My friend Dr. Chis Weghorst works at the James Cancer Research Institute at Ohio State University.  Doctor Weghorst’s team has gained notoriety for conducting breakthrough research on Deoxyribonucleic Acid. (dē-ŏk″sē-rī″bō-noo͞-klē′ĭk Acid) Better known as DNA.  In essence, DNA holds the blueprint for almost everything there is to know about us.  The color of our hair.  Certain aspects of our personality. And even our vulnerability to certain types of diseases.  As DNA is passed down from generation to generation, we notice patterns and similarities between parents, grandparents, and even great-grandparents.  We often hear things like, “Oh, she’s got her mother’s eyes.  Or,  Wow!  He looks just like his grandfather.

The same is true of every local church.  Each church has its own DNA.  It’s its own blueprint,  or a fingerprint if you will.  And if you take a close look at its blueprint, you can tell many things about a local church.  

Several years ago I had the privilege of spending a week with Pastor Steve Cordle and his staff.  Steve was the founding and lead pastor of the Crossroads church in the Pittsburg metro area.  During our time together I began to understand the DNA of a cell based congregation.  You’ll find much of what I learned in his book: The Church in Many Houses: Reaching Your Community through Cell based Ministry.

Steve planted the Crossroads church using the best models available.  Keeping up with trends and forming the church around proven methods of church growth. 

But after about seven years he began to recognize that—even though he had a growing congregation--the people were being trained to be church members instead of disciple-makers. They had become comfortable with membership activities such as attending worship regularly, believing the basic doctrine of church, contributing money, living a moral life, and serving where they are needed and able. 

Pastor Steve came to realize that the DNA of the church had to change.  He began to see that the church should be formed around two things.  Cell and Celebration.  To have one without the other would be like trying to fly a plane with only one wing.  

Over a period of time Pastor Steve led the church in making five major shifts.
1.	From “growing deeper” to “reaching outward.
2.	From membership to disciple-maker
3.	From educating to equipping
4.	From programs to relationships 
5.	And from a church with cells to a church that is cells.

He taught that cells are the most basic expression of the church, And that the essential purposes of the church are fulfilled through the cell. And corporate worship springs out of the life on life experiences found in the smaller group.  So that corporate worship was not an event to attend, it was a community of believers coming together celebrate.  People didn’t go to church.  They realized that they are the church.

Pastor Steve spells out the fundamental principles of a cell based church.
1.	Cell groups are not inward focused, but outward focused.
2.	The cell-based church is to help equip Christians for the ministry of making disciples who make disciples.
3.	Cell-based churches employ a distinctive and deliberate disciple-making strategy.  Cell groups were more than a Bible Study. At its essence, a cell group is a set of Christ-centered relationships which is focused primarily on evangelism and discipleship.
4.	They understood that discipleship is better done in a personal, relational context.

So I arrived at Crossroads church on a cold Pittsburg morning in February.  I entered the building and was greeted by the children’s pastor.  Within seconds this young staff member was telling me how she came to know the Lord and what a difference He had made in her life.  She handed me off to a volunteer who showed me to our meeting area.  And, wouldn’t you know it—before our journey ended, I heard yet another story of how Christ had transformed this person’s life.  

Over and over—throughout the week I heard story after story of transformed lives.
We were invited to stay at the home of one of the church members.  And wouldn’t you know it…every evening we would stay up late into the night talking about how God had been changing lives through cell groups.

Today after over twenty years, the Crossroads church is a vibrant disciple-making community that worships in five different locations throughout the Pittsburg area.