An academic approach to the study of specific topics in a classroom or a home.
Support Groups
Mutual support and care during a challenging time (singleness, addiction, adoption, illness, grief, etc.) in a home or classroom.
Affinity Groups
Participation in an area of shared interest (basketball, knitting, board games, service, etc.) in any location.
Frequently Asked Questions
Size will vary depending on the type of group and the location, but a Community Group is typically composed of 12 – 15 individuals.
A Community Group typically lasts between 1.5 and 2 hours. The frequency each group meets varies from group to group, some meet weekly, some bi-weekly, others 3-on-1-off.
This will vary depending on your group. Some groups will ask participants to purchase a book, others may ask members to bring a dish or snack to share. Some groups it would be useful to bring a Bible and notebook. Your leader will let you know before you start what is expected or required.
Our Fall Semester will be running from September to December.
Because our groups semesters are fairly short, there isn’t a long wait before open enrollment and our next semester starts. If you know someone in a group, feel free to visit their group to get a feel for what it is like. One great way to finding community at PAC in the meantime is to serve alongside other people in one of our ministries.
Although it is not required, sharing and talking is an important part of building community. Your group is a safe place for you to share your thoughts and experiences, and to get to know some people better. While we do spend some time in prayer in all of our groups, you are not expected to pray out loud if you are not yet comfortable with that.
Yes! You are encouraged to join a group each semester where you believe you will best be able to grow and develop community, whether that is a new group or your current group. Leaders will have a chance to sign returning members up a week early.
No – everyone is welcome and has a chance to find belonging and friendship, regardless of background or belief.
Semester based simply means that all of our Community Groups will be open for 3 semesters each year (Spring, Summer, and Fall). Every person attending PAC is encouraged to join a Community Group each semester and make a short-term commitment to that group, with freedom to re-join a group or try another one the following semester.
We do this for several reasons: to give easy on- and off- ramps for everyone, because it’s easier for people to join a group when everyone is starting at the same time and it’s a short-term commitment, and it creates opportunities for people to get to know more people in our church family. There are also more group options, with new topics and types of groups offered each semester.