More than neighbors | a Biblical Worldview of

Community

Discover what Scripture says about the way we were created to live, grow, serve, and follow Christ together.

Preview Week 1

MORE THAN JUST A STUDY ABOUT FRIENDSHIP

What is More than Neighbors?

More Than Neighbors is a 12-week biblical worldview study built around a simple question:

 

What does Scripture actually teach about community?

 

Beginning with God’s design for relationship and moving through the fall, Israel, the life of Jesus, the early Church, and the relationships we experience today, More Than Neighbors explores what it means to live as people who truly belong to one another.

 

Through Scripture, personal stories, humor, and practical application, the study explores subjects like hospitality, serving one another, bearing burdens, accountability, conflict, the table, shared mission, restoration, and lasting fruit.

 

The goal isn’t simply to learn about biblical community. It’s to begin living it.

ONE STUDY. TWO TOOLS.

How the Book and Study Guide Work Together

More Than Neighbors provides the biblical teaching everyone shares. Each week, participants read the assigned chapters and explore what Scripture says about community.

 

The Study Guide takes that same teaching one step further, helping participants discuss it, apply it, and live it out through the ministry lens they’ve chosen.

 

THE BOOK
The foundation of the study. Everyone reads the same biblical teaching, stories, and practical application.

 

THE STUDY GUIDE
The roadmap for the 12-week journey. It helps your group connect the teaching to everyday life through Scripture, discussion questions, weekly application, and your specific ministry lens.

 

The biblical truth stays the same. The way you experience and apply it changes with the lens.

one biblical truth | different applications

one study different lenses 

Everyone studies the same More Than Neighbors book and walks through the same biblical worldview of community. What changes is the lens. Each Lamppost Study Guide helps participants take the same biblical truth and apply it through the setting, season of life, or activity that naturally brings their group together.

Lamppost Running

Community through shared challenge.

A running group may explore the lesson through training together, encouraging one another, showing up when it gets hard, and discovering how shared effort can build deeper relationships.

Lamppost Table

Community around the table.

A Table group may focus on hospitality, conversation, shared meals, listening well, and making room for others in everyday life.

Lamppost Outdoors

Community in the outdoors.

An Outdoors group may connect the same biblical teaching to time spent hunting, fishing, hiking, camping, or simply slowing down together in creation.

Lamppost Walking

Community one step at a time.

A Walking group may explore the lesson through time spent moving together, encouraging one another, sharing conversation along the way, and discovering how simple, consistent connection can build deeper relationships.

Lamppost Living

Community in everyday life.

A Living group may focus on applying biblical community to the ordinary rhythms of life, including family, friendships, work, church, and the everyday opportunities God gives us to care for one another.

Lamppost Y Adults

Community in a season of change.

A Young Adults group may explore the lesson through the unique realities of early adulthood, including friendships, relationships, work, faith, identity, and learning how to build meaningful community in a season filled with change.

The Teaching Doesn’t Change. The Application Does.

That means a runner, an outdoorsman, a young adult, and someone gathered around the dinner table can all be studying the same biblical truth during the same week while applying it in a way that feels natural to their own group.

simple by design

What does a typical week Look Like? 

Lamppost Studies are designed to fit naturally into everyday life. Each week follows a simple rhythm that helps participants move from reading Scripture to discussing it together and putting it into practice.

1. READ
Read the assigned chapters from More Than Neighbors and explore what Scripture teaches about community.

 

2. REFLECT
Use your ministry-specific Study Guide to connect the week’s biblical truth to your everyday life.

 

3. GATHER
Meet with your group in the setting that fits your lens, whether that’s a trail, table, church, home, or somewhere outdoors.

 

4. DISCUSS
Work through Scripture, discussion questions, personal stories, and practical application together.

 

5. LIVE IT OUT
Carry what you’ve learned into the week ahead by intentionally practicing biblical community.

SEE IT FOR YOURSELF

Experience Week 1

Title

Preview the Book

Read Chapter 1-2: The Day the Mafia Moved In

Preview

Preview the Study Guide

Explore Week 1: The Day the Mafia Moved In

Preview

Questions about the study?

Frequently Asked Questions

Do all Lamppost ministry lenses study the same book?

Yes. Every participant reads More Than Neighbors: A Biblical Worldview of Community. The biblical teaching remains the same across every Lamppost ministry. What changes is the Study Guide, which helps participants apply that teaching through their specific ministry lens.

Do I need both the book and the Study Guide?

Yes. More Than Neighbors contains the primary teaching for the study. Your ministry-specific Study Guide helps you reflect on that teaching, explore supporting Scripture, discuss it with others, and apply it to everyday life. The Book and Study Guide are included together in each Participant Kit.

How long is the study?

More Than Neighbors is designed as a 12-week study. Each week includes assigned reading from the book along with corresponding material in your Study Guide.

Can I do the study on my own?

Yes. You can work through More Than Neighbors and a Study Guide individually. However, because the study itself is about biblical community, we believe there is something especially meaningful about experiencing it alongside other people.

What happens when our group meets?

Most groups gather to talk through the week’s lesson, Scripture, application, and discussion questions. Depending on the ministry lens, your gathering might happen around a dinner table, on a walking trail, during a run, outdoors, at church, or wherever your group naturally connects.

Do I need to be a Bible teacher to lead a Lamppost group?

No. Lamppost is designed around conversation rather than lectures. The material provides the biblical teaching and discussion framework. A leader simply helps guide the conversation, encourages participation, and keeps the group moving together.

Are there videos included with the study?

Yes. Weekly video content provides additional encouragement and helps reinforce the lesson. Groups can watch the videos together or leaders can use them as part of their preparation.

What if people in our church want to participate through different ministry lenses?

That is exactly what Lamppost was designed for. A Running group, Walking group, Table group, Outdoors group, Young Adults group, and Living group can all participate in the same study at the same time. Everyone is learning the same biblical worldview while applying it in a way that fits their group. Learn more at our Three Ways to Participate page.