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3 Ways to use Multiple Bible Translations

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Today we are blessed to have dozens of Bible translations from which to pick. There is no shortage of good translations of Scripture. Every translation will have its pros and cons, and people often become very passionate about which one they believe is the “right” one. Truth be told, I believe it is a blessing to have multiple translations from which to choose. Some people might make a Bible translation preference a “hill to die on,” but that would be unfortunate. While some translations may be closer to the wording of the original languages of the Bible (and therefore a little harder to read and understand), other good translations translate thought-for-thought so that the Scripture is still highly accurate, but more accessible to the average reader. At the end of the day, most modern translations are going to be great translations with only minor differences.

That being said, is it a good idea to use multiple translations personally? What about using multiple translations in your Bible study group? I believe it’s a good thing to read from different versions, so here is my advice and reasoning for this practice:

  1. Memorize from one primary version. It is really hard to memorize Scripture from multiple versions! It is best if you find a version of Scripture that makes God’s Word accessible and understandable to you. When you find that version, stick with it for the long haul. Let this be the one from which you memorize Scripture.
  2. Study from multiple versions as a group leader. Sometimes the way one translation phrases a sentence can add clarity or help you understand the intended meaning of the biblical author. As you do your personal study in preparation to teach, study from different translations and note the ways translators phrase key words—the ones that are different may need further investigation on your part to uncover the original meaning of the Hebrew or Greek words that have been translated differently.
  3. Use multiple versions in your group. As you lead your group, encourage the use of multiple versions – don’t enforce your preferences on your people. If they ask which translation you prefer, tell them. But don’t be dogmatic about them all using the same one! The differences in translations will become apparent as people read verses during your Bible study. This can spur discussion. “Why does my Bible have the word X, and Bill’s version has the word Y?” Some rich theological discussions can come from this.

If you need or want a new Bible, I encourage you to take a look at the CSB (Christian Standard Bible) produced by LifeWay. It has won awards for its accuracy to the original languages of the Bible, while being the most readable version of Scripture on the market today. Click here to jump to the CSB’s landing page where you can read all about it, including FAQs that will be helpful to you.

Ken Braddy manages LifeWay’s Ongoing Bible studies, leads his church’s groups ministry, and blogs daily on Sunday School and small groups at kenbraddy.com.
Church Leadership

The Transformational Practice of Thanksgiving

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by Reid Smith

I love Thanksgiving! Most people love the holiday because it’s a time to enjoy family, friends, and lots of great food! Most of my favorite memories in life revolve around the combination of these three things, which is why this time of year brings the hope of passing it on by making similar heart-warming memories with my own kids.

Thanksgiving, however, is more than a holiday for groups: it’s a transformational practice that we can’t do without in our small groups. God uses thanksgiving that honors Him to build community, boost faith, and bless the people circled up with us. There are biblical truths about what the Lord does in our lives as a result of showing God-honoring gratitude in our relationship with Him and one another. Thanksgiving:

  • Deepens our communion with God and one another, which advances the Church’s mission (John 17:20-21; 1 Cor 11:23-26, 33; 2 Thes 1:2-3)
  • Strengthens our worship and prayer life because we’re being obedient to give thanks as a part of each (Ps 69:30, 95:2, 100:4; 1 Cor 1:4; Col 1:3)
  • Ushers in the peace of God, which protects one’s whole being against the enemy (Php 4:6-7; 1 Thes 5:11; Heb 3:13)

Experientially, I’ve found that giving thanks reminds me of God’s nature and what He has done for us all. I believe this is one of the reasons why we see so many laments turn to praise in the Psalms and why the Apostle Paul usually opens and closes his letters with giving thanks. Thanksgiving helps me to set my mind on things above and fix my thoughts on Jesus (Col 3:2; Heb 3:1). It helps me to be more forgiving and full of faith, and it even has a way of enhancing my love for my brothers and sisters and Christ.

There’s power in giving thanks. It goes hand-in-hand with encouragement. For example, when I’m encouraging people, I’m usually showing gratitude for something I admire or appreciate about them. Furthermore, when people thank others out of their love for them, how can they not be encouraged? God uses encouragement and thanksgiving together to build community and further His purposes in the world (2 Cor 13:11).

The more I express thanks to God and encourage others, the better I’m able to walk in God’s will, which 1 Thessalonians 5:18 plainly spells out: “Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” Regardless of what we’re facing or up against, God’s will for us is that we are to give thanks. Let’s be honest…that’s a tall order! However, when thanksgiving is a regular practice, it becomes more a part of my natural disposition and response.

Giving thanks invites God’s blessings into our lives because we’re being obedient to live according to His will in Christ Jesus. Consequently, we get to walk in the favor and power of the Lord, which overflows to the people He has put in our lives. As you circle up with the people in your group, give thanks in everything that you do together – fellowship, eating together, worship, prayer, Bible Study – so that you can experience more of God’s life-changing power in your life together.

Reid has been equipping leaders in churches of all sizes and stages of growth for effective disciple-making since 1996. He currently serves as a Pastor of Groups at Christ Fellowship in Palm Beach County, FL and has been a contributing author for various publications, including LifeWay’s Ministry Grid. Learn more about how to start and multiply healthy groups throughout your church at www.reidsmith.org.
Thursday Giveaway

Thursday Giveaway: Explore the Bible

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Each week on Thursdays we highlight a trustworthy discipleship resource that can help you in your mission to make disciples. This week’s post is from Explore the Bible: Adults Personal Study Guide Winter 2019, Session 2—Not Alone. Fill out the form at the end of this post by Friday, November 16th at 11:59pm to enter for a chance to win this free resource!

Not Alone (Gen. 28:10-22)

Loneliness is more than location. We can be in a familiar place, yet still be alone. We can feel alone in a room full of people or walking down a city street surrounded by a mass of people. The feeling of aloneness can be overwhelming.

Jacob knew loneliness. After tricking his father Isaac into giving him the patriarchal blessing, Jacob was forced to flee his home. Leaving behind his worried mother, angry brother, and deceived father, he left Beer-sheba and set out for Haran, the home of his mother’s brother. When the sun had set, he stopped to rest at a certain place. This place was far from home, far away from his mother’s tender touch, and far away from the luxuries afforded him as Isaac’s son. In this place, alone, there was no need for deception or trickery. Most likely, his thoughts were now filled with fear. Would Esau follow him and kill him? Would he have enough food or water? Would he find his way to Haran? Would his uncle welcome him under these circumstances? His deceptive actions brought him to this uninviting and uncomfortable place with only a stone for a pillow. Alone and exhausted, he watched the day turn to night as he lay in that place.

The consequences of our sinful actions often take us to places we did not imagine. We fantasize of riches and fame, but sin offers no such reward. Like Jacob, we may find ourselves without family and home if we bite at Satan’s temptations.

In this solitary place, sleep overtook Jacob and he dreamed. In his dream, Jacob saw a stairway that reached from earth to heaven. God’s angels were going up and down on it. The stairway reminds us of God’s personal involvement in the affairs on earth and in the hearts of humanity. While people, like Jacob, may leave God out of their lives, God never deserts them. Notice the movement of the angels on the stairway. They were already on earth, traveling up to heaven and then coming back down to earth again. God’s angelic army had been busy on earth, long before Jacob’s time. Not only were the angels accomplishing God’s purposes on earth, but by ascending up the stairway, they were in constant communication with heaven. Nothing on earth escapes the watchful eye of God. Even in this solitary place, Jacob learned God was at work.

As far as Scripture reveals, this was Jacob’s first encounter with God. Introducing Himself, God used the name Yahweh, the personal name for God, meaning the self-existent, eternal God. Just as God appeared to Jacob’s grandfather and father, He appeared to Jacob personally. Jacob was about to learn that hearing the stories of God is not the same as having a personal relationship with Him.

God extended to Jacob the covenant He made with Abraham and Isaac, promising him offspring, land, a blessing through him, divine protection and presence, and that He would see Jacob safely home. God would appear to Jacob several more times, but this first meeting was significant because Jacob learned God was interested in him and was at work in his life.

As God approached sinful Jacob, Jesus comes to us in spite of our sinfulness. He loves us as we are and blesses us though we are undeserving. By placing our faith in Jesus, our lives will never be the same. We can be confident in knowing that God is with us and guides us to fulfill His purposes in and through us.

This article was adapted from Explore the Bible: Adults Personal Study Guide Winter 2019, Session 2—Not Alone. Explore the Bible is a book-by-book group Bible study that encourages participants to let the Word dwell in them and challenges them to live it out in their own context. Preview one month free at lifeway.com/ExploreTheBible

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Group Answers Podcast

Group Answers Episode 74: Barnabas Piper on Dealing with Doubts and Unbelief

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On this week’s episode, Brian and Chris sit down with Barnabas Piper to discuss his book, Help My Unbelief: Why Doubt Is Not the Enemy of Faith. Barnabas is an author, podcaster, and speaker who lives near Nashville, Tennessee. He writes regularly for He Reads Truth and blogs at BarnabasPiper.com. He has authored three books, The Pastor’s Kid: Finding Your Own Faith and Identity (David C. Cook, 2014), Help My Unbelief: Why Doubt Is Not the Enemy of Faith (David C. Cook, 2015), and The Curious Christian: How Discovering Wonder Enriches Every Part of Life (B&H Publishing Group, 2017). He also co-hosts The Happy Rant podcast, a popular show discussing issues of faith and culture in a light-hearted, humorous manner.

Questions:

1. Talk to us about your personal struggles with doubt. In what ways have you found doubt to be redemptive?

2. What are some things that the church can do to help with Christians struggling through doubt and unbelief?

3. How important were relationships and community in your process of working through your unbelief?

4. Is it ok for a small group leader to still have unbelief and doubt? How much should he/she share those doubts with the group members?

5. How can a group leader best navigate those group discussions where doubts are shared and answers are not evident?

Quotes:

I knew everything I was supposed to know, but there was a disparity between that and those core beliefs that my hope rests in. That’s where the doubt lived for me.

That doubt ended up leading me all the way through college…and eventually hit a wall.

In the church, we get nervous about questions because it sounds like somebody is rejecting God, but often that’s an invitation for the Holy Spirit to speak into that person.

There is distinctly a redemptive opportunity in questions and doubts if we see them as an opportunity and not a challenge.

You have to be willing to answer the same questions over-and-over again, because some people will struggle with the same doubts for a long time.

The group context is vital to this, because that’s where the doubts come out.

There are doubts that you can put on the table that can rattle other people. You’re going to introduce a doubt to them that they have never considered.

You have to have a barometer of what’s the right thing to say here, and what’s the right thing to say just to that other member.

The Group Answers Podcast is a weekly show designed to resource, train, and encourage small group leaders. Each episode considers current trends and resources as well as timeless truths and methods of discipleship. It is hosted by Brian Daniel, a Bible study and discipleship expert in LifeWay’s Groups Ministry, and Chris Surratt, the small group and discipleship specialist at LifeWay and author of Small Groups for the Rest of Us.

Church Leadership

The Most Dangerous Question You Can Ask When Studying the Bible

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I believe in questions. I believe in them because they help us learn. Because they encourage our imagination and our sense of wonder. Because they exercise our creativity. And because asking questions, both to other people and to ourselves, helps us personalize information.

I believe in questions. And I believe in questions when studying the Bible. In the same respect, questions help us dig deeply into the meaning of Scripture. Questions help us meditate on the truth we find there. And questions also help us move our time in God’s Word from being just an educational exercise and into the realm of training in godliness. So it’s good and right, I believe, to ask all kinds of questions when we are studying the Bible. But there is one question we should avoid. It’s a question that is, in fact, dangerous for us to ask:

“What does this passage mean to me?”

Or, if you are leading someone else in Bible study, the question looks like this:

“What does this passage mean to you?”

Why is this a dangerous question to ask? It’s because the question itself implies a level of authority for you or me that we simply don’t have. It supposes that you and I have the right to determine what a passage of Scripture means to us. And what it means to me might not be what it means to you, but that’s okay, because each one of us determines the meaning on our own. And so we find ourselves on the slippery slope of relative truth in which we are all living under our own lordship. Of course, when we ask that question to ourselves or to others we might not be intentionally alluding to this, but Rome wasn’t built in a day. Neither is a worldview formed in a moment, but only over the course of time with repeated questions like this.

When we come to the Bible, we must come with an understanding of the Bible’s authority. That it is the truth. And when we see the Bible as authoritative, then the question of “what this passage means to me” becomes irrelevant. To be blunt about it, who cares what the Bible means to me? Who cares what the Bible means to you? I didn’t write it, and neither did you. The question, if the Bible really is God’s authoritative Word, is not what it means to me, but rather what does it mean period. Because it means what it means what it means.

By way of illustration, let’s say that I have a plate of food that I serve to a group of friends. I might ask all kinds of questions about that food – what does this look like to you? What does it taste like to you? What is the texture? What does it remind you of? All these questions can being out a deeper appreciation of the dish. But if I asked the question, “What is this plate of food to you?” then it is really just speculation. In the end, it might be an interesting discussion of what different people think it is, but what they think it is doesn’t change what it actually is.

But there is a simple change we can make to this question that makes all the difference in the world. It’s just a one word alteration, but with that single change we also change the implication dramatically. We emphasize the authoritative nature of God’s Word. Further, we also emphasize that God’s Word, because it is authoritative, requires a personal response from us. Here’s the change:

“What does this passage mean for you?”

Or,

“What does this passage mean for me?”

Again, just one word. But that one word makes all the difference because with this new question, we are calling ourselves or other people not to decide upon what truth is, but instead to act on the revealed truth. This is a good question. This is the right question. And this is the right posture for us to have when we approach God’s Word. We approach the Bible knowing that this is God’s Word to us, and God’s Word is calling us to respond over and over again. It is a Word for us. For us to respond to. For us to live by. For us to treasure. But not for us to interpret according to our own desires.

Michael Kelley lives in Nashville, TN, with his wife, Jana, and three children: Joshua (10), Andi (7), and Christian (5). He serves as Director of Groups Ministry for Lifeway Christian Resources. As a communicator, Michael speaks across the country at churches, conferences, and retreats and is the author of Wednesdays Were Pretty Normal: A Boy, Cancer, and God; Transformational Discipleship; and Boring: Finding an Extraordinary God in an Ordinary Life. Find him on Twitter:@_MichaelKelley. Check out his latest book, Growing Down: Unlearning the Patterns of Adulthood that Keep Us from Jesus here.
Church Leadership

When You Disagree in Group

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by Jared Musgrove

It is never “if” Christians disagree but “when”.

It’s important to lean into this as a small group leader. Lead your group to practice Christian unity before the conflict comes. Walk through how you will disagree before the disagreement happens. This is an opportunity to show the gospel to an unbelieving world, and be reminded of it all over again yourselves.

Francis Schaeffer has been so helpful to me in his approach to Christian disagreement. In The Mark of the Christian, he outlines just how Christians are to disagree in a way that honors God:

1. Have regret. Weep over the fact that there is disagreement. This is clearly not as it should be. So recognize this. Weep together if you are able that you are here. Look forward together to a day when disagreements will be no more.

2. Demonstrate visible love. “Not all differences among Christians are equal. There are some that are very minor. Others are overwhelmingly important,” writes Schaeffer. “The more serious the wrongness, the more important it is to exhibit the holiness of God… the more important it becomes that we look to the Holy Spirit to enable us to show true love to the true Christians with whom we must differ.” Spend time on your knees praying for, and perhaps even with, the one with whom you disagree. This is visible, tangible love began.

3. Practice demonstrations of love. Do whatever must be done to show love, outdoing each other in honor even in the midst of the disagreement. A way to start the conversation with practical love is to tell the person with whom you disagree how you see the Lord using them. If they are a fellow Christian, the Spirit is at work in them. Remind each other of this in the midst of the disagreement.

4. Desire to solve the problem, rather than win. Far too much of our history is a desire to win for ourselves rather than for all the brothers and sisters. Schaeffer writes, “But we should understand that what we are working for in the midst of our difference is a solution – a solution that will give God the glory, that will be true to the Bible, but will exhibit the love of God simultaneously with his holiness.”

5. Help one another remember to exhibit our oneness in Christ before the disagreement comes. It is easy to compromise and call what is wrong right, but it is just as easy to forget to exhibit our oneness in Jesus. If there is not a habit of practicing oneness in Christ, of reminding each other of gospel truth regularly, then it will feel foreign to do so when the conflict comes.

Jared Steven Musgrove serves as Groups Pastor and elder at The Village Church in Flower Mound, Texas. He earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism from The University of Oklahoma, a Master of Divinity in preaching from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, and a Doctorate of Ministry in leadership from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. He is the husband of Jenny and the father of two sons, Jordan and Joshua. You can follow him on Twitter @jsmusgrove 
Church Leadership

Identifying Potential Leaders Within Your Small Group

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by Brian Phipps

Moses identified and developed Joshua. 

Elijah identified and developed Elisha. 

Jesus identified and developed Peter. 

Paul identified and developed Timothy. 

Who have you identified and developed to lead in your group?

Identifying and developing new leaders can be one of the most exciting and fulfilling practices for a small group leader. Yet based on my experience and the experience of many others I have spoken to, developing new leaders seems to be a lost art that only a few enjoy. Current leaders simply are not raising up new leaders. It does not need to be this way. 

The process of developing new leaders is simple: 

Identify your new leader.

Partner with your new leader.

Release your new leader.

This article’s focus is on identifying potential leaders. Many leaders falter at this step because they start by looking for a person’s group-leading competency. I often hear leaders say, “No one in this group is ready to lead.” While that statement may be true, it is partly true because they have never been given a chance to lead or they were asked to lead without adequate preparation. 

If you want to see more potential leaders in your current group, don’t start by looking for their competency. Start by looking for the following four criteria: 

Character 

Is this person growing? Are they taking next steps in their faith? If so, they have character. They do not need to have “arrived” at a certain level to begin developing their leadership ability.

Consistency

Does this person regularly show up for group? Are they consistently prepared for the conversation? Do their actions correlate with their words? If so, they are consistent.

Chemistry 

Does this person get along with most everyone else? If so, they have favorable chemistry. I do not know anyone who gets along with everyone, but I do know some who do not get along with many. Good group leaders are generally those who get along with most people.

Charisma

Do you and other people in the group listen when this person speaks? Does this person have people hanging around them before and after the group? If so, this person has charisma.

The ICNU (I see in you) Conversation

If a person meets these four criteria, it is time to initiate an “I see in you” conversation with them. Invite this person to come 15 minutes early to a group meeting to share what you see in them. This is such an encouraging exercise! After sharing the specific ways you see character, consistency, chemistry, and charisma in them, tell them that these are the four most important qualities you look for in a new group leader. Before they have a chance to respond, let them know that you want to work with them over the next few weeks to prepare them to lead the group. It is during this process that you will measure their competency.

If a person meets three of the four criteria, you can have a similar conversation with them. Have the ICNU conversation and how the three criteria you see are three of the four you look for in a new leader. The only difference in this conversation is that you will encourage them to consider asking Jesus to develop the one criteria that is missing. 

For example, if consistency is missing encourage them to ask Jesus to give them a desire and commitment to be more consistent. If they are missing the chemistry element, you can encourage them to pray for Jesus to bear more spiritual fruit in them. Developing this fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control goes a long way in developing chemistry with more people. The most difficult of these criteria to develop is charisma. Even so, God can develop confidence and vision in them that can elevate their potential to lead. If they develop that forth criteria, they too are ready to begin the process that will help you measure their competency.

Four Progressive Steps to Measuring Competency

1.  I do. You watch. We talk.

2.  I do. You help. We talk.

3.  You do. I help. We talk.

4.  You do. I watch. We talk.

Much has been written about these four steps of leadership development.  The brilliance of this process is the ability to measure person’s competency incrementally, minimizing embarrassment and perceived failure by thrusting them into a leadership situation prematurely. If a person moves through all four phases of this process successfully, it is time to enter the second phase of developing a leader, partnering with a new leader. I will cover that exciting topic in a later blog.

A Simple Tool

Identifying a new leader is not difficult, but it does take intentionality. One helpful tip for keeping this a priority is to have a notepad that you keep with you while leading your group. List out the four criteria on that notebook with space between each of them. When you notice someone demonstrating a given criteria, put their initials under that heading. When they get their initials under three or four of them, it is time to have those conversations.

A Promise

Over and over I hear how awesome it is to be a grandparent.  Almost every grandparent I know says it is WAY better than being a parent! Currently, I have three kids but no grandchildren. If these people are correct, my wife and I have some awesome days ahead because being a parent has been awesome! 

While I am not a grandparent physically, I am a grandparent spiritually. I know the joys of watching those I have invested in turn and invest in others. Their spiritual growth went into in hyper-drive when they started leading just like mine did when I was first asked to lead a Sunday school group many years ago. Their joy went up and my delight in them went up. I believe God smiled too. His kingdom just made room for more people to join and grow.

Start identifying a new leader today!

Brian Phipps is the founder of Disciples Made, a Not For Profit 501c3 Ministry that provides turn-key and custom disciple-making tools that integrate online and in person experiences. Brian coined the “Outcome Focused, Habit Fueled, and Content Flavored” language of the intentional disciple-making environment which provides increased spiritual effectiveness in traditional small group systems. Brian’s vision is to leverage the small group strategy to catalyze 50 Disciple-Making Movements in 50 Cities by 2040. 
Brian served for nine years as the Next Steps pastor at Westside Family Church in Kansas City, KS. Brian is also experienced as a church planter and senior pastor. Brian received his BA in religion from the University of South Carolina, and a Masters of Divinity and M.A. in Counseling from Reformed Theological Seminary in Orlando, Florida. Brian and Carol were married in 1994 and have three children, Hannah, Sam, and Caleb. 
Thursday Giveaway

Thursday Giveaway: The Gospel Project

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Each week on Thursdays we highlight a trustworthy discipleship resource that can help you in your mission to make disciples. This week’s post is from The Gospel Project: In the Beginning. Fill out the form at the end of this post by Friday, November 9th at 11:59pm to enter for a chance to win this free resource!

God’s Good World

Every story has a beginning, and the story of the Bible begins with four astounding words: “In the beginning God” (Gen. 1:1). God wasn’t just there at the beginning; He was there before the beginning. What this means is that everything and everyone has an origin, that is, except God.

The depiction of God we see in the Bible takes our simple ideas of religion and blasts them to pieces. It shows us a God who is so fundamental to all of life that even time itself must bow to His will as one of His creations. Here is a God whom we cannot control, cannot contain, and often cannot predict.

God’s creation tells a story. It’s a story of majesty, splendor, beauty, and greatness. But the story creation tells isn’t about itself—it is about the Creator. As majestic and beautiful as creation is, God the Creator is even more so, always greater than His creation. This is the story creation whispers, and sometimes shouts, to us every day.

Think about what you believe to be the most beautiful or amazing part of creation, something that makes your jaw drop. What do you envision? Perhaps a towering mountain range or a white sandy beach. Maybe a field of flowers or a leopard in mid-stride. Whatever you picture, as beautiful and glorious as it is, it pales in comparison to God’s original creation before the fall. Even now, stained by the curse of sin, creation continues to declare the glory of God! That’s how glorious He is.

Creation was designed to point us to the greatness of God and to elicit worship toward Him in our hearts and lives. That is the story creation tells.

What are some parts of creation that make you marvel the most? What do they tell you about God? 

The apostle John opens up his story of Jesus’ life by connecting Him to the creation story. The Word created all things good, but later the Word took on flesh (John 1:1) to enter into this dark, sin-filled, chaotic world that life and light might shine in it once more.

Throughout His ministry, we see Jesus undoing the chaos and darkness left by sin. He heals diseases, opens the eyes of the blind, makes the lame walk, the deaf hear, and the dead come to life. He forgives adulterers, murderers, and thieves. Where sin left a dark void in the world, Jesus came with a thundering word: Let there be light!

But Jesus’ ministry went even deeper. He laid down His life in the darkness and chaos of death, taking upon Himself our sin so that we who had rejected the Word could have light and life again. Jesus allowed Himself to be de-created on the cross so that we could be re-created through His resurrection. Your life may be a picture of chaos, but if Jesus can create everything good out of nothing, He can surely re-create everything in you.

Where is the chaos in your life that you need Jesus to re-create? 

 Excerpted from J.D. Greer and Chris Pappalardo, The Gospel Project: In the Beginning © 2018 LifeWay Press®. Used by permission.Scripture quotations are taken from the Christian Standard Bible®. Copyright 2018 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission.

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Group Answers Podcast, Uncategorized

Group Answers Episode 73: Dealing with Difficult People

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On today’s episode, Chris, Brian, and Brandon talk about how to deal with difficult people in your group.

Questions

  • What constitutes a difficult person in a group?
  • What steps should you take with that person?
  • At what point do you ask that person to leave the group?
  • What if you are dealing with a toxic small group?
  • When is it ok to disband a whole group?

Quotes

We can misconstrue what is difficult for someone who is just a strong personality.

You have to have an awareness and availability to deal with bigger issues.

The difficult member can be someone who confesses the same sin every week.

Ask the question: How are you growing in your joy in Jesus in this area that keeps coming up?

Always start with “Yes, I am a sinner.” There are no non-sinners in that conversation.

Ask the person to help you understand where they are coming from first.

Ask yourself if you’ve done a good job of establishing what the vision of the group is.

No one should feel like a hero and bear something they are not ready to bear.

The Group Answers Podcast is a weekly show designed to resource, train, and encourage small group leaders. Each episode considers current trends and resources as well as timeless truths and methods of discipleship. It is hosted by Brian Daniel, a Bible study and discipleship expert in LifeWay’s Groups Ministry, and Chris Surratt, the small group and discipleship specialist at LifeWay and author of Small Groups for the Rest of Us.

Tuesday Thoughts

Tuesday Thoughts: Shaping Culture in your Small Group

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Today I want to talk about shaping the culture of your small group. You know, every environment that we find ourselves in has a culture. Kind of those unwritten rules or laws that we all abide by when we’re in that environment. For instance, your work place has a culture. There’s a certain way that you behave, how you interact with people at work and that becomes the culture of your workplace. Our homes have a culture. The way that we act in our homes, where we behave in our environment is just the natural culture of the unwritten laws, rules of our homes. Well, our small groups have a culture as well. Now, culture is kind of like the rebar of a building when it’s being constructed and if you were to go by a building when it’s first getting started, you might see these steel poles that are in the building and that’s the rebar and that’s the framework for that building, but we don’t go by a building at that stage and admire it and say, that’s gonna be a beautiful building! I can tell by the rebar! No, we wait until it’s built out and the outside gets on and then we admire it. But if the rebar wasn’t there, that building would eventually collapse.

So that’s the same thing when it comes to our small groups. What is the culture? What is the rebar? What is the framework of your small group? It’s either Gospel centered or it’s not. So if we recognize this fact, we should take on an active role in culture formation in our small group and we should be concerned that the gospel is not merely a message that we talk about, but it’s actually providing the underlying framework for everything that we do in our group life. That it infiltrates our thoughts and our beliefs and consequently our groups so deeply that even the normal aspects of what we do together in our group takes on a different kind of significance and meaning. And that’s being gospel centered with our culture. So over the next few weeks with Tuesday thoughts, I’m going to break that out and look at how do we take each aspect of the culture of our group and make sure that it’s gospel centered.

Chris Surratt is a ministry consultant and coach with more than twenty years of experience serving the local church. Chris served on the Executive Teams at Cross Point Church in Nashville, TN., and Seacoast Church in Charleston, S.C., prior to becoming the Discipleship and Small Groups Specialist for LifeWay Christian Resources. He is the author of  Small Groups for the Rest of Us: How to Design Your Small Groups System to Reach the Fringes. You can follow his blog at www.chrissurratt.com.