That is a connect (small) group! That's what it looks like, that's what I want and that's what I want to cultivate.

The King had a dream and wanted it interpreted, so he gathered all the wise men, magicians, fortune tellers, etc. and asked them to prove themselves by not only telling him the interpretation but by telling him what he dreamed. What?! Impossible! And it was for all of them. So the king said, "fine then, you are all fakes and now your gonna die." Or something like that. But then word reached Daniel, who was also one of the wise men of the kingdom along with his three friends. He made an appointment with the king to tell him the interpretation, and then what's the first thing he did? He went to his small group, his friends, the guys he did life with and asked them to PRAY. And they did! And guessed what happened... God showed Daniel what the kings dream was and gave him the interpretation. Wow! It really works! Community and prayer.

There are only a couple things I want to point out about this situation. First, Daniel's problem was their problem and they shared the burden together. That is a small group plain and simple. When one is hurting or in need, you share the burden and take care of them. It's a beautiful thing. Second, God showed up! God really does answer prayers when you humble yourself and pray. When your heart is burdened for your brother or sister and you seek Him relentlessly He does what He promised He would do. Third, Daniel got the credit. He became a big-shot in the kingdom because God answered THIER prayers. But here's the beautiful thing. Just like Daniel's boys had his back when he came to them asking them to pray, Daniel had their back. The first thing he did when he received his promotion was to appoint his three bros as big time officials in charge of a lot of stuff. Sweet deal.

If we really love God, and love each other, a real, powerful, effective connect (small) group should be attainable. One where we do more than study the Bible, where we do more than read a book together, where we do more than socialize, where we do more than catch up on life. No what I'm looking for is "a fellowship of the burning heart." One where we do life together. Where we seek the Lord together with passion. Where we have each other's backs. Where we grow and multiply. Where we take care of each other and serve in and outside the group. Where we know how to have a good time together and we know how to cry with one another. That is the kind of group Daniel and his boys had.