Abiding Savior Lutheran Church and School, Lake Forest, CA
Rooted is a 10-week, small group discipleship experience that inspires questions, conversations and experience designed to connect people to God, the Church and their purpose. The recently released Rooted-Lutheran Edition delivers this experience from a distinctly Lutheran doctrinal and practical perspective.
Abiding Savior in Lake Forest, CA piloted Rooted in September 2019 with two groups totaling 26 people. Senior Pastor Glenn Lucas explained, "We brought Rooted to our congregation with the intent of making it our primary vehicle by which we nurture and make disciples." The pilot was successful and the congregation launched Rooted in February 2020 with five groups with a total of 59 people in them. Since the launch, Abiding Savior has had at least one Rooted group meeting in the spring and fall since 2019. Over 100 people have now had the Rooted experience at Abiding Savior.
"Most of the people participating in Rooted sign up because they want to make connections with other members of the church," Pastor Lucas shared. "This motivation has been very successful, with many of the groups continuing to meet as life groups after their ten-week experience ends. The life groups usually meet once or twice a month for Bible study and fellowship. One group that has families with small children meets for Bible study once a month at the church with childcare provided and the second time in the month they meet for fellowship over a meal rotating from home to home each month."
Ongoing life groups are only one benefit we’ve seen as a result of Rooted. The congregation has seen that participants in Rooted attend worship more regularly after their experience. As noted above, they are connecting with God in ongoing Bible studies in addition to worship. They have also had new people joining their fellowship as many Rooted participants who feel connected to the church invite friends and family to worship and be a part of our activities.
The connection with God also manifests itself in people finding purpose in their faith walk as they use their gifts. Participants become more active in their service at the church even stepping into leadership roles and starting new ministries. One new ministry that flowed out of Rooted is a women’s bible study and fellowship group. The group has participants from both the church and school. The group also plans activities and events for families helping to make Abiding Savior a more family-friendly church.
New leadership is a great benefit of Rooted as well. Several of the men who have participated in Rooted are now serving as elders in the church because they became more active in worship attendance and involved in ministry opportunities. Abiding Savior now has several young, active elders as a result of Rooted.
Pastor Lucas says, "We encourage people new to our ministry to participate in Rooted because it is a great way to really get connected at Abiding Savior while growing in their faith walk and understanding how they can be a part of what God is doing here and in their lives."
Want to Learn More about Rooted?
Rooted - Lutheran Edition is a small group discipleship experience from a distinctly Lutheran doctrinal and practical perspective. It inspires questions, conversations, and experiences designed to connect people to God, the Church, and their purpose.
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