Dec

9

Keeping Your Small Group Small

December 9, 2007 | Leave a Comment

Jamie commented on my last post. I thought her question was worth bringing up and answering on a main post. She said,
Curious: how do you count “people” in a couples group? Six would be way too small, because if one couple misses, you’ve lost a third of the group. But we currently have better than […]

Nov

27

A Small Group Must be SMALL

November 27, 2007 | 7 Comments

In my last post, I mentioned a list of questions I sent to a pastor who had inquired about the lessening level of interest in small groups among his church members. If you’re having problems keeping people interested in your groups, there are several factors to consider.
The first of thing I look at is group […]

Nov

15

Missing: Human Affection

November 15, 2007 | Leave a Comment

I just received a fascinating article, which almost appeared to be real. Turns out that it was from The Onion, which is a parody newspaper. They write in a style that is so close to real that it makes you look deeper, think twice. I did that with this article, and was struck by how […]

Aug

18

Dealing with Divorce

August 18, 2007 | Leave a Comment

Divorce is certainly a challenge. We hate it, yet it’s becoming increasingly prevalent in the church. If you’re a leader dealing with divorce among group members, BuildingSmallGroups.com has just released a Training Download called Dealing With Divorce in Your Small Group. It includes seven articles plus additional resources. I’m delighted that my article, Living in […]

Aug

14

Authentic Parenting in a Postmodern Culture

August 14, 2007 | 3 Comments

I’ve been reading Authentic Parenting in a Postmodern Culture by Mary DeMuth as part of her blog tour. This book would make a great discussion guide for a parenting group, especially for parents of school age children. Mary offers lots of practical parenting hints, illustrated with stories of her family. I especially like the many […]

Jul

11

How about a Marriage Group?

July 11, 2007 | Leave a Comment

Marie Guthrie offers an excellent article on CT’s Marriage Partnership on the value of a couples’ group, and especially leading one. She’s honest about the joys and struggles, and how she and her husband grew by getting real in their first group and then leading together. She also gives a great overview of how to […]

Jun

5

Normalizing the Stuggle to Mature

June 5, 2007 | Leave a Comment

A Leadership Tip at Timberlinechurch.org offers a great article called Normalizing the Struggle. The author shows how the small group leader is critical in motivating members to change, grow, and mature. Worth reading.

Jun

4

Party Theology

June 4, 2007 | Leave a Comment

Eric Bryant, elder, speaker, and navigator overseeing the leadership team at Mosaic in Los Angeles explains “party theology” in an interview with Relevant.com. He says,
Every year at Mosaic, Erwin (McManus) does a message on what we call “party theology.” It’s basically looking at Levi (his name later became Matthew). Not knowing any better, […]

Jun

2

Studies for New Christians

June 2, 2007 | Leave a Comment

OK, I need your help. The maturity article in the last newsletter prompted a couple of requests for materials to grow up baby Christians. And in fact, I’m in need of discipleship materials for the new Christian we’re working with. Everything I’ve found so far is BORING. If you know of something interesting that will […]

May

22

Goddess Spirituality in your Group?

May 22, 2007 | Leave a Comment

As you lead small groups, especially if they’re seeker groups, you will eventually encounter the challenge of  people who have chosen to follow the Goddess or feminine spirituality. With the popularity of Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code, there has been an increased interest in goddess worship.
If you’re like me, this is an area you […]

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