DNA groups: My Story
by Rhett Pritchett
As I look back on the past year and think of all the things I have to be thankful for, there really is so much! One specific gift from God this past year that He has used in my life in an incredible way is my DNA group.
DNA groups at New City Church typically form out of our Missional Communities (our version of small groups). They are our version of discipleship groups. Simply put, a DNA is a group of 3-4 men or women who gather weekly (or as often as possible) for the purpose of transformation and discipleship through the study and discussion of God’s Word.
Having this regular rhythm in my life has been life changing and such a regular encouragement to grow in my love for Jesus and submit more and more of my life to Him as a disciple!
Over the last several months I have looked forward to Wednesday mornings (our meeting time) every week! This is something I legitimately never want to miss. We meet early so we can have focused time before the day starts. I love getting up and having the coffee brewing, knowing that I’m going to spend some really good time with my brothers.
Our meetings usually look pretty similar week to week. We have been reading through the gospel of John together and we cover a chapter each week. We gather in my living room and everyone grabs a cup of coffee. We catch up for a few minutes as we drink coffee and try to wake up (we meet early!). Then we will generally pray and ask Jesus to lead our meeting and teach us things from His word. We pray that we will be able to speak encouraging words into one another’s lives and be built up as disciples of Jesus.
We read the chapter for the week aloud and then we’re ready to discuss. We often ask what the passage tells us about 1) who God is? 2) What has God done? 3) Who are we in light of that? 4) How should we live? Sometimes we’ll spend time on a particular part of the passage and wrestle with its implications for our lives together.
The goal is always to speak the truth of the gospel into our lives and our personal areas of sin and unbelief. I was already close with the guys I meet with, but I would say walking through this group together has made us even closer. By God’s grace, we’ve created a space where we can be transparent and not feel the pressure of putting on a show. That is such a gift for me. To be able to confess my sins, share struggles and things that push me toward depression or cynicism. It is an incredible gift from God to have brothers who will listen to those things and show me patience, love, and grace, but also take my discipleship and growth in my love for Jesus seriously (because they love me). This means that they are willing to challenge me and point me to the better way of the gospel.
Part of DNA groups is a “gospel change project”. This simply means that everyone in the group prayerfully thinks of a specific area in their life where they would like to be transformed by the gospel and they invite the rest of the group to speak the gospel into that area and regularly check in on them and see how they are doing. This is such a gift. For our group this has become a rhythm of us regularly seeking out prayer (by text) in the moment when we are faced with temptation or struggle. Something that simple really means a lot, to know that you have your brothers who are there and are intentionally praying for you as you follow Jesus together.
I hope I’ve done justice to the huge impact this group has had on my life! It really has been that good, no exaggeration! We ALL need this! There are certain things a group this size can accomplish that other types of gatherings can’t accomplish in the same way. If you have this in your life, I promise that God will use it! He will work in you, but He will also work through you for the good of your brothers or sisters in your group. What an opportunity that we have!