People Spots
Online
Produced by James W.
Moss, Sr., and Church Consultants
Provided as a service by New Life Ministries
Starting New Groups
Fourth article in a series by James W. Moss, Sr.
See the
first article - Small Groups
See the second article - The
Purpose of Small Groups
See the third article -
Evaluating Group Participation
Starting new groups is a challenge. Many attempts at starting new small groups won’t result in the formation of a new group. That can be very frustrating and discourage some from attempting to start new groups. I normally don’t encourage the formation of many small groups at one time. The key is adding a couple at a time.
A strategy
The following is a strategy for beginning small groups. It is not foolproof. There is no guaranteed strategy. This is a design that takes into account the various information that is available and applies it to effectively beginning new groups. Keep in mind there are five kinds of groups. The following is a plan that could be used to begin any of those kinds of groups.
Who (participants)?
Whenever some one tells me they are beginning a new group, my first question is: for whom are you starting this group? Though a church may have a wide range of people, small groups will tend to have similar people and issues that make the bonding of people easier. If you say you want to have a group where anyone can participate, probably no one will. Anything that appeals to everyone will seldom appeal to anyone. One market will dominate if a group begins with two or more markets. The rest will disappear in a short time. The broader the appeal in the start-up, the less likely the group will last.
One pastor described the focus for a new group in this manner: young marrieds under the age of 30, with children, who don’t go to church, who live within 15 minutes of the building, and know somebody who already attends church. That is focused!
Prospecting is a critical part of the process. The exercise in the last article will give some insight into what groups need to be started and provide a beginning for a prospect list. Add as many names to that list as possible. Encourage your people to share names of persons who are unchurched and fit that market. If you want ten in your group, you will need fifty prospects. The goal is to reach 20% of your prospects. People in a teachable moment in their lives will be those who respond to the beginning of a group.
Who (leadership)?
You need three persons in place before the group begins to serve as the staff. The first is a teacher/leader. The second is an apprentice. The apprentice is a person who the teacher/leader is training to lead either this group or be used to begin a new group. The teacher can only have the apprentice for six months. The third is a host/hostess. This is the person with the gift of hospitality who is very good at making people feel welcome. These three should be from different family units. That provides a solid core for the new group.
What?
The group may study the Bible or a life situation curriculum. It must be simple if it is a Bible study. Navigators have some materials prepared for people who are biblically illiterate. Some of Lyman Coleman’s Serendipity materials are also a good source. It could be a study for marriage relationships, parenting, or Christian finances, depending on the audience.
How?
A church needs to allow sufficient lead-time for the beginning of a new small group. Lead-time is the time from the point you decide to begin a new group until the first day the new group meets. It may take 2-4 months to begin a group by the method outlined here.
I have accepted a strategy of promotion called “six sticks.” You must invite people six times if you wish to get them anyplace. Send a letter six weeks in advance outlining the strategy and goals. Send a card the fifth week. Make a phone call the fourth week. Send a second letter the third week. Send a personal note the second week. Make a final phone call in the last week. Ask specifically if they plan to attend? You will get about half of the people who say they plan to attend.
Where?
Where will the new group meet? Will it be in the church building? Will it be in a public meeting room such as at the volunteer fire department or local library? Will it be in someone’s home? It should not be in the home of the leader. It will take too much time to prepare the lesson and the home for visitors.
When?
When will the new group meet? One pastor called and said, “Jim, thanks for setting us free from 9:30 on Sunday morning. We are having a class for young adults over pizza at noon after the second worship and are running 15-20 in that class. You have to decide the time that most of the people in the market you are trying to reach will be available.
I pray this gives some insight into how best to begin groups and why some attempts at beginning new groups fail.
Next - Part 5: Recruiting Teachers/Group Leaders
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March 22, 2004. Volume 7, Issue 5. People Spots Online is prepared by James W. Moss, Sr., and Church Consultants. It is provided as a service by New Life Ministries, www.NewLifeMinistries-NLM.org. Articles may be duplicated and reproduced in any way with proper credit. A new article is produced about every two weeks. To be added to a list to receive these messages directly by e-mail, send a request to churchconsultants@yahoo.com.