Recruitment

February 23, 2021

How to Identify and Empower New Small Group Leaders

By Cheri Liefeld

As small group ministry leaders, we face one ongoing challenge: identifying and empowering the next group leader. Our work is to equip leaders who will equip other leaders. The Bible gives us many examples of leaders investing in others. Moses empowered Joshua to lead the Israelites into the promised land, and Jesus trained and empowered His disciples to lead His church after His ascension.

Paul cast the vision in 2 Timothy 2:2, where he wrote, “You have heard me teach things that have been confirmed by many reliable witnesses. Now teach these truths to other trustworthy people who will be able to pass them on to others” (NLT).

We want leaders with the passion and vision to equip others to become leaders. In small group orientation, reproducing leaders is one of the core principles we teach. Raising up new leaders will maximize our impact.

One of the best examples I have seen intentionally pursue this has been a group of young adult men. They started with one group, with the leader recruiting a co-leader. They identified two more young men launching a second group. A total of five Warriors of God groups launched in the last two years. One group has been led strategically by an 18-year-old with plans to teach and continue these groups. When another one of the leaders aged out, he launched a group for men in their 30s.

Each of us can do the same, equipping new leaders by following a simple path: Involve, Identify, Invite, and Invest.

Involve group members and encourage other leaders to do the same. The first step is to create opportunities for your group members to step up and play a part in leading the small group. When launching a new group, offer up various roles for people to play a part in the group. This creates a sense of ownership for the group while allowing you to see leadership potential.

Yes, it is more comfortable in the short term to do everything ourselves, but that doesn’t help us reach our goals to reproduce and equip leaders. Opportunities to involve others include asking someone to lead the discussion one evening, write up and email weekly prayer requests, or organize the group service project.

The next step is to Identify potential leaders. Paul told Timothy to invest in reliable people (2 Timothy 2:2). Look for several potential leaders. Reliability is a basic trait, but essential. Who is consistent and does what they say they will?

I have found two types of potential leaders. The first are natural-born leaders. They come from another church, are former youth group leaders, or leaders in their work field. They look for opportunities, sign up and start serving.

The other kind of potential leader is harder to spot at first but often turns out to be the best small group leader. They don’t think of themselves as leaders, yet they are quietly shepherding people along.

Pray and ask for God’s wisdom and guidance as you spend time thinking about potential leaders. Jesus was intentional in who He invested in. Create a list of why you feel they would make a great group leader. We give some basic guidelines for our leaders to consider in our orientation.

Do they love Jesus?
Do they have decent social skills?
Are they engaged and committed?

When I led a small group and felt called to replace myself, I told one woman I believed she would make a great leader. When we met, I shared what I saw in her—the extra time she invested in our small group members, how she took the lead in praying, and the initiative to plan social gatherings. She had the heart to help people take their next steps. In the end, she looked at me and firmly said, “No, I am not a leader.”

One of the best parts of leading groups is seeing how God works. I invited several potential leaders to join our first five-week Small Group Leader Prep group and included the woman from my group. She emailed back, replying no. The day before the group started, she called me and said, “I’m not a leader, but God told me I should attend, so I will.” The magic happened when other group members cheered her on and told her of the potential they saw in her. She has been leading a small group ever since.

The best way to identify and empower future leaders is to speak life into people and watch how God waters those words. The outcome is out of our hands, but we need to be courageous and pursue potential leaders on an ongoing basis.

Once you have identified your potential leaders, invite them to join you. Invite them to coffee or to meet individually prior to your group meeting. Be specific; tell them why you are inviting them to be a leader. Here are a few ways to share:

I love how you….
I appreciate how you..
I see you doing…
Your heart for _____ is evident when you….

Once they say “Yes” or “Maybe,” continue to Invest in them. Investing in our leaders is a journey, and each one will go at different speeds. Build a relationship and continue to invite them to take their next leadership steps. Ask them to co-lead your group allowing you to serve together and debrief each week.

Empower them by letting them take the lead and spend time providing feedback after. Ensure the training, encouragement, and support needed for them to grow as a leader. Listen and affirm where you see God working. Check in and see how things are going. We ask our coaches to check in monthly on their small group leaders.

A big part of investing in our leaders is to equip them. Invite them to your leadership events. Ask them to attend your orientation and start the process of becoming a small group leader. During your one-on-ones, challenge them to consider what steps God is calling them to take.

Who is God calling you to invest in? How can you build a path to maximize your impact and empower new leaders?

Cheri Liefeld is the Director of Small Groups at Eastside Community Church in Anaheim, California. She was previously Director of Women’s Ministry at Mariners Church. She is a writer and loves to gather people around the table. You can read more at adventuresinthekitchen.com.

Group Leadership

February 4, 2021

CPR for Small Group Ministry

By Group Ministry

By Reid Smith

One of the greatest mistakes made by church leaders who want to reintroduce or reinvigorate a small group ministry is to make their first step an announcement from the pulpit. This well-intentioned step can have catastrophic results if those who had a less-than-favorable experience feel disregarded, retired leadership feel dismissed, and residual leadership (if any) feel disrespected. There is a critical pre-game plan that must be executed in private before going public. The life-saving practice of CPR offers a helpful pattern to follow.

When an unconscious or unresponsive person is being revived using CPR, it is vital for the person helping to follow the A-B-C steps for resuscitating another person:

AIRWAY – Open the airway
BREATHING – Breathe air into the opened airway
CIRCULATION – Perform cycles of breaths & chest compressions to restore the victim

There are equivalents for each of these steps when it comes to restoring life to your small group ministry. As with actual CPR, it is very important to follow them in order. Many church leaders unknowingly engage these steps in the reverse order (C-B-A). This can have devastating consequences for the ministry at large.

The first step in CPR is to make sure the victim’s AIRWAY is clear from any obstructions. The one responding to the emergency is to look, listen, and feel for breathing. The parallel for those who are trying to resuscitate community life through small groups is to look for, listen to, and feel out your past, present, and future small group leadership. Conversation opens the airway.

AIRWAY – Learning from your past, present, and future small group leadership

PAST: Set-up conversations over coffee with those who were key leaders (e.g. coaches and long-term leaders) and significant voices of influence in the past and ask for their input. It is very important to do the following in each of your meetings:
- Be sincere in expressing appreciation for their past involvement and inviting honest feedback. Then be humble and listen intently to what they tell you.
- Be discerning about who is supportive of you and the attempt to restart the small group ministry. There will be some who express support but are not personally ready to take part in reintroducing a small group ministry…and that’s okay!
- Beware of those who do not seem to have anything positive to say and use their conversation with you to vent negativity. Thank them for their input and move on. It may do more harm to try to win these people over. Your goal is not to gain everyone’s acceptance and enthusiastic approval. Your goal is to get the RIGHT people on your team. Having the wrong people on your team obstructs the airway and renders the next two steps ineffective.

Have phone conversations with the other leaders and volunteers who were involved in the past for a shorter term. It is well worth your time to interface personally with every past leader and this effort on your part will mean a lot to them. Regardless of whether they are optimistic, ambivalent, or skeptical, you will learn a lot from these people even when they are not ready to jump on-board with the new effort. They will also likely appreciate the respect you have shown by initiating conversation and inviting feedback.

2. PRESENT: Acknowledge those who are still involved. Commend them for their commitment and include them in your future planning. Ask them for their input as well by using the same tips above. Invite them to join you for a vision-casting experience that will include emerging small group leadership. Note: Where present leaders remain involved, it is important that you do NOT convey that you are starting something completely new to replace the past small group ministry. Rather, you are continuing to build upon the foundation of the biblical community the Lord has already established. This honors what God has done and may still be doing through these present leaders, and it shows respect for their continued loving service.

3. FUTURE: Review your church’s master list of members with your senior pastor. Highlight the names of those who have been or are presently involved. Next highlight the names of those you and your senior pastor think are good prospective leaders. As before, arrange sit-down conversations with people you would like to invite into further responsibility.

1. Whether you talk by phone or in person with prospective leaders, explain…
  1. What you are presenting (tell them what their role looks like as a facilitator)
  2. Why they specifically came to mind as a potential small group leader
  3. What their group might look like and how it fits into the overarching vision of your church
2. Dream with them about possibilities and give them the freedom of choosing a focus they are excited about (we are all called to be community-builders!)
3. Clearly communicate expectations
  1. Essential responsibilities
  2. Project the time commitment involved
  3. Suggest beginning with a shorter duration
  4. Request participation in a vision-casting event and initial training
4. Clarify that you (or a coach) will be with them every step of the way
5. Set a specific time to follow-up

BREATHING – Including all the leaders in a vision-casting experience

After you have opened the airway by carrying out your pre-game plan with the emerging leadership, the next step in resuscitating the small group ministry is to bring all those who have expressed openness to restarting the small group ministry together to cast fresh vision by communicating your church’s…

Mission and core values
Vision of how small groups will further your church’s mission by fueling the growth of biblical community
History with small groups and what you have learned from earlier attempts (based on feedback you have received from a number of leaders)
Belief in the importance of small groups and the benefits that come from them
Current and projected need for small groups to ensure healthy church growth
Renewed definition of a small group and support structure for the ministry
Dream of what the new small group ministry looks like in action
Ongoing plan for training, resourcing, and supporting your new community of leaders

The third step in CPR involves restoring breathing and sometimes even circulation to the unresponsive victim. Like people, small group ministries can have faint breath or no breath, irregular circulation or no pulse. Take heart! The Lord wants you and the community of your church to experience His resurrection life. Furthermore, He wants the community life of your church to explode out and impact your surrounding community. Jesus will build biblical community in your local church as He builds His Church!

CIRCULATION – Reintroducing small groups through public communication

One mistake leaders make when relaunching small group ministry is going public prematurely. Do not circumvent the process of securing and uniting your new community of leaders with the fresh vision that will undergird your new attempt. Your small group leadership community provides the necessary backbone to this church-wide initiative, especially when there is a history of unsatisfactory results. In other words, you need to have your team together before game time. This provides confidence for the whole congregation that the necessary groundwork of preparing a new small group leadership group has already been done.

When it comes to reintroducing small groups as a church-wide ministry, it is vital the senior pastor joins with the small group ministry staff (paid or not) in communicating the new vision. Earlier attempts at small group ministry that never really took root can oftentimes leave a bad aftertaste. Hearing the philosophical “why’s” directly from the senior pastor and the fresh, practical “how’s” from those leading the new effort can help to neutralize this distaste.

There are a couple of things the senior pastor should recognize: 1) The past attempt(s) and the leadership’s appreciation for all of those who were involved and 2) The new attempt and how it is different. As a continuation of explaining the why behind small groups it is also important for the senior pastor to communicate why the church values small groups, why they are so important to the church’s mission, and why it is vital for everyone to be involved. The communication of opportunities for people to connect into a small group may be done by the small group/discipleship pastor once the why foundation has been laid by the senior pastor.

Another strategy that dissipates the bad aftertaste of earlier small group ministry short-comings is to talk about group life in the context of seasons or semesters. In other words, say “The first season of our small group ministry will look like such-and-such.” This lets the church know you are asking for a shorter-term commitment to begin with. It also affords you the flexibility to change tact from season-to-season in order to remain relevant for the ever-changing make-up and needs of your church community.

The other advantage to doing this is it gives you a “new excuse” to talk about small groups in a big way two to three times per year. Regardless, a key principle to ensuring the success of restarting your church’s small group ministry is to keep groups in front of your people. Give your newly-fashioned small group ministry plenty of “face time.” Advertise new groups, highlight existing ones, encourage people to connect. Talk about groups regularly in front of the whole church. Doing so shows the value you place on them.

Restarting an unresponsive person’s circulation usually requires some cyclical repetition of breathing and chest compressions. Likewise, there can be some repetition to the application of this third step of CPR to restoring life to your small group ministry by feeding your emerging small group ministry fresh communication and different opportunities for people to connect. Stay creative in helping people to connect and grow together in Christ! Networking with other like-minded churches and sharing creative ideas and resources helps this process.

A person who is revived through CPR does not immediately spring back to their feet and take off running. Similarly, a small group ministry that has life restored to it needs to be nurtured and nursed back to full health over time. It requires careful and clear communication. It requires consistency in prayer and the promotion of small groups in your church’s weekend life. And it requires a united leadership front and an openness to new seasons of community life that connect with your church’s mission. If you follow the A-B-C steps for restoring life to your small group ministry, the odds are strongly in favor of revival and real impact on your surrounding community.

Reid Smith has been equipping leaders in churches of all sizes and stages of growth for effective disciple-making since 1996. He lives in Wellington, Florida where he serves as a Groups Pastor at Christ Fellowship. You can find more of his helpful resources at www.reidsmith.org.

Group Leadership

January 11, 2021

Small Group Launch Checklist

By Group Ministry

By Reid Smith

Leaders launching new small groups want to have a strong start and welcome input on how to do so. Try offering just enough guidance so they know what to do BEFORE, DURING, and AFTER their first meeting without overwhelming them. This is an example of a resource you can customize to help small group leaders think through important steps so their new group can launch successfully and stay together for the long-haul.

BEFORE

1.Invite as many of your friends as you can think of…

◦Share your vision for the group—why you’re doing it and what you hope people will walk away with.

◦Try to describe the dynamic of the group and the people who will be a part of it.

◦Create an invitational ripple effect by having your friends and new group members invite their friends too.

2.Invite more people than you have room for (usually only one-half to two-thirds of those who confirm actually show up!). Start with as many people as possible at the beginning because there’s usually some attrition.

3.Tell people this will initially be a short-term experience that you’re confident they’ll love and then they’ll be able to decide if and in what way they’d like to continue.

4.Let them know there will be food…lots of good food! (If group members commit to bring food to the next meeting, this increases the likelihood they will return.)

5.Phone or text those interested a day or two before your first meeting.

6.Pray for your new group and those who plan to come!

7.Review any leader/host material and the upcoming study session in advance.

DURING

1.Welcome and introduce yourself (be relaxed, be real, and have FUN!).

2.Share a little background as to why you chose the focus of the group and tell them basically what each meeting will look like.

3.Allow time for people to introduce themselves and to share why your group stood out to them.

4.Acknowledge God’s Presence with you (Mt. 18:20) and share how you believe the Lord will use your new group experience to transform your lives. Depending on how many people are present who are not a part of your church, you can touch briefly on how your group will help to fulfill your church’s mission by living out the biblical purposes of God together.

5.Model authenticity and affirm each person’s input as you facilitate discussion.

6.Encourage participants to invite their friends, co-workers, neighbors, parents of their kids’ friends, and other unconnected people at your church to future meetings.

7.Close your group time in a brief prayer and get a picture.

AFTER

1.Let your Pastor or Coach know how everything went and how they can pray for you!

2.Follow-up with those who didn’t show up by calling them to let them know you missed them, how great the first meeting was, and also to remind them of when the next meeting is going to be.

3.Spread the word on social media with your photo and welcome people to join you.

4.Remind your new group members of your next meeting (and any food they might be bringing) a day or two beforehand.

5.Review the upcoming session and tailor the discussion questions based on who God has placed in your group.

6.Start pondering and praying about who you believe could co-lead with you and eventually launch out with their own small group.

7.Over time, share bite-size roles and responsibilities with your group members, see what people gravitate toward, and let them run with it! Rotate the facilitation of the study and discussion as well.

Group Leadership

September 10, 2020

10 Tips for a Brand New Group Leader

By Ken Braddy

I wish someone had written this article for me “back in the day.” My first step into becoming a group leader took place right after I got married. My new bride and I were recruited to teach a group of eighth grade girls. I had no clue how to be an effective leader at that point in my life, but I had the job of leading those girls, and as I remember, we had a bunch of them!

As I reflect back on that experience, and as I have spoken with hundreds of group leaders across the country, I’ve come up with a “top 10 list” of things that brand new group leaders should consider. I’d have been a better teacher if someone had shared these with me in 1987. Yes, I just dated myself. If I could tell my younger self only 10 things, here they are in no particular order.

1. Teaching is not telling. Learning is not listening. I remember telling my wife something really dumb after accepting the group leader position with those eighth grade girls: “Charles (my pastor) has his 45 minutes, now I have mine.” Yikes. Because no one told me differently, I thought my job was to prepare a lesson and do all the talking. After all, I’m the one who studied and prepared, and I had a lot of important things to tell those girls. Wrong. I would have been a much better teacher if I had learned to more fully engage them in the Bible study. Little did I know that there are 8 learning approaches. I learned to incorporate those in time, but boy do I feel bad for that first group of girls. I was a “talking head” and I’m sure they were bored to tears.
2. Don’t take yourself so seriously. Yes, leading a group is important. Yes, it’s a serious thing to be responsible for the spiritual growth of a group of people. But don’t take yourself too seriously. Have fun. Laugh at yourself. Realize that if the group is laughing at you, that’s OK. You really only have an audience of one—the Lord. Don’t worry what others think about you, your teaching, or a host of other things. Seek to please the Lord in all you do, and if you trip up, know that gravity is going to still work, and the sun will rise tomorrow. The world won’t end, so loosen up.
3. If you have to choose between being a great teacher or a great shepherd, choose shepherd. My son entered the 12th grade when our family moved to Nashville, Tennessee. He began his last year of high school at a strange new school, and he had to find new friends. One place I hoped that would happen was our new church. He only had 5 other young men in his Sunday School class, but when he began missing on Sundays (he visited other churches with Christian guys he met on his football team) his teacher never contacted him. Not once. Not in twelve months. Although this man was a good teacher, I’m sure, he was a lousy shepherd. My son learned all too quickly that he didn’t matter to his 12th grade teacher, and it soured him on the church. The old saying is true: “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.”
4. The person with the biggest group doesn’t win. As a new group leader, I thought the goal was to have the biggest group. And we did. It was great. Everyone wanted to be in the groups my wife and I taught. We learned how to teach, we had fun with the students outside of Sunday School, and we hung out. No one ever told me that having the biggest group wasn’t the goal. What I should have been told was that the goal was to grow my group to the point I could start a new one. Another teacher could have then come along to shepherd and teach half my group.
5. Your group exists for people far from God. One thing I learned about group life: if you aren’t careful, your group will turn inward pretty quickly. It takes strong leadership to constantly remind your group members that the group exists to reach new people. After a group has been together 18 months, it naturally begins to close. Reaching new people gets hard. You must consistently help your group see the many people in your community that might go to your church and attend your group if they were aware, invited, and cared for.
6. Work hard to include new people in the group. People will not assimilate themselves. You have to work hard to help new people fit in, and your group members are the key. This is why it’s so important to become great at inclusion. It is possible to be a member of a group, but never really belong to the group. That’s a terrible feeling, and one reason people drift away and are never seen again.
7. Your group isn’t your group. Read Amos 3:12. It contains a prophecy about Israel, and it is couched in shepherding terms. Part of this verse gives us insight into the life of a shepherd. “As the shepherd snatches an ear or a piece of a leg from the lion’s mouth…” tells us that shepherds protect their sheep. Nothing new there, right? Well, read the verse again; the sheep had already become lunch for the lion. Why would a shepherd risk life and limb for an animal that was already dead? The answer is, “Because the shepherd is not the owner of the sheep.” The true owner has temporarily given the shepherd responsibility for his sheep. If the shepherd goes out with 100 sheep, he’d better come back with 100, or have a good explanation (hence the reason he was so concerned about grabbing a piece of the sheep from the lion—it served as proof that he hadn’t stolen the sheep to begin his own flock). All this to say, as a group leader, the people in your group aren’t yours—you’re the stewarding shepherd. The “owner,” God, has given you temporary responsibility to care for His sheep—His people. Never use the words “my group” or “my classroom.” Everything belongs to God, not you. I needed to hear that as a new group leader.
8. You should hold onto your group members with a loose grip. Because of #7 above, I must let people go if my group gets too large. The goal is to see people discipled, and that happens best in the context of smaller groups. Larger groups are fun to teach, and they can be a sign that you’re doing something right, but when the pastor asks you to divide your group so that greater care can be given to the members, do it! They aren’t “your” people anyway, right? Right.
9. You should spend more time in prayer. Spending time with your group members is commendable. Spending time studying your lesson is also important. Doing ministry together as a group is important. But the most important thing you can do is to spend time in prayer. Pray for your pastor, pray for your group members, pray that the Lord protects you from the fiery darts of the evil one.
10. Don’t do anything stupid to lose your position of leadership. In today’s world, someone is always watching. Always. Be mindful of the places you go, the things you look at online, and the words you use in social media. Everything you do is a potential skeleton in the closet years from now, and you don’t want to do anything that disqualifies you from serving the Lord. Too many ministers have learned this the hard way, and lifetimes of schooling, experience, and wisdom have all been erased instantly by a misspoken word, a lapse in moral or financial judgment, or some other reason. Finish the race you’ve begun. Don’t disqualify yourself. The church needs godly men and women now more than ever. Be strong. Be smart. Be one of the ones the Lord commends when He says, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”

Church Leadership

August 31, 2020

5 Questions to Ask Before Relaunching Groups

By Chris Surratt

The thought of launching anything right now may seem daunting, but we shouldn’t let a pandemic stop discipleship. We may not be able to all gather in person this fall, but we can still meet and study the Bible.

Ken Braddy, Lifeway’s director of Sunday School, and I recently hosted a free webinar on launching and relaunching groups in the fall. Here are the five key questions we discussed.

1. WHY LAUNCH GROUPS IN THE FALL?

We both agreed that the fall is the best time of the year to launch or relaunch groups.

August/September is normally a growth season for churches as church members return from summer vacations and new people move into the community.

Although this year’s rhythms will look different because of the pandemic, there will still be a lot of people ready for new and old connections after several months of isolation.

Most churches will launch a new preaching series in the fall, which makes it an ideal time to consider a campaign where all of your groups are studying the same thing for a few weeks.

That helps create urgency and excitement around joining a group.

2. WHAT ABOUT EXISTING GROUPS THAT HAVEN’T MET THIS SUMMER? CAN THEY BE RELAUNCHED WITH NEW PEOPLE, OR SHOULD THEY JUST RESTART?

The same momentum that helps propel new groups can help relaunch existing groups.

It’s natural for groups to take a breather during the summer months, and especially during this season of not meeting physically together.

A lot of groups started strong with Zoom meetings then quickly developed Zoom fatigue and stopped meeting.

This fall is an excellent opportunity to breathe new life into those groups by starting fresh with a new Bible study or by adding new people to the group.

Also, changing when or where the group meets can bring new excitement. If the group has been meeting exclusively online, try meeting socially distanced at a park or on the church property.

If Sunday morning hasn’t been working, consider changing to Sunday night or a weeknight. Sunday School doesn’t have to be on Sundays.

3. WHAT ARE THE BARRIERS TO THINK THROUGH FOR GROUPS MEETING THIS FALL?

Childcare issues are already at the top of the list for most groups, but they’re especially important now.

It will be some time before parents will be comfortable with leaving their children in close proximity to other kids, so you may have to stop offering group childcare for a while.

I’m a big proponent of having food options at a small group meeting. It helps people start to feel comfortable quicker, and who doesn’t love food?

However, how you offer the food may have to change. My small group will normally have a buffet style of snack offerings with a line of bowls and community dipping spoons for each. That arrangement will no longer be acceptable.

Some teachers will be slow to return to the classroom. Older teachers who have pre-existing conditions may not be comfortable serving in more crowded pre-COVID conditions.

Some will return slowly, and others won’t return until there is a vaccine. This means we’ll need to recruit and train new leaders.

Do you have time to deep clean your house or classroom before group every week?

Guidelines for restaurants reopening call for thoroughly cleaning and disinfecting everything between every customer. That includes door handles, tables, chairs and menus.

Are you prepared to offer that level of cleaning for your group each week? People will expect it.

4. WHAT ABOUT VIRTUAL/ONLINE/HYBRID GROUPS? IS THAT A LONG-TERM STRATEGY?

Both Ken and I agreed that online—or some type of hybrid group strategy—is here to stay.

Not everyone is going to be comfortable attending physically right away, and some group members may be in the most at-risk demographic and should not attend until there is a vaccine.

Now that people are accustomed to attending online through Zoom or Hangouts, having an option for people to attend virtually is wise.

The virtual option is especially wise for Sunday School. Because of the success most groups have experienced during initial COVID-19 sequestering, the Zoom experience will transfer to on-campus classrooms.

Teachers will use iPads, laptops, or smartphones to broadcast live via Zoom. This will allow absentee members and guests to continue meeting with a group when work, play, or illness takes them away on Sundays.

5. WHAT IS A GOOD TIMELINE FOR A FALL LAUNCH?

First, determine what leaders are coming back for the fall so you know how many new leaders you will need to recruit. Make sure to think about online and in-person groups.

Next, schedule your next training online. Even returning leaders will need training on new methods and curriculum for this season. Facebook Live or Zoom webinars are tools you can use for your training sessions.

Finally, fully plan out your “Plan B.” What happens if you start with groups meeting together physically, but circumstances change and they have to move back online?

We have the luxury of some experience now, so this is the time to get a comprehensive plan in place for leaders.

This article first appeared in FactsandTrends.net.

CHRIS SURRATT (@ChrisSurratt) is the discipleship and small groups specialist for Lifeway Christian Resources, a ministry consultant and coach with more than 20 years of experience, and the author of Leading Small Groups: How to Gather, Launch, Lead, and Multiply Your Small Group.

Church Leadership

August 24, 2020

Congratulations: Your Church is Now a Church OF Small Groups

By Chris Surratt

One of the most common questions I receive from church leaders is: “How do we make our church a church of small groups instead of a church with small groups?”

For clarification: A church of small groups is typically not program driven. They’ll have the basic ministry options of worship, kids, students, missions, and groups.

Groups aren’t competing with a menu list of options for congregant’s time and attention.

Small groups are the best option for community and discipleship opportunities.

A church with small groups will typically offer a long list of ministry and event options for congregants to be involved in.

Groups may be on the list, but they are considered one of multiple ways to find community and be discipled through the church.

In this last scenario, small groups will lose the battle for time and resources almost every time. People are naturally going to choose the path of least resistance when it comes to growth.

Larger group gatherings and events are easier to get in and out of than a small group of people gathering in a home or classroom on a weekly basis.

So, if you’re hoping to move toward less programming and more connecting, then congratulations! Thanks to the current coronavirus pandemic limitations, almost every church is now, or will be soon, a church of small groups.

At the time of this writing, coronavirus cases are soaring around the United States, and many states are now stepping back in their reopening plans to hopefully flatten the curve again.

Several churches had moved to in-person gatherings again, only to have to move back to online only after outbreaks in their communities.

This will further force churches to re-examine discipleship paths and the role of groups in them. Now that we know small groups have to be the priority going forward, what do we do now?

1. DON’T PLAN TO GO BACK TO WHAT WAS.

I don’t think any of us truly knows what life will be like on the other side of this pandemic, but I bet we can agree that it won’t be the same.

People are learning new habits and rhythms that will change how we offer ministry in the future.

For example, online groups are here to stay. There will be in-person groups in the future, but the last few months have proven that digital community can work when it needs to.

We need to approach our online strategy the same way we do our in-person one.

2. HIRE OR DESIGNATE AN ONLINE GROUPS DIRECTOR.

Now that we have established that online community is here to stay, it will need intentional leadership to flourish.

This is a new frontier for most churches. You don’t have to find someone who has a computer science degree or a digital background, just a strategic thinker who’s willing to learn and adapt.

3. REEXAMINE ALL OF YOUR CURRENT RESOURCES FOR GROUPS.

I’m old enough to remember when compact discs were first introduced. Until then, all of my music was either on cassette tapes or records.

I still recall the moment when I first heard the clean, crisp (some would argue—too crisp) sound of digital audio.

I started immediately switching my audio library from analog to digital. We’re at that moment with our libraries of resources for groups.

All of our training, communication, and studies have to be digital friendly. There will still be in-person opportunities for all of these, but online will become the priority.

4. UPDATE YOUR WEBSITE.

Connecting people through your website can no longer be an afterthought or an additional connection point. It’s now the first step for a majority of people inside and outside your congregation.

How easy is it to find a group from the first page? Can people get connected to a group with a minimal number of clicks? Are your groups consistently updated so people aren’t trying to join non-existent groups?

5. RECRUIT DIFFERENT KINDS OF LEADERS.

Offering online groups opens the door to potential group leaders who wouldn’t have stepped up before.

Not having to worry about having a host home, providing childcare, traveling to the group location, etc., takes away a lot of barriers for people.

If you have a role description for your group leaders (and I strongly recommend having one), create two versions now for in-person and online groups.

This will help you think through the type of person to pursue as you recruit your new leaders.

Just because our churches may not be gathering in mass every Sunday doesn’t mean we should stop meeting.

We actually have more environments for intentional discipleship now than ever before—now that we all have churches of small groups.

And what’s more, we can equip our churches of small groups with timely resources. Lifeway has partnered with various Christian leaders to share messages through their Bible studies that can speak to needs now. To tackle doubt, try Help My Unbelief. As we face dissatisfaction and questions on where we can find happiness, explore The Good Life. As we become more engaged with the cause of justice, seek out The Church and The Racial Divide.

A version of this article first appeared at FactsandTrends.net

Group Leadership

August 20, 2020

Challenging Paradigms

By Group Ministry

By Reid Smith

All of us come to the table with our own experience, biases, and presumptions about what works best with starting and multiplying healthy groups in a church. Over time, paradigms (or ways of thinking) about groups formulate in our minds, which in turn influence the culture of the community being built. This is natural, but should be challenged so that the culture of community in your church is being shaped strategically around informed convictions instead of unchallenged paradigms.

One of the best ways of challenging paradigms is by asking questions. As you search God’s Word and your heart, your paradigms might change or be further solidified. These inquiries are meant to be thought-provoking and are good to process with other trusted leaders whether or not you’ve launched groups in your church yet.

Are you ready to begin building a strategic culture of community in your church? Clear your mind and honestly grapple with these 10 questions:

Do you think of groups as a “ministry” of your church or as the building blocks of every ministry area of your church?
Is there a clear vision for groups? What language does leadership intentionally use to support this vision?
Does your church put more emphasis on joining or starting groups? What are the pros and cons of the language leadership uses to support this emphasis?
Do you consider it to be more advantageous to have a broad/open-ended or narrow/specific definition of what constitutes a “group” in your church? Explain.
What is the primary motivation of getting people in groups (retention, member care, increasing engagement in church activities/volunteerism, spiritual maturity, mission, etc.)? Are other critical things being under-communicated as a result of this emphasis?
On a scale of 1-10 (with ‘1’ being “if I have time and feel like it” to ‘10’ being “a vital spiritual habit I prioritize weekly”), how important do you think your average church member views their personal involvement in a group? Explain.
What are the qualifications for serving as a group leader? Would you consider yourself to have a high or low bar? Explain.
Do you have an ongoing rhythm of equipping leaders once they get started? Describe any gap you see between what this looks like now and what you hope it will look like.
What does success look like to your group leadership? How is it measured and celebrated?
How is growth and multiplication built into the way groups are communicated and stewarded in your church?

It is actually a good thing if you’re walking away from this exercise with more questions than answers. Take time to figure out how the Lord wants you to plant, prioritize, and prune your group life so that Christ-centered community can grow healthy and strong.

If you’re not the Lead/Senior Pastor, then find a way to process these questions together, agree on responses, and document them. This will establish and maintain a strategic culture of community that will start and multiply healthy groups throughout your church moving forward.

Church Leadership

February 13, 2020

10 Ways to Re-engage Group Dropouts

By Ken Braddy

“Absent Without Leave,” or “AWOL” for short, is a serious offense if you’re in the military. It is a term used to describe
someone who is a member of a group, but drops out of sight and leaves their post unattended. It’s also a serious infraction if you’re a member of a Bible study group! I’ve taught an ongoing Bible study for over seven years now, and I’ve had my fair share of people who went AWOL. Some were absent for a few weeks, then returned. Others dropped out for longer periods of time. As a group leader, you can’t control who is in your group each week; you do have control over what you do about the group members who drop out.

In a typical group, about 45-50% of group members will be absent any time the group meets (this is especially true in a Sunday school ministry). Therefore, if you have 20 people on your group ministry role, you can be confident that around 10 of them will be absent the next time the group meets. This leaves group leaders in a slight quandary – what should you do about the dropouts between group meetings? The tendency may be to say, “Well, they know where and when we meet – they’ll show back up.” But is that the best approach? Here are some ideas for dealing with people who become group dropouts.

Pray for them. This is an important first step in helping dropouts reconnect with your group. As a group leader, you should pray for the AWOL people in your group. But you can lead your group members to pray for them as well. Consider focusing the group’s prayer efforts on one or two people, or one or two couples each week. This will raise the group’s awareness that people are absent and need to be cared for.
Encourage them. Because electronic mail is so prevalent today, why not try something a little old fashioned? A handwritten note is a nice, personal touch in an overly electronic world. Tell the group dropout they are missed, and that your Bible study group isn’t the same without them. Remind them they contribute in significant ways when they are present. Ask if they need ministry from the group. Keep things positive. Don’t chastise them for being gone.
Understand them. It’s easy to judge someone and label them as “non-committed” or a “slacker.” But resist hanging a label around their neck. Instead, get to know their situation. They may be under significant stress at work, they could be traveling to care for an aging parent on the weekends, or some other significant reason that explains their absence. In those cases, your group now has opportunities to minister to the absentee and to serve them.
Visit them. Yes, home visitation is on the decline today, but that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t occasionally get in your car and stop by the group dropout’s home for a quick “porch visit.” Dropping off your group’s Bible study materials to the absentee can remind them about your group and their need to belong to it. If nothing else, a heartfelt “We sure miss you in Bible study” can melt the ice and help a person or a couple feel better about reconnecting to the group after a prolonged absence. It also helps them get over those awkward feelings if they’ve simply ducked out of church because they are tired, allowed kids’ sports to interfere with Sunday worship and Bible study, or some other reason.
Don’t give up on them. This is perhaps the most important one. Don’t just focus your attention on the “99 sheep” you have. Jesus told a parable in which the owner of sheep left 99 of them in search of 1 lost sheep. The parable demonstrated the value of people to the Lord, and the extreme measures He went to in order to provide salvation for them. Those AWOL members of your group are precious to the Lord – He died for them – and it grieves the Holy Spirit when people choose to disconnect from the church. Don’t write off the group dropout, and certainly don’t remove them from your group’s ministry list.
Invite them to a party. People who’ve been absent for a long time feel awkward about showing back up suddenly. Everyone likes a party, though, so plan a fellowship and reach out to every group dropout. It will be easier for them to reconnect with the group at a party away from the church. Help them take baby steps toward regular attendance.
Call them. I prefer that you call, not email or text, any long-term group dropouts. You may have to start the conversation with something like, “I’ve not done a great job keeping up with you” or “Forgive me for not calling sooner…” This transfers the responsibility to you, and doesn’t make the absentee feel put upon. Let them know you care, want to pray for them, and desire them to come back to your group.
Downsize the group. I’m not a big fan of large groups for making disciples. Jesus’ ministry was primarily to a group of 12 disciples, and an inner group of 3 disciples. The larger the group, the harder it is for the group leader to act like a Teacher-Shepherd and care for all of the group dropouts. A smaller group will be easier to lead, and it will certainly be easier to follow up with a few dropouts than trying to care for many group dropouts.
Organize the group. One of the best practices a group could have is to divide the members among several Care Group Leaders. Each care group leader is responsible for reaching out every week to any dropout under their watchcare. In doing so, Care Group leaders share the load of ministry with the group’s leader, allowing him or her to focus on studying and guiding the group’s Bible study.
Take advantage of natural “on ramps.” If your group has dropouts, there will be times of the year that provide natural and easier ways to get them to reengage with your group. Some are related to timing: it’s easier to invite people to reengage at the first of the year, the beginning of summer, and the start of the school year. It’s also easier to invite a person to reengage when the group begins a new Bible study. A quick message like, “Hey, we miss you, and want you to know we’re starting a new study next week” gives the absentee a good reason to jump back in and reengage with the group.

If you’re going to lead a Bible study group, you’re going to have dropouts. Commit to not only prepare your group’s Bible study experience, prayer, and fellowship experiences, but also to have a strategy for quickly and effectively reaching out to those who drop out of group life. You’ll come to learn, as I have, that the quicker you reach out to an absentee, the easier it is. When people go AWOL, don’t leave them in that state. Just a little encouragement can help them reengage with you and your group members.

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

October 15, 2019

Selecting and Developing Co-leaders

By Group Ministry

by Reid Smith

One of the greatest preventable mistakes made by group leaders is when they try to carry too much – the “I’ll just do it myself” syndrome. If we follow the examples of Jesus and the Apostle Paul, we will purposefully develop others as they serve alongside us (Luke 6:12–13; 2 Timothy 2:2).

Your health and balance as a leader – not to mention the overall health of the group – is dependent on others who will serve alongside you. Having someone to co-lead your group will enhance how you connect with the diversity of people circled up with you. Your co-leader will strengthen how people are cared for in your group and can provide feedback that you would not have otherwise received (Proverbs 27:17). The impact of your leadership will be increased exponentially with the support of one or more co-leaders.

We can find guidance on how to select co-leaders in Luke 6:12-13: “One of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God. When morning came, he called his disciples to him and chose twelve of them, whom he also designated apostles.” In this passage, Jesus gives us a four-step process for choosing a co-leader:

He prayed – Earnestly seek the Lord for clear direction and wait until you get it.
He called – Initiate a time to personally connect with who He places on your heart.
He chose – Tell prospective co-leaders what you see in them and why you’re choosing them to partner with you (cf. Mt 16:16-19).
He designated – Empower them to champion specific aspects of group life in keeping with how God has graced them. For practical ways on how you can go about this, see my post entitled: “Leveraging Spiritual Gifts to Build Community.”

In the process of selecting your co-leader, let them know how you’ll work with them, what it looks like and what they can expect. Start with the end in mind and share a vision for how their leadership will help grow biblical community. Ultimately, experienced co-leaders multiply options for handling numerical growth so new groups can branch out and more people can connect to Christ and the community of His Church.

Groups that have more members taking on more responsibilities are better at making disciples who grow deep and impact wide. Now let’s turn our attention to some tips and tactics for developing your co-leader:

Give your co-leader smaller tasks at first and look for opportunities to celebrate their accomplishments. After a period of time, let the group know how this person is helping the group in this role of service (Matthew 23:11-12; Mark 10:42-45). In other words, don’t announce that somebody is your co-leader before they’ve started as if it’s a position, but rather affirm the difference their support is already making for the group.

In the beginning, be sure to shower your co-leader with encouragement. As the relationship grows, you can address areas where they need further development. Be sure to end your coaching times on a positive note, and pray together.

As co-leaders progress, increase their level of responsibility by preparing for meetings and taking the lead with special events and outreaches. Don’t just delegate tasks to them, but empower them to succeed with greater assignments by applying the following developmental model:
- I do, you watch
- I do, you help
- You do, I help
- You do, I watch

Find ways to share your life with your co-leader outside of regular meeting times. Meet them on their home turf. Discover what’s in their heart and what outcomes they want to achieve in the next season of your group.

Know their birthday, anniversary, and what makes them smile, e.g. a specialty coffee, dessert, handwritten note, etc. Then deliver on it!

Pray for them by name each day. Keep notes on needs and answers to prayer that you can revisit with them.

Take time with your co-leader to informally debrief group meetings while the experience is still fresh. Ask them to share their observations: What did they feel good about? What observations or questions do they have?

Make your relationship a priority by listening to their questions, empathizing with their anxiety, and sharing helpful resources that will build their leadership competency.

Share the frequency with which you’d like to communicate, but do it using methods they prefer, e.g. text, phone, FaceTime/Zoom, email, social media, etc. (See my post entitled “Leadership Investment Rhythms” for more on how you can organize for this.)

Make an encouraging deposit into their leadership at least once a month with Scripture, quotes, an excerpt or executive summary of a book, video or podcast.

Loop them into the larger network of leaders you know so they glean from their wisdom and grow in confidence.

Don’t limit yourself to just one co-leader: Invite group members to take on more responsibility when you sense they are ready for it! People can serve in a variety of ways that will create full-bodied group life and develop their leadership through outreach, communications, coordinating meals or childcare, social outings, etc.

It is never too early to appoint co-leaders! The Apostle Paul knew this. He usually had dozens of people around him who were friends and “fellow-workers” (Philemon 1:24). Several from his missionary band led house churches that were instrumental with the initial spread of the Gospel! Then and now, the multiplication of healthy leaders and groups depend on the kind of missional partnership that is forged with co-leaders (Philippians 1:3-6).

Reid Smith 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.

Group Answers Podcast

February 6, 2019

Group Answers Episode 86: Raising Up a Secondary Leader

By Group Ministry

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 29:06 — 40.1MB) | Embed

Subscribe: Spotify | Email | RSS

In this episode of Group Answers, Brian, Chris, and Brandon talk about how to identify and raise up a secondary leader in your small group.

Five Steps for Preparing a Secondary Leader

Step 1: I do. You watch. We talk.

Step 2: I do. You help. We talk.

Step 3: You do. I help. We talk.

Step 4: You do. I watch. We talk.

Step 5: You do. Someone else watches.

Questions for Meetings

What did you observe?
How did this step make you feel?
What could be done better or differently next time?
What can I do to help you successfully lead through the next step?
How can I pray for you?

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.

How to Identify and Empower New Small Group Leaders

Small Group Launch Checklist

10 Ways to Re-engage Group Dropouts

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.

Group Answers Episode 86: Raising Up a Secondary Leader

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