"Seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare." — Jeremiah 29:7
Faith & the City is the heart of the Called to Office small group toolkit. It is written for ordinary Christians — no political background required — and designed to be led by anyone willing to gather a few people and work through it together. Each session pairs a short teaching with discussion questions and one concrete local step to take before the group meets again.
The arc is deliberate: it begins with conviction, builds understanding, and ends in participation. By the final week, the goal is for every member to have taken a real step into the civic life of their own community.
The six sessions
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Called to the City
The biblical foundation for civic engagement: stewardship, neighbor-love, and seeking the welfare of the place God has put you. Why faithful presence in public life is part of Christian discipleship, not a distraction from it.
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The Ground Beneath You
How local government actually works — school boards, city councils, county government, and precinct conventions — and why the offices closest to home shape daily life most. A plain-English tour with no jargon.
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Know Where You Live
Your own community, up close: your precinct, your districts, your county election office, the decisions being made near you right now. Members map their own civic geography and find out what's actually on their ballot.
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Conviction Without Faction
How to hold real convictions — faith, constitutional liberty, personal responsibility, strong families — while serving the whole community with integrity and grace. Principled engagement that refuses to become mere partisanship.
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Showing Up
From study to action: how to attend a public meeting, speak with courage and charity, contact a local office, and be a faithful, consistent presence. The practical habits of an engaged citizen.
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Called to Serve
Discerning your own next step — whether to be present, to organize others, or one day to run for local office. Each member leaves with a concrete commitment and the group decides how to keep walking together.
How to use it
Most groups meet weekly or every other week for the six sessions. You can run it in a home, a church, or a classroom, with a group of four to ten. Pair it with the Start a Small Group guide for the practical setup, and the How Local Government Works guide as a reference between sessions.
Download the leader’s guide (PDF)
Faith & the City is a Christian civic education resource. It is nonpartisan: it equips participants to understand and serve, and leaves all voting and party decisions to individual conscience. The leader’s guide below contains all six sessions, ready to lead.