An interview with Tom Albin about the success of the Wesleys.
by Tim Stafford
Small groups—in which 6 to 12 people regularly gather to talk about their spiritual journeys, study the Bible, and pray—have become an integral and dynamic part of modern American church life. They have helped transform thousands of churches and millions of individuals. Though many think they were invented in the last couple of decades, they've been around in one form or another since the ...
The betrayed members of a small group work to forgive the man who lied to them.
by Life Together
"Just forgive him," replied Pastor Bill. "That's what God wants us to do."
David and Michael were fuming. "How can we?" they questioned. "William betrayed us. He lied to us."
Just two days earlier, William, a youth pastor, confessed his six-month affair with a girl from the youth group. As details unfolded, William's friends were astounded by William's nervy scheming: a clandestine rendezvous in the ...
People need to belong in a number of different ways.
by Joe Myers
Intimacy may be a worthy goal, but small groups are mostly about learning how to talk to one another. At least that's what Joe Myers, "multi-preneur" and author of The Search to Belong: Rethinking Intimacy, Community, and Small Groups (Zondervan), believes.
Myers shared his thoughts on small groups and community recently with Brett Eastman, CEO and Founder of Lifetogether:
Be aware of the things that keep visitors from returning.
by Life Together
Many people that visit but never return to a small group do so because it feels cliquish. When visitors walk in to your meeting, your top priority is to make them feel welcome. Greet them at the door; give them a hug or a handshake and look them in the eye when they talk.
If you fear your group gets cliquey, you can change your group atmosphere by having a brief introduction period during which each ...
Showing your small-group leaders how important they are is essential to keeping them going.
by Brett Eastman
As a leadership coach, you have a crucial role in sustaining the small group structure of your church. Without this layer of your leadership, small groups stand on shaky ground for the simple reason that their leaders feel unsupported and therefore unwilling to take ownership of the group and its mission.
To keep this from happening, you need to let your group leaders know that they are most valued ...
Reading groups encourage unity and lead to some deep discussion.
by Randy Hasper
Every pastor knows that growth as a Christian requires more than a Sunday experience. I want to give the congregation something worthwhile to do between sermons to stretch their intellect and their faith.
I started a reading group.
Today, homemakers and house painters read and discuss Kierkegaard. Hair stylists and law officers read Augustine and Bonhoeffer and Pascal. And they love it. My first group ...
How one church connected an entire congregation through small groups.
Allen White
"Connect 100 percent of your congregation into small groups."
Now that's a sales pitch.
Our church was stuck: A small number of our adults—only 30 percent—were involved in small groups. After seven long years of slugging it out the old fashioned way—raising up apprentices to birth new groups—we were headed nowhere. Only one leader started a new group. Connecting everyone in a group ...
One church learned that prayer is the essential ingredient for small group success.
by Life Together
Linda lay in bed recuperating from knee surgery. As much as she wanted to go to church and participate in the weeks leading up to the 40 Days of Purpose campaign, Linda could barely get out of bed.
She kept thinking about Pastor John's challenge to host a group for the 6-week campaign. How could that be possible? Though she couldn't sign up group members at church, she prayed people would become a ...
Good endings can make for good beginnings in the future.
by Randall S. Brenton
Healthy closure of any group experience is extremely important. It can help group members process and define their experience and positively set the stage for a new group. On the other hand, poor group closure can lead to barriers for a member's future involvement with groups.
Poor group closure can occur for a variety of reasons, including:
1. Lack of casting a vision for launching a new group, which ...
Telling your story is a great way to engage seekers and other Christians.
by Life Together
One skill every small group leader should have is the ability to talk with unbelievers about your experience of God in ordinary language that an unbeliever will understand. In the church we use some specialized words like "repentance" and "being saved." Of course, the average person who hasn't been to church very often has no clue what these words mean.
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