Daniel Im

Pastor + Author

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Community Over the Summer

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One thing we know for sure is that the wonderful summer months do not take away our need for community. In fact, with the long Edmonton winters, summer is THE thing many of us look forward to. Instead of doing things just by yourself, or with your family, what do you think about the idea of scheduling opportunities to have fun, eat a meal, and just fellowship together with those in your group?

Groups are not about meetings, they are about relationships – it’s about doing life together and living life together. As a result, even though you may suspend your regular group studies for the summer months, make an effort to do life together.

Here are a list of things to do together with your group to get your creative juices flowing:

Generic Ideas:

  • Barbeque
  • Meet for a meal or coffee after one of the weekend services
  • Day trip to a park or a beach (i.e. Slyvan Lake)
  • Camping
  • An evening meal or dessert together
  • etc.

Edmonton Date Specific Ideas:

  • Nextfest Emerging Arts Festival 2011
  • A Celtic Floral Fantasy
    • Ongoing until June 19
    • Muttart Conservatory
    • http://bit.ly/k3Ba0l
  • U of A Drama Presents StageLab
    • June 10 – June 29
    • Timms Centre for the Arts
    • http://bit.ly/mHOO81
  • Movie at the Marketplace (outdoor family movie night)
  • St. Albert Outdoor Farmer’s Market
    • St. Anne and St. Thomas Streets
    • Starts June 18
    • http://bit.ly/lenHht
  • Evening in the Park
  • July 1 Canada Day Celebrations throughout the city
  • Edmonton International Street Performers Festival
  • Sundaes on Saturday
    • Beulah Alliance Church 98a Campus
    • July 16 after the evening service
  • Bbq’s on Sunday
    • Beulah Alliance Church 98a Campus
    • July 17 after the services
  • A Taste of Edmonton
    • Sir Winston Churchill Square
    • July 21-30
    • http://bit.ly/kqEI4E
  • Edmonton Indy
  • Sundaes on Saturday
    • Beulah Alliance Church 98a Campus
    • Aug 27 after the evening service
  • Bbq’s on Sunday
    • Beulah Alliance Church 98a Campus
    • Aug 28 after the services
  • For other events, check out The City of Edmonton website http://bit.ly/jgAs6W

P.S. Although everyone in your group may like the idea of doing things together, the issue that prevents many groups from doing things is the planning and the logistics. If planning parties and get togethers is not your forte, is there anyone else in your group who would be willing to step up and organize it? Just ask. You may be surprised that the volunteer could be a future group facilitator.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Ben Reed says

    What a great idea!  I love that you have given group leaders a list of activities to do this summer.  Because that’s what some of our group leaders have run into…they don’t know what they should do with their group.  You’ve helped bridge that gap.

    And I love the concept of simply building relationships over the summer.  With so many people traveling, and out of pocket, for the summer months, we’ve found it more helpful to encourage groups to meet a handful of times and just hang out.

    Keep up the good work, Daniel!