Ministry Highlight: Community Groups

Our newest location, Grace North, launched this past September and it has been encouraging to see Grace North embrace living out our values of worship, community, and mission on Sunday mornings. Plans are underway to start up Community Groups at Grace North, inviting neighbors in and around northeast Ann Arbor to join us in our mission.  These are exciting times!

To learn more about the value of community groups (and community group leadership!) we interviewed Jeff Dinakar, a Community Group (CG) leader at Grace North.  Jeff has been attending Grace Church since 2015 and is currently leading a Community Group at Grace North.  He works as a program engineering manager at General Motors, focusing on autonomous vehicles. His hobbies include photography, biking, off-roading, going to concerts, and trying new restaurants. We asked him to share a little bit about the value of community at Grace.

What have been some of the highlights of being part of and leading a Community Group?
"It's been awesome to become friends with other Christians, and have a group of people who are going through similar life circumstances and navigating them in faith. It's also been a great way to get to know the Ann Arbor area, serve the community, and just hang out with those friends! Leading my CG has been a fantastic opportunity to see both spiritual and personal growth in my group members, God is doing a lot in their lives! "

What made you decide to pursue becoming a Community Group leader?
"Small group spaces such as Community Groups have been (and continue to be) a really critical part of my faith journey, so it's really important to me that those spaces exist & thrive. Over the years different leaders have seen leadership qualities in me and eventually asked me if I'd be interested in leading! The rest is history."

What has God been teaching you through your Community Group?
"Recently God has been teaching me how to find balance among a hectic life. It's been awesome to stay aligned with my community group members as the years have gone by, and the consistent check-ins have really enabled me to assess and re-focus what I'm prioritizing in my life."

What would you say to those who are interested in joining a Community Group or leading one?
"Regardless of where you are in your faith journey, being in a Community Group is a great opportunity to be surrounded by people who can support and strengthen you along the way -- I highly recommend it! For those who have been involved in a Community Group already, consider taking the next step in leadership, and talk to your CG leader! Everyone brings their own skills to the table and there's so much opportunity to build community in spaces like CGs in the Ann Arbor and Canton area."

Are you interested in finding out more about Community Groups at your Grace location?  Our location pastors would love to talk to you and get you connected with a group or explore ways to start another group! You can learn more here: