Home Fellowships
What is a Home Fellowship?
Home Fellowship are the heartbeat of The Harbour Church. They are intimate groups of our larger body that meet in homes throughout south Florida every Sunday morning (except First Sunday).
In our Home Fellowship groups, we share an intimate time in fellowship as we pursue the heart of Jesus. Home Fellowships provide a safe place for people to share their hearts, express their ministry gifts, form mentoring relationships and forge friendships.
We believe that the intimate community and spiritual interaction within these groups changes lives and reshapes our understanding of what God intended His church to be. These meetings have become the most beloved element of our church, enabling us to provide real help to one another in the everyday issues of our lives.
What should I expect?
Each Home Fellowship consists of the following core tenets:
Worship
Each group has a musician to lead us in worship. Each leader is anointed to usher in the presence of God during our times of worship. We highly value our time before God and our time in worship is a critical component of our time together.
Personal Ministry
Ministry time flows with the worship. We make room for the prophetic to flow and also for others to receive personal ministry and prayer. We empower all of the members of the groups to step out and either receive or minister to each other.
Study of the Word
The teaching time is a verse by verse expositional style of study. The leader or the assistant may teach the Word each week and each member is encouraged to participate in the discussion. All of our groups study the same passage of Scripture each week.
Communion
We highly value remembering what Jesus Christ has accomplished for us and so we take time to partake in the elements each week. We set time aside to reflect on the victory we have in Jesus. As a family, each week we celebrate what He did for us on the cross.
Meal
Following the meeting, we have a time of fellowship over a meal. Members of the group work together to provide a meal each week. As we eat together, we have time to build relationships within the group.
Because each Home Fellowship is its own “family unit,” each member is involved in the small duties and chores required to “run the house,” including provision of the meal and teaching the children. Based on the size of your group (typically 25-30 adults), your participation in bringing a meal or teaching the children may be just a few times per semester.
What about my children?
Harbour Kids, our children’s ministry, is integrated into our Home Fellowships. Our heart is to effectively raise up the next generation, and each group is a key setting to see this take place.
We do not babysit the children during Home Fellowships. They have their own lesson each week and they are encouraged to learn about and use their gifts. We do no believe there is a “junior” Holy Spirit. We teach children that they can hear from the Lord as soon as they accept Him into their heart.
Each group has a Child Care Coordinator assigned. The CCC coordinates the schedule for the children and provides the teaching materials every week to the volunteers. It is a fun way for children to learn and grow in the Lord in a safe and healthy environment.
Why do Home Fellowships meet on Sunday morning?
In the same way that the global body of Christ is broken down into regional families for community, encouragement and accountability; we believe our local church should be broken down into smaller fellowships for the same purpose.
In an effort to walk out the value we place on community, we use Sunday mornings to meet in our Home Fellowship groups. Since most Christians are used to coming together on Sunday mornings, we provided the opportunity to create intimate community at this time.
It can be very difficult to build strong, meaningful relationships solely by attending a large corporate service once a week. Meeting in homes on Sunday mornings is simply a matter of showing what is most important to us as a community.We place a high priority on Home Fellowships because we believe that being in relationship with a family of believers is one of the greatest joys we can experience in life.
Our model is simply an attempt to best steward what Jesus is doing in our lives. We realize that a model has no power to change hearts or reveal Christ. This structure is simply a wineskin existing to contain what the Holy Spirit is doing in our specific local church.
How Can I Get Connected?
The list of Home Fellowship Locations is regularly updated on the website. Additionally, you can take home a printed copy of the locations at the Welcome Center. You can find the Welcome Center in the back corner of the Ministry Center.
In an effort to keep the intimate feel of each group, we encourage you to contact the Home Fellowship leader or host to be sure that the group has not reached maximum capacity.
How Can I Get Involved?
If you are interested in opening your home for a group or serving as part of the Home Fellowship leadership team, you must first complete the Harbour DNA training.
We select leadership based on character, integrity and commitment. While we see the value in trained and professional leaders, this is not a pre-requisite to be a part of the leadership team of a Home Fellowship.
Harbour DNA is provided in 3 Waves. The first wave explains the story, mission & vision and structure of our church. The second wave outlines our foundational beliefs, our culture and our values. The third wave provides you with an on-ramp to get connected to the various ministries of the church, including Home Fellowship leadership.
