Traveling Insights about Cell Church

Most of you know, I have quite a busy travel schedule. I just got back last Thursday from a whirlwind eleven day trip that took me to San Clemente, CA, Nyack, NY, and York, PA. In San Clemente, CA I spoke to the leaders of Hope Christian Fellowship about how to transition their ten your old 350 member church to the cell philosophy. In New York, I spoke to twenty-two students taking my cell church course at Alliance Theological Seminary. I love these courses because over a five-day period, I have plenty of time to answer questions, dialogue at meal time, and fully cover cell church ministry.

I then spent five days in York, PA at the York Alliance Church. This cell church has eighteen cell groups and about 350 worshippers on Sunday. I first visited York Alliance Church in October 2003, along with my entire family. York Alliance knows both the pain of transitioning from a very traditional church (they started their transition at the end of 1998) and the joy of seeing lives changed through cell church ministry. The church has developed into a God-honoring New Testament church.

People are coming to Christ through cell and celebration and then becoming disciples of Jesus Christ! I met John, for example, at the cell seminar on Saturday, and he told me how much he loved his cell group. I inquired further and discovered that John was a homosexual who received Jesus approx. two years ago. His inter-generational cell has become a family to him, sticking with him through the healing process. Brenda was also at the cell seminar. She was in a pychiatric ward before walking through the doors of York Alliance three years ago. She is now a fully devoted follower of Jesus, leader of a cell group and just started a one-year missionary journey to Macedonia to help one of the York Alliance missionary partners. I could go on to talk about Saul, converted through the witness of the cell leader next door. Now Saul is in preparation to lead his own cell group. The stories could go on and on. 

On Wednesday’s blog I’ll share about my experience in one of York Alliance’s cell groups. On Friday, I’ll talk about a needed adjustment that York Alliance has to make to take cell ministry to the next level.

Comments?  

Joel

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