questions from a leader

I received an e-mail from one of our small group leaders today. I'd like to share it with you, along with my responses to her questions (my responses in boldface):

SG Leader: When our group met last night we got on a discussion about the sermon and developing relationships within small groups. This was the perfect timing for me to push the talk to the comment about how larger groups may not be best for closer relationships and the need to set goals for "birthing" out.

Me: The group I lead had dynamic discussion last night, too. Dwight's message (3/19/06) spurred a lot of thoughts and talk. The best thing that we did as a group to help us with this stuff was to sign the group covenant.

SG Leader: So, hopefully some will come to the next Origins. I will plan to come and hope some will come with me for the "info"

Me: The next ORIGINS is March 30. It's a great class for ANYBODY in a small group. The goal is to have all who attend leave there being so pumped up to lead a group that they can't wait to start! Even if someone's not ready to start a group, at ORIGINS, they're at least going to be reminded about why we do group life and what it can mean for them. Plus, a seed might get planted.

SG Leader: We did talk about how to deal with a large group (18) that we do have and decided that the dates are set even if someone can't come, thus many times the group will be smaller. we are meeting the 1st 3rd and 5th( if applicable) Sunday nights. With Easter, we will meet the following Sunday, etc. AND we plan to always divide into 2 or three groups for discussion time with perhaps 10 minutes as a whole group following to give groups an opportunity to talk. Does this sound okay and please give suggestions.

Me: 18 really is too many. We want your group to have the best shot at developing authentic community and intimacy with each other. To do that, several things are necessary: 1. group covenant 2. predictable small group environemnt (same people, same dynamics, etc.) 3. smaller group size (12 max). In the meantime, until your group is ready split, you just have to do the best you can. If you get some leaders ready to lead a new group(s) then you'll start to see the group dynamic shift toward more intimacy when the group size becomes smaller. The split is a really hard thing to do...but totally worth it. The newly formed groups can still get together every-so-often in order to keep everyone in touch with each other. A lot of groups that birth schedule regular times (quarterly, monthly) to get EVERYONE back together.

SG Leader: This brings us to the next question. Has a study been developed for Sermon study? Or what bible study would you suggest as some spoke up last night and have been doing the daily verses for lent and said they are soooo new and completely grey on the Bible. We did have Blake come last summer to do the time line of the old testament but in one evening, it is hard to get a grasp. It's hard for us to understand when someone doesn't know the "story" of the Bible even in a general understanding. So, an elementary group studay of the bible would be helpful for us to also do.

Me: As for sermon studies for small groups...we're just not there yet. I REALLY want to do it but until we get to the place where we're working on sermons farther out, we're just not able to pull it off. Last week, Dwight was still working on his sermon on Friday...Here's something for you to think about. Your group could use the Starting Point material for your study. It may be just what you're looking for. The coolest thing about it is that it walks you right through the story of the Bible beginning with Bible: What is it?, Bible: Is it reliable, Bible: How do I read it? And then it looks at 9 different personalities in the Bible beginning with the story of Adam and Eve, Abraham, Moses, right on down the line. It's fantastic. The only difficult thing may be this: it's a 13-week study. Based on the frequency of your meetings, it would take you 6 months or so. And...if you birth, that throws another monkey wrench into things. Just something to think about. If you want to review the Starting Point stuff, we'll be happy to lend it to you.

Your small group questions are always welcome. I hope the above email helps you with some ideas, thoughts, etc. You can always get a hold of me at jbunn@sugarcreekfmc.org.