A few years ago, I went to the Women’s Life Office and the receptionist was talking about her Discipleship Group. When I inquired about the groups, Denise O’Donoghue asked me if I would be interested in leading one!  She assured me that it would be a valuable addition to the Biblical Counseling degree that I was pursuing.  I prayed long and hard about becoming a D-Group leader, since I am in my late sixties. The Lord and the Holy Spirit guided me to lead a D-Group. This reminded me of Philippians 4:13 . . .

I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.

With the Lord’s guidance, I could move forward more confidentially.

Discipleship Groups, which are commonly known as D-Groups, are required of every first-year college student at Southeastern.  According to the Office of Discipleship and Spiritual Formation,

“The D-Groups are an incredibly effective forum where students are encouraged, challenged, and equipped to better pursue an authentically Christian way of life.”

The curriculum that the students work through orients them around the beliefs of the Christian faith. It explains why and how our beliefs should be lived out as we love God and love one another.  After the first year, students who have participated in a D-Group should be equipped to start leading their own D-Groups, whether in the local church or here at Southeastern.

In 2011-2012, I decided to lead my first D-Group. We were permitted to use the conference room in the Women’s Life Office for our meetings. Four young ladies worked through the D-Group materials and discovered the challenge of diversity.  The second semester, one of the ladies decided to complete her D-Group requirements at a local church.

In 2012-2013, I again volunteered to be a D-Group leader. I was assigned to co-lead the group with the (then) Women’s Ministry Coordinator, Carrie Gilliam. We actually already knew one another! Carrie and I were assigned four young ladies who helped to make our sessions very stimulating.  Once again, we met in the Women’s Life Conference Room. During this year, we realized the necessity of encouraging consistent attendance. This time all of the girls remained with us for the second semester. We were thankful that they realized how important studying I & II Timothy would be in equipping them for discipleship.

Each year is different than the last. In 2013-2014, I volunteered for another year of D-Group activities. This year, I was assigned another co-leader, the new Women’s Ministry Coordinator, Lesley Hildreth. Lesley thought that she would be the oldest women in the room, but we really have a great generational cross-section.  I am seventy-one and Lesley is 43 (and not the oldest one in the room!). One of our ladies is a 35-year old spouse of a seminarian with 3 children. Another young woman is 21 and has spent some time in Costa Rico. Our youngest group member is eighteen, but she has already traveled to India a few times because her father is from India.

One thing that is important for our group this year is that each person respects the others’ ages and opinions.  Further, it is interesting to hear how things are different from one generation to the next.  Sometimes, we are not able to finish our lessons exactly the way that we plan because of other concerns that we need to address. We are thankful that the Office of Discipleship and Spiritual Formation  has given us enough flexibility in the lessons to discuss such things. Our goal in all of our lessons is to glorify God.

Another neat aspect of our group this year is that we are able to help each other in so many different areas.  For example, Lesley can help the ladies with parenting questions relating to both sons and daughters, because she has both.  I can help answer questions about daughters, because my own daughters are 48 and 46, a little older than Lesley.

As D-Group leaders, we prepare well for our lessons, because we know that we cannot glorify God with a poorly prepared lesson.  We pray on a regular basis for members of our group. We talk through assignments together and offer suggestions to make things easier. We are encouragers and mercy-givers. We love to nurture people in the Lord and we enjoy helping people grow in their Christian walk.

Are you interested in D-Groups? Contact the Office of Discipleship and Spiritual Formation at gmichael@sebts.edu.

Reblogged from incourage
August 26, 2011

Yesterday I asked you to finish this sentence: “If I were to be totally honest, ______.” I wasn’t sure what would come out, but let me tell you what did:

Worry. Anxiety. Longing. Regret. Exhaustion. Loneliness. Comparison. Failure. A little bit of hope. Mostly fear.



You who are brave and beautiful, who have great things to offer the world not because of what you can do, but because of who you are, you who spoke out into the darkness yesterday – may blessing and peace and hope and abundance pour out all over you today.

“When I was a child my parents loved me not because I was good, but because I was Madeleine.”

Madeleine L’Engle, Walking on Water

What would happen if we believed it? Would love make a difference in our ability to be honest about these difficult places where we find ourselves? Because it’s one thing to say honest things in a comment box on a blog. It’s completely another thing to sit in a room with other women, to look into their eyes, to hear their voices, to see their pain, to nod your heads together.

But that? Is so risky. Because those same people who might really understand are also the people whose opinions we so desperately want to manage. And so we hide from one another and stay fine.
Maybe it’s time to give up fine. Here are some ways to start:

Are you a small group leader? Read this book with your group. You won’t be able to avoid authentic no matter how hard you may try. There is a complete small group leaders guide in the back of the book designed to run for 8 weeks. Or you can visit Chatting at the Sky and download and print the leader’s guide for free right now.



Are you looking for someone to read with? If you aren’t in a small group, might a make a suggestion? Don’t read Grace for the Good Girl alone. Grab a girlfriend or a sister or a co-worker or a cousin and read it together.

If you are in a season of loneliness or isolation and you physically don’t have anyone to chat with about this book, perhaps you will find some people in one of these places:

Chatting at the Sky – a place for your soul to breathe, where I write nearly everyday-ish. Many of the women who read my blog will also read the book, so perhaps you will find some kindred conversations here. Also, the entire month of October, I’ll be writing a series called 31 Days to Change the World – because I really do believe that this grace changes everything.

Facebook Page – Women who are reading the book often come to the Facebook page and comment. Perhaps you can join in the conversation there.

Is it possible to live a life of joy? Peace? Hope? Willingness? Expectation? Rest? Fellowship? Satisfaction? Is it possible to believe, really believe that the God of the Universe who lived so long ago lives and walks in and among us right now? Is that a fairytale? A lie? A dream? A joke?

Jesus doesn’t tell us to try to figure out a way to follow him. He didn’t come to this world upside down just to show us how to live life and then dare us to get it right.



He came, not to show us how to do it, but to do it for us. He showed up not to inspire us to copy him, but to indwell us with his Spirit. He does not simply tell us to have patience and be strong. He becomes patient in my impatience. He becomes strength in the middle of my weakness.

This life is impossible. But God shows up in the middle of impossibilities. Impossible is His favorite.
I have so enjoyed being here at Bloom (in)courage this week. Your words, insights, and honesty have been a spacious place for this rookie author. I don’t know how to do this stuff really – to talk about my art, to share it with the world, to offer it to friends – but you have helped me remember the beauty and grace and acceptance available in community. I hope to do the same for you.

love and grace.
- emily, Chatting at the Sky

Emily Freeman is a writer who encourages girls of all ages to create space for their souls to breathe. She is the author of Grace for the Good Girl (Revell). She and her husband live in North Carolina with their twin daughters and twinless son.