Big Ideas about Small Groups

We've Moved!

It's official -- we've moved!  The CCC Small Groups Blog has been officially moved to our Community Christian Church website, for lots of great reasons that you don't want to be bored hearing about.

So, you can continue to find all the great content you loved, just at a new location.

See you there!

New "Suburban Legends" Discussion Guide Available

This weekend at COMMUNITY we kick off our brand-new series which will tackle various relationship myths that our culture tempts us to buy into. We'll cover relational myths about things like parenting, living together, divorce, and more.

To go along with this series, we have written an excellent Small Group Discussion Guide that help facilitate discussion around the 5 weeks of this series. So be the first to download a copy--HERE!

Top 5 Reasons To (and not to!) Get An Apprentice

Carter Moss | CCC/NewThing Small Group Catalyst

I love developing new leaders, something we call "apprenticeship" around here. Last weekend I co-led a skill with all my campus leaders on the single most impactful thing we can do in ministry (which is invest in people, as in apprenticeship or discipleship).  So that got me thinking again about all the great reasons why to have an apprentice.

Let me start with the Top 5 Wrong Reasons To Get An Apprentice:
5)  Instant scapegoat at your side for whenever you get criticized
4)  No more looking for rides to the airport
3)  Finally someone to do all the hard work so you can catch up on sleep
2)  Gets you out of having to show up all the time
1)  Helps you become the next Donald Trump

Now let's get on with the Top 5 GREAT Reasons To Get An Apprentice:
5)  It accomplishes what God wants most--carrying out His mission (Matthew 28, 2 Tim 2:2)
4)  It accomplishes what we want most--leaving a legacy that carries on beyond us
3)  It allows us to reproduce and start new things (you can go start something new, or they can!)
2)  It makes you a better leader (less "making it up on the fly" and more intentionality)
1)  It's just a lot more fun to do ministry alongside someone

What do you think?

Appreciate Your Leaders

Eric Metcalf **NewThing Adult Ministry Champion

Just remembering I need to say thank you to the leaders in my life

Stop recruiting, now!

Carter Moss | CCC-New Thing Adult Catalyst

I am currently reading "Organic Leadership" by Neil Cole, and he expounds on a point he made in "Search & Rescue" which I found extremely interesting, and I'm still wrestling with in my head. He says that the main difference in churches that have plenty of leaders vs. those that don't, is in how they get new leaders. He says it's that churches that struggle recruit their leaders, but that this is not an addition strategy, it's actually a subtraction strategy. Why? Because it's taking leaders away from one ministry to serve in another.

Instead, he says we need to farm leaders--develop people when they first begin to follow Jesus, disciple them, and as a natural result of discipleship, they will want to jump in on God's mission. So we need to start with discipleship (farming), not recruiting.

I realize this is a very limited summary of what Neil takes the appropriate time to set up, so I hope it doesn't do his point any injustice. But based on this, or maybe what you've read and tried--is he on the right track?  Do we need more farming and less recruiting?

Where do you end up finding most leaders, specifically small group leaders?

Missing: Jesus (Discussion Guide: Found!)

This weekend at COMMUNITY we kick off our brand-new series which will take us up to Easter--Missing: Jesus. Through this series, we will explore 4 different stereotypes/caricatures that we often have of Jesus, and we will attempt to uncover the real Jesus that the gospels tell us about.

The 4 differerent Jesus stereotypes we will be tackling are:
*Spooky Jesus
*Middle-Class Jesus
*Sunday School Jesus
*Buddy Jesus

To go along with this series, we have written an excellent Small Group Discussion Guide that help facilitate discussion around the 4 weeks of this series. So be the first to download a copy--HERE!

Following the Leader

Eric Metcalf **NewThing Adult Ministry Champion

I had the opportunity to speak at Tri-County Church this past week and spoke to their Leadership Community about being a Reproducing Church.  They are located in DuBois, PA - a rural area - and God has been very generous to them as they are averaging about 1200 a weekend.  Not only that, they are going multi-site a week after Easter!  Here are the basics of what I shared to their biggest Leadership Community gathering in 7 years:

Following the Leader

Luke 5 - Follow Me - it starts with us as Leaders following Jesus - are you following Him?

Luke 10 - Get an Apprentice - Jesus sent them out in pairs - why?  Are you following the buddy-system?

Luke 15 - Help people find their way back to God - I shared some thoughts from The Prodigal God, Tim Keller - Keller reminds us that Luke 15 has two parts: about the younger son and the older son - meaning those far from God and Christians who are not following Jesus but are prideful about their "good works".

Luke gives a great progression of discipleship for the local church.  Follow Me, Get an Apprentice and Help People Find Their Way Back to God!

Four Secrets to Great Question-Asking

Carter Moss | CCC/NewThing Adult Catalyst

One of the most important skills for small group leaders to develop is the skill of asking GREAT questions. Great questions will help create a great discussion. Of course it's more of an art than a science, but here are some tips that are hopefully helpful for you: 

Secret #1: Ask open-ended questions!

• Avoid the yes-no, true-false, multiple-choice questions [“Is Jesus the sheep or the shepherd in this parable?”]
• Avoid questions that let people off the hook with a simple “Sunday school answer” [“Why did Jesus die on the cross?”]
• Ask questions that require people to have to share some actual thoughts and feelings [“Which of the challenges the author mentioned has been the most difficult one for you in this past year? Where are some ways that you have done well in overcoming that challenge?”]

Secret #2: Ask follow-up questions!

• Many people default to trying to stay pretty surface level with their levels, so get in the habit of not letting them off the hook—ask more follow-up questions.
• Here are some examples of good follow-up questions for short/simple answers people give:
  • What makes you say that?
  • How do you feel about that?
  • How do you think that would’ve affected you if you had been living in the time of Jesus?
  • How would you explain your answer to a non-Christian friend or neighbor?
  • Try to get at the core of what people are really trying to say.

Secret #3: Start an argument!

• I like to tell my groups that if we all just always agree with each other and with every word that every author we read says, then it makes for a pretty boring group and somewhat pointless discussion. The point of actually discussing things is to get different perspectives and wrestle with things!
• Here are some examples of questions that can help create discussion by playing a little “devil’s advocate”:
  • Do you really agree with what the author is saying in that chapter?  Why or why not?
  • Why did God design it to work that way? Why not just do (whatever else) instead?
  • What would you say to someone who disagrees with that?
  • Why do we really have to do it like that? Why can’t we just go (some other route) instead?

Secret #4: Make sure the rubber hits the road!

• I often tell my small group that by the end of the night, we need to make sure we apply what we’re discussing to our current lives—otherwise we just leave group a little smarter, rather than with changed lives!
• Whatever it is you’re discussing, make sure to end with some application questions. Here are some examples:
• So what in the world does that have to do with our lives today?
  • How can you change your perspective from today on regarding that issue?
  • What one thing can you do differently in this next week to start living that out?
  • Some groups will add some accountability to that last question, recording what members share, and asking them to report back the next week.

Discover the Dream

Eric Metcalf **NewThing Adult Ministry Champion

Have you thought that maybe God is calling you to something new?  Do you have an entrepreneurial spirit that is begging to be unleashed to impact God's Kingdom?  Is it possible that God is calling you to be part of a reproducing church movement?  If so, check out Discover the Dream, April 20, 2009 in Orlando, Florida as a pre-conference workshop to the Exponential Conference.

At Discover the Dream you will:

• Encounter the dream that God put within you.

• Understand how your dream is a part of His dream.

• Hear from leaders who are living out their dream and fulfilling it by planting reproducing churches.

• Realize that you can be a part of a movement that is pursuing the dream of God.

Join us in Orlando to Discover the Dream!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Small Group Exchange websource

Eric Metcalf **NewThing Adult Ministry Champion

I recently said yes to be on a team who will oversee content for an awesome small group website www.smallgroupexchange.com developed by bluefishtv.  While perusing their website I ran accross a video of me talking about COMMUNITY's small groups - answering a question - how do we define them?  Let me know what you think!