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Why I Still Believe In Small Groups
Several of my close pastor friends have recently spoken out against the effectiveness of small groups. Although I have tremendous respect for these men and will always honor them, I disagree with their views of small groups.
This week, we’ll talk about:
- Why I Still Believe in Small Groups
- How to Make Sure Your Small Group Ministry Fails: Part 1
- How to Make Sure Your Small Group Ministry Fails: Part 2
- Elements of a Successful Group
Today, let’s start with topic #1.
I still love small groups because:
- They follow the early church model of meeting in homes.
- They are a tremendous tool for discipleship. I prefer small groups to Wednesday night large group teaching because it gives people a chance to interact. I prefer small groups to Sunday School simply because you don’t have to build the expensive extra classroom space.
- They get more people involved using their gifts of hospitality, teaching, exhortation, etc.
- They engage the body of Christ in pastoral care. Instead of the pastors being the only ones who care for believers, small groups spread the load and utilize gifted lay people.
- They build leaders.
- Done well, they become a tremendous tool of retention. People want to be needed and known. Small groups make both possible.
- They have unlimited meeting space. You can’t run out of homes, restaurants, apartments, or coffee shops in which to meet.
- They have unlimited meeting times. In today’s busy world, a once-a-week discipleship opportunity will not work for the majority of your church. Small groups offer unlimited times to meet.
- They have changed my life. My family’s small group is like our extended family. God has used them to bless us in untold ways.
Does your church have small groups? If so, how are they working for you?
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Hi Craig
I agree with your understanding of small groups. I do have one question which I hope you can assist us (my fiance and I)…
My fiance and I are always trying to encourage others to join our LifeGroup. We go strong for about two weeks and then attendance drops drastically until the group eventually dies… Of course we mail, msn, text those who don’t arrive in order to attempt to show them that we did notice that they weren’t there and that we care about them, but the interest just doesn’t seem to be there from their side.
With regards to both physical and online groups, what suggestions can you give to help us keep the group(s) running?
This may be touching on Thursdays blog, so you can leave it till then if you’d prefer to answer it then
Thanks!
Agreed! Small groups have made positive impact on our marriage, spiritual, and financial life. Not to mention friends (family) for life.
The church I pastor is in the yo-yo effect. Because we do not have someone whose burning passion is to make sure small groups/Life groups/(whatever they are called) continue we suffer from irregularity. We have two that are meeting with regularity and will be meeting Sunday about starting another. But for the most part we do not have them meeting on a regular basis. Not sure how to remedy that except to find someone who has that passion. Did that muddy the waters Craig?
I’m always a fan of small group, since I became a Christ’s follower. We incorporate worship, testimony, teaching/discipleship, sharing (& sometimes accountability elements for those who are comfortable to share), and prayer. It’s great and (I’m convicted) it’ll always be!
I agree Ps Craig that Life Groups are essential in the life of a believer if they are to fully mature in Christ. i cant actually see how it is possible in just a Sunday experience to get people to the place when you need them to be in order to grow!. There are just so many different learning styles, personalities and ways that people give & receive information. Small Groups just have far greater flexibility!! I do have a question though? How do you train your small group leaders in order for them to be staying really effective as the first line of pastoral care & encouragement?
Thanks Kev
I agree with pastor Craig. I believe small groups are vital to independent spiritual growth. It is like the difference in having an overpopulated class in school, and have a class size of 10 or less. Huge difference in test scores
My wife and I were throwing “what if’s” around yesterday. We talked about technology and the church. One question we we asked in “what if” land was, what if technology completely failed? (i.e. electricity, the internet, news, television, phone)
Would the church still be able to function?
I believe only small groups would really survive and thrive in that scenario. For that reason alone they are worth keeping around…
In third world countries, the only thing that is surviving and thriving is the small group, especially where persecution is found.
If we set our eyes on the global “Church”… the small group is the core of the body of Christ even today.. it is the largest growing part of the body, in spite of all the technology driven churches in America.
It would be detrimental to abandon the small group IMHO.
Not to mention the awesome benefits you mentioned…
[...] A few tidbits of worthless information accented by the return of one of the greats, and then this: An argument by Craig Groeschel on the value of Small Groups. [...]
I agree that groups model the early church, and are great for using gifts- even if the power fails. However, what is your opinion on mentoring as form of discipleship?
In the early church, Timothy had Paul. From my observation, even the best group can’t match the 1on1 factor a good spiritual guide provides.
I’ve seen most mentoring limited to parachurch ministries. Is this the Church’s responsibility? Is it mine? Does a believer suffer from not having a Paul in their life? Is the small group the best solution available?
My church has small groups.
They have helped me become a relationally responsible person in my church body. They have also given me the opportunity to be mentored as well as be the mentor to others.
The Small Group has allowed me to express myself to those I know care about me.
I have been readnig for some time now but this is my fist post. Small groups are something that we have talked about and I have wondered this: if mom and dad are in a small group in someone’s home, what do the kids do? Is there a small group meeting for them that go along with mom and dad’s, or does each family just get a sitter?
The biggest thing I see happening in our church with small groups is people fellowshiping and learning from others that outside the church walls they would never have come in contact with. People from different walks of life are coming together in the unity of Jesus.
Just in the Life Group my family attends we have seen a broken marriage restored, a husband step up and proclaim he will be the spiritual leader of his household and now we are helping another man as his wife left him.
Back in the day we used to have small groups but we had the problem of people creating their own “little church”.
Now I’m trying to convince our pastor to go back to those days, but to have a team of people commited to the vision of the church so we won’t have the same problem we had years ago.
Small groups give the church the chance to do what in a general reunion can’t be achieved.
I got tired of teaching young adult Sunday School and not knowing people. SO, I started a small group from within the class. Totally changed the class for the better.
Daryl Eldridge (www.rockbridgeseminary.com) says, “90% of Pastors are not in small groups.”
1. Where else will Acts 2:42-47 happen? In a group of 3000? I don’t think so.
2. Where else will you measure maturity and transformation?
Good week coming. I’m for small groups.
Jason, So glad you and your fiance are leading a group. I think I’ll leave your question to Thursday. Please jump in the conversation then (or any time).
Ps. Kev, Let’s discuss your question as the week goes on.
Tony G asked some good questions. Tony, I think a good small group will be filled with mentoring relationships. But the tool of mentoring shouldn’t be limited to small groups. I agree wholeheartedly in the power of discipleship through mentoring.
Russ, Welcome to the conversation. To answer your question, it can vary. Some groups pitch in a hire a baby sitter. Some have the older kids baby sit the younger kids. Some have older kids participate in small groups. Some churches provide children’s ministry.
Good comment, Alan.
good stuff.
i think that small groups, done well, are the greatest tool for fighting american/western individualism we in the church have. Done well, small groups help create extended families, as you mentioned, and knock the edges off of the idea the christianity is something you can do alone.
one of the great things about living in oklahoma is the word ya’ll. scripture is written to communities, not individuals, the you isn’t singular, it’s plural.
small groups or other smaller communities is the most practical place to live a ya’ll kind of faith.
Our church has continued with a small group approach. We seriously questioned it as leaders at one point, but felt that they were our key format for providing real spiritual growth.
Our groups are starting to get successful we believe. We’ve struggled with groups for many years. We now have a coordinator behind them who is working very hard to push them. Also, with the advice of Kevin Penry we released the small group leaders to lead each group as they desired in terms of content. And we promote them heavily. People in the groups are really enjoying them.
Our biggest challenge that maybe you could help answer Pastor Craig is this: How do we get more people into groups? We typically have about 30 to maybe 40% of the people who attend. We promote them as much as we can.
Like Thanksgiving dinner, you don’t get the opportunity to participate with each individual at the same time. With my family we each have our own “table/section” that we end up assigned to. Even though we are all family and friends, the memories are made with the few at your “table/section.”
I attended my first small group 4 years ago, and those people have become some of my closest, most trusted friends. God speaks to me through them on many occasions. It’s “iron sharpens iron” almost every time we get together. And we get together often, even now, 4 years later. But our spirits are together more than our bodies are together. Does that make sense?
I believe with all my heart that God has “anointed” these relationships. And the funny thing is, our church splits small groups after a certain number of months, and we were constantly inviting in new people. But those relationships we’ve developed through that first group are the ones we still rely on today. I believe it was a total God-thing.
And I also believe it might not be a good idea to split the groups. When you have an “extended family” that loves each other, that does life together, whose children are forming relationships together, I think the stability and commitment to those relationships is something we need. Discipleship happens, accountability is built, trust is built, and one small group at a time the church becomes stronger.
Oh my gosh! I love this! I am so excited! This is what im doing at OU!
I LOVE small groups; right now they’re my passion! God’s doing awesome things! I’ll write more later! I’m In class right now haha
Craig, i believe in the small group vision of Life! Keep praising God!
God bless!
Small Groups for us is amazing.
1. Even though our older “churched” individuals are feeling the pressure of change and may not necessarily like it, it forces us to break out of a mentality that was ’same old, same old.’
2. Our church is experiencing great growth in numbers because of small group.
3. Our church is experiencing great spiritual growth AND relational growth because of it.
4. People are following their passion, and this summer when we launch a different way of doing our small groups, people will feel even MORE fulfilled following their passion in whatever way they want.
5. People are connecting to our church through small group before they ever even set foot in our regular Sunday morning church gathering.
6. The church had outgrown what the pastor could care for directly, small groups have now provided a way for group members to get the direct attention and care they need (when someone is down, sick, struggling, etc.)
I could not agree more with you. As the leader of a vibrant small group I can say the ministry that happens every Wednesday night is extraordinary and Biblical. Our prayer and support times alone add tremendous value to everyone’s lives. Not to mention the more in-depth teaching we all learn from and use.
In short, small groups ROCK.
Hello everyone!
I grew up in a independent baptist church, that means: No small groups at all.
I’m trying to understand and making work this small groups thing because it looks like it works. But, for someone without experience in this model… it’s not easy, jeje.
Someone has any advice? Thanks!
By the way: We’re 4 members now in H3O!!!!!!!!
Being one of the Lifegroup leaders at the Tulsa campus I can say we have seen growth and pitfalls of a Lifegroup. Overall I think a lifegroup is the heart of the church. Its where real peeps get real with Christ. Its where I see the body of the church get together and for once remove all the coverings and dig into the issues they are dealing with they dont talk about at corporate worship on the weekends.
Our first Lifegroup we started failed miserably. We would get calls and emails of interest but no one would ever show. We would contact them back but no answers, no reponses. After a few months we ended that journey. Months later after pray and guidance we decided it was time to try again. Finally after a 2nd time at trying to lead a group it happened. Having a group has been an incredible experience. We are 4 couples strong and growing. Sometimes it takes time for God to get the right people in the place together. I have faith in Lifegroups, community groups, whatever anyone calls them. Its exactly what the early church did and with so many of us caught up in our own selfish lives, its good for us to remember how to invest in others. Lifegroups allow that to happen.
Question for Craig and others.
What are your thoughts about placing people in small groups vs. letting them happen organically?
[...] Why I Still Believe In Small Groups [...]
Small groups will become obsolete only if we are intention in our destruction of them. Groups that focus on only one area of “do community” will have difficulty in sustaining people’s interests. However, groups that are going beyond the study and chose instead to also apply what God teaches will be a magnet. Groups that are most successful are Celebrating together, Connecting with each other and their community, and Contributing to the mission of God together. I have been excited watching so many churches apply these principles and seeing the lives that are changed - Both inside and outside the group.
They build leaders. –Yes, absolutely!
Small Groups are where I encourage our Christ Followers to have Their Church Time. Our weekend Experiences is where I encourage them to SERVE. We want to use our weekend Experiences as an outreach to connect to the lost and broken in our community. I encourage our Christ Followers to use our Experiences as a tool to connect to our Guests and be Christ to them. Without small groups our people would not be doing LIFE together, they would not be carrying each others burdens, they would not be rejoicing with one another, they would not be sharing their gifts with one another… I could go on and on and on….. Gotta Love The Small Group…
Z
Jason, you asked “What are your thoughts about placing people in small groups vs. letting them happen organically?” and knowing my experience, and reading Jeff Brame’s post, above…I really believe they happen according to what God wants, no matter what we do. I would begin placing people in small groups, but don’t force anyone to stay there, and don’t make them split up if they don’t want to.
I love the concept of small groups. They are so beneficial when you find one that causes growth, and is more about growth than purely socializing. The problem I have run into since moving to a new area and a new church is that while I have made great friends, I am not feeling growth because we are all at such different stages in our life and have different ideas about the purpose of a small group. When numbers become more important than feeding I believe the group needs to reevaluate.
Jason asked, “What are your thoughts about placing people in small groups vs. letting them happen organically?”
I have always preferred the organic approach, but am curious as to those of you who have placed them in groups. How did that go?
Tim Moore, you said, “We typically have about 30 to maybe 40% of the people who attend.” I just finished a doctoral study of 30+ churches using sermon-based small groups. I studied 10 in depth with interviews. Most of those churches only have 40% of worship attendance in small groups. Just keep pushing and doing what’s right. I recommend Larry Osborne’s book STICKY CHURCH if you have not read it. It’s excellent. North Coast has 80% in growth groups, but now they will not get everyone.
1. Does your pastor make small groups and biblical community a priority in his life and from the platform?
If that doesn’t happen, it’s hard to move forward.
I’m a BIG believer in small groups for all of the reasons many of you have mentioned here. Here’s my current thoughts and question aound this topic. If groups are where so many good things happen; where the Christian rubber hits the road; where real discipleship, spiritual growth, and pastoral care takes place, why not lean more into the organic, missional type of church model, IE home church, simple church, etc. that leaders like Neil Cole, Alan Hirsch and others are promoting?
Chejoo
I love your enthusiasm. Good news about the new additions to your church…keep it up. Love to hear about what God is doing in your church. My church is almost 2 years old.
My simple advice for you. Right now your church is a small group. Keep focusing on building the church for at least a year. At that point start a group of your own by inviting a few people. Just do life together.
By the way…I came form the Independent Baptist background also. You have a great heritage, now take what you have learned about the Bible and just keep loving and showing Jesus to your community. God will use you.
Thanks a lot Brandon! I also thought that we actually were a smallgroup now! So we’ll keep on growing this “small group” right?
Thanks!
We became a network affiliate of LifeChurch.tv in March ‘08 (celebrating our one-year anniversary this month…WHOO-HOO!)I lead the Ladies LifeGroup, but I was leading a ladies “small group” in my home for about a year even before we became “Real Life Church.” I’m sort of responding to Jason’s question about placement. I’ve tried various angles and have found the one that works best is when I, the LifeGroup leader, first, befriend someone at church. Not saying that’s the best way, only that it’s what has worked. Once they feel they kind of know me and sort of trust me, only then are they willing to take what must feel to them like a huge leap of faith into the unknown. Our pastor and others continually encourage folks to participate, but they seem to hold back until they receive something more personalized, which suggests to me that “assigning” them to a group might feel a bit arbitrary or controlling to them. On another note, I’m sure everyone reading this blog has seen that even after they show up for group, it takes a while for them to open up. I tried approaching it as though I’m supposed to be discipling them, which resulted in me doing lots of talking. But soon I realized I can’t disciple someone until I know what his or her need is, which requires me to get them to talk, while I listen. Now I realize our LifeGroup may be the one place they really feel they can be open, heard, and understood. If for no other reason, that’s why I love the groups. It’s where we receive the unconditional love of Christ “with skin on” when it’s demonstrated through each of us.
Craig, at our previous church, we had a guy who thought we should place people in groups. In short, not good. People gather because of relationships. I obviously can not speak for everyone, but that was our experience. Now, I am planting a church and just letting it happen naturally. Much better, more fun, closer interaction. I LOVE our small group. It is life-giving and really helps you learn more about people so you can minister to them more effectively. That is why we named our church Connection Church. It is all summed up in relationships.
Life change seems to happen best in small groups. We have many different ways that we implement them into various aspects of our church life & community.
It’s essential for discipleship.
Thanks Craig!
Todd, Thanks for your response to my question. That’s what I was guessing, but maybe others have had a different experience.
Alan, Glad to have you in the conversation. Having just finished your doctorate on the subject, I look forward to hearing more of what you’ve learned.
1. we launched small groups 2 years ago (from a S.S. model). We went from 25% involvement to 65% involvement simultaneous to a 30% congregation numeric growth while emphasizing spiritual growth over statistical growth. It’s amazing.
2. Small groups are head and shoulders better suited to facilitate spiritual growth than classroom across a broad range (classroom has it’s edge). The “Y’all” plural comment earlier is right on.
3. Saddleback has seen >100% small group participation…but that’s numbers based not necessarily unique belly-buttons. Interesting achievement, nonetheless.
4. in Central America I’ve seen models where small groups truly are 90-110% of worship attendance when those become the evangelistically-oriented venues and large group becomes primarily exhortation/discipleship in nature.
5. In my experienc, the key is identity/purpose. What is the small group ministry about/for? What’s “success”? Is it regularity, number of people, rigor of studies, depth of fellowship, or…? Answer that question and tool the strategy/programming around the goal.
6. Don’t make small groups a be-all-end-all, but a platform to launch the breadth of Christ-centered community. Let it breathe.
7. Because our groups have been multiplying faster than groups have matured to replication, we’ve moved to a “Match dot com” stage where we are matching people to groups. Not assigning - because that’s too dictatorial - but acting more like a Groups Concierge of sorts. People email into a central person who matches up with a list of possible good matches based upon geography, affinity and group “status” (full, middle of complex study, on a break, etc.). So far it’s working well. It relieves group leaders of anxiety from 4 random people showing up on the finale of their “share your deepest sin struggle” night and also the exhasperation of seekers bouncing around groups that don’t pan out. We also keep a “hopper list” of interested people that are not connected yet and try to find homes quickly.
Man, what an exciting week of posts! Great topic, Craig.
I’d love to humbly share a couple of thoughts:
1) Attendance: One of the most effective tools I’ve found to maintain consistent attendance is to create a group covenant. In our covenant, we commit to meet weekly and understand when we are absent, our group is affected. I often use the analogy of a Thanksgiving dinner without the turkey. We have many other things in our covenant, but attendance is especially important.
2) Kids: Over the 10 years of leading our group, my wife and I have dedicated the group time to be “adults-only.” This allows everyone to minister to each other without any distractions. So, for our group, we all arrange for childcare.
3) Community: To build community, we pair couples together each month - we call it “Couple of the Month.” We draw names each month to see who’s paired with who. The point is for each pairing to spend time with one another outside of “group time” for that month. It could be walking together, game nights, dining out, etc. The point is for couples to engage one another and build relationships.
Again, great topic for the week!
Kyle and Mike, Awesome thoughts! Thank you both for the valuable insight.
Small groups should be a part of every church, not matter how big or small the church is. But small groups need to be closely monitored too, when they seek to take the place of Sunday Schools for Biblical education that can’t come from sermons.
This topic has been top of mind for me for the past two months. And please excuse the fact that I am feeling pretty negative about them right now, but I generally feel that small groups suck. What everyone describes here sounds like what I want to be a part of. But for the past 20 years, I have only been in two groups that even come close to what “y’all” are describing. Most often they feel like “forced fun,” where we eat, and talk, and pretend to share. Even for those groups that stay together for many months, I rarely see any kind of vulnerability. And without openness, nothing is going to happen. I am at the point of figuring out how my family can do life with just one other family, and hopefully from there we can grow together and include others.
My focus right now is:
1. Prayer about how to get started
2. Discussion with my spouse to make sure we are committed to making our lives fit the model we create
3. Playing around with various ideas without the preconceived idea that there is some set way small groups are “supposed” to work.
Thanks for all your wonderful comments in this thread!
In the times when I have not been part of a small group, I can look back and see that those were the times when I felt most isolated and frustrated in my spiritual walk. My husband and I are now part of an online Life Group through LifeChurch, and I am part of an online group for women. We are loving the experience because we don’t have to worry about childcare, we don’t have to leave the house, and we are already internet-oriented people so it’s a natural fit. We feel like we have found authentic community with these folks and we have been growing exponentially since we became part of these groups.
I think Avery nailed it. What you really need for small group ministry to work is persecution. (grin) Hya Avery!
Seriously, I think the problem with small group meetings is that they naturally reflect the problems of the larger church they are a part of. Only in micro. So the solutions should work both ways. Just like the problems. (grin)
Pastor Craig, great post!
I have been a part of a LifeGroup since January, and my life has totally changed for the best! I can honestly say that I have become open with my LifeGroup, allowing them to become my second family. I love LifeGroups simply because they are places where I get to know one another and share our burdens and struggles, even occasionally getting involved in the difficult things in one another’s lives, supporting one another with Godly encouragement, wisdom and testimony and aLifeccountability. I am so glad that I joined LifeChurch Online and LIfeGroups this year! It has changed me completely and made me a better person. I plan on visitng the Ft. Worth campus this weekend!
Since first hearing of the “small group” model, I have silently chuckled to myself when I hear, particularly from the more traditional model of “doing church” (of which I do not bash and happily attend), that it supposedly “doesn’t work” or “divides the church” or whatever complaint one may have.
Here’s why I laugh, is not the small group model, though different in its own right no doubt, very similar to Sunday Morning Bible Study Fellowships, or more classically known as “Sunday School?” Groups meet together to study God’s Word, pray for each other, and often carry out small mission type projects as a “small group” of believers who are joined together with a larger body of believers, the local church.
So whether or a smaller group who are part of a local church meet Sunday morning, Wednesday night, or some other time during the week, aren’t they very similar and very effective whatever their called?
One question I’ve always wondered (since I’ve never been at a church that has small groups) and have never had answered is what do you do with kids? preschoolers? children?
Bryan ~ I guess you’d have to define what is “effective”? I’ve been a part of a few small groups that didn’t have anyone who could really answer questions in a Biblically relevant manner. In other words, we were left with no one that could answer, “This is what the Bible says about … “
Steve K.
I hate hearing that, I really do. The problem is that it’s the same with many Sunday School teachers. I’d say that issue (the issue of having valuable leaders) needs to go through a much more open, honest, and biblical selection process so that we don’t end up with goobers for small group leaders and SS teachers, respectively.
As the leader of a small group, we call it hometeam of Single Parents I find that hometeam is sometimes the difference between sinking and swimming with aid. We all need someone sometimes to help remind us that God is GOOD.
Blessings,
Andrea
Hebrews 10:23-25
23 Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. 24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.
25 Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another–and all the more as you see the Day approaching.
[...] Craig Groeschel added an interesting post on Why I Still Believe In Small Groups - LifeChurch.tv : swerveHere’s a small excerptyouversion.com. YouVersion.com. A free bonline Bible/b empowering community and collaboration. Visit YouVersion.com. swerve articles. comments Comments RSS Feed posts Comments RSS Feed. Chris Byers on post Why I Still Believe In Small b…/b [...]
Jimmy, hiya back atcha (miss you)… how bout some more coffee…?
Lost your number… call me…
More persecution eh… well that’s not exactly what I had in mind… but it was funny…
Charlie - I try to keep our group “adults only.” So, each couple in our group arranges for child care. With that said, we are also going to be trying something new this month. We are going to have a “kids night” at group. Our whole group will join in teaching the kiddos a Bible-based lesson complete with puppet show, crafts, and singing. Like I said, it’s a first-time event for us, but we think they’ll love it.
[...] Shared a link on Google Reader. Why I Still Believe In Small Groups [...]
Crag, thanks for writing on this important subject. As a small group pastor I can confidently say that the success of small groups in a church directly corresponds to the Senior Pastor’s belief in them.
When I was on your staff it was a true blessing to always have your full support! Now I’m blessed again to serve at another church where the Senior Pastor is throwing his weight behind the small groups ministry! Senior Pastors, follow Craig’s lead and jump on the groups bandwaggon!!!
Oops! Sorry for misspelling your name in my last comment, Craig! I’m typing on my phone.
Hey there,
I have just led a church wide survey of our church and the results are off the charts. The results only supported the fact that small groups are THE primary way to connect to community and growing in discipleship.
We have a weekly attendance of 4,000 down here in Melbourne, we had a sample of 1,500 people. We had over 30,000 answers to collate from 30 questions. One truth that came through if you are in a small group you are much more likely to:
- be baptised
- serve
- have friends
- read your bible
- share your faith
- tithing
The results were off the charts. I am more than happy to pass our questionnaire on to anyone who would like to run their own survey to get a measure of where their church is at.
This is why I believe in small groups.
I have been reading for about 6 months now…Love this blog. I have NEVER seen so many comments on one topic. I think this shows the real battle that is going on. I think the enemy would love for us to not put in the work to be together in relational environments like Christ modeled.
Craig wrote: “I have always preferred the organic approach, but am curious as to those of you who have placed them in groups. How did that go?”
We do place people in groups, but it has an organic feel to it. We have group leaders call or face to face invite folks who have shown interest in being in a group. It works some of the time. We were averaging about a 50% connection rate last year (interested - to actually staying in a group 3 weeks in a row) to now with some adjustments around 90%!!!
Our church averages around 8-9 thousand people on a weekend, and we are over 7000 people in relational environments.
So yes I believe in small groups, I believe more so in what they potentially accomplish…making disciples!!!! That is what Jesus commanded us to do…not church goers, butts in seats, or anything else. We have the best chance to be the church in small relational environments.
Love this conversation!!!
Small groups rock! We’ve had success because we followed a concept that is pretty simple. Build relationships and meet Jesus. Also, we’ve noticed that if you use certain catch phrases to get people recruited really works. Small groups should be fun and creating a buzz around church. P.S. our church attenders shy away from “bible studies” but are very interested when we mention we’re learning about building relationships. Works well for us to help people come to know God.
Love the discussion about small groups, but want to add one small caveat. The discussion should not be “are small groups valuable to the church”, but rather “what kind of small groups make a difference in the life of the participant.”
Everybody has their own picture of what a small group is and what it should accomplish and we get some really muddy water as a result. A lot of churches start small groups for the sake of having small groups, rather than giving them a true purpose and directions.
Our church has chosen to be specific in the purpose of our programmatic small groups. In other words, the groups that are initiated by the ministry staff are done so only with a clear goal/purpose in mind. Other groups have formed, but they form organically. Our philosophy has been influenced heavily by TNET (a discipleship training organization) as well as the results published by Willow Creek as part of the REVEAL study.
Most would consider Willow Creek successful in the small group arena, but they realized that their small groups may help people connect, or learn, or something good, but miss the target when it comes to developing true discipleship in the life of the individual. In other words, they significantly influenced the growth of the church, but not necessarily the spiritual growth of the individuals within the groups.
We shouldn’t talk about any program of the church without first clarifying the purpose of that program.
Jason… that is a great insight…
Small groups definitely, as you noted, help with population growth…
Secondly that does not necesarily mean they help with spiritual growth… as Willow creek, and others have discovered…but no surprise really…
I think you touched on a great point… purpose…
Purpose, and clear direction is everything…
If the goal is population growth.. statistics show the small group is a necessity if you want large…and it also makes relational and spiritual growth possible…but not definite…
If the goal is relationships… small groups are ideal…and make population and spiritual growth possible…but not definite…
If the goal is discipleship, true spiritual growth…really it has little to do with the model, as much as the clear purpose and commonality of clear purpose… this can happen in any forum, model, or facet… if it is God’s people working together for a common goal… but it doesn’t guarantee population growth, or relational growth in the sense most assume to understand it… as my experience has taught, and many others are discovering…
Kind of laves a pickle, and a problem no single church will be able to handle alone… because God designed it so that we would need each other…
You said, “We shouldn’t talk about any program of the church without first clarifying the purpose of that program.”… I agree completely, it is of the utmost…
I would also add that much is the talk of the purpose of programs and models, but sometimes that purpose doesn’t line up with God’s purpose and function of the church…
I predict that the question was, is and will be increasingly in the next age, “What is the purpose of the church?”…
Answering that is the difference, IMHO, and not answering it will be the undoing of any ministry… eventually…
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