Introduction:
SHINE Fellowships are where the local church goes global to impact the world for Christ.
SHINE Fellowships exist to:
Unite the church, the body of Christ both inside and outside of the local church context in order to engage communities around the world.
Grow the body of Christ around the world through engaging in active discipleship and following Christ fully in houses, churches, online, and in communities around the world.
Connect the church to the compassion of Christ by joining together to serve those the Bible calls us to serve.
SHINE Fellowship philosophy:
A SHINE Fellowship can exist in several different contexts.
I. LOCAL CONTEXT
The first context would be that of the local church. In this model a church pastor or leadership team would initiate a small group ministry that consists of SHINE Fellowships.
SHINE Fellowships or small groups would seek to use the Leave.Follow.Shine material as a catylist to begin the group. The LFS material is designed to disciple your church from the fundamentals all the way to living a Kingdom life.
II. GLOBAL CONTEXT
The second context is much the same as a local context except your church may want to reach across the globe and connect with another church or group of disciples and begin meeting together to follow Jesus and learn from each other.
Many global SHINE Fellowships can have an eternal impact. There is no limit to the countries and connections you can build relationships with. Each SHINE Fellowship will have a unique learning experience as each person in the group learns from each others cultural and Christian experiences.
These global SHINE Fellowships also use the same Leave.Follow.Shine material that your local church uses. So if you are implementing SHINE Fellowships as your small group ministry you are already a step ahead. You can grow together with brothers and sisters across the world and walk through the fundamentals of being a disciple to living out a Kingdom life together.
III. NATIONAL CONTEXT
In this context one or more SHINE Fellowships would be created in order to engage with other like-minded believers in following Christ using the Leave.Follow.Shine model and working towards Kingdom goals on a national level.
This is an exciting context where you can share ideas and plan for the advancement of the Kingdom nationwide utilizing local and national resources to make disciples in your own country. Starting with the fundamentals and growing into an impactful SHINE Fellowship for the Kingdom.
A SHINE Fellowship may consist of local pastors or church leadership around the country or maybe even local small groups and their leaders connecting with others.
III. WORK CONTEXT
In this context you would begin a SHINE Fellowship in order to bring workers together around the LEAVE.FOLLOW.SHINE model with a goal of leading people to become followers of Christ and join a local congregation to work in the Kingdom together.
The SHINE fellowship is designed to be a group of believers wanting to engage with each other locally, nationally, and globally. This means a group of believers can meet online and be able to have believers from different communities, states, countries, and homes make up that fellowship. In addition, fellowships who live close to each other can engage in person in their homes, coffee shops, parks, and planned gatherings as they agree to.
Existing local bodies of believers are encouraged to seek the growth of the Kingdom far beyond their local context. We encourage starting SHINE Fellowships that are made up of members from different communities, churches, ministries, cities, states, countries…well you get the idea…body of Christ stuff.
The goal is to always keep the fellowships engaged in their communities and active in making disciples and growing the Kingdom of God as a community of believers and part of the worldwide body of Christ.
Our support system will seek to provide resources and training for SHINE Fellowships such as discipleship material, connecting fellowships with each other, and finding biblical ways to support those in need in communities around the world.
SHINE Questions:
Can you attend a local church and still be a part of a SHINE group?
Yes. Absolutely. Many SHINE groups are made up of believers from different local churches. However, for many others a SHINE Fellowship IS their only church and how they choose to live out their Christian walk with other believers which we fully embrace when overseen by one of our approved directors, pastors, or leaders.
Should a local church promote SHINE Fellowships?
Yes. A local church can promote their membership being involved and engaged in a SHINE Fellowship or many! The more the better. However, we encourage local churches to stay focused on reaching communities and connecting outside of the local context to extend the Kingdom and to resist using it solely as an internal small group program.
Do I have to attend a local church in order to start or be a part of a SHINE Fellowship?
No. In fact, we encourage using SHINE Fellowships to jump start your church plant. However, we discourage using SHINE Fellowships to disconnect from the body of Christ or local ministries. Being a part of the global church and continuing in fellowship (Heb 10:25) is something we are called to do and is the way Christ chooses to advance and support Kingdom growth and Kingdom health.
Can I be a part of more than one SHINE Fellowship?
Yes. Of course! You can be a part of as many as you like. That is exactly what we love to see. People engaging with each other across the global church as well as in their local settings to form relationships that promote Christ and the work of His Kingdom.
Can anyone lead a SHINE Fellowship?
Yes. After registering your SHINE Fellowship, you will be contacted by your leader or director in your area and be encouraged to watch our leadership training video, “How to Start and Lead Your SHINE Fellowship”.
Next we encourage you to register and attend the Leave.Follow.Shine Discipleship – Foundations class and sign a basic statement of faith. After that, your leader or director in your country or area will help you take the first steps to starting your own SHINE Fellowship and then you are off and running and can add believers to your fellowship whenever you like.
How many believers should a SHINE Fellowship have?
As many as you want! Some people like to start more than one and some like to grow as big as 50 people. It doesn’t matter how small or a big you are, only that you unite together, grow together, and connect together around the character and mission of Christ!