Paul challenges us with these words in Galatians 5:13 “For you have been called to live in freedom, my brothers and sisters. But don’t use your freedom to satisfy your sinful nature. Instead, use your freedom to serve one another in love.”

Serving is a big deal for God. Jesus modeled this when he knelt down with a towel and water basin to wash the disciples feet. It’s also one of the things God uses to shape our character and grow big faith in our lives. Serving is an important part of growing in community with others. But serving together as a lifegroup can be very difficult. Here are a few reason whys:

1. Serving as a group requires intentionality. It calls me to rearrange my schedule in order to make the needs of others a bigger priority in my life.
2. Serving as a group can be uncomfortable. Gathering in a living room with friends to talk about the Bible is often safe and comfortable. But serving often calls me to do something outside of my comfort zone and get my hands a little dirty.
3. Serving as a group requires planning. It calls me to consider how our group might care for others together.

Here are some practical suggestions for how your lifegroup can grow by serving together.

1. Find out if there is a neighbor or family member with a need the group can meet in the group. This might be cleaning a house, doing lawn work, help with babysitting, etc. Our group painted my mother in laws house one season.
2. Contact a retirement home and ask how your group can serve the people in the home. (make crafts or cookies, go and listen to stories and play games, etc.)
3. Serve at a rescue mission such as the salvation army, the Portland Rescue Mission, etc. One of the best things I’ve done with a group is to serve at a Night Strike through bridgetown ministries downtown. www.bridgetowninc.org
4. SERVE the Sunday Super at church on Sunday nights. This is a simple way for your group to serve together that helps build community at our Sunday Night service. Contact groups@coolchurch.com for more details.
5. Sponsor an Orphan home in Uganda. This is a great way to bless the kids growing up without parents in Uganda. For more info on how your group can help email Tiffany Parrot at tiffanyparret@yahoo.com
6. Serve at the food bank at the Sunshine Division. To learn more go to http://www.sunshinedivision.org/
7. Help the Oregon Food Bank as a group. To find out how to to www.oregonfoodbank.org
8. Clean up a local park together.
9. Brainstorm ways that you can bless the neighbors and neighborhood your group meets in
10. Bake cookies together and hand them out to the homeless downtown. My family did this around Christmas and it was such a blessing to our kids and those they served.

Have more great ideas. Let us know and we will pass them on. One of the best ways you can help those in your group take their next spiritual steps is be encouraging them to serve together. Don’t miss out this season.

So what do you do if your group is overflowing with people this season?

One solution is to consider Sub-Grouping.  Sub-grouping involves allowing the group to gather in one location as a whole and then breaking into two or three smaller groups for the discussion and/or prayer time.  This allows everyone in the group an opportunity to see each other and connect, but also allows everyone to share and participate in the conversation.

Sub-grouping is also a great way to raise up and develop another lifegroup leader.  When you choose to sub-group ask someone in the group to help lead the second group.  They can practice leading the discussion and the prayer time.  At the end of the night you can check in with the new leader to reflect and evaluate on how the meeting went.  Sub-grouping provides developing leaders an opportunity to grow as a leader in a safe environment without feeling the full responsibility of the group.

By the end of the season they will have the experience and confidence needed to potentially start a new group.

Sub-grouping also allows everyone an opportunity to share and participate.  Sometimes prayer time can be rushed when 14 or more people have prayer concerns to share.  Sub-groups allows the group to break into more manageable groups of 6 or 7 so everyone has an opportunity to be heard, listened to and prayed for.

If your lifegroup this season is over 14 people I want to encourage you to look for ways to sub-group so that everyone has an opportunity to participate.  I also want to encourage you to keep your eyes peeled for who in your group would make a great leader next season.  If your group is overflowing there is something attractive about your group that needs to be shared with others.  Remember There’s a place for everyone at Abundant Life!

But let’s stay focused on starting the spring season!  Here are a few tips to make sure you have a successful sign month leading up to the start of your lifegroup.

1.  Pray!  Be sure to pray daily about the group you will lead this spring.  Pray that God would bring the right people.  Pray that God would grow the members of your group.  Pray that God would raise up a new leader this season.  Pray that would would expand your faith as you lead.

2.  Stay Engaged!  Sometimes it’s easy to take this month off and just wait until your group starts meeting.  But stay engaged.  Actively invite people to your lifegroup this spring.  Hold up a sign during services to promote your group.  Help at the Involvement counter.  Talk up your group so people know about it.  Those who pray and stay engaged often fill up their group.

3.  Follow UP, Follow Up, Follow Up.  Sign-ups plus strong follow up often equals strong show ups.  Sign-ups with weak follow up often leads to no show-ups.  As people sign-up for your group please be sure to follow up with them right away.  Introduce yourself to them, let them know what to expect and where you will meet.  Immediate and clear follow up often helps people feel connected before the groups even starts meeting.

4.  Prepare:  Begin to think about your first group meeting.  This is often the most important meeting of the season as it will set the tone.  Be sure you have a comfortable environment to meet in, you will have snacks ready, you have your study materials, and you have group covenants ready for everyone.  Being prepared will help group members feel comfortable and confident about being part of the group for the season.

If you have questions or need help brainstorming ideas you can always contact your Team Leader.  Your team leader would love to connect and pray with you.

Leadership Lifter: God’s Strategy For Your Success – Part 1

Will you lead again next season?  If so, will you lead the same kind of group at the same time, or a different type of group?

If you choose to not lead again next season, it’s really important to begin talking with others in the group to see if they would take on the leadership of the group next season.  This is a great opportunity for new leadership to rise up.  Don’t miss this opportunity.  This is also true if you decide to lead a different type of group next season.

Would someone else in the group consider starting a group next season? (This is a really important question to ask if you have a really full group as we want to create new space for the unconnected in our church).  One principle to remember here is that the best leaders are reluctant leaders.  This means they need someone like you to believe in them and encourage them.  I read a quote this week that said, “a healthy small group will reproduce itself.”  It’s true one of the health markers of your lifegroup is whether your lifegroup is producing new lifegroups.  Who in your group is ready to take that step.

What type of study topic will the group go through?  Lifegroup will be able to choose their own study topic next season.  We will have a new tool available very soon online to help you find a great study for next season.  In the meantime, your team leader would love to help you brainstorm possible options for next season.

Who in the group will return next season?  The people in your group this season will have the FIRST opportunity to sign-up for your group again before anyone else in the church.  If people in your group plan on returning to your group next season they will be able to sign up online beginning January 8th.  The rest of the church will begin signing up January 15th.

I have had some of these discussion already with my group as we look to the next season.  Erin and I will continue to lead a group, but are going to lead a different group this spring.  We are going to lead a group for the team planning on traveling to Cambodia this summer.  We are really excited about this!  So we have two couples in the group who are going to partner together to take the lead for the group this spring.  We are very excited about this as well as it will give others in a group an opportunity to develop their leadership.  We can’t wait to see this group continue to grow next season.

As we prepare for the end of the season I wanted to share a few tips for leaders on how to finish out the season strong.  It is said that often how we finish is more important than how we started because how we finish is most remembered.  So as a leader I want to encourage you to not drift or fade, but to finish out your season strong.  Here’s how:

1. Clarify End Dates:  Make sure everyone in your group knows when the last meeting will be. This helps everyone prepare and plan for the end of the season, so everyone is on the same page and knows what to expect.  Resist the temptation to drag on the group through the break.  The breaks between the season were designed to guard against burn out for leaders and group members and to keep everyone excited about participating in a lifegroup.  A desire to want to continue is not a bad thing…the breaks between seasons help keep that desire alive.

2.  Close with a Celebration:  One of the best ways to finish out a season is to throw a party together as a group.  Food, Fun, games and sharing is a great way to wrap up a season together.  This is a time to celebrate the end of study together and also a chance to look back on the friendships that have been formed, the life that has been shared, and the ministry that has been accomplished.  You might take a minute to have everyone share one thing they learned from this past season, or one thing they appreciated about being part of the group.

3.  Challenge Others to Take a Next Step and leader:  Now is the time to be encouraging someone to consider taking the step to start a new group.  This takes great selflessness on the part of the leader.  But this may also be the greatest next step of faith for someone in your group.  Look for someone in your group who has the potential to lead (notice I said potential, not perfection), and begin affirming the leadership you see in them and challenge them to consider taking this step.  Remember:  the best leaders are often reluctant leaders.  This means they need someone to believe in them and encourage them to take this next step.  Who in your group just needs some encouragement from you to take the next step?  As the group leader, are you willing to let them go?

4.  Conclude Your Study:  Do everything you can to bring your study to a conclusion at the end of the season.  Finishing the study will help everyone feel like you completed the season together and gives a sense of accomplishment.  This will also allow everyone in your group the freedom to rest during the break and the freedom to join a new group next season if they choose to do so.

5.  Communicate what’s Next:  Talk to your group about your plans for next season.  If you plan on leading a group again let your group know, so they know what to expect.  If you do not plan on leading a group again next season, look for someone in the group who would lead a group next season.  If you have someone in your group who is planning on starting a new group next season let your group know as others in the group might want to help them.  The more you can communicate to your group what’s ahead the greater the likelihood of your group members signing up for a group next season.

Have a great finish to your season!

One of the biggest challenges people face in spiritual growth is knowing what the next step is they need to take.  Monvee is an incredible tool to help your group members discover what their next growth step is.

At Abundant Life we say that people grow best in the context of relationships and relationships happen best in small groups.  This is because in a relational environment there is encouragement, accountability, and support in the growth process.  This is why Monvee was designed to take place in a small group environment where people will ask how you are growing, and encourage and pray for you along the way.

So here are a few suggestions for how to use Monvee in your small group to help group members take their next growth steps.

1.  Have everyone in your group take the assessment and build a Road Map (Monvee’s word for a growth plan).  Building a Road Map requires the purchase of a Monvee Pak, but is a very important part of the Monvee experience.  This is where group members get practical ideas and directions for practices to help them grow.  The great thing about Monvee is that no Road Map is the same.  This means everyone in your group might be working on different things during the season.  But the goal is that you are all working on growing in Jesus together.

2.  Take time at each lifegroup meeting to share updates on how your growth plan is going.  We have a natural tendency to drift spiritually.  You can help your group guard against spiritual drift by taking some time at each meeting to share quick updates on your Road Map during your group meeting.  You might ask things like:

• What was one growth highlight from the previous week?
• What has made the most impact on your spiritual growth this past week?
• How have you seen God working in your life through your Road Map?

3.  Break into Growth Partners.  The Monvee Road Map has an option for group members to choose growth partners.  Growth partners receive email updates on how you are doing with your Road Map.  This is so they can be praying for you on your growth journey, encourage you, and help you take your next steps.  This tool is a great way to encourage deeper relationships within your lifegroup.  Your group can pair off or break into smaller groups of three for a season to regularly check in with each other about their Road Map.

Monvee is designed as a individual tool to help you grow, but works best in a small group where there is support and encouragement from friends.  Growth happens best with others.  Monvee can serve as a powerful tool in your lifegroup to help your group members begin to take their next spiritual steps.

1.  DO I NEED A MONVEE PAK TO PARTICIPATE?  We strongly encourage every group member to purchase a Monvee Pak.  If your lifegroup is going through a different study this season a Monvee Pak will allow your group members to go through the entire Monvee experience on their own.  If your group is going through the Monvee Groups study a Monvee Pak will be critical to the discussion in Act 5 of the study.  Also, a Monvee Pak is necessary for group members to build their own growth plan.  The assessments only helps people discover more about who God created them to be.  The focus of Monvee is to help people develop a plan to grow.  The Monvee Pak is needed to help people take the next step of building a growth plan.

Monvee Paks can be purchased for $20 at the Involvement Counter at the HV Campus or at Guest Services at all other campuses.

2.  CAN A MONVEE PAK BE SHARED?  NO.  Each Monvee Pak has a code that is attached to a unique email address.  The code can only be used once to set up a Monvee account with a username and password.  This means that couples will each need their own Monvee Pak to create their own personal growth plan.

3.  WHY IS THERE A COST FOR MONVEE?  The short answer is that the materials in the Monvee Pak cost $20.  However, as a church we look at it not so much as a cost, but rather a small investment in your long-term growth as a Christ follower.  Here’s why?  Once you set up your Monvee Pak you have lifetime access to the Monvee tool.  You can take the assessment as many times as you would like and develop as many growth plans as you would like.  Monvee is constantly updated with resources, so you will always be challenged with new ideas and opportunities to participate in to help you grow spiritually.  In addition, you will receive a free e-book on spiritual growth every month, and be able to track your progress on a personalized dashboard.  Purchasing a Monvee Pak is a small investment with long-term payoff in terms of spiritual growth for your group members.

4.  WHAT IS INCLUDED IN A MONVEE PAK? 

• A unique PAK ID code that gives you full, lifetime access to Monvee.
• Monvee Visual Experience with discussion cards.
• A sample chapter from John Ortberg’s book, The Me I Want to Be.
• A sample chapter from Eric Parks, the creator of Monvee, Change

Monvee is an incredible tool to help people discover how they grow best and develop a personalized growth plan.  One of the biggest things that stunts a believers growth is guilt coming from not measuring up to another person’s spirituality, or just not knowing where to start in terms of their own growth.  So they never get started.  Monvee helps people develop a clear plan to grow that is personal to them.  Our hope as a church is to help everyone take their next steps in their spiritual growth.  We believe that Monvee is an incredible tool to help in this process, so we want to encourage everyone to give it a try and start growing.

Life at times can be very difficult and challenging.  At some point all of us will encounter some kind of crisis in life.  A crisis may look different for all of us.  It may be the loss of a job, the loss of a loved one, a broken marriage or relationship, or conflict at work.  No matter what the crisis is the need is always the same.  We need support and care from others to help us get through times of crisis.  So as a group leader how will you respond when someone in your group faces a time of crises in their life?

One of the most important roles of a Lifegroup leader is to lead your group to provide care for each other.  You serve as the First Responder in a time of crisis in your group.  Please note that your role is not to provide all of the care, or to have all of the answers.  Your role is to be the first on the scene, assess the situation and help connect the person in crisis to the best people or resources for help.  In most cases this involves rallying the group around the need.  But sometimes help is needed from outside the group.

Here are a few simple tips for providing care in your group this season:

1. Make sure your group members know how to contact you and each other.  The first thing you need to do to raise the value of care in your group is make Make sure everyone in the group has access to each other during the week.  Take a few minutes at someone point early in the season to swap numbers and email addresses.  You can also use Group Manager for this at www.coolchurch.com/lifegroups. 
   
2. Be Available:  If there is an urgent need that comes up in your group then treat it urgently.  Do everything you can to respond to the need as quickly as possible.  Don’t wait until the next group meeting to discuss it.  This might look like rallying to group just to pray during the week, making a hospital visit, or organizing meals. Life happens outside of groups meetings so be available to your group beyond the group meeting.
3. Be Present:  The biggest barrier to people jumping in to care for someone in times of crisis is not knowing what to say.  Here’s the great thing.  You don’t have to say much.  Because what people really need is simply your presence.  They need to know they are not alone.  That someone cares.  And someone will be there with them.  A mentor of mine used to say…Just Show up Palms up and trust God to do the rest.  If someone is in the hospital…go visit them.  Sit with them.  Listen to them.  And Pray for them.  Your presences will speak volumes to the person in need.  The best way to spell love is TIME.
4. Involve Others:  Don’t carry the load alone.  Help the group to share the ownership of caring for each other.  Your group can share by bringing meals, or stopping by the hospital, making home visits, providing babysitting, or cleaning a house.  More Care happens together!  And it’s a great way to help those in your group take their next step.
5. Contact Your Team Leader:  If something comes up in your group that is too much for your group to handle contact your team leader for support.  Your team leader is there to support you, encourage you, and get you the help you need to successfully lead your group. They would love to care for you as you lead your group and they can connect you to more support and resources if needed.

This has been one of our best seasons of lifegroups at Abundant Life Church and I’m so thankful for your leadership in our church.  I’m praying for you as you head into the second half of the season.