Every church or small group faces challenges when starting or sustaining a small group ministry. The Deepening LifeTogether Video Bible Study Series is a great
tool to equip new and emerging small group leaders. Here are some tips from Brett Eastman, founder of LifeTogether and Small Group Champion at Saddleback Church:
Six Tips for Keeping New Small Groups Healthy Brett Eastman
In our 40 Days of Purpose campaign at Saddleback, we saw God work "exceedingly abundantly beyond what we asked or thought," as Paul said. We discovered that using videotape of Rick teaching the material enabled ordinary members to effectively lead small groups because they didn't need the same skills for teaching, facilitation, and knowledge of the Scripture as the pastor or other trained leader might have.
The result was that we trained more than 2,000 new hosts and launched 2,300 small groups that reached more than 20,000 people!
Suddenly, we had a powerful way to change the community around us through people who were living healthy, balanced, purpose driven lives together in these small groups. The challenge we faced was how to keep those small groups healthy and vital.
Here are six tips for keeping new small groups healthy so they can make the impact God wants:
1. Reload and re-fire
2. Curriculum is the second most important tool
3. Realize that reformation could be coming
4. Focus on what really matters
5. Begin with the end in mind
6. Recruit and develop a senior "leader of leaders"
If you are looking for Bible Study Curriculum that has a "plug-in-play" solution for your church with an economical pricetag, we offer Deepening Life Together Kits for Churches. Each Bible Study Church Kit comes with a DVD, Leader Guide, and a Church Resource CD which inludes:
- Outlines of the Lessons (Sermon Outlines)
- PowerPoint (multi-media) templates
- Small Group Leader Training Packets
- Group Forms
- Artwork for Bulletins, Banners, Bookmarks... and more
Deepening Life Curriculumincludes more than 14 video Bible studies: Acts, Ephesians, Promises of God, Romans, Revelation, Parables, Fruit of the Spirit, Psalms, Praying God's Way, James, the Gospel of John, and character studies on the Apostle Paul and Ruth.
If your church would like more information on developing Custom Curriculum or on keeping new small groups healthy, contact our office at 619-733-9218. We have small group coaches available to help you start or sustain a dynamic small group ministry.