FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
What is Teleios?
Teleios is a men's ministry founded to help men reach maturity in Christ through building bonds of friendship with other men.
We utilize weekly small group meetings, mentoring friendships, prayer retreats and service opportunities as vehicles for growth and maturity in Christ.
The groups help men bring greater balance to their lives, positively impacting their relationship with Jesus Christ, their family, career, workplace and community.
Origin of word Teleios
The Greek word teleios means: Mature or full grown, having arrived at an end or objective. In Mathew 5:48 Jesus says: Ye must be teleioi(masculine plural) as your heavenly Father is teleios (masculine singular).
This progression can relate to an individual’s life, a small group or the entire body of Christ as one as all move toward greater trust, maturity and completeness in Jesus Christ. The goal of the Teleios ministry is to help men in the maturing process as it relates to their personal relationship with Jesus and therefore every other element of their lives.
Why participate in a group?
balance...
To keep stability in our lives, every follower of Christ needs to be involved in a small group like a Sunday school class, a Bible study, or a fellowship group like Teleios. We men tend to be independent, yet strive for equilibrium in family, health, and job. We stumble and fall and need help getting back on course. As believers we learn that by trying to provide this steadiness by ourselves, we fail. A small group can keep us on track by keeping Jesus in our lives. By example, Jesus ministered in the context of a small group with His twelve disciples. God has made an incredible promise about small groups of believers in Mathew 18:20, “For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them.” A small group like Teleios helps us keep this sense of balance in our lives.
perspective...
Fellowship, or experiencing lives together with other brothers, helps keep a proper perception of our lives. In a small group can we experience authenticity, not service-level chit-chat. Teleios promotes genuine, heart-to-heart, sometimes gut level sharing. It happens when we get honest about who we are and what is happening in our lives. We share our hurts, reveal our feelings, confess our failures, disclose our doubts, admit our fears, acknowledge our weaknesses, and ask for help and prayer. Many times we cannot find this level of sharing in other settings. There are very few relationally safe places in our culture. We need others in our life. Gal. 6:2 tells us to “Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” Teleios helps us maintain this proper perspective in our lives.
value of walking together...
It is important to belong to a Church where we can worship every week. We also need a place to integrate our faith. Life is meant to be shared. In small groups there is an atmosphere of honesty, humility, and mutual accountability. We rid ourselves of our masks, we lower our guard, and we do not act as if everything is rosy in our lives. There is no pretending, role-playing, superficial politeness or shallow conversation, which is the death of fellowship. We experience life together. We can become open about our lives and can experience real fellowship. Our small group of friends helps us to grow our faith in God and pull us through when needed. We learn in 1 John 1:7-8, “If we live in the light, as God is in the light, we can share fellowship with each other…if we say we have no sin, we are fooling ourselves.” We learn mercy by knowing the difference between forgiveness (letting go of the past) and trust (future behavior) and are willing to receive it from each other. In a small group, the body of Christ is real and tangible even when God seems distant. Most important, our faith grows by participation in Teleios like Paul said in Rom. 1:12 “….you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith”.
"There are many other benefits you will experience in committing yourself to real fellowship by being a part Teleios. God intends for us to experience life together. Small groups are an essential part of your Christian life that cannot be overlooked. For over 2,000 years Christians have regularly gathered is small groups for fellowship. If you have never been a part of a group, you do not know what you’re missing!"
The History of Teleios
The foundation of the Teleios Ministry was built in 1970 by Conrad (Connie) Jacobsen, who has a Master of Divinity from Fuller Theological Seminary. While serving full-time with the Young Life Ministry (working with high school students), he was asked by a group of men, who were supporting the ministry to meet with them on a weekly basis in the same way he was meeting with high school students. That group is still meeting today.
Teleios was incorporated in 1980 and was a natural culmination of Connie’s work at Fuller, his many years with Young Life, and his ability to establish rapport with men. The Name “Teleios” is a Greek word which means “adult, full grown or mature.”
Art Kopicky joined the ministry in 1993 to help expand the growing work. Prior to joining Teleios, Art also worked full time in the Young Life Ministry for 16 years. Art has his Masters of Divinity from Regent College in Vancouver, B.C.
In October 2008, Shawn Petree joined Connie and Art. He also has served with the Young Life staff, in both Texas and Washington and now with Teleios is focusing on 25-40 year old men. Shawn has his MDiv. from Faith Lutheran Seminary in Tacoma, Washington.
Number of Groups/ Men involved
There are 50+ groups in the greater Seattle/Tacoma area, with more than 350 men involved.
How do I get involved?
The best way to get involved is to email teleios.org@gmail.com and specify your area of interest:
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Join a Group
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Meet individually with Art or Shawn
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Events/ Trips with other guys
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Annual Service trip to Tijuana
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Fly fishing in Montana
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Local men’s weekend on Bainbridge Island
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Teleios Annual Dinner
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Day away adventure for groups or individuals
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Partnership with DADS/ ECBF
For the past 15 years we have had a close partnership with https://www.aboutdads.org/. Becoming friends and brothers with men tied to this organization helps us live into the call to live into one humanity in Christ. For the past 25 years we have walked closely with leadership and others from Emerald City Bible Fellowship http://emeraldcitybible.org/. We partner with both DADS and ECBF in our annual service trip to Tijuana.
How is Teleios funded?
Teleios is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. We rely on gifts and donations of men who are involved in Teleios, along with others who believe in the mission of discipleship for men. Our annual budget is $420,000. This covers two full-time ministers, part-time administrator, expenses for involvement with individual groups and individuals, and various service projects and adventures trips for men.
Ways to give to Teleios
Online monthly support (click here) this is the most tangible way to support the ongoing work of Teleios!
One-time gift (click here)
Retreat scholarships for men of color and younger men click here (designation Conrad Jacobsen Memorial Fund)
Federal Tax ID # 91-1126140