SESSION ONE WHY LIFEGROUPS? WELCOME / PRAYER [2 min] GROUP DISCUSSION [10 min] Share your name and why groups matter to you. INTRO [5 min] SAY: Our mission statement is to Impact our world with the love and message of Jesus Christ. Our strategy for carrying out our mission statement is simple: KNOW, GROW, DISCOVER and IMPACT. We want to help people know God, grow in their relationships with Him and each other and discover their purpose so that we can impact our world together. The GROW? That s where LifeGroups come in. We know that as we grow larger, we need to grow smaller at the same time. We know that our greatest growth comes in smaller community, where we can connect, learn and serve with people who know us and can hold us accountable to how we live out our faith in God. Throughout our leadership journey, keep the following in mind the role of a Christ Fellowship LifeGroup Leader is simply this: Create encouraging environments that promote spiritual growth and accountability. WHY LIFEGROUPS? [5 min] CHRIST FELLOWSHIP LIFEGROUP LEADER ORIENTATION FACILITATOR OUTLINE SAY: There are many great passages in Scripture that illustrate the importance and function of small gatherings of believers. Here are just a couple of our favorite examples. Acts 2:42-47: This passage shows us what the apostles were doing as soon as Jesus went to be at the right hand of the Father. This is a great illustration of what biblical community looks like. We see the believers in these verses doing several things that we believe are still important for Jesus followers today: Building friendship / Unity / Like-mindedness Serving / Giving / Caring for one-another Studying God s Word together Meeting in each other s homes Sharing meals together Living with a missional mindset SAY: Turn to the person next to you and given them a high five - give one to everyone in your group. You feel encouraged, right? That s a big part of why we do biblical community and it s something we see in Scripture as well. [have someone read Hebrews 10:24-25] Hebrews 10:24-25 : This is more than a reminder. The writer of Hebrews is giving instruction that believers need to be spending time together, even if some aren t doing so. He says that this type of community is actually becoming more important as time goes on! He gives 2 big reasons why we need to continue meeting together. Group motivation toward love & good deeds Encouragement in light of His return SAY: Imagine a heap of coals burning in a fireplace. Together, they burn warmer and brighter for longer. They keep each other stoked and can warm a whole room. Take one of them out and set it aside and it will quickly lose its warmth and glow. As followers of Jesus we want to make everything around us better and brighter so that everyone can see the goodness of God. Our impact in the world is greater together than it can ever be on our own. GROUP DISCUSSION [10 min] Share a time when you felt you were losing your warmth & light. How did you restore it? May 2016 1
WHAT IS A CF LIFEGROUP? WHAT IS A CHRIST FELLOWSHIP LIFEGROUP? [8 min] SAY: LifeGroup Leaders need to be able to remember and clearly communicate what a LifeGroup IS and IS NOT. We want to start off with two big misconceptions about LifeGroups that we need to expel from our minds entirely. 1. A Christ Fellowship LifeGroup is NOT a class. 2. A Christ Fellowship LifeGroup is NOT a counseling session/support group. We do want to encourage each other, share our burdens and learn together but we want people to grow in every area of their walk with Christ, instead of just focusing on one part of their spiritual development. How do we define a LifeGroup? The following is how we define a Christ Fellowship LifeGroup: CF LifeGroups are typically made up of 5-10 people who meet together regularly in homes, coffee shops or businesses in the community to grow in our relationships with God & each other; to better impact our world with the love and message of Jesus Christ. WHO ARE CF LIFEGROUP LEADERS? WHO ARE CHRIST FELLOWSHIP LIFEGROUP LEADERS? [5 min] SAY: LifeGroups are a place for friends to grow together. These groups are cared for by servant hearted leaders. The role of a LifeGroup Leader is not to direct the members of the group, but rather to point and guide them to Jesus and the direction of the Holy Spirit. With this in mind, it is helpful to discuss what IS and is NOT the role of the LifeGroup Leader. Here are a few things to remember: Christ Fellowship LifeGroup Leaders ARE NOT: Teachers Therapists Christ Fellowship LifeGroup Leaders ARE: Hosts & Facilitators Environment Creators People who love God and care for others Life Coaches The Holy Spirit Prayerful Reading the Bible regularly Honoring God with their lives GROUP DISCUSSION [10 min] Share an experience from a group that lost its focus or maybe even went completely off the rails. What did you learn from that experience that might be helpful to you as a LifeGroup Leader? WHO ARE CHRIST FELLOWSHIP LIFEGROUP LEADERS? [5 min] SAY: It is important to remember that we are never a fully grown follower of Jesus. He will be continuing to make us more like Him until the day we see Him face to face in eternity. Keep in mind that we always have a real need for Him to guide us. This helps us to keep pointing the members of our group to His truth, and not our own wisdom as we grow together. This is not just a matter of remembering that God is in charge so that we don t get ahead of ourselves, but also so that we don t take on more responsibility than is appropriate. 1 Corinthians 3:6 is a great reminder from the apostle Paul of three important truths: 1. We are NOT responsible for anyone s spiritual growth. 2. We are incapable of making it happen! 3. Our job is to provide the environment and encouragement. May 2016 2
Look at what he writes about his own efforts with the people in Corinth: I planted the seed in your hearts, and Apollos watered it, but it was God who made it grow. It s not important who does the planting, or who does the watering. What s important is that God makes the seed grow. 1 Corinthians 3:6 WRAP UP [5 mins] SAY: We can accept neither blame nor credit for anyone s spiritual growth. People in our groups will sometimes exhibit big leaps in their spiritual development. Sometimes they will make mistakes or even go down a destructive path. God is in charge of all of it. That s why we define the role of a Christ Fellowship LifeGroup Leader this way: Create encouraging environments that promote spiritual growth and accountability. and the win of a Christ Fellowship LifeGroup Leader this way: Any movement toward Christ. DO: Give an example of what one small step toward Christ might look like. SAY: Remember that God loves the people in your group more than you ever could. Remember that He is in charge. Create the right environment, point them toward Jesus, and trust Him with the rest! SESSION TWO HOW DO I LEAD A CF LIFEGROUP? WELCOME / INTRO / PRAYER [5 min] STARTING WELL [10 min] SAY: The goal of LifeGroups is not just to socialize. The early church met with a missional mindset. They had the Great Commission, Jesus command to make disciples, fresh on their minds and we should too. LifeGroups are about making disciples. They are one of the best ways we can carry out our mission statement as a church impacting our world with the love and message of Jesus Christ. As the early church did, we should be in the business of making disciples who make disciple-making disciples! Here are a few things to consider before launching your group: 1. Begin with the end in mind. Pick an end date before you launch your group. This is tied to the second point... 2. Think multiplication! Be on the lookout for potential new leaders in your group. 3. Figure out what day/time and where will you meet. 4. Think about your LifeGroup s format (hang out, study/discussion, prayer, serving). Communicate this on day one. 5. Will kids be welcome? If so, discuss options with your campus discipleship team. 6. Speak with your campus discipleship team to discuss your first study. 7. Make sure your group knows you will be starting and ending on time every week. This honors their time and yours. GROUP LEADER RESOURCES [15 min] SAY: We are here to equip you for success! Take some time to explore the resources available on the Christ Fellowship website at gochristfellowship.com/lgl. Discipleship Pathway / Recommended Studies Childcare Reimbursement Spiritual Health Assessment LifeGroup Environment Checklist 30 Day Leader Prayer Guide LifeGroup Profile LifeGroup Member Profile LifeGroup Commitment Ten Tips / Ten Questions Additional Resources May 2016 3
GROUP DISCUSSION [10 min] Open Q&A on LifeGroup Leader resources. GROUP DISCUSSION SKILLS ENCOURAGING PARTICIPATION [5 min] SAY: One of the most important skills for a LifeGroup Leader is that of facilitating group discussion. Sometimes people don t feel comfortable sharing their thoughts when a group is getting started. It can be very tempting to answer questions yourself if no one speaks. This can be helpful to set the example one or two times, but in the long run will actually send a signal to group members that their input is not necessary or maybe even unwanted. Here are a few steps you can take to encourage others to talk in the group when a question has been posed: 1. Wait 5 seconds Actually count this out slowly in your head! This can seem like a long time but many people will wait for a pause before they feel like they really have the invitation to share. This seemingly uncomfortable silence can actually help make everyone else more comfortable in the long run! 2. Rephrase the question Sometimes just hearing a question stated differently can trigger a new thought. 3. Ask someone specific This is where reading people comes in very handy. Don t pick on the one person who you know can t stand being singled out. Look for visual cues that someone might have something to share but maybe feels a bit shy about jumping in. SAY: When the conversation starts getting good it can be tempting to keep it going even past the agreed upon end time for each meeting. Resist this temptation. We always want to honor everyone s time, and it is actually better if you don t hit everything each session. Here are a few pointers for keeping group members engaged from week to week: 1. Don t try to hit every question The goal of discussion is not completion of a workbook, but getting people to start thinking about their faith in new ways and to start an exchange of ideas. 2. Leave them wanting more If the conversation is exciting when everyone leaves, they will want to come back. If they feel like everything has been neatly wrapped up there is less incentive to return. How does every season finale of your favorite TV show end? To Be Continued 3. Encourage outside study Remember that the most important part of anyone s spiritual growth is their own personal investment into their relationship with God. Ending the group with a few questions unanswered, and them still hungry for more, is a great way to encourage outside study. Recommend that your group members dive into that week s topics further in their own devotional time. Remind them of the SOAP method and the value of prayer and worship along with Bible reading. 5 COMMON OBSTACLES [10 min] 1. Giving what you don t have The most important success factor of any group is the leader s prayer life. Your closeness with God and time spent praying for your group impacts your ability to create an encouraging environment that promotes spiritual growth and accountability. 2. Knowing what you don t know There will be things that come up for which you don t have an answer. Sometimes even things for which no one has an answer. A great response to these things is to say that s a great question! Let s both dig into that more this week and see what we can learn together. Also remember that diversity in the non-essentials is ok. The most important part of community is unity. Staying focused on Jesus and our Core Beliefs will help to keep us out of the muck of divisive issues and to love each other as Jesus intended. 3. The Constant Talker Some people seem to always be ready to share at length. If someone seems to be going a bit long, listen intently to what they are saying. Listen for a natural pause and interject by thanking them for sharing. Summarize what they said so they know you were listening and ask someone else if they have anything to add. Try Thanks for that John, it sounds like you think/are saying. Does anyone else want to add to that? If it continues, speak with them 1-on-1 outside the group. Tell them that you really appreciate how open they are in group discussion and you are trying to encourage others to share more as well. Ask if they could help you with that. Ask them if, every time they speak in the group, they could count and wait until at least four others have shared before they add something else. Tell them that even if there is a long pause, that s just what some people need to be open to sharing. May 2016 4
4. Practical Prayer It s a great idea to open and close your LifeGroup in prayer each week. Often times people use the closing prayer time as a counseling session. You may be able to pre-empt this by asking if anyone has any big prayer requests. Another great idea is asking the group to break up into twos or threes to share requests and pray for one another. This allows each person to have a more personal time of prayer with another group member and helps keep this time from going so long that it keeps the group late. Ask the group to email you any requests and then email or text them to everyone in the next day or two so that everyone can pray for each other throughout the week. 5. Tunnel Vision It s easy, even accidentally, to focus mostly on connecting, or learning or serving. This is especially true if the group members are similarly wired and, for example, enjoy the hang-out time more than other parts of the group experience. Remember that we want to grow whole disciples who impact our world. We believe this happens best when people connect, learn and serve together in biblical community. Focusing on one of these to the exclusion of the rest leaves something out of the spiritually fruitful environment we want to create in LifeGroups. GROUP DISCUSSION [10 min] Share a time when you have personally stumbled over one of these obstacles. How could the techniques we just discussed have helped you to navigate around them better? WRAP UP [5 min] DO: Close in prayer. DO: Make sure each LifeGroup Leader has everything they need to launch their LifeGroup. May 2016 5