Five keys to building a small group culture that fosters meaningful, lasting connections within your church community. Small groups are the key to impacting lives in your church. But a healthy small-group environment doesn’t just happen. So pull up a chair. Let’s talk about how to make it happen. Bill Willits and bestselling author Andy Stanley share their successful approach, which has resulted in nearly eight thousand adults becoming involved in small groups at North Point Community Church in Atlanta. Simply put, the five principles have passed the test. This is not just another book about community; this is a book about strategy—strategy that builds a small group culture. Creating Community shares clear and simple principles to help people connect into meaningful relationships. The kind that God desires for each of us and that He uses to change our lives. Put this proven method to work in your ministry and enjoy the tangible results—God’s people doing life TOGETHER. “The small-group program at North Point Community Church is not an appendage; it is not a program we tacked on to an existing structure. It is part of our lifestyle. We think groups. We organize groups. We are driven by groups. Creating Community contains our blueprint for success. And I believe it has the potential power to revolutionize your own small-group ministry!” — Andy Stanley

Using stories and exercises from grassroots organizing experience ... [this book] walks you through the steps of starting a new group or strengthening an old one - to build a better world.-Back cover.

The goal of this book is to help those people whose lives are impacted by community association living owners, residents, board members, volunteers, management staff and the business partners that service them have a clearer understanding of the dynamics about how to create a community in the truest sense of the word: A collection of diverse individuals that are engaged with each other, informed about community issues and actively work together in order to accomplish goals that will make the community stronger and each of their individual lives better. Creating Community contains simple, yet profound, management strategies that board members, volunteers and management can utilize to attract the energy of change needed in order to bring people together towards the pursuit of common goals and objectives. In short, it is about the art of empowerment in community association living.

Creating Community Finding Meaning in the Place We Live. ALSO AVAILABLE FROM ICA CANADA: The Art of Focused Conversation: 100 Ways to Access Group Wisdom in the Workplace. General Editor. R. Brian Stanfield L'art de la discussion structurée: 100 applications concrètes pour une nouvelle génération de leaders. Rédacteur: R. Brian Stanfield The Workshop Book: From Individual Creativity to Group Action by Brian Stanfield The Art of Focused Conversation for Schools: Over 100 Ways to Guide Clear Thinking and Promote Learning by Jo Nelson The Courage To Lead by R. Brian Stanfield 655 Queen Street East Toronto, Ontario Canada M4M 1G4 Telephone: (416) 691-2316 website: www.icacan.org ISBN 9781927349007

Creating Community will help you position your department to increase your budget and reposition it as a key player in the community. You'll learn to implement a VIP action plan as created by the California Park & Recreation Society. You'll also learn to make a case for your programs by communicating your plan to policy makers and others.

Creating Community on College Campuses addresses the most critical and difficult issues facing higher education in the 1990s: improving the quality of teaching and learning, raising academic standards, protecting freedom of expression, and simultaneously enhancing community of the whole and community of the parts. This book offers an understanding of community as a complex concept, one that incorporates the values of a democratic society and encourages learning and participation by all citizens of the campus, and discusses topics such as race and ethnicity, the climate for women, harassment and free speech, alcohol, crime, Greek life, and interaction among faculty and students. The authors conclude with concrete recommendations to support the implementation of pluralistic learning communities on our nation's campuses.

In Creating Community-Led and Self-Build Homes, Martin Field explores the ways in which people and communities across the UK have been striving to create the homes and neighbourhood communities they want. Giving context to contemporary practices in the UK, the book examines ‘self-build housing’ and ‘community-led housing’, discussing the commonalities and distinctions between these in practice, and what could be learned from other initiatives across Europe. Individual methods and models of local practice are explored - including cohousing, cooperatives, community land trusts, empty homes and other intentional communities - and an examination is made of what has constrained such initiatives to date and how future policies and practice might be shaped.