5 PRACTICES OF

FRUITFUL
CONGREGATIONS
RADICAL HOSPITALITY
PASSIONATE WORSHIP
INTENTIONAL FAITH DEVELOPMENT
RISK-TAKING MISSION AND SERVICE
EXTRAVAGANT GENEROSITY

Book by Robert Schnase

5 PRACTICES OF FRUITFUL
CONGREGATIONS
I. The Practice of RADICAL HOSPITALITY
II. The Practice of PASSIONATE WORSHIP
III.The Practice of INTENTIONAL FAITH
DEVELOPMENT
IV. The Practice of RISK-TAKING MISSION AND SERVICE
V. The Practice of EXTRAVAGANT GENEROSITY
The Practice of
INTENTIONAL FAITH
DEVELOPMENT
“They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, to the breaking
of bread and the prayers.” (Acts 2:42)
Christ’s gracious invitation through Radical Hospitality invites and
welcomes us. And God’s transforming presence in Passionate Worship
opens our hearts to Christ’s pardon, love, and grace, creating us a
desire to follow.

Growing in Christ requires more than weekly worship though..

It is through INTENTIONAL FAITH DEVELOPMENT that God’s Spirit

works in us, perfecting us in the practice of love as we grow in the
knowledge and love of God.
Let’s Review our Wesleyan Heritage….
• Prevenient Grace prepares us
• the grace that “comes before” we know or love God
• Wesley taught that God loves everyone, and invites all of us to be in right relationship
with him. Because we are unable to do this on our own, God prepares our hearts and
minds to accept Jesus’s invitation to follow him before we are even aware of it. 
• “But God shows his love for us, because while we were still sinners Christ died for us”
(Romans 5:8).
• Justifying Grace restores us
• because we are “made right” with God. Our relationship is restored.
• When we recognize our sinfulness and repent, we receive God’s forgiveness and are
called to live a new life of following Jesus by loving God and our neighbors. 
• “You are saved by God’s grace because of your faith” (Ephesians 2:8)

https://www.umc.org/en/content/our-wesleyan-heritage
Let’s Review our Wesleyan Heritage….
• Sanctifying Grace grows us
• the grace by which God makes us holy in heart and life.
• The moment of justification is the beginning of a wonderful journey with Jesus
toward holiness of heart and life. As we participate in God’s work in the world
through acts of piety like worship and prayer and acts of mercy like serving others
and working for justice for our neighbors, we make ourselves available to God who
forms us into the likeness of Jesus.
• Wesley sometimes said that God “perfects” us by his grace, but he never intended
that to mean we would never make a mistake. Instead, Wesley taught that by God’s
grace we would stop sinning intentionally when made perfect in both our love of
God and neighbor. We do not wish to harm either of those relationships. 
• This process, which we might call spiritual growth today, is not something we do.
Instead, it is God who lovingly works in us and for us.

https://www.umc.org/en/content/our-wesleyan-heritage
Sanctifying Grace grows us
• Opening ourselves to the sanctifying grace of God, we pray that by
God’s grace, we are closer to Christ now than five years ago. And we
pray that by God’s grace we will be closer to Christ and deeper in our
relationship to God five years from now than we are today.
• Christian faith is not static but dynamic. It requires cultivation.
• Believing in Sanctifying Grace is practicing Intentional Faith
Development
• Growth in faith does not come easily or automatically, but requires
placing ourselves in community to learn the faith with others.
How do we DEVELOP our FAITH?
 By learning together in community.
• Christian disciples strive to develop faith and grow in Christ-likeness
through study and learning, and God is able to form disciples when
people do this together and not by themselves.
• Learning in community replicates the way Jesus taught His disciples.
• His followers grew in their understanding of God and matured in their
awareness of God’s will for their lives as they listened to Jesus’ stories,
instructions, and lessons while gathering around dinner tables, on hillsides
and in the Temple.
How do we DEVELOP our FAITH?
• As we mature in Christ, God cultivates in us the fruits of the Spirit:
• Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Generosity, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self-
Control
• Qualities which every Christian aspires, which God’s Spirit forms in us as we
deepen our relationship with God through Christ
• These qualities are all radically relational, and we only learn them in the
presence of others through the practice of love.
• They are honed in community and not just by reading books and studying
Scripture
• They become real in our lives in the love we give and receive from other,
and in the things we learn and teach with others!
Why add the adjective “Intentional”?
• Intentional – deliberate effort; purposeful action toward an end, and high
prioritization.
• It highlights the significance of faith development.
• INTENTIONAL FAITH DEVELOPMENT describes the practice of churches that
view the ministries of Christian education and formation, small group work,
and Bible study as absolutely critical to their mission and that consistently
offer opportunities for people of all ages, interests, and faith experiences to
learn in community
• Churches that practice Intentional Faith Development know the secret of
small groups and constantly offer new possibilities for people to engage
Christ by engaging one another
Intentionally Developing Faith:
LEARNING IN COMMUNITY
1. We place ourselves in the circumstances that are most
advantageous for growth in faith.

• Bible studies and Sunday school classes provide the means to help
people remain faithful in their journey toward Christ.

• It is not just about self-improvement, but about setting ourselves

where God can shape us, intentionally opening ourselves to God’s
Word and call.
Intentionally Developing Faith:
LEARNING IN COMMUNITY
2. It gives a network of support, encouragement, and
direction as we seek to grow in Christ.
• As we consciously appropriate the stories of faith with others, we
discover that our questions, doubts, temptations, and missteps are
not unusual but are part of the journey.
• We are opened to new ways of thinking about God and new ways
of exercising our faith in daily life
• Others may help us interpret God’s Word for our lives, offering an
antidote to our undue narcissistic or self-referential interpretations
that merely confirm our current lifestyle, attitude and behaviors
Intentionally Developing Faith:
LEARNING IN COMMUNITY
3. We give and receive the care of Christ by praying for one
another, supporting one another through periods of grief
and difficulty, and celebrating one another’s joys and
hopes.

• Sunday school classes, bible studies, choirs, and other small groups
are really little churches within the bigger church family, and they
are the most likely places for us to learn to “rejoice with those who
rejoice,” and “weep with those who weep” (Romans 12:15)
Intentionally Developing Faith:
LEARNING IN COMMUNITY
4. Provides accountability for our faith

• “After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them
two by two ahead of him to every town and place.” (Luke 10:1)
• The Lord sent people in pairs, not alone.
• “Every Christian needs another Christian when she or he becomes
uncertain and discouraged. The Christ in one’s own heart is weaker
than the Christ in the word of a brother or sister” (Life Together,
Harper & Row, 1954)
OBSTACLE!!
• People desire fellowship and want to learn about faith,
but they have trouble squeezing it into their lives.

SOLUTION!!
• Keeping the purpose in mind, leaders may have to break out of
usual patterns and expectations of place, frequency, and
curriculum to reach people.
• The more the church can do to accommodate, the better.
What should be done?
✔ Keep trying. Don’t give up. Try different times, places, leaders , and
formats. But keep trying.
✔ The secret is relationships, relationships, relationships.
✔ Beware of lumping young adults into single category when there are
significant differences between singles, couples, couples with children,
college students, and non-college working young adults.
✔ There’s a definite need for faith mentors and models
✔ No small groups survive for long without the support, leadership, and
help of the laity. Nor do they survive without the active support,
encouragement, and permission of the pastor.
Intentionally Developing Faith:
Importance of Church Leaders
• When church leaders take their own spiritual growth seriously and
immerse themselves in the study of Scripture, in prayer, and in
fellowship, they understand the purpose of the church and the point
of ministry differently
• Vibrant, fruitful, growing churches are led by lay people and pastors
who intentionally work to grow in the grace of Jesus Christ and in the
knowledge of love of God and who understand the need for intimate
Christian fellowship and intentional instruction in the faith
CHURCHES THAT PRACTICE
INTENTIONAL FAITH
DEVELOPMENT
• Not only provide new and varied small group ministries of learning and
fellowship for their long term members, but also start new groups particularly
adapted to need of new members, visitor, and people not yet attending the
church.
• Explore ways of forming learning communities using new technologies. (social
media platforms, etc.)
• Also understand and support the powerful impact that task-oriented groups
have on forming faith (choirs, praise bands, cooking crews, mission teams)
• They help these groups understand their significance for faith formation and develop a
culture of hospitality to welcome new people
• They see to it that such ministries are laced with prayer and characterized by mutual
care and support of its members
CHURCHES THAT PRACTICE
INTENTIONAL FAITH
DEVELOPMENT
• Work toward the objective that every learning group has fellowship
components and every fellowship ministry has elements and practices
that lead to faith formation.
• They encourage Sunday school classes and Bible studies to have fellowship
dinners, Christmas parties, prayer support, and other practices that deepen
community
• They encourage groups that are formed around common interest and simple
fellowship to include elements of prayer, devotionals, and invitations to other
ministries of the church.
CHURCHES THAT PRACTICE
INTENTIONAL FAITH
DEVELOPMENT
• Not afraid of failure, and willingly initiate new ministries of learning in
community.
• Knowing that some will take root and last for generations, and others will
continue only few months and then fade away
• Not just rely on their pastors to lead teaching and formation
ministries, but they also invite, support, and train lay people to lead
small groups, teach Bible studies, and coordinate support groups.
CHURCHES THAT PRACTICE
INTENTIONAL FAITH
DEVELOPMENT
• Not only rely upon on-site, at-the-church settings for formation
events, but also know the value of taking people away from their daily
lives for 1-3 day retreats to focus on matters of faith and life
• Form affiliation groups not only around Bible studies and explicit
topics of faith, but also around common interests, experiences,
challenges, such as grief, parenting, health related issues, finances,
etc.
CHURCHES THAT PRACTICE
INTENTIONAL FAITH
DEVELOPMENT
 Know that maturation in Christ is always about content and
relationships

• Ideas change people, and people change people; and God uses both together
to work on our behalf to shape our lives in the image of Christ

Transformation comes through learning in community

 No matter how dedicated our efforts, the
transformation of human hearts and minds is
God’s work through the Holy Spirit,
and intentionally learning in community is
our way of placing ourselves in the hands of
God so that He can sculpt our souls and
recreate us in the image of Christ.

Intentional Faith Development

5 PRACTICES OF FRUITFUL
CONGREGATIONS
I. The Practice of RADICAL HOSPITALITY
II. The Practice of PASSIONATE WORSHIP
III. The Practice of INTENTIONAL FAITH DEVELOPMENT
IV.The Practice of RISK-TAKING MISSION
AND SERVICE
V. The Practice of EXTRAVAGANT GENEROSITY