Christian Growth Group Resources
Welcome to the resource page for the Associate in Mission Christian Growth Groups. Here you will find content that is specific to our CGGs and their members. A majority of our active associates are members of CGGs because they desire to deepen their spirituality and widen their relationships with other associates who are committed to the mission of the Sisters of Saint Joseph by attending monthly meetings.
CGG Resource Manual
We hope this Resource Manual will help to strengthen the unity of our groups and honor their diversity as well. It contains what we need to do to keep data current, to organize and start new groups and to enhance the health and vitality of our existing Christian Growth Groups by highlighting best practices.
Group Resources
Guidelines for Circle of Trust
Planning Prayer for your Group
Hosting a “Come and See”
Article on NACAR and the Associate vocation as religious vocations become right-sized
https://www.globalsistersreport.org/news/spirituality-trends/us-associates-track-surpass-women-religious-both-face-turning-point-56195
Getting a Grip on Your Group: A Guide for Discerning Priorities in Your Small Christian Community
by Barbara A. Darling (Good Ground Press, 2002)
*Books available to borrow from the Associates in Mission office
Four Levels of Listening by Otto Scharmer
Listening is the most underrated of leadership skills, leading to a disconnect between leaders and the situation. Otto describes four levels of listening. This is essential viewing for anyone desiring to truly understand situations. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eLfXpRkVZaI&feature=youtu.be
Claiming our Communal Identity as a Christian Growth Group
In Fall 2021/Winter 2022 our Christian Growth Groups were encouraged to enter into a process of identifying how their group is called to foster, implement, and express the values of the Associate in Mission Direction Statement and Associate in Mission Commitment. The creation of a CGG Identity Statement would come from the sharing and reflection of individual Associate Identity Statements from members within each group. Those individual ” I Am” statements were the result of the work of the September 2021 Retreat facilitated by S. Rita Woehlcke.
Christian Growth Group Identity Statements
Materials for Claiming our Communal Identity as a Christian Growth Group:
Facilitator Guide
Participant Guide
Joshua Reading
Individual “I Am” Statement Prep
Christian Growth Group Leadership Gathering
In August 2022, the Associate in Mission Office hosted a gathering of all persons in leadership (or those considering a leadership role) with our Christian Growth Groups. It was an opportunity for the office to share an overview of leadership while also focusing on the specific volunteer roles of Coordinator, Contact Person and Keeper of the Story for the associate groups. The gathering also provided for small group reflection and sharing.
CGG Leadership Gathering Prayer
CGG Leadership Gathering PPT
CGG Leadership Gathering (Video Recording)