My own spiritual journey has been deeply enhanced by both the Walk to Emmaus and the small-group structure known as Reunion Groups, as well as by Covenant Discipleship and the small-group structure that has emerged through the leadership of my good friend, David Lowes Watson, then Phyllis Tyler, Marigene Chamberlain, and now Steven Manskar. the following are some initial reflections of my own experience, which began more than twenty-five years ago. Some insights that come out of my own research into early Methodist spiritual formation and the small-group structures developed by John and Charles Wesley will follow; and this essay will conclude with suggestions for the way Covenant Discipleship groups and the Walk to Emmaus Reunion Groups might be used in the twenty-first century.

I can say without hesitation that I would not be a disciple of Jesus Christ today had it not been for Christian spiritual formation received in small groups. My understanding of the Christian faith as a way of life and a joyful relationship with a living Lord began in my family of origin and was nurtured in the local church we attended on the high plains of western Kansas. As an awkward youth in confirmation class, it became clear to me that Jesus called his disciples into different levels of relationship within small groups, first the twelve and within that group an even deeper relationship with Peter, James, and John. During this same period in my life, the local pastor invited my father to be a member of a small group, and the impact of this group on his spiritual development also touched our entire family. During most of my high school years, my attitude and choices kept the church youth group from having a role in my spiritual formation. However, a high school Bible study group did help me experience Christian community and the freeing spiritual discipline of mutual accountability to other youth and adults who challenged me to walk the walk as well as talk the talk.

After graduation from college, I had the privilege of leading a flourishing youth ministry in a large-membership church. Small-groups were the foundation of that flourishing ministry. When God called me to prepare for service as an ordained pastor, I encountered Covenant Discipleship groups in my seminary and found the experience life-giving. The biblical and theological foundations were clear and substantive. The life of grace that came to be embodied in the covenant we made gave greater definition, strength, and substance to my discipleship. My understanding and experience of grace grew as we supported our general learning about works of piety and works of mercy with concrete behaviors that were congruent with these concepts. The mutual accountability in my small group was the context for human, moral, intellectual, and spiritual development.

In 1983 I was an active Christian, an associate pastor in a United Methodist church, and interested in how The Walk to Emmaus might help deepen my relationship with God, my family, and my local church. Just as Covenant Discipleship was an important means of grace in my life in the '70s, so The Walk to Emmaus provided another life-transforming experience of God in the '80s. The invitation to attend, the prayerful preparation, the three-day experience of the Emmaus event led by a dynamic lay and clergy team, and the acts of love and service by a vast community of Emmaus pilgrims behind the scenes all helped move me closer to Christ and other Christians in an ecumenical context. To this day, some of my closest friends in the Roman Catholic Church and in other Christian denominations are people I met through The Walk to Emmaus. However, the Emmaus mission and movement is not over at the end of the three days. It continues through regular 'Reunion Groups' and monthly times of worship, singing, sharing, teaching, testimonies, and participation in Holy Communion (called Gatherings). These ongoing structures of support helped me integrate the new insight and experience of God's grace into a lifestyle of committed discipleship.

Like Covenant Discipleship, the Reunion Groups of The Emmaus Walk gather people into small groups that practice the basic spiritual disciplines with the context of an accountable relationship that is voluntary and mutual. The essence of the weekly small group of sixt to twelve people involves each person in a shared prayer, personal sharing around the three central practices of prayer, study, and action.

In the next issue of the Covenant Discipleship Quarterly, I will examine the core practices of the weekly Covenant Discipleship and Emmaus Group Reunion in light of my research into early Methodist small-group practice.

Tom Albin (talbin@upperroom.org) is Dean of The Upper Room Chapel and International Spiritual Director for the Walk to Emmaus.