Make a spiritual friend

Serving on a ministry team is a great way to make friends. Of course this has the additional advantages that we obey God and fulfill part of His purpose for our lives when we serve. But, with regard to making friends, I've never known anyone significantly involved in serving in the church that didn't make friends.

PACE Groups are a great way to make some friends and develop the deep bond that can be found in true fellowship. PACE Groups are small groups of 3-4 men or 3-4 women. Anybody can form one. Then you agree to meet every week or two for Prayer, Accountability, Counsel on life, and Encouragement. If you don't know what accountability is, it's basically giving an account, a report, of your life to some other believers who care about you (Ephesians 5:8-13, James 5:16, 13). You can form your own group, decide to meet where and when you want (the flexibility is great).

If you would like to be part of a PACE group, here is how to get it going:

- Find a couple people that you have some affinity for. You don't have to know them well (that will happen over time). Ask them if they want to meet to talk about life, encourage each other, pray for each other, have each other for counsel when you need it.

- Set a day, time, and starting place to meet.

- To help make the most of your time together download a PACE Help Sheet. Your group will take on it's own personality over time, and you will probably develop questions that are most helpful to you. But, this format and questions can help you get going.

If you need any help, let us know.

These two things could work together. Get involved in a ministry team, where you get acquainted with some people. Then ask a couple of people you have an affinity for to do PACE.