CATEGORIES
Leadership
10.08.10
Leaving LifeWay, Headed to NavPress... No Social Networking until November 1
I am now reminded of the first time our group birthed a new group. Leaving people you love seeing on a daily or weekly basis is a tough thing to do. I'll be doing that in just a few weeks.
Beginning November 1 I'll be spearheading the work of small groups at NavPress. This is a journey I am thrilled to be taking. Having the opportunity to shape the philosophy of a ministry is a great honor, one I have thought long and hard about.
I will miss the people and the ministry of LifeWay. She has been so very good to me. Every leader whose direction I served under, every person on the teams I've served with, every opportunity she has offered me, has blessed me more than I deserve.
So that I can reboot my own heart I'll be social networking silent until November 1. Phone conversations will be hard to come by and my e-mail address will be changing. Every once in a while each of us needs to get away and just "be" without feeling an obligation to be "doing." This is one of those times.
In case you're wondering… Yes, I will begin blogging, tweeting, and available to help you and your ministry in any way again on November 1. Please know that I will have a new blog site as the present one is a LifeWay site. I would be honored if you would continue to walk with me in my new journey at NavPress via the new blog. It will be up and running sometime around November 1.
I am looking forward to the next chapter of my life. Help me write it, will you?
10.05.10
Three Options for Handling Unofficial Small Groups
Every high-quality small group ministry will have unofficial small groups, groups that start on their own after seeing what your organized groups are doing or groups of people who are living out biblical community organically. When the small group pastor is made aware of these groups there is one of three ways to handle these groups.
- Allow the group to continue as they are without interruption. Pray for these groups and honor them as gifts from God.
- Approach the most influential person in the group (or the designated group leader). Let them know that you would be honored if the group would consider becoming part of the small group system. Point out the advantages of becoming part of the church's small group ministry. Be sure to include training opportunities, a coach to help them in their growth as a leader, financial assistance from the church (if your church does assist in the purchase of materials or other things), networking with a other small group leaders, ongoing encouragement, and assistance with childcare (if your church aids in finding individuals to do childcare or financial assistance is available in paying for childcare).
- Allow the group to continue without interruption utilizing the group when the church is doing church-wide campaigns. If you believe it will enhance the church's ministry, at the end of each campaign invite the unofficial small group to join the church's small group ministry. In most instances the group leader will be more likely to consider this following a campaign as the leader has experienced what it feels like to be part of the small group team.
09.29.10
Small Group Trader... About to Make Web-Based Small Group Training Practical and Personal
I just finished a tour of the new smallgrouptrader.com online training. It's only in BETA right now but it will be available to all of us come January. If you've struggled with the training of new and well-versed small group leaders, you need to peer into this space in January.
A few of the fantastic aspects of this online training are noted below:
- A small group pastor or coach can create his/her own training videos or articles that will show up on their personalized training page.
- A small group pastor or coach will have access to the training videos or articles created by any church leader who has given permission for you to access and send their stuff to your leaders. I would imagine almost everyone will make their stuff available.
- A small group pastor or coach will be able to e-mail training videos or articles of their choosing to a small group leader.
- The small group pastor or coach will receive an e-mail when a small group leader has completed the training piece the small group pastor or coach sent to the small group leader.
- The small group pastor or coach can send a list of possible resources/curriculum pieces the small group might like to consider along with the training video or article. These will be hand-picked by the small group pastor or coach.
While I'm certain I've oversimplified the magnificence of this training, I can assure you, you will want to check this out. It may change the way we look at small group leader training.
09.28.10
Leaders and Clarity... Four Essentials... Without Them Don't Expect Much
Followers need leaders who are clearly defining four essentials. Without doing so, followers will find themselves lost in a pool of confusion, doubt, and misunderstanding. Ultimately the leader will lose her/his influence and those they once led will find someplace else to serve or will not serve at all.
Those four essentials are…
Clear Vision… Without clearly and consistently describing the ministry's vision (a mental image of the final outcome) followers will lose passion for the work.
Clear Strategy… Without a clear understanding of the strategy being used to accomplish the vision, followers create their own and go to work. Chaos will ensue as there will overlapping of work, role confusion, and followers will become discouraged.
Clear Expectations (of all followers at all levels)… Without clearly laying out the distinct responsibilities of every person on the team followers will not know what to do and will wait to go to work until someone tells them. In time, if they are not given a job description (in writing or verbally) they will quietly drift away never to be seen again.
Clear Markers of Success (for all followers at all levels)… Without clearly defining what success is followers will struggle to accomplish the work with the proficiency and expertise you had anticipated they would.
Other Leadership Blog Posts:
Leadership Vacuum, the Reason Many Leaders Lose
What All Effective Leaders Do, Five Simple Necessities
Alan Danielson Interview, Triple Threat Leadership, On-Line Book and Consulting
The Leader's Preparation, Wisdom from Henry and Richard Blackaby
09.20.10
Teaching Small Group Members to Pray Aloud
Jesus taught the disciples to pray. Shouldn’t we do the same?
I’ve been in ministry for 36 years now. An unforgettable ministry conversation took place one afternoon after our Sunday gathering of Christ-followers. One of the small group leaders at our church was speaking with me about the growth he was seeing in his small group members. I was already on the edge of my seat but when he told me about one of the members who had prayed aloud for the very first time the week prior I was trounced on by a dancing heart. And as I was driving home that day, my tear ducts got into the game. You see, the “first time out-louder” the small group leader was telling me about has a fantastic wife and two incredible sons. During my drive home that afternoon I realized that these young boys were going to grow up in a home where dad prayed for them at the dinner table, by their beds, on vacation, etc… The list could go on and on. And those kids will do with their own children what they have seen their dad do. Because a small group leader took the time and strategically was teaching his small group members to pray aloud a mountain of believers for generations to come will know what it means to be prayed for by godly, caring parents and as those children realize that God is real and alive they will want to know about His Son Jesus and will most likely choose a relationship with Him.
It is vital that small group leaders teach those in our groups how to pray… aloud.
Below you’ll find a simple step-by-step process that will help you as you teach small group members how to pray aloud.
LEVEL ONE: The Leader prays and models conversational prayer. The term “conversational” is important. Exhibiting a preacher voice, speaking in old English terms, or sounding as though you’ve swallowed a pile of “o pity me’s” will only confuse the small group member who longs to have an authentic relationship with Jesus.
LEVEL TWO: The Leader asks for volunteers and sees who emerges after it has been modeled for a couple of weeks.
LEVEL THREE: The Leader calls on two people to pray who have been volunteering and then the leader closes in prayer.
LEVEL FOUR: The Leader leads the group to “Complete the Sentence.” This could be a sentence like, “God, this is ______, I want to thank you for________, or God, would you help with ________.” The leader lets everyone know that if you prefer to pray silently to God instead of out loud, just let the group know by squeezing the hand of the person next to you (if the group is that close) or say the word ‘Amen’ to indicate you are going to pray silently. This is for those who still haven’t gotten into voicing prayers aloud. This is a giant first step for them.
LEVEL FIVE: The group grows to the place where they can pray conversationally as a group using this method: A prayer request is shared and the group spends time praying "sentence prayers" about that specific request before moving on to the next prayer request.”
You probably noticed that these are baby steps moving toward full-fledged paragraph prayers. In time, this will come naturally.
09.17.10
Answers to the Questions Most Often Asked by First Year Small Group Leaders
First year small group leaders are forced into situations they never thought about when they agreed to become small group leaders. In fact, for some of them, had they known what they were getting into, they might have hesitated to say yes to your request to lead a group. I wanted to give you a few links to blog posts that might answer some of the most often asked questions new leaders might be asking.
Just click on the title to go to a blog post on that particular topic.
What should we do about childcare?
Small Group Childcare, Three Options, Pros and Cons
Small Groups and Childcare, Five Options
What do I do about the overly talkative group member?
Suggestions for Helping the Overly Talkative Group Member
What should I do when most of the small group doesn't show up for the group meeting?
When Only a Few People Show Up for the Group Meeting
Leftover, When a Small Group Gets Smaller
How do I get group members to talk more during the meeting?
The Importance of Conversations Between Meetings
How do I get group members to make a meaningful commitment to the small group?
Small Group Covenants, Why Covenant, How to Covenant
How can I bring our Bible study time to life?
Journeying, Five Necessities for Guiding Your Group Beyond Bible Study
How do we handle confrontation in the group?
Confronting in Small Groups, Wisdom from Joel Comiskey
How do I make sure that our conversational Bible study isn't a night of shared ignorance?
Bible Study, A Night of Shared Ignorance
The Fine Line Between Authenticity and "My Truth"
09.16.10
Tools You Can Turn New Small Group Leaders to for Answers to Their Questions
New small group leaders have many questions that need to be answered. If you're the small group pastor you'll find yourself spending many hours answering the same questions again and again. This isn't a bad thing but it can be avoided. Below are some tools that you may want to make available to your small group leaders, tools that will answer most of the questions your small group leaders will ask of you. Just click on the title to either go to the website or see where to purchase the book.
Consider getting each small group leaders a copy of one of the following books. Each of these is an easy read reference guide for small group leaders.:
- Leading Life-Changing Small Groups by Bill Donahue, http://www.lifeway.com/product/001120924/
- The Pocket Guide to Leading a Small Group by Dave Early and Rod Dempsey, http://www.amazon.com/Pocket-Guide-Leading-Small-Group/dp/0978877926/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1284557167&sr=8-1
- Destination Community: Small Group Ministry Manual by Rick Howerton, http://www.lifeway.com/product/005038477/
Make your small group leaders aware of the following blogs. Each of these has a number of quick reads that answer the questions they may be asking.:
- Allen White's Brookwood Small Groups, http://upstategroups.typepad.com/upstate_groups_blog/small-group-questions/
- Michael Mack's Small Group Leadership, http://smallgroupleadership.blogspot.com/
- Rick Howerton's Small Group World (you're already here)
Connect your small group leaders to the following websites. Before turning your leaders to these websites you'll want to check them out and see what the fees are for utilization of them.:
- Small Group Trader, http://smallgrouptrader.com/Home
- Small Groups .com, http://www.smallgroups.com/
09.15.10
What New Small Group Leaders Need
New small group leaders often find themselves submerged in murky waters. They aren't necessarily drowning in it but they are trying to keep their heads above it and sometimes they are lost in it. Why? Just prior to their first meeting the cringe factor scale peaks. After the first meeting or two the new small group leader is certain she/he has gotten in over their heads. We need to realize what they need and be able to turn them in the right direction.
What do new small group leaders need?
- They need answers to the questions that arise.
- They need someone available, the small group pastor, a coach, etc… to talk to, a human voice to hear theirs and sympathize and empathize with them.
- They need encouragement and someone who has already done what they are doing to remind them that the feelings they are feeling and the questions they have are right and real and normal for any new small group leader.
A few important principles to keep in mind:
- The newer a small group leader is the more of your time they are going to need. Give more of your time to new leaders than well-established leaders and it will pay off.
- New leaders can learn from longer-term leaders. If you don't have a coaching system in place, you may want to connect a new leader with a small group leader who has been in the ranks for a few years. This is a great way to meet the needs of the new small group leader as well as find out which long-term leaders will make good coaches. Use this system to find coaches and create a coaching system.
- Coaches have a window of opportunity to build a mentoring type of relationship with a small group leader in the first eight weeks of small group leadership like no other time. Coaches being available to answer questions, encourage, empathize, and sympathize with the new leader in this window will pay great dividends in the future. Coaches calling up leaders once a week at first to see if they can help them will establish the kind of relationship between coach and leader that you're longing to create.
- People learn best when they "need to know" not when you lead a training session for them. The best learning comes when the cringe factor is high. It is in these moments that people go looking for answers to their questions. New small group leaders will have a lot of questions. Help them find a place or a person who can answer their questions.
09.14.10
Recruitment Month... Going When You're Growing Tired... A Few Tips
It's one of the busiest times a small group pastor survives, yes survives… recruitment time. For months you've been building up to September, recruitment month. You've gotten your leadership team together for multiple meetings, together you've created what you believe to be an effective plan, you've been diagramming and deliberating and finding yourself waking up in the middle of the night asking the question, "Is there something I'm forgetting or have forgotten?," you've been calling and prodding people who would make good small group leaders because you have to have more leaders so that your anticipated number of new group members have someone to lead them, and you've been prompting your senior pastor to push groups from the pulpit.
It's now September and you're exhausted but there's no way you can slow down, at least not for a few weeks. You need more energy to be effective. So what do you do?
A few ideas that have worked for me through the years…
- Take a quick afternoon nap, even if you have to do it in your office. A power nap can be a powerful thing.
- Sleep in one day. That's right, just decide that tomorrow you're not going to the office until 10:00. If you wake up early, don't think about church stuff. Sip coffee, watch the news, read the newspaper, do life like you have no pressure at all. This will slow down your blood pressure and the relaxation will make you better when you arrive back at the office.
- Take an afternoon and do something you like to do (unless it has to do with church). I'm one of the worst golfers in the world but I love it. An afternoon at the golf course will take my mind off anything. And after playing golf, I normally am ready to go again but I'm ready to go again without the inner urgency that existed prior to hitting my first poor shot of tee box #1.
- If you can, go away with your wife or husband for an overnighter. Get out of town and enjoy one another's company. Ask her not to bring up church stuff and you agree to do the same. Go someplace that you've been to together in the past, a place where, when you were there the first time, there was no pressure. Your emotional memory will allow you to breathe without thinking about the present for a period of time.
- Sit around a campfire one evening. It's hard to think about work when you're staring at a fire, looking at the stars, and being invaded by God's creation.
- Don't miss your daily time with God. Your time with God should be one of the most refreshing times of each day. Rest in Him, be restored by Him, allow Him to remind you that the larger story is more vital to the Kingdom than the story of groups. And finally, while with Him, turn over all of your cares and concerns about recruitment to Him. Remember this passage as you pray… Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philip. 4:6-7
09.10.10
My Interview With Boyd Pelley, Small Groups Analytics IV, Churchteams.com... So Much More than just Small Groups
Today we're wrapping up a four day interview with Boyd Pelley. Boyd created Churchteams.com, a web-based analytic tool for small group ministries. It has become so much more. This is a tool that will not only enhance your small group ministry, it will make your church much more efficient and effective.
Rick: We've talked a lot about using Churchteams.com for analysis, what are some other benefits of churchteams?
Boyd: Well communication is huge. A church can text and email as well as send postcards and letters to the whole church, any group, set of groups or set of members with just a few clicks. It's really easy. Imagine a bad weather day being able to send an email or even text message to everyone in the church that a service is canceled from the pastor's home computer. Or what about a last minute change of plans for a small group where even email is too slow and text messaging is needed. You can imagine how much our student ministries love texting.
In addition, so many people have enjoyed Churchteams for small groups and they wanted us to expand it to be a full database. So we did that a couple of years ago. Now you can track membership, assimilation, contributions, children's check-in, recruitment, reporting, event sign ups and anything else a traditional Church Management System does. The only exceptions are accounting and calendaring. There are some great reasons we've not done these, but anything membership related, we can do. By the way, all for the same price. No extra cost for modules or training or support. It's all included.
Rick: So it does track contributions?
Boyd: Yes. Besides the obvious reason of needing to track individual contributions for tax statements, we wanted to include giving as one of the factors involved in evaluating spiritual growth. We're working on some innovative ideas on how to do this, but I'll save that for later.
Rick: Will Churchteams.com work for a church of 50?
Boyd: Yes. It will. Not just for small groups, but everything related to church membership including contributions. Small churches sometimes don't think they need a church database, but in reality web-based software makes it possible for any volunteer to help with whatever role they have to help with the church. This can be a tremendous help even for church plants with nothing more than a core team getting ready to launch.
Rick: Will it work for a church of 20,000?
Boyd: Four of the largest ten churches in the United States use Churchteams for their small groups. We don't yet have any churches running over 2,000 using it for a full database. But, I imagine that day will come in the next couple of years. In August, we had one church put 2,600 people in small groups using Churchteams.
Rick: Boyd, tell us about the cost. What can you tell church leaders about the cost of Churchteams.com?
Boyd: I managed a church budget for six years as the church administrator. I know church finances feel tight whether the budget is $12,000 or $12 million. A big church might have a $5 million budget. That would be a very small business. We wanted our pricing to enable the best stewardship possible for churches not reflect typical business pricing. So, for most of a decade we built the tool as a labor of love essentially front-ending development costs. That allows us to provide the highest possible quality tool for an incredibly reasonable price about 10-40% of other comparable web-based solutions. Here's a link to our prices. If any or your readers are interested, please invite them to join me for a webinar. I do like 5 a week.
