Leaders Anticipate the Future

Growing leaders are people who anticipate the future.  Peter Drucker said, “The best way to predict the future is to create it.”  Leaders are thinking ahead to what is next.  As a lifegroup leader I want to encourage you to start thinking ahead to what’s next.  It’s never too early to start thinking about the future.  Specifically, I want to encourage you to begin anticipating what is next beyond this season?

The spring lifegroup season will come to an end in April.  But the summer season will begin right around the corner.  In the NW the temptation is to take the summer off when the sun comes up.  But the summer is actually a really great time to grow and build on the momentum in your group this spring.  The summer is also a great time to focus more relationships and doing something outside the box.

As a lifegroup leader I want to encourage you to stay engaged during the summer season, and begin to anticipate an opportunity to grow the relationships that are forming in your group this spring.

Here are some creative summer groups ideas:

1.  Activity Groups.  Form a group around your favorite outdoor activities such as ultimate frisbee, frisbee golf, volleyball, walking/hiking, biking, shooting (yes we have had one of these groups before).  Have a favorite summer activity…chances are someone else enjoys the same things.

2.  Park Groups.  Great for families.  Gather families for a picnic and opportunity to connect at different parks during the summer group season.  Great way to involve the kids.

3.  Summer Book club.  Have a favorite spiritual growth book that you have always wanted to read.  Read it with friends and meet up to talk about it.

4.  Backyard BBQ group.  Love to grill?  I’ll bet you have some friends who love to eat.  Put that grill that has been gathering rust during the winter too great use and have some friends over to share a meal and talk God and life together.

5.  Study group.  The summer is also a great time to dive into a new study that you have always wanted to do.  Why not invite some friends to jump in with you?

6.  SERVE groups.  Do you have a heart for the homeless or simply a heart for a cause.  Use the summer season to partner with friends and commit to making a difference together.

The summer is an incredible time to lead a group!  My prayer is that our summer season would be just as strong as the spring.  So I want to encourage you as a leader to anticipate the future and pray about what type of creative group you might lead this summer.

By the way…the summer is also a great time to raise up a new leader.  So if you are not able to lead a group this summer chances are there is someone in your group who is ready to take the next step.  They just need someone like you to believe in them.

 

 

Caring for One Another

This week I went with a lifegroup leader to the hospital to visit one of their group members.  Caring for one another is one of the greatest ministries a lifegroup can have toward each other.  In fact, God wired us up uniquely so that we would need each other and learn to be there for each other in times of crisis.

Paul said… “So God has put the body together such that extra honor and care are given to those parts that have less dignity. This makes for harmony among the members, so that all the members care for each other. If one part suffers, all the parts suffer with it, and if one part is honored, all the parts are glad.”  ICorinthians 12:24-26

Sometimes providing care for lifegroup members such as making a hospital visit, responding to a crisis, or providing support in a time of loss can be scary without knowing what to do.  So if a crisis comes up in your group here are some practical tips to help you respond.

1.  Pray!  Start by praying for the situation and pray that God would give you wisdom on how to respond in the situation.  The Bible promises that when we ask God for wisdom he gladly gives it to us.

2.  Presence!  The best thing you can offer is simply your presence.  In a time of crisis people want to know that someone cares.  So one of the biggest ways you can care is by simply showing up.  It might be possible for the group to take shifts making a visit.

3.  Touch!  Be sure to offer your touch when caring for someone.  This might be a hand on the shoulder or holding a hand while sitting near a hospital bed, or a hug.  Your touch communicates great care in times of crisis.  If your group is praying for someone in crisis in your group you might put the person or persons on a chair and allow the group to gather around and lay hands on an arm or shoulder while the group prayers.

4.  Word!  Share a verse of hope and encouragement from the Bible.  If you are making a visit you might look up some verses ahead of time and make note of them in your phone on in your Bible.  God’s word is able to speak encouragement in a very powerful way to those who are in need of care.  The Bible says that the word of God is alive and active so look for a way to speak God’s living truth into the situation.

5.  Practical!  Ask the person if the group can help with a practical need.  This may be rotating hospital visits, providing meals, helping with yard work, etc.  Explore ways that the group can work together to care for the person in a practical way.

6.  Pray!  Be sure to pray specifically for the person in need of care.  If possible lay your hands on them as you pray for them.  And encourage the lifegroup to be in regular prayer for them during the season.

If there is a situation that is beyond the lifegroups ability to care or if extra care is needed please be sure to contact your Team Leader right away.  Or let the group team know by emailing groups@coolchurch.com.

 

Engaging Group Members Between Meetings

One of the challenges as a lifegroup leader is to keep your group members engaged throughout the season.  Especially in between group meeting times.  Group members who stay engaged will most likely stay connected until the end of the season, grow more during the season, and have a more positive lifegroup experience.  Here are a few practical ideas that you can help your group members stay engaged and connected between lifegroup meetings throughout the season.

1.  Invite group member’s input into the upcoming meeting.  A great friend of mine, Kevin, who serves as a lifegroup leader and team leader shared this idea with me this week.  Often a study has more questions than a group is able to cover during a lifegroup meeting.  So email your group before your next meeting and ask them to share their top 3 or 4 questions they want to make sure you talk about together as a group.  This builds anticipation and also encourages group members to interact with the study before the next meeting.

2.  Prayer Partners.  Pair up people in your group as prayer partners for a month.  Encourage prayer partners to be praying specifically for each other between group meetings.  Encourage them to connect with each other at least once to see how they are doing and let them know you are praying.  This helps to build friendships and encourages connection between meetings.

3.  Share Responsibilities.  Group members will stay connected and engaged if they have a responsibility, or ownership, with the group.  So make sure everyone in the group has a job to do.  This might be coordinating snacks, sending out prayer requests, planning a play or serve event.  As the leader think of the things that you are doing with the group that someone else can do, and hand it off. 

4.  Share the Facilitating of the Study.  Encourage those who have the potential to lead a group of their own down the road to help facilitate the study.  You might start by just having them facilitate a couple of questions and share the responsibility with you one night.  Some groups actually rotate each week who facilitates the discussion and study time.  This can be a great way to engage someone who is to take a next step.

It’s important to keep group members engaged throughout the season so they don’t drift.  If you have some other great ideas that have worked please share them in the comments below. 

 

SERVING as a lifegroup

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.

Sub-Grouping for Greater Group Participation

As we prepare for the upcoming spring lifegroup season at Abundant Life we continue to see a record amount of people signing up for lifegroups.  I am so proud of our lifegroup leaders this season.  They have caught the vision to create space for everyone at Abundant Life to connect and grow.  Many groups are busting at the seams with sign-ups as the start of the season approaches.

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!

Welcome to the Abundant Life Spring 2012 Lifegroup Season

Sign-ups for the Spring 2012 lifegroup season have begun.  We are over 450 sign-ups for our spring lifegroups so far and counting.  We believe that this will be one of our best seasons ever.  And we are already planning some great stuff for future seasons.

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.

 

 

God’s Strategy for Your Success as a Leader

This is a fantastic article from Pastor Rick Warren on leadership as he draws some great principles from Joshua.  In this book, God gave Joshua a very specific plan and strategy for accomplishing the goal of occupying the promised land.  Accomplishing this goal was not easy or without it’s challenges, but God gave Joshua a road map for success.  You can read the article here.

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