The Genius of a Small Group

1
The Genius of a Small Group

• A New Song Seminar on
• Making Small Groups Work
• Led by Richard Peace
• Fuller Theological Seminary

2
A Brief History of Small Groups

• New Testament Experience
• The Early Church
• Renewal Movements

3
A Brief History of Small Groups

• 1950s Bible Study
• focus on the cognitive (knowing)
• 1960s Ministry
• focus on the behavioral (doing)
• 1970s Relationships
• focus on the affective (being)

4
A Brief History of Small Groups

• 1980s Integration
• focus on study, mission, support
• 1990s Variety
• focus meta-church, mega-church
• Wuthnow report
• 2000s Community
• focus on connecting, supporting, exploring

5
Components of Effective Small Groups

• Goal a quality of conversation
• A worthy topic
• Good small group process
• In-depth relationships
• A spiritual vantage point

6
The Structure of Effective Small Groups

• Size
• Space
• Distractions
• Time sensitivity
• Covenant
• Materials
• Food

7
A Small Group Exercise

• Choose a leader (nearest birthday)
• Introduce yourself (name, location, job)
• Describe your best or worst small group
  experience and why this was the case
• What is your goal/longing for your small group?

8
Good Small Group ProcessTask-Oriented Leadership

• Recruitment
• Organization
• Initiation/Modeling
• Communication facilitation
• Time-keeping
• Gate-keeping

9
Good Small Group ProcessSmall Group Roles

• The issue
• A perspective
• The over-talkative person
• The under-talkative person

10
Building RelationshipsSharing our Stories

• History giving
• Affirmation
• Need sharing/goal setting
• Active community

11
Another Small Group Exercise

• Tell the group something about yourself they
  would not know otherwise
• Who are you (in terms of roles essence)?

12
Finding Worthy TopicsInputs

• Small Group guides
• Text inputs
• Book
• Bible
• Media inputs
• Speaker

13
A Spiritual Vantage PointContemplative Options

• Spiritual Formation in small groups
• Spiritual disciplines
• Accountability
• Discernment

14
A Final Small Group ExerciseLectio Divina

• Listen for a word or phrase
• Ask how is my life touched by this word?
• Ask is there and invitation to respond?
• Pray for the person on your right

15
Psalm 63A psalm of David. When he was in the
Desert of Judah.

• 1O God, you are my God,
• earnestly I seek you
• my soul thirsts for you,
• my body longs for you,
• in a dry and weary land
• where there is no water.
• 2I have seen you in the sanctuary
• and beheld your power and your glory.
• 3Because your love is better than life,
• my lips will glorify you.
• 4I will praise you as long as I live,
• and in your name I will lift up my hands.
• 5My soul will be satisfied as with the richest of
  foods
• with singing lips my mouth will praise you.
• 6On my bed I remember you I think of you through
  the watches of the night.
• 7Because you are my help,
• I sing in the shadow of your wings.