How do you know you’re succeeding at what you do?  If we were baseball players…it’d be easy.  At the end of the game we’d see who had the most runs on the scoreboard.  Would hits matter?  Yes.  Would RBIs matter?  Yes.  What about our pitcher’s ERA?  Yes.  But would they themselves be a win?  No.  At the end of the game only one thing really matters.  Do you have more runs than the other team.

How does that relate to group life? Well…unless you’ve declared what a win is, you might be measuring (or celebrating) the wrong things.  Need a for instance?  What if you’re calling a certain percentage of your weekend adult attendance a win?  For example, you’ve got 300 adults in your average weekend worship and you’ve got 200 adults in a group of some kind.  Does that feel like a win?  Is that a win?  Might be…but also might be an instance of a high LOB (Left On Base) percentage.  What makes the difference?  What you’re going to call a win.

Here’s what I mean.  If you’re only looking for a certain percentage of adults in groups (which might be where you start), then it could be that you call this a win.  At the same time, you may get to the point where a win is not the number of groups or the percentage of adults in them but is actually something a little tougher to measure.  For example, a win might become a certain percentage of groups that are finding a way to serve together in their group.  Here are some other possibilities:

• In the last 6 months 50 different people took a turn facilitating your 20 groups.
• 40% of our group members are neighbors and friends.
• 25% of our groups members are having lunch on a weekly basis with non-christian friends.
• 30% of our groups are planning to take a six-week vacation during our upcoming church-wide study and instead of meeting host new groups.
• 80% of our groups have taken the Purpose Driven Health Assessment and chosen a curriculum that will help them take a next growth step based on what they discovered.

The key to determining whether you’re winning or losing is to do the hard work of figuring out what really matters.  You may be at the place where you will be thrilled by adding reaching a higher percentage of your adults in groups.  That’s okay.  You may be at a place where you really want to begin looking for more, all in the interest of exposing your congregation to the activities and practices that are most likely to build authentic Christ followers.  Wherever you land the hard work is worth it.  Don’t miss that.  And don’t settle for high on-base percentages when scoring runs is the point.

Need more on the idea?  The 7 Practices of Effective Ministry by Andy Stanley and Reggie Joiner is fabulous on this concept.  I highly recommend this book.

As we’ve discussed previously, there is no problem-free.  Every solution comes with a set of problems.  Knowing that, wise people simply choose the problems they’d rather have and select the solution they like based on that.

Is there a problem-free way to identify and recruit small group leaders?  No.  Every method of identifying and recruiting small group leaders comes with a set of problems.  Wise small group pastors simply choose the problems they’d rather have and select their method based on that.

To demonstrate how this might work, let’s look at the problems that come with two methods of leader identification and recruitment.

New Leaders Must Apprentice First

Problem Set

• Apprentices take time to develop
• Once developed they may decline to leave and launch their own group
• Apprentice leaders may move away before they launch their own group
• The church may grow faster than apprentices can be developed

Recruited Via Pastor’s Message

Problem Set

• Unknown people may respond
• Not everyone who volunteers will follow through
• Unsuitable people may volunteer
• Some who volunteer may not be willing/capable of inviting their own group members
• Not everyone who volunteers will continue beyond 6 weeks

These lists aren’t intended to be exhaustive.  In fact, you might come up with additional problems that need to be listed.  Once you have your problem sets completed, the next step is to determine which of the problems could be controlled somehow.  For example, many churches would require new HOSTS to attend an orientation and meet some additional requirements.  That may cause you to be more open to unacceptable volunteers, knowing that there are required steps that may restrict their participation.  At the same time, you may determine that your group system is growing at a faster pace than your adult worship attendance and conclude that you’ll be able to develop apprentice leaders fast enough.

Finally, I like to say that there’s an upside and a downside to everything.  That said, I routine land on the HOSTS solution to identifying and developing leaders because I like the upside that it presents and I’m willing to accept the downside represented by the problem set.

Churches make the decision to launch a small group ministry in a church with a Sunday School culture for a variety of reasons.

• There may be a growing conviction that while an on-campus solution may work for some…it isn’t working for everyone.
• There may be a sense that we need to provide a menu that will satisfy the tastes of everyone.
• Sometimes a church will determine that an off-campus solution will make it easier for members to invite neighbors.

You can see that any of the above makes for valid motivation.  Still, whatever your motivation, I want to encourage you to execute your plan while staying alert to the feelings of people.  Since you’re launching a small group ministry in a church that already has a functioning Sunday School ministry there are some very important things to keep in mind.

First, while you may need to re-clarify the purpose of your Sunday School ministry, it is working for some.  It may only be working in their opinion and may fall very short of your hopes for their discipleship needs…but that’s almost never the doing of the participants.  Want more for your members?  You’ll have some work to do on the Sunday School ministry itself…but that’s a separate issue.

Second, when you’re launching a small group ministry you’ll most likely take advantage of several different marketing tools.  Stories inserted into your pastor’s Sunday messages, announcements during worship services, bulletin/program blurbs, website, and newsletter/e-newsletter articles all present opportunities to strategically describe what a small group offers…and do it in a way that doesn’t make your Sunday School advocates feel like chopped liver.

Third, if you do the hard work on the front end of re-clarifying the purpose of Sunday School, small groups, and any other discipleship oriented activities…it will be much easier to promote the importance of being connected.

So…your assignment before launching?  Easy.

1. Spend some time clarifying the purpose of Sunday School.  Is it just fellowship?  Is it really discipleship?  Are your Sunday School classes really just smaller versions of your Sunday service (i.e., singing, announcements, and a teaching style that doesn’t lead to discussion)?
2. What do small groups offer that isn’t being offered by your on-campus classes?  Depending on your conclusion, that may be a reason to evaluate either what your Sunday School classes offer or what your groups are designed to provide.

Looking for a way to take your small group ministry to the next level?  You’re invited!  Join Mark Howell for a workshop designed to give you the practical tools you need to build a pervasive small group ministry.

Three Essential Sessions:

• Getting to There: Building a Dynamic Small Group Ministry…Where Life Change Really Happens
• Debug Your Thinking…about what’s keeping you from becoming a Church OF Groups
• Crowd to Core…take advantage of a relational small group strategy that helps friends and neighbors become followers and leaders.

Plus: Special lunch Q&A, giving you a chance to direct the agenda!

When: Friday, April 3rd, 2009

What time: 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

Where: Adventure Christian Church, 6401 Stanford Ranch Rd., Roseville, CA, 95678 (Click Here for a map)

Register by Friday, March 27, 2009 and get the Early Bird rate of $39.95 (which includes lunch and all materials).

You missed the Early Bird rate, but you can still save by registering more than one person!

Workshop Registration

Regular $49.95 Save on 2 registrations! $89.95 Save on 3 registrations! $129.95 Save on 4 registrations! $169.95

Looking for a new DVD-driven small group curriculum?  Might want to take a look at Refuel: An Uncomplicated Guide to Connecting with God, the newest resource from Saddleback.  Billed as “an uncomplicated guide for connecting with God,” REFUEL offers an easy to read book and online video and discussion materials.  Instead of purchasing the DVD, your group members will simply watch the online video before their meeting.  Simple.  Easy to use.  Less expensive.  Good stuff.  Even better?  Features Doug Fields and is very engaging.

Take a look at the site: REFUEL

Order books.

If you haven’t seen the new blog over at SmallGroups.com you need to check it out.  Looks like it’ll be a good resource with a constant flow of tips, ideas and reviews of new materials.  When you head over…be sure and tell ‘em hello!

To build a small group ministry in a church with a Sunday School culture, you’ll need to think multiple steps. That means looking beyond the first step to the next and the next after that.  Sometimes that’s easier said than done.  But…very much like the way a NASCAR driver must learn to think about the turn after the one just ahead, you’ve got to think about the steps after the ones just ahead.  Why does a NASCAR driver need to think about the turn after the one just ahead?  The simplest answer is that they need to come out of this turn with the next one in mind.  The best drivers are always thinking about what’s next.

How does this apply to building a small group ministry in a church with a Sunday School culture?  As I often say, “You’re not going from A to Z.  You’re going from A to B…on the way to Z.  Don’t call where you are ‘Z.’  Call it B and 1/2.”

Here are a few of the pieces you’ll need as you begin to plan your steps:

1. Start with a “pilot.”  Easter is a great opportunity to start a few “toe-in-the-water groups (Late September/early October or late January/early February are other good times).  The key is simply to pick a time when you can promote the opportunity for several weeks. The idea of a pilot is that it gets a few unconnected folks connected and gets you a few great stories to use later.
2. As these groups are meeting be sure and capture the best stories of how much it means to both group members and leaders.  If possible, capture these stories on video for later use.  How to Develop Video That Recruits Members or Leaders tells you how to do this.  These stories can be a very powerful tool that will help a next wave respond to a group life invitation.
3. Use the video you capture to recruit hosts and members for a fall launch.  You’ll find more information about how to integrate a video into your small group ask right here.
4. Select a church-wide campaign for your major launch effort.  Make it not just for those who aren’t yet connected, but for everyone.  Although you can simply let your on-campus groups use the curriculum there, it is almost always more effective to ask everyone to be part of a group that meets in a home for these six weeks.  You can assure your classes that although you value what they have in the class, for the purpose of giving everyone the full experience, it will be best if they participate too.  And it’s only six weeks.  Done right, this can become an annual event.  Nothing gives you as much leverage as an alignment that leverages sermon topic and small group discussion.  Here’s the script: “In order to get everything possible out of this season in our church, you need to be in a group…that’s using the curriculum…that goes along with what we’re talking about on Sunday.”  That is huge.
5. Watch for any of your already connected folks (who may be longtime Sunday School members or leaders) who have a memorable experience in a group and choose to stay with it.  Their stories often become the best encouragement for others from your core to take a test-drive themselves.
6. Select several DVD-driven studies to recommend as follow ups to the launch study.  Plan on recommending a best choice for all your newest groups in week 3 or 4 of the launch study.

A two pronged caveat through it all.

1. Be careful to talk about group life as a way of doing what we all know is important.  Spending time with other believers, building solid relationships, studying the Bible, serving together,  You can talk about the benefits without slighting the more traditional approach.
2. On a parallel track begin working with your Sunday School leadership to develop small group components there.  Learning that leads to practical application.  Sharing that leads to authentic life-change.  Two-way communication as opposed to a master teacher/listener format.  Enhanced out-of-classroom time.  Clarifying what a win looks like in every environment will make it easier to genuinely suggest that life-on-life is essential and you can get that more than one way.

You can read part 5 of my series right here.  Missed the beginning of this series?  You can catch up right here.

Got plans this week?  Why not join me for Take Advantage of Easter (to launch groups), a FREE introduction to our telecoaching services.  Two available times:

• Tuesday, March 17th at 8:00 am (PST), 1:00 pm (EST)
• Thursday, March 19th at 8:00 a.m. (PST), 1:00 pm (EST)

You will learn:

• 4 Keys to Launching Healthy Small Groups this Easter
• Secrets of developing a winning launch timeline

Space is limited.  Don’t miss out!

Have you taken a look at your calendar yet?  Easter is April 12th.  That’s important for two reasons.  First, it’s only five weeks away!  But I’m sure you knew that already.  The second reason that’s important is that it is five weeks away…and you can get a lot done in that amount of time…if you start now.

FIRST STEP: Planning

The first step is to pull out the calendar and actually lay out your plan.  Taking advantage of Easter to launch groups means that you’ll probably announce a small group connection or encourage people to sign up to join a small group…on Easter.  Using a special insert to make sign-up easy is important.  In addition, you’ll want to reserve the room for the small group connection (or identify enough leaders or hosts to serve as group starters).

Another important planning element is to identify the curriculum you will use to launch groups.  We’ve talked before about the Easy/Hard continuum.  This is a time to choose a small group study on the Easy end.  And this is a good time to have this decision to make.  There are some great studies out there that are on engaging topics and because they’re DVD-driven, they’re easy to use.  Choose a study that is no longer than 5 or 6 sessions.  That makes it easier to commit to but long enough to begin building some connective tissue.  Pick one that you can hold up on Easter as you talk about joining a small group.  Put up a slide showing the cover as you talk about it.  Also, many of the DVD-driven studies include a short promo video.  If it’s appropriate in your service you may want to show the promo.

SECOND STEP: Preparation

Over the next five weeks you’ll have some work to do.  If you’re going to use a small group connection event on April 26th, you should begin to include an insert on Easter (April 12th).  Talking about it on Easter will give you some momentum and allow you to repeat the promotion three weeks in a row (including the day of the connection).  Using the same insert each week allows your congregation to see that this must be important because you’ve highlighted it repeatedly.

If you’re planning to recruit hosts or leaders to serve as groups starters (instead of a connection event) you’ve got just enough time to recruit them and train them.  They should be recruited for a 12 week commitment.  Although you’ll be using a 5 or 6 week small group series, you’ll want the hosts or leaders to be in place for a little longer.  An important strategy is to begin talking about the next curriculum at about week 4 of the first study.  If you can keep them together for two six-week series they’ll be much more likely to stay together.

No matter which strategy you’re planning to use to launch new groups you should also plan to connect your new group leaders with a coach; someone to walk alongside them for the next few weeks.

STEP THREE: Implementation

Once you’ve laid the groundwork you’re ready to launch some new groups.  With your insert in place and your connection event calendared for the April 26th (or your hosts/leaders cued up to begin) you’re ready to promote the new study.  Let’s take a moment to look closely at how to promote it.

There are two very important parts of promoting a small group launch: placement and format.  Where you place your promotion is huge.  The ideal placement is in the message itself.  You can really get a lot of mileage out of a well-timed reference to the importance of authentic, life-on-life fellowship in our lives.  If all you can get is an announcement, make the best of it and use the promotional video that comes with the study.  At a minimum, be sure you’ve got a slide with a picture of study, any important dates, etc.  If it fits in your sermon to refer to it, have them pull out the insert right then and drop it in the offering later in the service.  Even better if you can say, “In your program is an insert.  It looks like this.  Take it out and while you’re doing that I want you to welcome Bob and Carol (who are ready to share how meaningful their group has been to them).”  That will take you about three minutes.  But it is a huge advantage and well worth the time.

Ready to Try It?

It’s a great opportunity to launch additional groups before fall.  Don’t miss it!

Need a little help developing the plan?  Let us help you!  Join me for Take Advantage of Easter, a FREE introduction to our telecoaching services.  Two available times:

• Tuesday, March 17th at 8:00 am (PST), 1:00 pm (EST)
• Thursday, March 19th at 8:00 a.m. (PST), 1:00 pm (EST)

You will learn:

• 4 Keys to Launching Healthy Small Groups
• How to develop the launch timeline

Space is limited.  Don’t miss out!

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