Tony Evans - Watch Your Mouth Growth and Study Guide: Understanding the Power of the Tongue

T his material is adapted from the Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship Small-Group Leaders Handbook. If you have not yet established a small group in your local church or community, feel free to adapt this overview to fit your own groups needs.

Theology, Vision, Structure of Small Groups

Theology of Small Groups (Why Are We Doing This?)

God is an eternal community of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and He made us in His image (Genesis 1:26). We were designed to live life in community.

The command to love God is joined with the command to love others (Matthew 22:37-40). That means we will experience more of God when we experience community with others.

Our church, communities, and world need this. Christian witness is only as powerful as the love demonstrated in community with one another. By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another (John 13:35). Small groups help us demonstrate this kind of love to the outside world as we connect in community with one another, grow spiritually together, and serve our church, community, and world together.

The Vision for Small Groups

To progressively develop small-group opportunities for the purpose of intentional biblical application in a relational context of accountability and connectivity.

To have a means of measurably identifying the spiritual growth of fellow Christians.

To develop an ongoing unified group of well-trained facilitators who will help create and maintain a relational environment for discipleship to occur.

Small-Group Values

Connect . In a small group, we are connected in community by fellowshipping with one another and providing care for each other so that no one stands alone (fellowship).

Grow . In a small group, we grow together by studying the curriculum and applying Gods Word to our lives (education) and by responding to Gods presence by praying, singing, and praising together (worship).

Serve . In a small group, we serve one another by sharing leadership responsibilities, and we serve together through mission projects for our church, our community, and the world (outreach).

Small-Group Leader Expectations

Job Description

A small-group facilitator is a trained group leader who will oversee an ongoing group of no more than 12 people. The facilitator will encourage connection, growth, and service within the small group by

modeling an openness to share his or her faith story

facilitating the discussion of the approved curriculum

encouraging participation by all group members

coordinating prayer and care for group members

Expectations

All small-group facilitators will be growing Christians who have placed their faith in Christ alone for salvation and have a growing, personal relationship with Him. They must also be members of a local church.

They will commit to a minimum of one year of service (two semesters).

They will help their group connect with one another in community, grow through the discussion and application of Gods Word, and promote an environment of service and care for one another.

During each semester (fall and spring) they will assemble their group a minimum of twice a month with one additional scheduled time of outside fellowship and one service project.

They will commit to personally calling each group member at least once a month for encouragement and prayer.

They will report issues, questions, and challenges that require a pastoral response to the appropriate person.

Contacting Potential Members

When contacting potential members or newly added members for the first time, it is important to be intentional. Prepare by reviewing what the small group means to its members and will hopefully mean for your new member. Small-group community life is still foreign to many newcomers. Therefore, give them an idea of what to expect in the group and answer any questions they may have. Please note that a first contact is best done over the phone.

Get to know your new group member. Share a little about your background and invite the person to do the same.

Explain your role as a facilitator (see Small-Group Leader Expectations above).

Ask the person about his or her expectation of the small-group experience. What do they hope to get out of this? You can share some of your aspirations as well.

Give them some expectations. They should expect to meet at least twice a month. Remind them that you hope all members will take ownership for the group by sharing openly and encouraging each other. Make sure they understand that each semester they will be invited to one service event and one additional small-group fellowship time.

Make Your First Meeting Great

Goals of the First Meeting

Rekindle relationships and meet new members.

Clarify your groups direction, expectations, and commitments.

Briefly discuss the curriculum you will use.

Pray that each person will build relationships and grow spiritually.

Items Needed for the First Meeting

A meal is not necessary at every meeting but is helpful for the first meeting.

Hand out copies of your small-group covenant (at ). Everyone should sign the covenant and and keep a copy.

Nametags are particularly helpful if you have new members.

Contact Your Group in Advance

Contact your group members one week before the first meeting to welcome them to the group and inform them of the location and time of your group.

Three Essential Elements of Your Meeting

Welcome, Mingle, and Talk While You Eat

Studies show that the first seven seconds a person spends in a room can make or break the remainder of their experience in that room. Here are some tips for making your home or meeting place a welcoming environment:

Greet each person when they arrive.

Introduce new members to existing members.

Never let a newcomer sit alone while waiting for the meeting to start.

Have drinks available when people arrive.

Play upbeat music as they arrive.

Provide a clean home or meeting space and turn off your phone.

Let people know when your meeting will begin in five minutes.

An Agenda for Your First Meeting

Icebreaker . Use the first five or ten minutes to help members get to know each other. If you dont have new members, try sharing things people may not know about you.

Worship and prayer. Singing worship songs is optional, but some groups find this brings them closer together. Prayer is not optionalits an important component of your group life. There are several ways to incorporate prayer listed below.

Popcorn prayer . Invite people to take turns praying as they are led to do so, and designate one person to close.

Groups, clusters, or prayer partners . Divide the larger group into smaller groups and encourage them to share prayer requests and praise reports with each other.

Topical prayer . As a group, choose one topic to pray about.

Written prayers . Consider praying the psalms together. Take turns reading them aloud.

Covenant . This is one of the most pivotal small-group tools to set the tone for your group.

Review the small-group covenant in detail (see ).

Highlight what it means to make ones attendance at the group a priority. Remember that attendance affects the cohesiveness of the entire group.

Think outside the box. What else does the group want to commit to? Maybe your group will also covenant to be transparent or to hold each other accountable. This is the perfect time to clarify some of the group members expectations.

Curriculum . You have a lot of ground to cover in your first group meeting. Do not push the time schedule; rather, let the meeting have a natural flow. But for the sake of establishing a routine, take some time to highlight the curriculum you have selected. If time does not permit that you go deeper, assure the members that your normal routine will allow for more conversation and more application of the Word.