by Jennifer A. Miskov, Ph.D.

When in transition and on the journey to discover your new church family, it is important to choose a healthy revival community that is full of Jesus, gives room for the Holy Spirit to move, gathers around the very presence of God, and feels like family to you. You want to be planted somewhere that you are received as the gift that you are. It is also important to play your part and serve the body of Christ, breaking off consumer Christianity. Sometimes God will hide you from being seen by leadership because it’s either not your time or it’s not your fit. It is important to invite the Holy Spirit into your process to direct you to your new spiritual family in this season.

We all are the church and that can come in lots of different shapes and sizes (1 Peter 2:5). Ultimately, the kingdom of God is all about family, however that might look in our day.

Connecting together regularly with the wider Body of Christ and also meeting with our tribe within a tribe are significant keys to our maturity. Once you do find the church community that is a fit, greater growth happens when asking God to highlight a tribe within a tribe. These can then gather outside of the weekly celebration meeting to go deeper together. Some might share a passion for evangelism and want to hit the streets together. Others might be interested in going deeper in the Word or in the Spirit together. Others might want to learn how to step out in the prophetic or healing. Still others may want to simply cultivate a safe place to be family together gathered around God’s presence. The structure itself is not what is most important. The regular meeting together around God’s presence in a smaller more intimate community within a community is what accelerates growth.

It is important to have people in our lives that we can be vulnerable with. We usually find these people we can go deeper with in smaller groups. Cultivating family is essential for growth. This connecting heart to heart is in alignment with and obedience to the Word of God (Hebrews 10:23-25, James 5:16, 1 John 1:7). Connection is key however that might look in this season.

When I was leading Destiny House, where at one point we had up to 21 people living in intentional community (which is too big by the way), we had a Monday night family time where we shared a meal and connected just with each other. Then we also had an open Friday morning worship and ministry time where all were welcome to join. There, we gathered around God’s presence and ministered together as a family. We also went to church on Sundays. I know three meetings a week is not realistic for many in other life situations, but we were all in a season of full-time ministry training, so it worked well for us.

Similar to the rhythm described in the Book of Acts who met together daily (Acts 2:46-47, 5:42) I believe that elements of the rhythm we had at Destiny House can be adapted and integrated into our lives. In addition to regularly going to church, a smaller group can meet once a week or a few times a month to connect at a heart level. Or maybe home groups might meet consistently each week and once a month all meet together for a larger corporate gathering. Maybe some will share a similar rhythm as we did in Destiny House. The structure is not what is important here, the heart and consistency of regularly meeting together is. Connection is crucial because the keys of our destiny are found in intimacy with God and in being deeply connected with our tribe. So however it looks to get connected and go deeper with our tribe, whatever rhythm of life that looks like, it’s important to dive in. I think some of the key questions for us all to ask ourselves are:  

Who am I running with in this season?

Where am I showing up regularly to know and be known together?

If you don’t yet know the answers to these questions, I encourage you to ask God who He is highlighting for you to build with during this season. Then wait on Him and listen to what He says. Once several are highlighted, take some risks to initiate times to connect and grow deeper together and see where God takes it from there.

 In this hour, I believe it is crucial that we find our tribe and then dive in wholeheartedly to run together after the things of God. There is a Billion Soul Harvest on its way. God is shifting and aligning people with their tribe in this season so that they can grow into maturity to help steward and carry this massive revival.

Be encouraged, in this season, you are a perfect fit somewhere, but not everywhere. You are a unique shape. There is a community out there that has a “you” shaped hole. Don’t get discouraged if you try to fit somewhere and it doesn’t quite feel right. Rejection is redirection to somewhere better. God is in charge and over it all. It may take a little time to explore several communities before you find your people to run with. And once you find each other, it may take some time to build those relationships. This investment of time and heart is well worth the effort though because when you do find your tribe, you find your destiny. Keep going and don’t give up, you might just be one more risk away from finding your spiritual family to run with in this season.

You are an important part to what God is getting ready to release over our generation in this end time harvest. You will only be able to step into the fullest measure of your God-given destiny when you are rooted in the family of God (Ephesians 3:20). On this journey of discovery, I pray that you have grace to embark with fresh hope. I declare acceleration over you as you seek Jesus first above all things and take risks to find and grow deeper with the tribe God highlights to you in this season. Blessing you with divine appointments in finding the kindred spirits you were born to run with for such a time as this.

**To learn more about our rhythm of doing life together at Destiny House, see the Walking on Water E-course that goes into great depth with several sessions exclusively about our story and community life there.

by Jennifer A. Miskov, Ph.D.

For the past seven years, I have been a part of building a revival culture in an intentional worshiping community called Destiny House. Every Friday morning, we opened our doors for a worship encounter time and essentially hosted a house church together. Because this has been such a huge part of my life, many might think I would naturally lean toward the deconstruction of the formal church structure and move away from anything “organized” or institutionalized. However, from personal experience of being committed to the wider church at the same time and a recent epiphany when reading the book of Acts, I cannot say that house church is the only way forward, though I do believe it is essential and will play an important role for where God is taking us next. We all are the church and that can come in lots of different shapes and sizes (1 Peter 2:5). Ultimately, the kingdom of God is all about family, however that might look in our day.

I have friends who lead churches, movements, and even stadium events that I fully believe in, support, and have participated in. Because of these things, while I tend to overemphasize the smaller more intimate spaces of connection, I also believe there is something important about the larger gatherings, whether that be weekly celebrations with the wider body of Christ or even stadium events to go after mass evangelism. As we continue together on this journey of reframing what the church can look like in our generation, please note that this article is an invitation into my current thought process which is still being shaped. I am also not trying to define what church is here but may attempt that another time. I look forward to the dialogue that will come.

Since we are all members of the Body of Christ, it is important we stay connected to Him and to each other, so we can fulfill His purposes on the earth (1 Corinthians 12:12-31). Each one of us plays a special role in what God is doing in our generation. We need each other to be able to step into the fulness of our destinies (Ephesians 3:20). Both church gatherings with the entire community coming together and cultivating revival in family around God’s presence in smaller settings can go side by side to strengthen our connection as the Body of Christ.

During an in-depth study in the book of Acts, some Scriptures stood out for me that demonstrate the value for both larger formal gatherings with corporate direction and the more spontaneous organic ones that take place in smaller settings (this is a generalization). After Pentecost when many were added to the church, to continue to steward the fire they had just received, the Christians in the early church

Continued daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved. Acts 2:46-47

A little later in Acts 5, Peter and the other apostles were imprisoned, beaten, and told to be silent for their faith. They left that persecution rejoicing for being found worthy to co-suffer for the sake of Christ. Right after this in Acts 5:42 it says, “And daily in the temple, and in every house, they did not cease teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ.”

The apostles in the book of Acts gathered in the temple, or what we might call a more organized place of worship or church, to proclaim the gospel and they also met in private homes to disciple the new converts. They realized the importance of meeting together in the wider corporate meetings to teach the truth and share vision and also saw significance in nurturing the newer believers in the smaller setting of a home. The rhythm of the Christian life in the early church was not either larger gatherings or house meetings for connection in the midst of the move of God, it was both and more.  

Acts provides us with a paradigm for healthy growth and discipleship within the Body of Christ. Wider church celebrations are just one leg of building healthy community. The other leg is meeting together in smaller groups in the intimate space of the home or other place. Location is not important. Connection is, no matter how that might look. Having a balance of both corporate times to be together to worship as well as making time to connect in smaller groups so that each one is fully known, can be important elements in spiritual growth. It is easy to go to a weekend celebration service and hide in the back. But in a smaller setting, each person has the opportunity to be seen and loved at a deeper level. And at the same time, if one only shows up at a house church that is in isolation from the wider body of Christ, it has the potential to become ingrown and get weird.

If we were to lean heavily or only on one of these legs, either the larger church gatherings or the smaller homegroup meetings, there would be an imbalance, and something would still be missing. It’s hard to run with only one leg. It’s not a question of either big church or small group house meeting, but it’s a both/and more opportunity to be walking, and running, in the fullness of what God intended for us as the Body of Christ. God is always moving. We need two legs to swiftly run after Him.

In this dialogue of exploring what it looks like to become the Body of Christ in the fullest measure, I pray that God surrounds you with your people to run with in this season. May you discover your tribe within a tribe so that you can grow into the full maturity of all that God has destined for you.

*To dive a bit deeper into learning how to find your tribe and also developing rhythms of doing life together, see blog entitled Finding Your Tribe.

**To learn more about our rhythm of doing life together at Destiny House go here or get access to the Walking on Water E-course that goes into great depth with several sessions exclusively about our story and community life there.

by Jennifer A. Miskov, Ph.D

While living together or being a part of an intentional community can be very messy at times, it is also one of the most beautiful experiences one can have. Family accelerates growth. We can’t step into the fullness of our destiny apart from our tribe.

The following are three ingredients or ways of doing life modeled after Jesus that we have embraced as a part of the Destiny House experience the past six years. We hope and pray that our rhythm will inspire you to intentionally gather with your tribe to run after Jesus with everything inside and be launched into a greater measure of your destiny.

1. Cultivate Connection (Family)

We have regularly set aside one night a week exclusively for family time. This includes making and sharing a meal together, spending time catching up and sharing testimonies, connecting, and an opportunity to receive prayer/ministry if needed. What happens during each family night might change each week but the primary goal is connection. Impartation, teaching, or equipping may be released at times but that is not the regular focus of these times together. Some of our family nights have turned into the Holy Spirit falling upon us all and end in pure worship to Him, others have ended in a round circle of each person doing a rap, and one time we all went out for ice cream. The key is to set aside time each week simply to be with each other and connect at a heart level. Consistently make time for each other and have fun!

2. Cultivate Hunger (Fasting & Feasting)

We have regularly fasted as a community on the first day of the week (Mondays) so we can grow in our hunger for God. We skip two meals and then come together in the evening to share dinner and break our fast together. This works best when it’s a potluck style meal and everyone is involved in preparing the meal together and eating a common meal. Many revivalists have experienced their defining moments while on a fast. Read Feasting on God: The Lost Art of Fasting by Jennifer A. Miskov.

 3. Cultivate Space for Encounter (Worship)

We have regularly set aside a time each week to open our doors to host a worship/encounter time together as family. This is open to all ages and we love it when children can join in. Dance and creativity also has a special place in the worship gathering. The emphasis and focus of this time is on loving and adoring Jesus. The purpose of our worship time together is Encounter and to spend time in the Secret Place together as a community. It is to see Jesus face to face, to know Him more, to love Him with our whole hearts. These gatherings are not about us seeking God to answer our prayers or give us things. It’s not even a place where we come to seek healing; it’s all about JESUS (Psalm 27). We want our time together in family to honor and love Him well.

These worship times together and even the song choices we use are all about adoring Him. While praise, thanksgiving, and songs crying out to God are all good, our emphasis and focus is simply ADORATION. We want to set down our agenda, our problems, and simply worship Him because He is worthy of it all no matter what we are going through. And it’s powerful to do this week after week in the context of family, showing up and being vulnerable before God together even if sometimes that’s the last place one wants to be. Part of this practice is learning to show up and worship in community no matter what is going on in our lives. We consistently love on Jesus in the context of family and praise Him because He is worthy and never changes even if our circumstances do (2 Chronicles 20).  Stewarding this well of encounter together also sharpens us to stay unified.

So while we show up to our times set aside to worship together with one focus, many times as a result of us pouring our love out to Jesus, the Holy Spirit comes and marks us with the Father’s transforming love. Many times people weep and God heals deep things in their hearts without anyone even praying for them. Creativity is stirred as we create space to worship God with all of our hearts, minds, souls, spirits, and bodies. Art, and dance are released regularly as a part of the worship team. We dive into the river of the Holy Spirit and move wherever God takes us which looks different literally every week. Influenced by the Welsh Revival, our meetings are worship focused. In the beginning of the meeting, we briefly welcome guests, have a few people share testimonies, someone will give a very brief word, then we will go straight into worship, encounter, and then ministry however the Holy Spirit is leading.

Example of our Destiny House Rhythm

This is the rhythm we’ve shared for more than 6 consecutive years that represent our core values of Glory, Honor, and Destiny

1.     Family: Commit to family night each week with Feasting together (Monday Nights)

2.     Hunger: Commit to fasting one day each week (Mondays)

3.     Encounter: Commit to worship in the context of family one time a week (Friday Mornings)

*Once a month on a Saturday night we also regularly hosted an Encounter Worship Night for more focused impartation, equipping, teaching to be released.

If you have been stirred and want to learn of the history of Destiny House and how to develop a revival community