As promised, tonight’s meeting focused more on the nuts and bolts of integrating a small group ministry into the overall structure of Bethel Church. After opening with prayer and a brief recap of last week’s meeting, we sat down for salads and some reflection together on what we’ve been thinking/learning/dreaming about small groups since our last meeting. Well-fed and prayed up, we started to dream about how small group ministry fits within and/or enhances the existing ministries of Bethel.

Outreach

• we can use one or two individuals or couples to start small groups in areas where they haven’t existed before. The example given was of starting a small group in an apartment building;
• a small group could work together to plan a larger event that would involve the entire congregation in reaching out;
• inviting friends or acquaintances to join our small group, we have a non-threatening way of inviting them into the life of our congregation;
• we can take our small groups into the community in order to model what fellowship can look like in action;
• we could invite unchurched people to join our small group for a ministry project. (OK, so I added this one on my own. My idea is that if a small group were involved in a day of working with Habitat for Humanity, they could invite neighbors who have a passion for helping needy people to join them.)

Fellowship

• inviting guests at worship to join our small group is a natural way to enfold them into the life of the congregation;
• small groups could be a great way to help less actively involved members to pursue spiritual growth and ministry opportunities;
• a variety of small group types provide my different points of entry for people to become  part of Bethel
• small groups could be formed around common interests that people share, say gardening, reading, parenting, prayer, etc.
• friendships can be developed and deepened in the context of small groups;
• small group members can provide a lot of the pastoral care we need; and
• pastoral care items could be discovered in small group meetings and (with permission) be passed on to staff, Elders and the Sheltering Tree in order that our church can be meaningfully involved in the lives of our members.

Discipleship/Education

• by providing consistent education over an extended length of time, small groups can be involved in leading people to apply the lessons that are being learned;
• because of the length of time and the closeness of the group, accountability to each other can be gradually added in to the mix of the group;
• they provide a safe environment in which we can be honest about our struggles and where we’re at in our spiritual walks;
• leaders will have a key role in facilitating the atmosphere of discipleship and growth;
• accountability occur within the context of relationship – a much better environment for personal growth;
• we encourage “discovery” – both the discovery of new ideas (education) and the discovery of a new way of life (discipleship); and
• they teach us to be  faithful to each other, our commitments and our God.

Ministry

• small groups are a natural way for us to discover, develop and encourage the use of the spiritual gifts that God has entrusted us with;
• small groups can be involved in a variety of short-term ministry projects, such as:
  • designing and building a parade float;
  • planning and running a Progressive Supper;
  • provide follow-up to guests at worship or at large outreach events (SpiritQuest, BAC, etc.).

If you haven’t caught it yet, small group ministry has the potential to allow us to do more ministry more effectively with more people. Wow!

Ah, yes, you ask, but how can that possibly happen here? You’d never believe what happened next!

As we discussed how to pilot this program, Teri Hyrkas offered her home (and her husband!) to pull together a small group of small group leaders who would meet during the summer to plan, implement and promote the ministry. Further, the Wergins offered their home as a meeting place. And what will these amazing volunteers do?

• PRAY;
• find curriculum ideas for groups to use;
• decide how best to train leaders for new small groups;
• figure out how to enhance the current small group ministry;
• decide how to expand the number of small groups we have and the number of people involved; and
• discern how to help all of our ministry groups (Youth Ministry Team, Elders, Council, Deacons, BAC leadership team,…) begin to incorporate small group characteristics (prayer, learning, mutual encouragement) into their meetings.

Overall, I’d have to say that it was a very exciting meeting!