Complex sentence: By the early 1970s this had formed into a covenanted community in Ann Arbor called the Word of God and then began to forge links with other like-minded Christian groups around the world.
Split into simpler sentences: By the early 1970s this had formed into the Word of God covenanted community in Ann Arbor. After it's foundation as a covenanted community, the Word of God then began to forge links with other like-minded Christian groups around the world.