Sunday School

September 21, 2020

Six Practices for Managing Your Group’s Prayer Time

One of the challenges of leading a Bible study group is managing the time dedicated to prayer requests. We’ve all been in a group when prayer requests took the majority of the group study time.

Don’t get me wrong—I’m a big fan of prayer! The Lord’s house is to be a house of prayer. But as group leaders, you and I must learn to manage the limited time we have with our group members. That includes managing the prayer time so that needs are lifted up to God, while also allowing time for the other important elements of group life.

Here are six ways you can more effectively manage your group’s prayer requests. These can help ensure that you are addressing people’s needs while still providing a well-rounded Bible study experience that is balanced and effective.

Assign the prayer requests. I will often write prayer requests on the marker board in my group’s meeting place at the church. One by one, people tell the group what kind of needs they have, and I list them one by one. I then ask group members to volunteer to take turns praying for the requests. Too often in groups, a list of requests are written on a marker board, but each request is not prayed for. Instead, someone offers a “generic” prayer and the study begins. I much prefer making sure that people’s specific needs are carried to the throne of grace.

Use “the basket method.” 3 X 5 index cards are perfect for gathering the prayer requests of group members. Use standard index cards (one per person) and ask group members to write down their prayer requests on one side of the card. Then ask them to turn the card over and write their name and contact information on the card’s reverse side. Cards are then placed in a basket (it doesn’t matter what type) as it is passed around the group. Once all cards are in the basket, reverse the process and ask group members to reach in and take one of the index cards. Ask group members to pray for the need on their index card throughout the week, and contact the person who made the request sometime during the week to let them know their request is being prayed for. In a larger group, this can save a significant amount of time, and all prayer needs will be covered. In addition, relationships can be strengthened as individuals receive messages from fellow group members that they are praying for the specific need.

Pray in smaller groups. It can be intimidating to pray out loud in a big group, so consider dividing your group into smaller ones. People who will not speak up in a group of 15 or more people will often talk in a group of 3 to 4 people. Breaking your groups into triads or quads may be just the thing to encourage people to pray out loud for their fellow group members. If your group is a virtual group, and if you use Zoom, don’t forget to use the “breakout room” feature to divide your group into smaller ones online.

Email requests after the group Bible study. After hearing your group member’s prayer requests (and writing them down, of course), set aside time after your group’s Bible study and send out the requests via email (when recording on a marker board, use your smartphone to capture a picture of the requests). This way everyone in the group will have a current list of the group’s prayer requests each week.

Use email to generate the prayer requests. On occasion when I can see that the Bible study is going to run long, I will say something like, “I’ll send an email to the group later today, and summarize the study for us and those who were not here today. If you have a prayer need this week, just ‘reply all’ and let us know what it is. We’ll jump into action and begin praying for you.” I then control the length of the prayer time by simply praying for the Lord’s blessing on the group, our study time together, and those not present. When I’m running short on time, this allows me to complete the Bible study, but still make sure that requests are known and prayed for during the week.

Use your Care Groups to pray for needs. Not every group is organized into Care Groups, but these are especially helpful when it comes to praying for the needs of group members. A Care Group is simply a subgroup of your Bible study members. These groups are typically 4 to 6 people and function best if the members are the same gender (husbands and wives will be in two different Care Groups). At the end of a Bible study, the group can break down into Care Groups to pray.

Other than serving as the manager for LifeWay’s ongoing adult Bible studies and as the Director of Sunday School, Ken is an 18-year church education staff leader and blogs regularly about Sunday School and groups ministry at kenbraddy.com.

Group Leadership

September 17, 2020

Who is Your All?

By Dwayne McCrary

In the front entrance of LifeWay sits a display case that includes some notes written by Arthur Flake. He had been hired as the first Director of Sunday School and was preparing to write his first book in that role. The page on display includes this statement: All need to study the Bible. Most of us would agree with this statement and move on. A few might change the word need to should or ought, but would still affirm the spirit of the statement.

The statement “all need to study the Bible” seems simple until we start to look at the history behind this statement.

It was 1920. The world had endured the Spanish Flu and World War 1 in 1918, followed by social unrest in America in 1919. High unemployment, stiff competition for jobs (soldiers returned from Europe without any re-entry plan), and an economy ramping down after a war contributed to a season of riots. Every region was impacted and stained in some way. We still don’t know how many people actually died in this season. To call for ALL to be in Bible study in 1920 went in the face of what had been going on in society. Flake was calling for a radical change with Bible study groups leading the way.
ALL came from experience. Flake had built a Bible study ministry that embraced the belief that all people need to study the Bible. He was responsible for the Bible study groups at First Baptist Church in Ft. Worth, TX prior to returning to what is now LifeWay as director of Sunday School. At that time in their history, FBCFW met in three different locations as they awaited the rebuilding of their facilities (fire gutted the facilities in 1912). Groups met in whatever space they could find and at times other than Sunday. In January of 1920, FBCFW became the largest attended Sunday School in the US at the time.
ALL is not so easy to define. We might be tempted to think of prejudice only in terms of race but it goes beyond that. In FBCFW at that time, one could find union leaders and union busters, police officers and convicted criminals, white collar workers and blue collar workers. Each of these designations created some type of division with a prejudice held somewhere in the other group. That is how labels and distinctions play out.

That brings us to the question of our all. Who is missing from our Bible study groups and why? Do we have a place for “them” or have we made it clear that those outside of our group are not welcome? Have we already answered “no” for them before inviting them to join us for Bible study? Who might attend if we really did have the mentality that “ALL people need to study the Bible”?

Do our actions match our words that everyone needs to study the Bible? Who is your all and what are you doing to involve them in Bible study?

Dwayne McCrary is a team leader at LifeWay, adjunct professor at Midwestern BTS, and Bible study leader in the church he attends.

Group Leadership

September 14, 2020

Five Ways to Know You Need to Join a Small Group

By Group Ministry

By Susan Hill

Small groups play a vital role in discipleship because they are the place where believers have the opportunity to come together and build close relationships within the context of the local church. In a perfect world, every church member would be an active member of a small group. But maybe you’re still on the fence about joining one. Here are five ways to know if you need to join a small group:

You want to study the Scriptures at a deeper level. One of the primary benefits of participating in a small group is studying the Scriptures with other believers. In a group study, you’ll have the opportunity to learn from other people, ask questions, and discuss how to apply the Bible to daily living. Also, you’ll probably study portions of Scripture that you might not read on your own. As Christ-followers, we should have a growing knowledge of the Scriptures, and one of the most practical ways to grow in our understanding of the Bible is to study among a community of believers.
You long for community. It’s often been said there are no “lone rangers” in the Bible. God designed people for community, and it’s impossible to become the person He created us to be apart from the local church. Being an active member of a small group provides the opportunity to build relationships with other believers. If you commit to being an active member of an ongoing small group, over time, there’s an excellent chance you’ll meet many of your closest friends there.
You want a place to serve in your community. Many Christians want to serve in their community but don’t know where to start. Small groups provide an excellent outlet to locate needs in the town you live and serve in those places. Areas to serve might include local homeless shelters, soup kitchens, non-profits, hospitals, nursing homes, universities, or anywhere in your community where there’s a need. As Christians, we are called to love God and our neighbors (Mark 12:30-31). Our communities should be better off because of the presence of the local church. Small groups serving together in the community are an excellent way to achieve this.
You want friends who will pray with you. We all need prayer. Being a part of a small group means you already have a group of believers in place who are willing to pray on your behalf. In most small groups, there’s a time for people to share prayer requests. As you become familiar with people in your group, you’ll share phone numbers and email addresses. When something comes up during the week, and you need someone to join you in prayer, you’ll have a group of people to contact.
You want brothers and sisters in Christ who will be there for you through thick and thin. No one joins a local church with the intention of falling through the cracks. Everyone longs for a place to worship in the local church where they know people and are known by others. Attending worship on Sunday mornings is a crucial part of the Christian life, but involvement with our church family shouldn’t be limited to one hour a week. In many churches, it’s easy to come into a worship setting on Sunday mornings and leave without being seen or speaking to anyone. A small group is the best place to nurture deeper relationships. Small groups allow believers to genuinely get to know one another and build relationships that last through every season of life.

Susan Hill is a writer, Bible teacher, and full-time editor at LifeWay. She is the author of Dangerous Prayers: 50 Powerful Prayers That Changed the World, as well as numerous devotional books. She and her husband John live near Nashville, TN with two unruly Golden Doodles.

Group Leadership

September 11, 2020

Six Reasons Why Personal Study Guides are More Important Than Ever

By Ken Braddy

We’re six months into our country’s attempt to slow down the spread of the Coronavirus. Many of us were sent home to work. Our churches moved to online worship and group Bible studies. Some churches have now begun to meet again on campus for worship, and others have reopened their Bible study groups with safety precautions in place. But there are a good number of churches that cannot meet because of guidelines given by their state or local leaders. “One size doesn’t fit all” is certainly true of how churches are responding to the need to get their people back together. But there is a way for churches to continue to encourage group members to press on in their journey to be more fully obedient disciples. And the plan involves a Bible study tool that has been around for over 100 years!

I work for LifeWay, a company that produces discipleship tools called Personal Study Guides (some people still refer to them as “quarterlies” because they last 13 weeks before a new series begins). Each session introduces a biblical text, has a main point, helps the reader understand the biblical background, customs, and practices of the times, and is a tool that helps growing Christians self-feed on God’s Word. There are also key word studies and application suggestions to help people live out the Bible in their daily lives. These personal study guides are used in a group Bible study, and they are also studied by individual group members in between their group times.

COVID-19 has proved challenging for churches. As we slowly return to our church campuses and some semblance of normalcy, personal study guides are more important than ever before. Even while people are separated and cannot meet, they can still use the personal study guide to learn and apply God’s Word in these tumultuous times. Here are some reasons why personal study guides are more important than ever before.

Reading the Bible and other Christian literature daily is critical for year-over-year growth. If you don’t believe me, read the book The Shape of Faith to Come by Dr. Brad Waggoner. It was demonstrated through research that the number one factor and predictor of a person’s growth as a disciple is whether they self-feed on God’s Word or not. During the days of “shelter in place,” curfews, and “safer at home” guidelines, this is the perfect time for a sequestered believer to have a discipleship tool in their hands that God can use to comfort them and speak to them daily.
Because of social distancing and the rise of virtual groups, a personal study guide will give people a common focal point. When groups get together online, they are going to want (and need) to talk. Having a personal study guide that you read, study, and respond to gives every member of the group a common point around which to study and share insights. What could be better for churches than placing a discipleship tool in the hands of every adult member and guest, knowing that people are sheltering in place, working from home, and finding themselves with some amount of time on their hands each day? Now more than ever, adults are going to want and need something on which to focus besides COVID-19. What better to focus on daily than God’s Word?
Because personal study guides are available digitally, each person in a separated group can have a study guide without any physical contact. Virtual classes need virtual curriculum, and the personal study guides produced by LifeWay come in the form of E-books. With a few keystrokes, personal study guides can be in members’ inboxes in a matter of seconds, making distribution a snap.
A personal study guide provides group members with an interactive and engaging experience. Personal study guides produced by LifeWay have excellent authors who write each session. They bring their education, ministry experiences, and much more to the pages of the personal study guides. Questions placed throughout each session help people think critically about spiritual matters. Anyone using a personal study guide benefits from the author’s expertise, training, and background. Places to write responses and journal thoughts further enhance the experience.
A personal study guide is based on a wise discipleship plan crafted by experts. It takes painstaking work to create complex plans for a Bible study series (those plans determine the scope and sequence—the topics and the order in which they are studied—of the studies). These plans have been developed by specialists with advanced degrees in theology and Christian education, working together to determine what topics are studied and in what order.
A personal study guide is an affordable way to disciple people. Did you know that you can purchase a study guide for each group member for only $3.15 each? That’s just $.03 per person, per day! What an investment opportunity for every church. Personally, I consider this to be the absolute best value when it comes to disciple-making.

Yes, COVID-19 has changed us as a nation, and it has changed our churches. But I believe it is going to change us for the better! We are already realizing how important group Bible studies are to God’s people. And we are relearning that people need a trustworthy tool and a well-crafted plan for helping people grow as disciples. Making disciples was one of the final things Jesus told His church to do (Matthew 28:18ff). Today, personal study guides are more important than ever in the disciple-making process.

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.”

Group Answers Podcast

September 9, 2020

Group Answers Episode 169: 10 Tips for New Leaders

By Group Ministry

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 30:05 — 41.5MB) | Embed

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Android | Email | RSS

On this episode of Group Answers, Chris, Brian, and Ken discuss 10 tips to help brand new group leaders.

Tips:

Teaching is not telling. Learning is not listening.
Don’t take yourself so seriously.
If you have to choose between being a great teacher or a great shepherd, choose shepherd.
The person with the biggest group doesn’t win.
Your group exists for people far from God.
Work hard to include new people in the group.
Your group isn’t your group.
You should hold onto your group members with a loose grip.
You should spend more time in prayer.
Don’t do anything stupid to lose your position of leadership.

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 Leading Small Groups.

Group Answers Podcast

September 2, 2020

Group Answers Episode 168: Leading Better Discussions With Your Online Group

By Chris Surratt

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 25:30 — 35.2MB) | Embed

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Android | Email | RSS

On this episode of Group Answers, Chris, Brian, and Ken discuss how to lead a better discussion with your online group.

Ideas Discussed:

Call on a specific person to answer a specific question.
Send questions to group members in advance of the Bible study.
Do not answer your own questions.
Ask group members to raise their hand, use the chat feature, or use the “raise hand” feature in your online meeting tool.
Send group members to a breakout room.
Use a curriculum series that is discussion-oriented.

Resources Mentioned:

Leading Better Discussions blog post

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.

Group Leadership

August 28, 2020

Leading Your Group Members to Question Their Doubts

By Deborah Spooner

In many ways, we’ve been here before.

Your group members are feeling and thinking… a lot of things. These likely include anxiety, loneliness, depression, miscommunication, lack of motivation, exhaustion, boredom, and much more.

When plans for the future seem uncertain and past milestones are easily dismissed, many groups experience renewed questions and even doubt.

Where is God during a season such as this?

I know He cares about my situation, but how could He let me face this many disappointments? I thought I was following His plans for my life, but even those seem disrupted… Did I miss something? I’m tired. I’m worn out. Is He really a good Father to ask us to endure this long?

But doubt is not a new place for group members to find themselves and we can take steps to help others (and ourselves) walk through such a challenging season.

Ask the What

It might seem simple, but group members may have a more difficult time pinpointing what they are actually struggling with or feeling than we might initially imagine. It could be that they think they are doubting God’s plan for their lives, but might actually feel guilt that they seemingly haven’t worked hard enough, and thus are afraid that they are missing God’s best. In this scenario, group members are doubting that they are enough, not that God’s plan is enough. Getting deeper into the core of what group members are thinking and feeling in their doubt is the first step in order to start helping. You can simply remember to “ask the what”—from what a group member is telling you of their experience, what might actually be going on within them? Is the “what” they’re struggling with deeper than what they might perceive?

Identify the When

Once you’ve worked to dig deeper into what someone might be struggling with, you can now begin to help them pinpoint the when. Maybe their “what” is that they doubt whether their inadequate effort has caused them to miss God’s best for their lives. You can look for the when by asking: when—at what times of day, after what activities, during what conversations—do you find yourself feeling this way? For instance, your group member might identify that they feel the most doubt about their inadequacy (and thus God’s plan) in the hour before dinner, when they have finished a work day and are transitioning to focus on their family or friends. Finding the various times or circumstances when the group member begins to struggle with doubt can begin to empower them to avoid becoming debilitated by their doubtful thoughts or feelings but instead look to make a change.

Search for the Who and How

After knowing “the what” and more closely pinpointing “the when,” now you can encourage your members to ask for “the who & how.” Ultimately, “the who” is Christ and He makes a true impact in our lives. For instance, as the busy mom finishes her work day and starts to prepare dinner for her family and friends, she might begin to doubt her adequacy, and by extension, even God’s goodness. At this moment, she can ask, “Who is Christ, and how does that change my situation, right now?” Christ is her Lord, and He’s brought her into His family with brothers and sisters that love her. Families recognize that mistakes will happen, and she is still loved even when she isn’t “enough,” as none of us truly can be. Remembering that Christ is the one who welcomes us into this family of believers changes her situation. How? This reminds her that she isn’t meant to perform but to show Christ’s love. She’s to help people see more of Jesus, regardless of her adequacy or inadequacy. And that won’t change. The reality of who Christ is brings larger perspective and truth into our moments of doubt. He has the power to truly impact and change our perspectives on these situations.

Our group members are experiencing difficulty. But, there’s help and hope for the here and now. We can ask the what, the why, and the who and how in order to get our doubts back on track. Yet sometimes, we all need further assistance as we ask questions and face persistent doubts about God, His goodness, and faith. Thankfully, we’ve teamed with Barnabas Piper to provide you with additional guidance. If you or your group members are struggling with doubt, check out the Help My Unbelief Bible study to take your next steps.

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.

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.

Six Practices for Managing Your Group’s Prayer Time

Six Reasons Why Personal Study Guides are More Important Than Ever

All Ministry Sites

Digital Resources

LifeWay Network