Small Group Testimonies
Chris Hacskaylo shares from the heart....
When I went to the recent Seekers and Joiners class, the participants were asked: What bought you to First Prez? and What led you to consider joining up? When my turn came to speak, the answer was simple. My small group experience changed my life as a Christian and brought me back to worshiping God in a church setting.
I was baptized in the Episcopal Church, attended Anglican services for many years, and was comfortable. Unlike many people, I did not drift away from my faith as a young adult, and when I married, I continued to worship pretty regularly with my husband and son.
It was as moved into middle-age, however, that my faith (along with my church attendance) began to waiver. I found myself facing family tragedies and personal and professional disappointments. As these multiplied, I began to feel increasingly alienated from friends and co-workers, from my church, and from God. Friends urged me to turn to prayer, of course, but prayer had begun to feel like a dead-end.
In fact, rather than bringing me comfort, sitting in the pew and praying with the congregation on Sunday only increased my feelings of loneliness and failure. Everyone around me looked successful. Financially, spiritually, socially--everyone but me seemed to have it together. I realized intellectually, of course, that my belief couldnt possibly be true, but this awareness didnt make the thoughts go away. Resenting the church and God, I withdrew even more and finally stopped going altogether.
Thats when Regina Ewing, a long-time First Prez member who was also a friend and co-worker, invited me to attend a Sunday service with her. I was attracted by the enthusiasm of the congregation, by the amazing choir, and by the energetic, down-to-earth preaching of the pastor. But I was not moved to come regularly, even though my friend continued to offer me rides and gentle encouragement.
Then one day a First Prez acquaintance bumped into me at a bus stop in Kaimuki and, while we were talking, invited me to join a small group. It met every other Saturday afternoon at Mocha Javas in Ward Center. Members studied the Bible, she said, and shared their lives with one another.
I agreed to attend, thinking I would go just once to be polite, but found myself returning--and then returning again. What was it about my small group experience that began the process of reconnecting me to a spiritual life and to the church?
Its hard to pinpoint any one thing, but as we studied the Bible together, prayed with one another, and shared honestly about our lives, little by little, I found my faith being renewed. It wasnt that I began attending a First Prez small group and my life miraculously turned around. Far from it. But my group provided me with a kind of divine reality check: Hey! You. Chris Hacskaylo. Youre not the only Christian on the planet who struggles. Even on my worst days, I began to lighten up, to remember to pray, and to keep in mind that it was possible to handle all thingssudden unemployment, a failing marriage, even teenage sons--through faith in Christ Jesus.
As a result of my small group experience, I began to attend First Prez on a regular basis and to participate more fully in the life of the church.
About a year later, however, I fell seriously ill and had a brief brush with death. Its hard to express what I feel for those small group members like Shirley Cavanaugh who supported me through my time in the hospital and during my recovery at home. Shirley visited, prayed, cooked, cleaned, shopped, and chauffeured for me. She and others truely were Gods love in action.
I wanted to share a final thought on small groups. I grew up in a very strict Anglican home, and came to see God as a loving but very difficult-to-please parent whom I was always letting down.
oday I know better.
Every other Saturday over a cup of coffee, my small group shows me that Christian faith is not about never doubting or struggling or despairing, but about being open to the amazing grace of God and the infinite love of Jesus Christ.
Steve and Jerrine Boyer find intimacy in their church community through small groups
Since the Holy Spirit took hold of our lives, there seems to be something new and exciting happening all the time. As we yield ourselves more and more to the Lord, He has been blessing our family and providing us with many opportunities to minister to others. Through divine appointments, we have been able to share our faith with many people. God has also been revealing more of His plan for our lives.
We were fairly active Christians before we had our kids, but our church involvement took a back seat to raising them and as a result, we got complacent when it came to ministry and fellowship apart from Sunday services. We started attending First Prez in January 2005, because we were looking for a new church home with a good Children's ministry program for our 3 kids. Jerrine had experienced a little of the Children's ministry through MOPS and loved it. She had often suggested to me that we should visit First Prez, but I wasn't too excited about the idea. Coming from a contemporary Christian background, we certainly didn't know what a Presbyterian church was like and wondered if it would be too traditional.
After I kept asking, Steve finally agreed to visit. Our first worship service was nothing like what we were used to, but we found it surprisingly refreshing. We found that not only did First Prez have a great Children's program, it had so much to offer for adults as well! After attending morning services for awhile, we started attending POLO which helped us get to know other parents in a small group setting and build friendships with them. In the summer, we also started attending Nightlife. It was at this time God started challenging us to leave our comfort zone and grow in our faith. God was teaching us so many things through the different teachings and experiences we were having, that we desired an outlet where we could share and apply what we were learning. God provided that outlet in the form of a small group which Kelly Wong invited us to attend.
Looking back, we have been part of different forms of small groups from nearly the start. POLO, WAHO, small group Bible studies, and now our Nightlife small group have all provided opportunities for increased levels of involvement and intimacy. Perhaps that is why we feel so at home at First Prez. It is one thing to go to church Sunday after Sunday and listen to sermons. It's quite another thing to apply the message to your daily life. Small groups allow us to apply what we learn from the teachings and practice our faith as we share our burdens, pray for each other's needs, and encourage one another. This allows us to be an intimate part of the body and to operate in the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Through our small group we've made wonderful friends and know that we can call on them if the going gets rough. Most importantly, small groups are helping us to discover and prepare for the ministry that God is calling us to. We hope that each one of you will have a chance to experience God's power and love through a small group.