Question: There are so many events happening at City Bible Church. I feel so overwhelmed with the number of options to attend. Are all of these events a priority? How should I prioritize life in the church body?

Answer: You should prioritize based on where your elders work hardest to make you complete in Christ (Col. 1:28-29). And part of being complete is being "well-balanced"- you don't want to be the body builder who "skips leg day." In view of Our Values (listed on our website here), as we desire to behold Christ, and become like Him, we prioritize:

• Corporate Worship+Community Groups, and
• Corporate Prayer, and
• Outreach/Evangelism

Corporate Worship+Community Groups

Our church body life includes both Corporate Worship and Community Groups- not either/or. The early church met both corporately, and from house to house (Acts 2:46; 5:42). This is a glorious public display of what Christ is doing in hearts. Corporate Worship excels in:

• The Priority of Preaching the Word (2 Tim. 3:16-4:5) including, teaching, reproof, correction, training, with patience. 
• Corporate teaching and edification in song (Eph. 5:18; Col. 3:16-17)
• Serving (1 Peter 4:10-11)
• Equipping (Eph. 4:11-12)

The unique benefits of Community Groups include:

• Fellowship (Acts 2:42-47; 1 Peter 4:8-9; 1 Jn. 4:18-21; Rom. 15:7)
• Prayer (James 5:16)
• Recognizing individuals to obey the "one-anothers" (1 Thes. 5:14-15; Rom. 12:9-21)
• Introduces the saints for more informal fellowship and growth. 

Corporate Prayer

Our corporate prayer meeting happens twice a month, currently on the 2nd and 4th Sunday, and is under the oversight of the Elders. This is a special time we have set apart to pray for our church members, and different areas of focus each month. The benefits of corporate prayer include:

• Corporate dependence on Christ, which is the foundation for unity and fellowship (Rom. 15:5-6)
• Mutual Care for the Church Body and Family (Gal 6:2)
• Exposure to Items that may be neglected otherwise

Outreach/Evangelism

These events happen at various times, day, and ways. Evangelism is the mission of the church, because it is the mission of Christ (Luke 19:10), and Christ has commanded that we appeal to every person to come to Him (Matt. 28:16-20). This ministry at CBC is unique, because it especially compels the saints to be doers of the Word, and not self-deceived hearers only (James 1:22). Church evangelism is not the only evangelism that is done, but some practical benefits of ministering as a church are:

• It guards the church from the problems of being "inward-focused." In the Bible, "inward-focus" is the opposite of love (1 Cor. 13:4-7), and generally leads to trials and/or sin (Jer. 17:5-9). 
• If the believer is not doing other means of grace (Bible, prayer, depending on Christ), then evangelism will drive them back to those things real fast :)
• Equips the saints to articlulate the Gospel (Many Christians have difficulty)
• It uniquely unites believers, like wars unite military men (John 17:13-21)

Summary

When a believer is engaged in these areas in the life of the church, they are generally living a fruitful, joyful Christian life (John 15:1-11). It is very difficult to prioritize these ministries in one's life and be struggling or lacking victory as a Christian, because these things are designed by God. On the other hand, generally speaking, the people who are most discontent in any church are typically absent from these central ministries. 

These are the priorities in our church. Other ministries (Life stage groups, individual "Bible Studies," book clubs, etc.) are helpful in their place, but those should be supports, not substitutes.