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Whether you've attended a Small Group Training Session or not, the following guidelines will help you to be an effective Small Group facilitator.
As you prepare to lead, whether it is one session or the entire series, here are a few thoughts to keep in mind.
1. Remember you are not alone. God knows everything about you, and He knew you would be asked to lead your group. Even though you may not feel ready to lead, this is common for all good leaders. God promises, "I will never leave you; I will never abandon you" (Hebrews 13:5 TEV). Whether you are leading for one evening, several weeks, or a lifetime, you will be blessed as you serve.
2. Don't try to do it alone. Pray right now for God to help you build a healthy leadership team. If you can enlist a co-leader to help you lead the group, you will find your experience much richer. This is your chance to involve as many people as you can in building a healthy group. All you have to do is ask people to help and you'll be surprised at the response.
3. Be friendly and just be yourself. God wants to use your unique gifts and temperament. Be sure to greet people at the door with a big smile…this can set the mood for the whole gathering. Remember, THEY are taking a big step to show up at your house! Don't try to do things exactly like another host; do them in a way that fits you. Admit when you don't have an answer and apologize when you make a mistake. Your group will love you for it and you'll sleep better at night.
4. Prepare for your meeting ahead of time. Review the session and the leader's notes, and write down your responses to each question. View the Leader Lifters before each video lesson, or read the Leader Lifter segment in the Leader's Guide. Pay special attention to exercises that ask group members to do something other than engage in discussion. These exercises will help your group live what the Bible teaches, not just talk about it. Be sure you understand how an exercise works. If the exercise employs one of the items in the Small Group Resource section (such as the Purpose Driven Health Assessment on page 50), be sure to look over that item so you'll know how it works.
5. Pray for your group members by name. Before you begin your session, take a few moments and pray for each member by name. You may want to review the prayer list at least once a week. Ask God to use your time together to touch the heart of every person uniquely. Expect God to lead you to whomever He wants you to encourage or challenge in a special way. If you listen, God will surely lead.
6. When you ask a question, be patient. Someone will eventually respond. Sometimes people need a moment or two of silence to think about the question. If silence doesn't bother you, it won't bother anyone else. After someone responds, affirm the response with a simple "thanks" or "great answer." Then ask, "How about somebody else?" or "Would someone who hasn't shared like to add anything?" Be sensitive to new people or reluctant members who aren't ready to say, pray, or do anything. If you give them a safe setting, they will blossom over time.
7. Break into smaller groups occasionally. The GROW and WORSHIP sections provide good opportunities to break into smaller circles. With a greater opportunity to talk in a small circle, people will connect more with the study, apply more quickly what they're learning, and ultimately get more out of it. A small circle also encourages a quiet person to participate and tends to minimize the effects of a more vocal or dominant member.
Small circles are also helpful during prayer time. People who are unaccustomed to praying aloud will feel more comfortable trying it with just two or three others. Also, prayer requests won't take as much time, so circles will have more time to actually pray. When you gather back with the whole group, you can have one person from each circle briefly update everyone on the prayer requests from their sub-groups. The other great aspect of sub-grouping is that it fosters leadership development. As you ask people in the group to facilitate discussion or to lead a prayer circle, I gives them a small leadership step that can build their confidence.
8. Don't rush through the lesson. The curriculum is meant to be your servant, not your master. Do not feel obligated to get through all the content in this study guide. Be sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit during your group meeting. Some items will be more applicable for your group than others. If your group is unable to work through all the material in a session, we have recommended a question or activity with an asterisk (*) in each section of the study. You may follow our recommendations, or choose those items best fit your group life. However, if an item stretches you as a group, do not ignore it. New experiences will breathe new growth and relational depth into your small group.
Many groups are able to complete these study guides in the suggested six weeks, while others take several extra weeks. Please feel free to adjust your pace according to the needs of your group. If the need arises to take a week and give attention to needs in your group, do so. Then come back to the study guide the next week. We encourage you to periodically meet together specifically for the purpose of building relationships within your group.
9. Rotate facilitators occasionally. You may be perfectly capable of leading each time, but you will help others grow in their faith and gifts if you give them opportunities to lead. Each lesson provide several opportunities to rotate facilitation of different sections. You can use the Group Calendar on page 45 to fill in the names of different facilitators for each meeting if you prefer.
10. One final challenge (for new or first-time hosts): Before your first opportunity to lead, look up each of the six passages listed below. Read each one as a devotional exercise to help prepare you with a shepherd's heart. Trust us on this one. If you do this, you will be more than ready for your first meeting.
· Matthew 9: 35-38
· John 10:14-15
· 1 Peter 5:2-4
· Philippians 2:1-5
· Hebrews 10:23-25
· 1 Thessalonians 2:7,8, 11–12
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