03.12.10
Synergy, Friends who Mean Something, and Saddleback Small Group Conferences
A few weeks ago it was my opportunity to spend a couple of days in a room with Bill Search, Reid Smith, Eddie Mosley, Ben Reed, Tom Bougher, Lyman Coleman, Randall Neighbour, Greg Bowman, Carl George, Steve Gladen. You may know all of these names or they may all be new to you. Bottom line… This is a who’s who in the small group world.
We simply threw out a topic and discussed, debated, deliberated on it for a period of time. Each of us had opinions that we lunged into the conversation. And each of had had past experiences that guided us toward the opinion we had. But the most important part of the conversation wasn’t one person’s thought, the most important part of the conversation were the principles and practices that unveiled themselves due to collective reasoning.
Synergy is one of the most amazing experiences of small group life. Long for it, look for it, make it happen. It’s easy. Simply create an environment where everyone feels comfortable talking then after many have spoken say something like, “What is the bottom line?” or “What do you think we’re learning here?” or “If we could sum this up in a couple of sentences what would those sentences be?”
Know this… synergy flows best with friends who mean something to you. When this band of small group brothers got together many of us knew about each other, some of us knew one another somewhat, and a few were already close friends. In just a matter of hours I felt a substantial connection to each of these guys. Today I’d call them all friend, a term set aside in my world for people who my heart connects with and I trust. Hopefully your small group is made up of “friends.”
A very close friend in this space is Steve Gladen, small group guru at Saddleback Church. I have been honored to present at Steve’s small group conferences the last few years. He has taken the risk of welcoming me into his circle of acceptable thinkers and communicators. This is one of the greatest honors of all. His reputation is on the line with each session I lead. But trust is what makes a group a family. Steve’s welcoming me into his circle of acceptable thinkers and communicators and trusting me with his reputation is very empowering. Be sure you trust something to your small group members that lets them know how much you trust them, even when it puts your reputation on the line.
By the way, Steve’s “Community U” small group conferences are fantastic. If you’re anywhere near any of the following cities, you’ll want to make a way to show up and bring your small group leaders. They’ll leave inspired as well as educated.Get more info at www.bit.ly/Smallgroupconf
April 16-17 Nashville, TN
May 21-22 Milwaukee, WI
July 16-17 Los Angeles, CA
Aug 20-21 St. Louis, MO
Sept 24-25 Seattle, WA
Oct 15-16 Baltimore/Washington, D.C.
Nov 5-6 Miami, FL
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