Comments on: Activate: An Entirely New Approach to Small Groups http://www.markhowelllive.com/activate-an-entirely-new-approach-to-small-groups/ Pushing Boundary-Free Wed, 28 Jul 2010 14:02:36 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0 By: Mark Howell http://www.markhowelllive.com/activate-an-entirely-new-approach-to-small-groups/comment-page-1/#comment-13 Mark Howell Tue, 18 Nov 2008 14:04:11 +0000 http://www.gettingtothere.com/markhowelllive/?p=25#comment-13 Hey Nelson! Thanks for the links! I'll add them to the post above. And I'll check out the two churches you mentioned. Sounds interesting. I'd love to amend my review! mark Hey Nelson! Thanks for the links! I’ll add them to the post above. And I’ll check out the two churches you mentioned. Sounds interesting. I’d love to amend my review!
mark

]]> By: Mark Howell http://www.markhowelllive.com/activate-an-entirely-new-approach-to-small-groups/comment-page-1/#comment-14 Mark Howell Tue, 18 Nov 2008 13:52:38 +0000 http://www.gettingtothere.com/markhowelllive/?p=25#comment-14 Matt, there is a simple reason and a disclaimer to my thinking on whether this approach will work in a church over 1,000. First the disclaimer. You'd first need to define success. If success is simply to connect 50% of your average adult attendance...then activate will work. If, on the other hand, success is connecting all of your adult attendees...then I don't think it works, for this simple reason: Activate depends on identifying a sufficient number of leaders to absorb the unconnected attendees. Make sense? In other words, if you have 300 adults you'd need 20 to 30 leaders (Nelson advocates larger groups). If you have 1,000 adults you'd need 80 to 100 leaders. With me? As a church grows beyond a certain size this becomes problematic. When you are smaller than a certain size the pastor and other staff "know" everyone. Beyond a certain size...there are many potential leaders who choose to remain anonymous. How will you find enough capable leaders to absorb the unconnected adults in a larger congregation? This is the advantage of the Connection. This is the advantage of HOST. Both of these strategies identify leaders where you didn't "know" them in advance. In all fairness, no system is "problem-free." Every system comes with a set of problems. Skillful leaders choose the set of problems they'd rather have. Matt, there is a simple reason and a disclaimer to my thinking on whether this approach will work in a church over 1,000.
First the disclaimer. You’d first need to define success. If success is simply to connect 50% of your average adult attendance…then activate will work. If, on the other hand, success is connecting all of your adult attendees…then I don’t think it works, for this simple reason:
Activate depends on identifying a sufficient number of leaders to absorb the unconnected attendees. Make sense? In other words, if you have 300 adults you’d need 20 to 30 leaders (Nelson advocates larger groups). If you have 1,000 adults you’d need 80 to 100 leaders. With me?
As a church grows beyond a certain size this becomes problematic. When you are smaller than a certain size the pastor and other staff “know” everyone. Beyond a certain size…there are many potential leaders who choose to remain anonymous.
How will you find enough capable leaders to absorb the unconnected adults in a larger congregation? This is the advantage of the Connection. This is the advantage of HOST. Both of these strategies identify leaders where you didn’t “know” them in advance.
In all fairness, no system is “problem-free.” Every system comes with a set of problems. Skillful leaders choose the set of problems they’d rather have.

]]> By: Nelson Searcy http://www.markhowelllive.com/activate-an-entirely-new-approach-to-small-groups/comment-page-1/#comment-15 Nelson Searcy Tue, 18 Nov 2008 01:45:40 +0000 http://www.gettingtothere.com/markhowelllive/?p=25#comment-15 Mark, Thanks for the shout out and the review! I have posted a number of free supplemental resources at www.ActivateBook.com Nelson www.ChurchLeaderInsights.com/blog BTW, I have a number of alumni from my coaching networks that are much larger than 1000 adults and they are using the activate system (namely, Eastlake Community Church in Bothell/Seattle, WA and Life Point Church in Tampa, FL - both were on Outreach's fastest growing church list I believe) with great success. Mark,
Thanks for the shout out and the review! I have posted a number of free supplemental resources at http://www.ActivateBook.com
Nelson
http://www.ChurchLeaderInsights.com/blog
BTW, I have a number of alumni from my coaching networks that are much larger than 1000 adults and they are using the activate system (namely, Eastlake Community Church in Bothell/Seattle, WA and Life Point Church in Tampa, FL – both were on Outreach’s fastest growing church list I believe) with great success.

]]> By: Matt Adams http://www.markhowelllive.com/activate-an-entirely-new-approach-to-small-groups/comment-page-1/#comment-16 Matt Adams Tue, 18 Nov 2008 01:10:20 +0000 http://www.gettingtothere.com/markhowelllive/?p=25#comment-16 Mark, why do you think the "activate" strategy will not work in churches that are larger than 1,000? Mark, why do you think the “activate” strategy will not work in churches that are larger than 1,000?

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