Mother's Underground Group- MUG
There are many reasons to be in an Underground group. Here are a few reflections on the joys of being in a Mom's UG:
A month into coming to Metro, I decided to join a MUG (Mother’s Underground Group). I have been in small groups before, but this is the first time I've joined a mother’s group. I have been looking for a community where we can share experiences and support each other in the daily challenges of motherhood. And I found this. I found them. A group of mothers in different walks of life, in different life stages, all with a shared love and yearning to know God more. We bonded over our struggles and joys. We lifted each other in prayers. We emboldened each other to live supernaturally, as we studied and learned more about the Spirit’s fruits and its place in our lives.
It is a fairly new community to me, and we are just starting to know each other deeper. I feel truly blessed that I found a group of beautiful women enriched in encouragement and empathy. I feel God has blessed me/us with this group and I can't wait to continue this journey with this community of mothers- all God-fearing, God-loving, and God-filled. (Sharon)
I’m so glad that I have been part of this group of fellow moms for the last two years. I have experienced much emotional healing as well as a renewed spiritual life with the encouragement of the group and focus on scripture. There are some differences from other small groups I’ve been a part of in the past. First, we started with high commitment and went deep by sharing our life stories. As we took turns, every member had to be there or we waited until the next meeting. Second, our time was devoted to simply listening to and praying for each other, at least that first semester. And as we’ve gone through the Emotionally Healthy Spirituality courses and more recently a study on the fruit of the Spirit, we still take time to share. Third, I’ve been with this group for two years, which is a pretty long time in Metro UG (Underground Group) life. Our group of moms has changed over time - some newer faces, some leaving as life circumstances changed, even a returning sister. God worked something amazing when He prompted Jen to speak to me about being a part of the group back when it was being formed. What a wonderful community of fellow moms and sisters in Christ. I have been so blessed and encouraged. Go MUG! (Anna)
Making a decision to join an UG that requires weekly attendance was not an easy one as a mother of a baby who was only a few months old at the time. However, with the help from fellow mothers, rescheduling of husband's work hours at times, and a babysitter, I was able to attend weekly meetings on a regular basis. It helped me to refocus my attention to God, learn about various spiritual gifts through a video series from Beth Moore, but most of all, it helped me to spend time with God even if it's just for a few hours a week. I'm very grateful for the opportunity to have fellowshipped with fellow mothers and am looking forward to walking this journey in faith together as sisters in Christ and as mothers of beloved children of God. (Jimin)
Last fall was the start of the MUG, I have been longing for this kind of community for a long time. I've had a lot of heartkroken and depressing things happened in my life earlier this year. Everything that happened affected my daily life and spiritual life. I made excuses of why I wasn’t able to go to the weekly meetings or finish the Bible study homework. In the Spring semester, I made a promise to myself to attend the group no matter what. Even with the few meetings I had attended, God showed me what I needed to do in order for me to have more patience to deal with all the stressful things that hindered me from spiritual growth. God also showed me through the friends I made from this group. Along the journey, they have cried and laughed with me through the rough and happy times. I know that God is always by my side, so are many other fellow sisters who can relate to me in a lot of things. I thank God for all that I have learned from this group. (Julie)
Being a part of this Mother's Underground group has been such a blessing for me the past 2 years. We moms need support and encouragement and what better place to find it than among other moms going through similar struggles and understand. I have enjoyed our times of sharing and praying and am so grateful for the women who have been a part of this group. God has shown me the importance of reaching out when we are in need and has reassured me that I am never alone in my failings. Not only is God always there, but many others know/have gone through exactly the same thing! It's great knowing I am not alone. (Na)
I love Metro’s one word mission statement: Transformation. I would say the darkest period of my life has been the past year, and I started this MUG (mom’s underground group) in the midst of my deep depression. I was taking antidepressant, talking to counselors, reading self-help books, meeting with pastors for consultation, and did anything and everything that would help me to get out of (what seemed like) the darkest black hole. With my church’s community support (MUG), prayers, and myself purposely drawing closer to God, I was able to get better slowly from my totally broken self. I found God through praying (communicating with God as if I was talking to a best-friend/father), reading bible daily (made notes and posted the scriptures that really hit home on my closet), and making practical everyday life changes (such as joining a mommy's underground group) that will able me to find time to turn the ‘worldly noise’ down and really ‘listen’ to God. I am sure this thing called ‘life’ will throw me other curve balls or hardships. However, I pray that I will utilize those 'opportunities' to get down on my knees and get closer to God for He is good ALL the time! I am totally aligned with Metro’s mission statement - Transformation which can happen to a such lost and confused sheep like me!!! (Cathy)
When I first started attending Metro, the idea of joining an underground group was completely foreign to me. Growing up in a Pentecostal church I attended Sunday School and Bible study, but "small groups" did not exist. After being a part of a much smaller church where everyone knew me and my family, I was content for a while to just be a face in the large crowd on Sundays at Metro. But then I started to realize that something was missing- I needed to be in community with people to really be part of God's church. Joining the Mom's Underground group was definitely far out of my comfort zone- I'm an introvert and the more deeply I feel something the more I dislike discussing it! I decided to step out on faith and go- and I'm so glad I did. Over the weeks and months I've come to greatly look forward to the fellowship with the other moms... all of us with different life struggles trying to navigate this Christian life relying on God's abundant grace, wisdom and mercy. I believe that this community, this fellowship, has made me a more thoughtful and prayerful wife, mother, daughter and sister.
In an article Carolyn Taketa wrote "we live in an increasingly fragmented and disconnected world. Though social media and other technology have made our world seemingly more connected, people have fewer genuine friends than ever before. It feels scary and threatening to allow ourselves to be known or to invest in knowing someone else at a deep level. It is much easier and more convenient to stay on the surface. Yet when we take the risk of being authentic with a small group of people, we can experience God's grace and love coming through others, which leads to freedom and transformation." (Vatrell)
Two years ago, I had the desire of building deeper relationship with other women at Metro. With the encouragement from Linda and Pastor David, I started the mom’s group with my co-leader Na. At the beginning of the group, it’s encouraging to hear other moms share how much they need this group during this busy season in their lives. Motherhood is an important job, but can be lonely, especially when you have a newborn or small children at home. This group provides the encouragement and prayers for one another. I am learning a lot in leading this group. All of us have struggles, when we shared it with others and lifted each other in prayer, the burden is lighter. When we opened up ourselves, others opened up their hearts to us, too. When we saw God’s answered prayers, we rejoiced together. Over the past two years, besides the weekly meeting, we also met for dinner several times, we went to the parenting workshop on the topic of “Technology”, we had one mom giving birth to a newborn, we hugged a younger single group (Hug an UG)--had fun eating, sharing and laughing together, we celebrate each other’s birthday by having a cake for the birthday girl, and we also had a family BBQ last summer including the husbands and children. I hope to see this MUG continues and perhaps multiplies, so it can be a blessing to many others. (Jennifer)