Small Group Leadership

What Ben Reed Has to Say About Small Group Vital Signs

2012-02-15T15:28:00.000-05:00

I'm sharing some of the nice words my friends and small group ministry colleagues are saying about Small Group Vital Signs. Today, Ben Reed:

"There arecertain questions that keep me up at night. 'Is my small group reallyhealthy?' happens to be one of them. I am not shooting for a 'good' small group, but a 'great' one that is aGod-centered reflection of who and what He intends small groups to be. I'mso indebted for Mike's work in Small Group Vital Signs, that's helping meensure my group(s) pursue health."

Ben Reed is CommunityGroups Pastor at Grace Community Church in Clarksville, Tennessee. He's also one of my favorite bloggers (at Life & Theology: Musings of a Young Pastor) and at least one of the top three people I quote constantly. His writings influenced several chapters of Small Group Vital Signs, so I'm greatly indebted to Ben.

What Mark Taylor Has to Say About Small Group Vital Signs

2012-02-13T17:22:00.002-05:00

This is the third post in a series of blogs sharing what some friends and small group leadership partners are saying about Small Group Vital Signs. Today I'm grateful for my friend and one of my biggest supporters and encouragers, Mark Taylor.

"Finally!A book about small groups to help us decide we should have small groups and toknow whether our small groups are fulfilling a biblical purpose. Although thisbook is practical, it is refreshingly devoid of self-centered trendiness. Thosejust starting a small groups program—and those who have led small groups foryears—must read this book to evaluate what they're doing!"

- Mark Taylor

I met Mark Taylor nearly 25 years ago (could it really be that long?) at Standard Publishing in Cincinnati. At the time, I had been a Christian about a month and sensed God calling me as a writer and editor in a Christian publishing company. So I met with Mark, Sam Stone, and Gene Wigginton at the Standard offices. I remember the puzzled looks on their faces as they tried to explain that their editors had not only been Christians a long time, but many had been in ministry for years. I guess I was pretty relentless, so they suggested I check out Cincinnati Bible College and maybe take some classes. I went to the campus that day and registered. Two months later I started work on my MA in Christian Education with an emphasis in journalism in the seminary. About six months after that, John Sample called me and offered me a job at Standard as his assistant. Another six months later, when Mark moved from editing The Lookout to adult books and curriculum, I was offered the associate editor position at The Lookout, where I first started writing about small groups in a column we called "Growing in Groups." The next year Mark asked me to join his team editing adult books and curriculum. I had no idea what I was doing, but God was obviously in control!

I owe so much to Mark Taylor. He has taken chances on me numerous times. More importantly, he mentored me and believed in me. Mark and I co-wrote two "Creative Groups Guides": Claiming Your Place and Hearing God. Then, after I left Standard to found SmallGroups.com, Mark continued to help me with side editing jobs that got me through those first couple rough years. When I was ordained as a minister, Mark came and gave the charge. Mark and I have continued to work together on small groups projects at Standard. He helped edit my book I'm a Leader...Now What? published by Standard in 2007. Today, I'm writing a monthly column about small group leadership for the Christian Standard, of which Mark Taylor is the editor and publisher.

Yes, Mark Taylor has had an impact on my life!

Thanks, Mark, for believing in me, encouraging me, and helping to mold me as a Christian man, minister, and writer.

What Heather Zempel Has to Say About Small Group Vital Signs

2012-02-12T18:57:00.000-05:00

I'm sharing what a few of my friends and small group ministry partners have said about my newest book, Small Group Vital Signs. Last time, Jon Ferguson shared his thoughts. Today, I'm honored to have Heather Zempel weigh in.

"For the Body of Christ to function as it was designed, we needto give ourselves regular check-ups. In Small Group Vital Signs, Mack clearsaway a lot of the clutter that has clouded our understanding of buildinghealthy community and moves us back to the priority of centering our livesaround Christ. With these practical and biblically rooted diagnostic tools andquestions, we can assess our health and vitality as individual leaders and aslife-giving communities."

Heather is Discipleship Pastor at National Community Church and author of Sacred Roads and Community is Messy.She describes herself on her blog as Environmental Engineer, Senate Policy Advisor, LSU Grad, Southerner, Discipleship Pastor, Star Wars Geek, T-ball All Star, Theatre Nerd, Connoisseur of Fried Dill Pickles, Wife and Biggest Fan of Ryan Zempel.

What Jon Ferguson Has to Say About Small Group Vital Signs

2012-02-10T13:16:00.000-05:00

As the release of my newest book, Small Group Vital Signs draws very near, I'd like to share what some of my friends and partners in small groups ministry are saying about it. Over the next couple weeks I'll share one or two of their thoughts about the book per day. I'd love to hear your input as well. You can order the book now here!

I'll start with my long-time friend, Jon Ferguson, a man who has been referred to as a "Small Group Guru," which he definitely is!

"Don'tsettle for the status quo in your small groups! Mike Mack's new book, SmallGroup Vital Signs will not only gauge the current health and vitality of yourgroups, but give you a growth plan for helping them grow and reproduce. If you're looking to revitalize and recharge your small groups, this book is amust-read!"

Jon is one of the founding pastors (along with his brother Dave Ferguson) of Community Christian Church, a reproducing church with 11 locations in the Chicago area. He serves as teaching pastor and leads the team of staff champions for adult, student, children’s, and creative arts ministries across all Community locations. Jon is also the co-founder and Movement Architect of the NewThing Network whose mission is to be a catalyst for a movement of reproducing churches.

Jon co-authored The Big Idea – Aligning the Ministries of Your Church Through Creative Collaboration and Exponential – How You and Your Friends Can Start a Missional Church Movement.

Jon and I go back twenty-something years, when he wrote articles for a "Growing in Groups" column I then edited for The Lookout magazine, and also was one of the main contributors when I founded SmallGroups.com back in the late 80s and early 90s. Jon is a leader whom I deeply respect, so I really value his thoughts about Small Group Vital Signs.

The Reason Why Leaders Face Deep, Dark Valleys

2012-02-04T12:35:00.000-05:00

"No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening—it is painful! But afterward there will be a quiet harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way" (Hebrews 12:11, NLT).

It's natural for a father to discipline his children if he truly loves them (Proverbs 3:11-12). At the same time, we, especially we leaders, face spiritual warfare that our Father allows. He allows it because he lovingly gives us--and Satan to an extent--freewill. But he also allows it, I believe, because he uses it to make us stronger in his kingdom purposes for us.

As leaders, we really need to see this biblical perspective on the deep dark valleys in which we sometimes find ourselves.

"The Valley of the Shadow of Death" Artist: George Inness, 1867

The promise of Hebrews 12:11, as well as Luke 18:1; Galatians 6:9; and many other verses is what you and I are depending on and waiting for in the midst of the valleys, difficult circumstances, spiritual battles, and loving discipline we will go through. Dear leader, know that God will use all of this somehow in his Kingdom. Know that much of what you are going though (or will go through) is spiritual battle with Satan, and know that God's angel army is fighting this fight with you. Otherwise you could not endure it.

Have you ever noticed the timing of Satan's attacks? I have. They almost always come just as you are about to bear fruit and it looks like growth and multiplication is ready to happen. It occurs just as you see God using you as only he can in his Kingdom. Satan takes note of all this and begins to tell lies and pull out his bag of tricks. Be glad you're not fighting alone. God with his angel armies and the power of his Spirit is with you, fighting for and with you, giving you the strength to keep going. He will never leave nor forsake you. He will walk through this deep, dark valley with you. He will use his staff and rod to guide you and ultimately comfort you. And he will give you a peace that passes all understanding in the midst of it (Philippians 4:6-7, 12-13).

Instead of worrying about all the circumstances out of your control that you may not deserve, simply pray and trust God, no matter what happens. Wait patiently but proactively for him. God's peace -- a peace that is impossible to even understand -- follows.

God in his wisdom allows a certain amount of painful circumstances and even depression (read Psalm 6 and King David's walk through his deep, dark valley) to happen to discipline you and me and build spiritual muscles that make us stronger soldiers in his Kingdom. He will use all this somehow. There will be a harvest.Don't give up!

Are You Measuring Outcomes or Inputs?

2012-01-11T13:39:00.000-05:00

In his January 6 blog post, Alan Danielson writes about Measuring Outcomes: Is it Really the Right Approach? The question Alan poses and discusses is whether we should be focusing on inputs or outcomes. Outcomes are easier to measure, but, as Alan points out, they are in God's control. Our job is to plant, water, cultivate, etc., but God makes things grow (1 Corinthians 3:6-7).

This is what my new book, Small Group Vital Signs, is all about. My thesis is that healthy things grow and multiply, whether a tree, child, Christ-follower, small group, church, or any other organism or organization. The seven vital signs are inputs. Growth and multiplication are outcomes--fruit. I believe that if you focus on these seven vital inputs that your group will grow--spiritually and numerically--and bear much fruit, fruit that will last.

I wrote Small Group Vital Signs to help you and your group focus on these inputs that will make your group healthy, vibrant, strong. We're now in the final editing stages and the book will be available at the end of January or beginning of February. you can pre-order it now, if you want, and receive free shipping and handling, but this offer ends soon! Click HERE for more information about the book or to order. By the way, you can also take a FREE online assessment of your group HERE.

By the way, I'm not against measuring outcomes.But I don't want to spend much time trying to figure out how to precisely measure them, and I don't want to worry about them. I want to spend my time and energy and focus on what brings results, measure those results, and give glory to God!

I'm trying to do all I can to help small groups become healthier. Imagine what outcomes God will bring about as healthy groups grow and multiply themselves throughout his Kingdom!

What Are Your 2012 Small Group Resolutions?

2011-12-28T16:16:00.000-05:00

Many of us are thinking about resolutions right now. 2012 is going to be different, we say. We're going to lose that weight, get into shape, read some books, go somewhere, work on our marriage, become a better parent, ...

The 4th Vital Sign of a Healthy Small Group is that it is proactive with Goals and Plans. The healthiest groups even write them down and refer to them. The New Year is a great time to think and talk about this as a group. Now's the time to make some resolutions with and for your group.

So, what resolutions is your small group making for 2012? Please click on Comments, below, and share yours. I'll post the best, most creative ones, and I'll send a copy of my new book, Small Group Vital Signs, to the top 3!

What Counts as a Church?

2011-12-28T14:02:00.003-05:00

I just came across an interesting article by Sarah Pulliam Bailey (online editor of Christianity Today) from the December 9 Wall Street Journal: "When the Zoning Board Closes Your Church." The article brings up several fascinating and important legal questions regarding small groups that meet in homes, but that's not what intrigued me most.

Bailey began her article with a vital question: "What counts as a church?" How would you respond to that question? While I don't expect the zoning board to get it, I do wonder if religious institutions (that is, "churches") have a solid Biblical understanding. I also wonder if it hasn't been the "church" who is mostly to blame for this unfortunate and damaging misrepresentation of the real church.

Regardless of what zoning boards decide, it's up to us, the church, to revitalize the true meaning of the church. We are the body of Christ in action, not buildings or institutions. Bailey ends her article with a quote from Dan Dalton, chair of the American Bar Association's Religious Land Use section, who said "Church, is more than about Sunday mornings and Wednesday nights." Yes, much more!

What do you think? What counts as church? How can we get back to a more Biblical definition?

Books for Your New Kindle or iPad!

2011-12-27T19:28:00.002-05:00

Get a new Kindle or iPad for Christmas and looking for some books to put on it? I may be able to help! Three of my books are available as Kindle editions that you can also read on your iPad after you've downloaded the free Kindle reader. Click on any or all of the titles below to get started!

The Pocket Guide to Burnout-Free Small Group Leadership: How to Gather a Core Team and Lead from the Second Chair
by Michael C. Mack (October 26, 2009)
(4)

Kindle Price: $3.99

Moving Forward: Helping Your Group Members Embrace Their Leadership Potential (Community Life)
by Michael C. Mack (December 2, 2010)
(1)

Kindle Price: $9.45

Leading from the Heart: A Cell Leader's Guide to Passionate Ministry
by Michael C. MacK (December 30, 2010)

Kindle Price: $9.95

By the way, you can also purchase several of my books as digital editions for your computer from the TOUCH website (you will also need to download Locklizard):

Christmas in Perspective

2011-12-23T11:58:00.000-05:00

For a child IS born to us, a son IS given to us. And some day, this same one who was born a child in Bethlehem will return, and this time the government will rest upon his shoulders. He is our Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, yes, our Prince of Peace!

When he returns you can be sure of this: his ever expanding and peaceful rule over this earth he created will never end. Don't forget that this child whose birth we celebrate during this season will return, this time as our victorious King, with both power and peace.

Jesus is passionately in love with you, and he is waiting to return for you. This Christmas, move past the historical Jesus who was born and lived 2,000 years ago. Consider the living Christ who is still Immanuel, God with us ... the One who will never leave us nor forsake us, the One who is with us whenever we gather together in his name.

A Son IS given to us (Isaiah 9:6-7).

Research Confirms It: The Vitality of Authentic Community

2011-12-21T10:44:00.001-05:00

Donald Miller begins his blog today by saying, "So, according to researchers, if you want to be healthy you have to be in an environment where you are accepted and are free to have flaws." This isn't news to me. I've thrown my life into this belief. We need authentic connections to be wholehearted people. So why do so many people--people in church ministry, small group leaders, and lots of others, live life outside this kind of environment? I believe there is a one-word answer: control.

We each have a choice: to be in control of our lives (and, so it follows, everyone else's lives as well) or to be trusting and vulnerable. The most dynamic relationships, groups, churches, and other organizations are built on those two virtues.

In the clip below, Brene Brown gave a very compelling TED talk about this topic, telling her own story of personal transformation in this area. If you lead a small group or are involved in ministry, invest about 20 minutes to watch this video. I'd love to hear your comments and thoughts!

The Purposely UNbalanced Small Group

2011-12-06T15:32:00.001-05:00

Yesterday, I posted about being Purposely UNbalanced in life. I've found that it's impossible to be truly balanced in ministry as well, especially when it comes to leading a small group.

As I've often said, leading a healthy group is much like riding a mountain bike. The only time I'm close to being perfectly balanced is when I'm standing still, straddling the top tube with both feet on the ground. But that's no way to interact with a bike ... or with a group.

"There is a time for everything, a season for every activity under heaven" (Ecclesiastes 3:1, NLT).

On the bike, there's a time to lean left and a time to lean right. There's a time to move my weight forward to gain speed, and a time to move backwards so I don't endo (flip over the handlebars). Bike handling is all about making decision on the trail. As I lead my group there's a time for more community, especially at the beginning of a new group or as new people join you. There's a time for more and deeper study and discussion of the Bible. There's a time for more prayer, more worship, more serving, and there are times to refrain from some of these.

There's a time to invest into a hurting person in your group, and there's a time to confront a group member's sinful lifestyle. There's a time to encourage a couple who are struggling in their marriage or with their kids, and there's a time to speak the truth in love to spouses or parents who need it. There's a time to invest into your Core Team and there's a time to invest into other members of the group.

You know the times as you and your group experience God's presence. He will guide you as you live by his timetable rather than your own. If you want to learn how to do this better, read the Gospel of John and study how Jesus lived his life according to the Father's timetable. Jesus always knew what time it was!

Purposely UNbalanced

2011-12-05T10:28:00.001-05:00

Life is much like riding a bike. When I ride, I'm rarely perfectly balanced. In fact, as I go through fast turns, I purposely lean my bike so as not to be in balance.This is especially true on my mountain bike, as I blast down rolling hills and around banked switchbacks. It takes skills and a lot of trust in myself and my bike to intentionally lean the bike into unbalanced positions to maneuver through the obstacles and turns on the trails.

Because life has lots of obstacles and turns, I find "balance" to be a tricky thing. It's popular to say we should live a balanced life. So I did a quick Bible search and guess what? I couldn't find anything about living a balanced life, not in those words, at least. Instead, the Bible often tells us to live a focused life--to focus on the right priorities: "Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life" (Proverbs 4:23). "Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well" (Matthew 6:33).

Life is about knowing when to lean left, right, forward, and back ... sometimes in rapid succession as I navigate the trail in front of me. This morning I need to lean into my wife, later today I'll lean into my kids. In between, I need to lean forward and pedal hard up the hill at work. Later I'll lean back and navigate the rocky downhill with a friend in crisis. The trail determines the move.

The important thing is to stay on the right trail! How? God will make known to me the path of life; He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake. His word is a light to my path (Psalm 16:11; 23:3; 119:105). I start my day here, in my relationship with God, so that He can guide me on the right path.

Burned Small Group Biscuits

2011-12-01T14:23:00.001-05:00

I do not normally blog forwarded emails, but this one really got me thinking about the vitality of acceptance and understanding in authentic, Christ-centered small groups. If we don't love others unconditionally, we don't really love them at all.

WhenI was a kid, my Mom liked to make breakfast food for dinner every now and then. And I remember one night in particular when she had made breakfast after a long, hard day at work . On that evening so long ago, my Mom placed a plate of eggs, sausage and extremely burned biscuits in front of my dad.

I remember waiting to see if anyone noticed! Yet all my dad did was reach for his biscuit, smile at my Mom and ask me how my day was at school. I don't remember what I told him that night, but I do remember watching him smear butter and jelly on that ugly burned biscuit. He ate every bite of that thing.... never made a face nor uttered a word about it!

When I got up from the table that evening, I remember hearing my Mom apologize to my dad for burning the biscuits. And I'll never forget what he said: "Honey, I love burned biscuits every now and then."

Later that night, I went to kiss Daddy good night and I asked him if he really liked his biscuits burned. He wrapped me in his arms and said,"Your Momma put in a hard day at work today and she's real tired. And besides - a little burned biscuit never hurt anyone!"

As I've grown older, I've thought about that many times. Life is full of imperfect things and imperfect people. I'm not the best at hardly anything, and I forget birthdays and anniversaries just like everyone else. But what I've learned over the years is that learning to accept each other's faults
and choosing to celebrate each others differences - is one of the most important keys to creating a healthy, growing, and lasting relationship.

And that's my prayer for you today... that you will learn to take the good, the bad, and the ugly parts of your life and lay them at the feet of God. Because in the end, He's the only One who will be able to give you a relationship where a burnt biscuit isn't a deal-breaker!

We could extend this to any relationship. In fact, understanding is the base of any relationship, be it a husband-wife or parent-child or friendship!

"Don't put the key to your happiness in someone else's pocket - keep it in your own."

So, please pass me a biscuit, and yes, the burned one will do just fine.

How does this apply in your small group?

Missional Groups Are Team Led!

2011-11-29T13:13:00.001-05:00

My friend Scott Boren is writing an excellent series of blogs on the 9 practices of missional small group leaders. (Go to his blog here.) Today he writes about Practice #3: Leading as a Team.

Scott tells his own personal journey that led to his conclusion that Core Team Leadership is so vital. He even refers to my book, The Pocket Guide to Burnout-Free Small Group Leadership, which, of course, I appreciate.

I particularly like how Scott has made this very practical. The last paragraph of his blog says,

For most people, this view of team leadership and shared contribution by the entire group is different. They need a way to catch this idea without having it forced down their throat. For this purpose, I wrote a free five-week small group study guide called The Journey Together. (Click here to download it.)

I did download it, and while I haven't used it yet, I'm looking into it. The video itself is well worth the time to check out:

Explore the More from Jeff D. Johnson on Vimeo.

When You Feel Abandoned or Alone

2011-11-26T13:13:00.001-05:00

When you feel abandoned and alone, when you feel like life is just not fair, consider how Jesus felt. He had poured his life into his friends. He loved them sacrificially. And he knew that when he needed them, they would desert him.

"But the time is coming—in fact, it is already here—when you will be scattered, each one going his own way, leaving me alone. Yet I am not alone because the Father is with me. I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world" (John 16:32-33, NLT).

Jesus gave us an example here. He could have felt totally abandoned as he went to the cross, totally alone and unjustly dishonored, forsaken, and rejected. And perhaps he did feel that way, but he chose to see past what he felt and still believe in his friends. I tend to say, "I don't deserve this!" but if there was anyone at any time that did not deserve the treatment he received, it was Jesus! Instead of having a pity party for himself, he focused on what his friends would go though over the next several days (see v. 33). That's an example for all of us to follow.

Trials and sorrows will come. They are a part of living in this world (see verse 33). I've gone though my own during this past year, and I bet you could tell me many stories of your own. I have a choice when I face these trials and sorrows. I can turn inward and complain, seek sympathy from others, and feel sorry for myself, or I can take comfort in my relationship with the Father and focus on the needs of those around me--even (or especially) those who are the source of the pain.

Father, help me respond to trials and sorrows like your son.

Occupying Ephesus

2011-10-20T15:06:00.000-04:00

Funny how some things never change:

At this their anger boiled, and they began shouting, "Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!" A crowd began to gather, and soon the city was filled with confusion. ... Inside, the people were all shouting, some one thing and some another. Everything was in confusion. In fact, most of them didn't even know why they were there. (Acts 19:28-34, NLT)

Remind you of anything going on today?

A mob mentality robs people of their better judgment and logical thinking. Some of these people didn't even know why they were there. There are no solutions, just a bunch of slogans and confusion. It leads nowhere.

As a leader, when you feel pulled into this kind of mob mentality, be careful to stop and think and pray. Be careful to "not join a crowd that intends to do evil" (Exodus 23:2). Decide to obey God, not the mob.

By the way, Dave Ramsey wrote a very thought-provoking article HERE. I'm not saying I agree with everything Dave says (and I'm not saying I don't), but it's definitely worth the read.

What do you think?

Life Is All About Timing

2011-06-20T13:11:00.000-04:00

I have been praying for God to bring restoration in a personal matter for some time, and it's difficult to understand sometimes why my prayer seems to go unanswered. Some people are praying for restoration of health or finances or a relationship or a career. And we wonder why God is not moving in the way we are asking him to.

"I, the Lord, will bring it all to pass at the right time." Isaiah 60:22

What a promise! Isaiah reminds us that God is in control of everything. He will bring it to pass at just the right time--his time. This is true, of course, for Bible prophecy, especially the Second Coming, which is the direct context of this passage. Jesus' return and all the end times stuff is in God's hands and all we need do is trust him. But this is also true in the everyday circumstances of life.

"The Lord will bring it all to pass at the right time." Now, it may not come to pass until Jesus returns and gives me a new body and brings a new earth. Or he may choose to answer my prayer and restore things right now, but those things are temporary anyway. Either way, God is orchestrating everything to bring about his plans. What I never want to forget is that he is at work and that he loves me. He is for me ... even in the midst of uncertain life circumstances.

Reading this chapter could not have come at a better time for me today. I was feeling depressed and tired with some current circumstances. Truthfully, I just felt like giving up. But I know that is not from God; that comes from the father of lies who is looking to destroy.

Satan, you are a liar! God is for me, so who can be against me? God loves me and is working all these things together for my good, because I love him and he has called me according to his purposes. The Lord will bring this all to pass at the right time! Father, you are the Sovereign Lord over all my circumstances. The timing is yours, so I will continue to trust you!

What circumstances do you need to entrust to God today?

What do you need in order to surrender the timing of God's answers over to him?

The Secret to Pleasing God and Making Your Life Really Count (or ... How to Stay Spiritually Hydrated & Healthy)

2011-06-14T09:01:00.000-04:00

Do you want to please God? Would you like your life to really count for something? Would you like to make a difference in your world? The secret is in Isaiah 58. (Actually, the principle is provided throughout the Bible, but I just came across it again today as I was reading this chapter.)

Isaiah 58 begins with what does not please God or lead to a productive life: being outwardly religious but with a heart that is far from God (see Matthew 15:8-9). Putting on a religious show means nothing to God. What pleases him is an inner commitment to him, a passion for living in relationship with him each day that then expresses itself through serving others. Isaiah is talking about overflow. Ministry naturally overflows out of the heart of a person who is spending time daily in communion with God and in community with others.

Isaiah 58:11 is one of the clearest passages in the Bible about this overflow principle:

"The Lord will guide you continually, watering your life when you are dry and keeping you healthy, too. You will be like a well-watered garden, like an ever-flowing spring."

God pours into my life (and yours) when I meet with him regularly. I'm like a plant that God is watering, nourishing with his abundance, which then produces fruit that feeds others. The life he pours into me keeps me spiritually hydrated and healthy ... and only healthy organisms produce healthy fruit.

When I spend time with God, I am like an ever-flowing spring. It is ever-flowing because it is ever-resourced, ever-blessed.

Want to live a full, abundant, productive life? It all starts here. It's not about you. Get rid of the notion that it has anything to do with your skills, talents, charisma, charm, knowledge, personality, pious superiority, or religious rituals.It has everything to do with your Creator and Provider and the relationship you have with him that is ever-flowing and overflowing!

How is God ever-flowing into you?

How is he overflowing though you?

God Woke Me Up This Morning

2011-05-23T12:22:00.000-04:00

Isaiah spoke about Jesus as if he knew him personally. Even though he wrote nearly 700 years before Jesus was born of Mary, the prophet spoke so intimately about Jesus' life and death. While that's incredible, what is stunning to me is what he prophetically wrote from the mind of Christ:

The Sovereign Lord has given me his words of wisdom, so that I know what to say to all these weary ones. Morning by morning he wakens me and opens my understanding to his will. The Sovereign Lord has spoken to me, and I have listened. I do not rebel or turn away. I give my back to those who beat me and my cheeks to those who pull out my beard. I do not hide from shame, for they mock me and spit in my face. - Isaiah 50:4-6 (NLT)

I love this image of Jesus being awakened morning by morning by his Father to be opened to the understanding of his will. Yes! That's what I want, too. Note that it is Jehovah Adonai, the Sovereign Lord, who gives Jesus (and me and you) the words of wisdom so that he would know what to say to those who are weary and burdened (Matthew 11:28). Jesus said that everything he did and said came from the Father (John 5:19, 30; 6:38; 8:28, and others).

Like Jesus, you and I are in a divine-human partnership. God speaks to me, and I listen to him each morning and through the day. God provides the words and the wisdom and I allow him to speak through me to those who are weary, hurting, and needing God. He overflows his life from the vessel of my life into those he puts around me. I can't do this without God. That won't work. But God has ordained not to do his work without you and me!

It all starts morning by morning as he wake you and me up and opens our understanding to his will.

How did God wake you up this morning?

How is he opening you to understand and do his will today?

Outdulgent: Lessons from the Galloping Gourmet

2011-05-18T10:20:00.000-04:00

Is your life indulgent or outdulgent? How about your small group? Your church? Your family?

In today's "Moments with You Couples Devotional," Dennis and Barbara Rainey tell the story of Graham Kerr, the internationally famous "Galloping Gourmet" of the 1960s and 70s. With huge success came an indulgent lifestyle that eventually caused many physical ailments for Graham's wife, Treena. Along the way, the couple realized God had put them in their position for greater purposes than their own indulgence, so they made lifestyle changes to become more "outdulgent," as Graham put it, with their lives. They redirected the money they were spending on food to needy causes.

Becoming "outdulgent" brings not only transformation to those you serve, it transforms you (your group, your church, your family) as well.

How have you or your group or family moved from indulgent to outdulgent?

If you are an outdulgent person or group, what's the first thing you can do to become more outdulgent?

Brand-New Thing

2011-05-04T10:20:00.000-04:00

If we're not careful, we can read the Bible like a history book and see all the great things God has done in the past, but totally miss out on what God is doing right now in our midst. In the beginning of Isaiah 43 (and in many other passages in Isaiah), God recounts all the incredible, loving things he has done in the past for his people: ransoming them, calling them by name, walking through great difficulties with them, opening up the waters of the sea to deliver them, and more! Then he says,

"But forget all that—it is nothing compared to what I am going to do. For I am about to do a brand-new thing. See, I have already begun! Do you not see it?" (Isaiah 43:18-19).

As you read God's Word individually or as a small group, move beyond the stories of what God did in the past. Think about, talk about--better yet, experience--what he is doing. He is indeed present in your life and in your group meetings--right now. Be sure your heart is softened and prepared to experience his presence, power, and purposes Today.

Many small groups put an emphasis on studying, analyzing, and discussing the God who did awesome things in the Old Testament and the Jesus who appeared in the New Testament and walked the earth 2,000 years ago—the historical figure of antiquity.

It's good to be reminded of all that. But sometimes we also need to "forget all that"! Because it's nothing compared to what he is going to do in and through your life. He is about to do a brand-new thing--something even bigger and better than he's done in the past. Yes, check it out. He's already begun. Don't you see it?

How can you begin to focus on what God is doing rather than what he has done?

What "brand-new thing" is God doing in your life or in your group today?

Bring Out the Best in Others in Your Group

2011-04-14T10:09:00.000-04:00

Today I read a good blog by Michael Sove on the Joel Comiskey Group website. Read the blog HERE.

Michael wrote about sharing leadership with a core team as well as the vitality of sharing ownership with the whole group. He wrote:

My group has come alive since praying in and incorporating a core team approach. But don’t settle with simply forming a core team and utilizing the gifts of the team. Everyone who gathers with the group has something to share.

Both of these are extremely important factors in being a healthy small group. Unfortunately, I see a lot of group leaders leading alone. It's so good to see a group that's getting this right and seeing the blessings and benefits!

If you ARE sharing leadership and ownership, what blessings have you seen?

If you are NOT sharing leadership and ownership, what are your biggest obstacles?

Still Waiting (Part 3 of Series): What to do while in the valley of waiting

2011-04-09T13:31:00.000-04:00

Much of life is lived in the valley of waiting. You may be waiting for a spouse, or for healing, or for a loved one to return to you, or for a job, or for grief to pass or peace to come or hope to rise or a hundred other things. Ten years ago, my mom was in Hospice, and she came to a place in her valley where she was simply waiting to go Home.

What do we do while we are waiting? That's the important question. Not why we are in the valley or why we don't yet have what we are waiting for. Here are a few things God is teaching me as I am in my valley of waiting:

First, I walk with God through it. Psalm 23 promises that even though I walk through the valley, that I do not need to fear any evil, that God is with me. The two most important words in this psalm are through and with. I will get through this as he walks with me. God draws me even nearer to him in the valley. I need him. I realize I can't get through without him. My part is to draw near to him, spending time alone with him, often in solitude, reading his Word and in prayer. Often, I simply need to be still and know he is God (and I'm not). I surrender my way of doing things for his way and his will. I simply acknowledge my utter dependence and trust in him as I wait.

Second, I respond to Jesus and take his yoke. We can easily become weary and burdened as we walk through the valley of waiting. To which Jesus offers: Come to me ... and I will give you rest. Then he tells me how: "Take my yoke upon you." To take a yoke in New Testament times meant to become a disciple. It means to join Jesus in such a way that I am totally dependent on him. I submit to walk in the direction he walks and at his speed.

Jesus has all authority in heaven and on earth. Taking his yoke upon me means I trust in him totally. In my valley of waiting, I must learn to do this. My normal human tendency is to try to make things happen in my own timing. There is none of this when we submit to walking with Christ as his disciple. He is in control in this valley of waiting. Not me. This is hard to do at first. It goes against my (human) nature. But when I surrender control to him, he gives me rest for my soul.

Third, I lean on friends. The valley of waiting is no time to go it alone. My friends are a gift from God to walk through this with me. Two are better than one. I am blessed beyond words for my friends who have picked me up in the midst of this valley. I've spent hours on the phone with them and meeting with them, seeking their counsel and encouragement.

God's Word tells us to seek the advice of many counselors because we need others' input. I need them to encourage, love, accept, and admonish me. I need them to pray for me and help me carry my burdens. They do not replace God in any of this, but he uses them to teach me and care for me in the valley.

Fourth, I ask God to act in a way that only he can. I have a choice as I walk in this valley of waiting. I can do this God's way or the world's way. Recognize every day, even every hour, that only God can provide what you are waiting for. My prayer has been, Lord, fill in the empty places in my heart. Only you can give me life, joy, peace, hope. You are life and my source of real life. No one and nothing else can satisfy me or fix the broken or missing parts in my life. My hope is in you alone.

When you ask, you may need to wait some more for his response. His stillness, especially at first, does not mean he is not listening. It may mean he wants you to keep coming to him, keep asking, seeking, knocking, because, more than anything else, he wants to have a relationship with you. Realize this is part of his design. Do not give up. He cherishes the time you are taking to talk with him and wait for him. He is teaching you something in the midst of the waiting. So ask him, Father, what do you want me to learn through this? How do you want to use this to make me a better person?

What are you learning or have you learned in your valley of waiting?

What helped you the most in that valley?

The Waiting - Part 2: Betty White or LeBron James?

2011-04-07T10:27:00.002-04:00

If you were choosing up sides for a basketball team and you could pick between Betty White and Lebron James, who would you choose? I like Betty White, but I'm going into battle with Lebron!

In Isaiah 31, the people of Judah chose to trust in the Egyptian government and army rather than God. Bad choice. Isaiah said, "For these Egyptians are mere humans, not God! Their horses are puny flesh, not mighty spirits!" (v. 3). Now, LeBron is far from God, of course, which makes this choice even clearer.

Who am I looking to for help rather than God? Who or what am I trusting rather than the Lord of the angel armies? This ought to be just good common sense!

Why do we waste so much money, time, and energy by running to the world rather than God? We buy self-help books, which are really no help at all. We look for human beings to fill us up and make us happy, when only God can fill in those empty places in our hearts. We look for happiness in entertainment and recreation, and, while those things are not bad in and of themselves, they cannot offer real joy and contentment. We turn to Facebook to give our life meaning when only God can do that.

Especially as I go through a time of waiting in my life, I have an opportunity to choose up sides. Who or what will I pick today? Who will I trust? In whom will I put my hope? I will choose the Lord!

Where do you find yourself putting your trust and hope? Why?

How can putting your trust in God alone help you in your waiting?

The Waiting (Is the Greatest Part)

2011-04-06T14:42:00.000-04:00

Return to God and wait for him.

In my time with God this morning, I came across the vitality of returning to God and waiting for him (Isaiah 30:15). They are repeated throughout his Word so often, it's important for us to think about this.

We return to him because he is our only real hope. He desires a relationship with us, so, like the prodigal's father, he is always waiting for us to return. He waits for us to make a move back to him so he can show us his love and compassion.

We wait on him because he wants us to trust him. The timing is his, not ours. We wait because he is God and we are not. To wait for him to come through, we must have faith. We must learn to trust him.

We wait because, more than anything else, God desires a relationship with us. He desires for us to walk with him, listen to him, and to have hope that he will work on our behalf. We wait on him to test our belief that he really does work for the good of those who love him and are called according to his purpose. We wait because the testing of our faith develops perseverance, which will make us mature and complete. Yes, waiting is a huge part of what God uses to grow us spiritually.

Waiting is all part of his purpose. We wait because, as Isaiah put it, waiting in quietness and confidence is our strength.

I am currently going through a period of waiting in my own life.I am learning how to wait on God and people. I am learning to trust him each day and every minute of each day. I am learning that I can not control any of this, and so I surrender my ways of doing things and my timing. This is not easy. I'm prone to want to be in control, but God is showing me that only he is sovereign. In my waiting, I am growing closer to God than I ever have been. I am hearing from him so clearly right now. I see him answering my prayers, little by little each day. I am learning the difference between expecting things to happen (which is more about me and what I want) and having an expectancy for how God will work (expectancy is the hope and trust I have in God to come through in his way). Yes, waiting is very hard, and it would be the hardest part without faith in God. But I'm learning that this waiting is one of the greatest things that has ever happened in my life.

By the way, waiting is a fundamental part of the Christian life. We are all waiting for Christ to return. We are waiting for our real home. We wait for the blessed hope--the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ. We wait for his kingdom to come in all its glory. "Come, Lord Jesus." We are a people of waiting.

The Bible says that some people will have none of this (see v. 15), and that is sad, because they miss out on all that God wants to accomplish in and through our lives. Instead of waiting on God, they turn to the world or to themselves for the power to prevail. It doesn't work. Or they turn to idols to fill them up. It won't do.

Our God is faithful. Those who by faith wait on God to help them will be blessed (see v. 23)! Waiting has a payoff that is out of this world!

What are you waiting for?

How is God using a time of waiting in your life to make you into the person he wants you to become?

Loving Each Other Too Much

2011-03-08T18:49:00.000-05:00

Why do many small groups fail to multiply? Could it be that they love each other too much?

This morning I was talking with our church's elders about our small groups ministry, and was asked why some of our groups are not open to outsiders and not multiplying. Interestingly, a couple of the elders in the room admitted that their groups were closed and not growing or interested in multiplying. Why? The members love each other too much.

I see this all the time. People today are so starved for real community that when they find anything close, they want to hoard it. Church-growth consultant Tom Bandy said,

My consulting experience has taught me that the #1 reason small groups fail to multiply in a church is that the participants “love each other too much.” They think the goal has been harmony or serenity or good feelings . . . when in fact the goal is really mission productivity, personal deepening, and the like.

I'm not sure I agree 100% with that. I mean, how much is too much love for one another? Peter tells us to “love each other intensely with all your hearts” (1 Peter 1:22, NLT, my emphasis). No, that's not the problem.

It's not that small group members love each other too much, it's that they love each other more than they love God and his mission.

“Dear children, keep yourselves from idols” (1 John 5:21).

Has your small group become an idol to you or others in your group?

How are you counting the cost as disciples of Jesus? Is it time to get out of the comfort zone and trust God more?

What to Do When Ministry Feels Like It's Failing - Part 3: Redefine Success

2011-02-09T11:36:00.000-05:00

This is the third and last planned post in this three-day series. I introduced the series in Part 1 and talked about the first reason we face failure and what to do about it in Part 2. Today, let's tackle a second reason we sometimes don't feel like we're bearing fruit and what we can do about that.

At times, we may not see the fruit, the results, of how God is working through our lives. We may, in fact, see just the opposite, at least for a time and perhaps for our whole lives. We consistently share the gospel or teach or preach the Word or lead a small group or rear our children or stay committed to our spouse, and it seems like nothing is happening. We see no movement, or worse, things are digressing. Why does this happen and what should we do?

Is your ladder of success leaning on the right building? If you are defining success by worldly standards, you may end up terribly disappointed when you don't see the results you are expecting. But God's working does not operate as the world's systems do. As Isaiah learned, the teaching of God's Word may harden people's hearts at first. In Isaiah 6:9-10, a passage quoted six times in the New Testament, God tells Isaiah to expect people to not understand his Word. Even though Isaiah would pour his life into preaching God's truth, the people's eyes and ears would seem totally closed to God. Like Isaiah, we must believe that God is at work anyway, that his Word will not return empty, but he will accomplish what he desires through us (Isa 55:11).

We are to be witnesses of God's truth and love. Period. How they respond is in God's hands. This takes surrender.

What really matters is not outward successes, but our faithfulness to him. God makes the seeds we have planted and watered grow in his own timing, not ours. We may see the fruit in eternity if not here on earth. I believe we will be greatly surprised by what God did though what we thought were futile efforts. And those may be our greatest rewards in heaven.

How do you define "success" in your ministry?

If you were to redefine success based on God's calling and direction rather than on worldly wisdom, how would it be different?

What to Do When Your Ministry Feels Like a Failure - Part 2: Respond When God Initiates

2011-02-08T20:41:00.001-05:00

Yesterday I began a 3-part post about how to respond when you are not seeing any fruit in your ministry, small group, or just about anything else you are involved in. Read Part 1 here. In reading Isaiah and considering other Biblical leaders, I see two reasons why we face failure and what to do about each one. Today I'll address the first one.

The prophet Isaiah faced certain failure. (In Isaiah 6:9-10, God actually told Isaiah that his ministry would cause people to harden their hearts and that they would be unable to understand or perceive God's Word.) Isaiah was wildly successful in his failure, and we can see the main reasons in Isaiah 6:1-8. Pay careful attention to the progression:

First, Isaiah spent time with God, taking in his majesty (vv. 1-4). It's significant that Isaiah saw the Lord in the Temple. If we want to meet with God, we must create the space for him. Before we can understand God's purposes and plans for us, we must come into his presence and experience his power.

Second, Isaiah came before God in complete humility (v. 5). He understood God's holiness compared to his unholiness. To respond to God properly, we must know that he is God and we are not. He is transcendent.

Third, Isaiah was made holy by God's touch (vv. 6-7). When we come before God in confession and repentence, he can and will purify our hearts and make us righteous. (See Ps. 51:10). Of course, the only way we can be purified and made holy for good is by faith in Jesus' death for us on the cross. Because of that, we can come before God as new creatures in Christ. Now we can approach the throne of the Lord with boldness and confidence (Hebrews 4:16; 10:19), because now God sees the righteousness of Jesus in us.

Like Isaiah, before we are called to minister to others, the Lord Jesus and his angels must first minister to us. They must first forgive us and cleanse us and make us righteous in his sight. Notice that here again, solitude with God comes before ministry (see my blogs on solitude here). Once again, we minister only out of the overflow of what God pours into us!

Finally, Isaiah was ready to respond to God's call (v. 8). Note that God did not command Isaiah to go (although it may be implied); he asked him, "Whom shall I send? Who will go for us?" God left room for Isaiah to make a choice. Isaiah responded, "Me! I'll do it! I'll go for you!" Isaiah did not go out of his own initiative, but only through the calling of Almighty God.

This last point is vital for anyone who wants to be a leader after God's own heart. If you lead from your own initiative, do not expect success in God's eyes. You may obtain a certain amount of worldly success by ministering out of your own ideas and your own power, but in the grander scheme of things, what does that really matter?

This morning I was reading Chapter 6 of John Eldredge's Waking the Dead. He talks about counterintuitive direction from God, something Isaiah surely received.

The particular foolishness of the church in the past century was Reason above all else. The result has been a faith stripped of the supernatural, the Christianity of tips and techniques. . . . Many of the churches and ministries I've known made their decisions by principles and expedience. We have our morals and we have our precepts, but where is the living God?

I think Isaiah would agree with this assessment.

If we want to be bear fruit, fruit that will last, we must be connected to the Vine. Apart from Christ's presence, power, and purposes, we fail.

What do you think? How important is God's initiative in your leadership?

What to Do When Your Ministry Feels Like a Failure - Part 1

2011-02-07T13:04:00.000-05:00

What do you do when you don't see any fruit in your ministry? We all face this from time to time. You could be leading a small group, ministry, church, family, or whatever, or perhaps you're simply trying to lead that family member or friend to Christ, and you're not seeing any movement. No successes. No wins. In fact, you may be experiencing just the opposite. Your ministry or group or family or friend are moving in the wrong direction, and it just doesn't seem to make any sense at all. This can, of course, be extremely discouraging and disappointing, can't it? Some have left the ministry because of it. And that is very sad.

The prophet Isaiah would know just what you are feeling. In fact many of God's servants experienced this. Think about Moses in the wilderness, Nehemiah at certain stages in building the Jerusalem wall, pretty much all the prophets, Jesus with his disciples, Paul in some of the churches he planted. But today I just want to focus on Isaiah. Just after God called him and sent him, the Lord said,

"Yes, go. But tell my people this: `You will hear my words, but you will not understand. You will see what I do, but you will not perceive its meaning.' Harden the hearts of these people. Close their ears, and shut their eyes. That way, they will not see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and turn to me for healing" (Isaiah 6:9-10).

How would you feel if this was God's instructions right after he called you? I think I would have responded exactly like Isaiah, "Lord, how long do I have to do this?" In fact, I'm giving myself way too much credit. More probably I would say, "Really? You want me to do what? Why in the world would you want me to drive people away from you?"

Most commentators say that neither God nor Isaiah deliberately made people blind or deaf to him or hardened their hearts, but that this would be the natural result of preaching the gospel to them. Interestingly, these two verses are quoted six times in the New Testament, referring to the ministries of Jesus and the apostles. This sense of defeat is nothing new! But what do we do about it?

First, let's diagnose the issue. I believe there are at least two main reasons we get to this place where we feel like our ministry is failing. My next two blogs will discuss each separately. Here's what we can learn from Isaiah about how to deal with failure:

Isaiah responded to God's call.
Isaiah redefined success.

By the way, many of God's other servants did these two simple things as well. We can learn much from them.

Would you like to share a story about failure in your ministry?

What have you learned about God and ministry and yourself through failure?

Do small groups divide the church?

2011-02-05T16:06:00.015-05:00

Back in December I blogged that healthy small groups are friends. (See post here.) I'm not sure why, but this has recently become the most popular post on this blog. It was picked up recently by ChurchLeaders.com (here), and Debra commented,

Small groups often divide the church into cliques. The group forms, bonds, and no new people stand a chance of joining them. The more groups there are, the more segregated the church. New people see this right away, feel like an outsider, which they are, and don't go back.

Debra may be right IF a church's small groups have not been taught how to develop groups in healthy ways. I am working on Chapter 5 of my upcoming book 7 Vital Signs of a Healthy Small Group (available from TOUCH this Spring). This chapter is about healthy authentic community. A healthy community is never a closed clique. It is open, inviting, welcoming, outward-focused, and missional. Healthy community fulfills all of the Great Commandment by loving God, one another, and our neighbors as ourselves. See my blog, "Healthy Small Groups Are Friends with Non-Christ-followers."

The Best Small Group Leader Ever called his group "friends" (see John 15:12-17). Jesus led a small group and modeled for them how to live in healthy community. He said about himself, "I'm here to invite outsiders, not coddle insiders" (Matthew 9:13, The Message). That's what healthy small groups are here for, too!

A description of a healthy community is in Acts 2:42-47. The first five verses describe how these people were committed to Jesus and one another. The last verse shows the result. Their community life had the effect of "enjoying the favor of all the people," and because of this, "the Lord added to their number daily those those who were being saved" (Acts 2:47).

I love the way Richard Peace put this in his classic book, Small Group Evangelism:

In a successful [healthy] small group, love, acceptance and fellowship flow in unusual measure. This is the ideal situation in which to hear about the kingdom of God. In this context the "facts of the gospel" come through not as cold propositions but as living truths visible in the lives of others. In such an atmosphere a person is irresistibly drawn to Christ by his gracious presence.*

Debra described unhealthy small groups as what we might call "holy huddles." The problem is not in the huddle itself, however. Every successful team needs a safe place to huddle to put our arms around one another, catch a short breather, and encourage one another before running the next play to accomplish the team's mission. It breaks my heart to hear that these holy huddles are segregating Debra's church instead of enjoying the favor of all the people. I pray they will become healthy, Christ-centered communities that stop coddling insiders and truly invite outsiders.

Are your small groups closed cliques or healthy, Christ-centered missional communities?

What are you doing to break the holy huddles?

* Richard Peace, Small Group Evangelism: A Training Program for Reaching Out with the Gospel (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1985), 67, 68.

Are You Building Walls or People?

2011-02-01T15:57:00.000-05:00

Are you being a good steward of your small group?

I've written about this before in reference to how you are discipling and shepherding the group God has put under your care (1 Peter 5:2). That's vital to leading a healthy small group. But there's even more to it than that.

How are you using all the gifts and abilities and passions of the people in your small group (or your family, ministry, church, business ...)?

Today I went back and looked again at Nehemiah 3, which tells about rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem under Nehemiah's leadership. This whole chapter is a list of all the groups and individuals who worked on the walls and the gates. Nehemiah demonstrated his leadership by his ability to get people involved in the work. We do not know exactly how he "recruited" all these people, but we can see that he inspired them by the meaningfulness of the work. He got a wide variety of people involved: men and women, people of all ages, people who had a variety of skills and experiences. He involved priests and other religious and civic leaders. Nehemiah had a strategy: he had people working specific parts of the wall and gates, often right in front of their own homes. This was wise stewardship of their time, but it also gave them ownership of their parts of the wall.

Nehemiah had a task of building a wall, but his most important responsibility was to build up the people in the process.

If the walls of Jerusalem were that important, how much more significant is the work we do of making disciples of all nations?

Are you using the gifts and abilities and passions of the people in your small group, or are you trying to do all the work yourself?

How are you building up the people in your group, family, ministry, church, business?

Life Group of the Week

2011-01-31T21:12:00.000-05:00

We're starting something new at Northeast Christian Church this week: Life Group of the Week. The idea came out of a brainstorm by our Life Group Ministry Team, and we've been working up to this week for several months.

We promote the group of the week in our worship guide, on the side screens at the beginning of the weekend service, in our NECCWired email blast to all members, and on our web site. The group makes a poster and handouts, and hangs out at our booth after each weekend service to meet people. Some groups are planning to make brownies or cookies to offer some hospitality (and entice people over) as well. I also share about their group in our weekly "LifeLines" newsletter that goes to all Life Group Leaders.

The groups who have signed up to be the Group of the Week so far are enthusiastic about it. It's not only an opportunity for their groups to be recognized, but also to promote their groups and share with other groups what's working. I visit each group a couple weeks before, and as these groups plan for their week, it forces them to rethink why their group exists and how they can invite and welcome new people. Best of all, they're having fun!

Every Day Christianity

2011-01-27T14:49:00.001-05:00

I read Acts 2 again today in my quiet time. Of course, this is a very familiar passage, one to which people like me give our lives. Today, this passage struck me a little differently than it has before.

"And all the believers met together constantly and shared everything they had" (Acts 2:44, NLT).

I'm struck by how devoted these believers were to one another on a daily basis. This is so different from the way the church normally operates today. They met and worshiped together daily (v. 46). They served one another daily (Acts 6:1). They studied the Scriptures daily (Acts 17:11). They encouraged one another daily (Hebrews 3:13). And the Lord added to their number daily those being saved (v. 47).

As Warren Wiersbe says, "Their Christian faith was a day-to-day reality, not a once-a-week routine. Why? Because the risen Christ was a living reality to them, and His resurrection power was at work in their lives through the Spirit."

Small groups surely nudge us a little closer in the right direction toward being a day-to-day kingdom community, but it can unfortunately just move us from a once-a-week routine to a twice-a-week routine ... unless the culture somehow changes.

We can't make this happen. Only the Holy Spirit being active in people's lives can transform a culture. It doesn't happen by developing or changing a program in the church. It happens when the Holy Spirit works in such a way that there is a deep sense of awe among the people, when people's hearts are changed from individualism, isolationism, and consumerism to looking first to the interests of others, sharing everything we have.

When that happens, the church will once again be powerful and effective and will enjoy the goodwill of all the people. When that happens--and I believe not until that happens--God will add to our number daily those who are being saved. When that happens, God will turn this world upside-down ... again. We are God's best marketing strategy!

I'll stay committed to this and to praying that the Holy Spirit will move in such a way at our church and in his kingdom to transform people's hearts to live like this.

How can we move from a once- or twice-a-week routine back to a day-to-day community reality?

What needs to change in your small group? Your church? The Church? The culture?

Chutzpah

2011-01-21T23:27:00.000-05:00

Today I came across perhaps the most profound statement ever spoken: "'I have loved you deeply,' says the Lord" (Malachi 1:2). God's chosen people did not deserve it. Neither do I.

The people's response is unbelievable: "Really? How have you loved us?" What an increidble amount of chutzpah these people had to question God's love for them! He had shown his love countless times throughout their history. How could they possibly doubt that he loved them?

The greatest commandments are to love God and our neighbor, but God loved us first, and our love is impossible without his (1 John 4:7, 10, 16, 19). He loved us so much that he sent his only son into the world so that we might live through him. He loved us so much that he would sacrifice himself for us. "We love because he first loves us" (1 John 4:19). Thank God for loving us!

"I have loved you deeply." I can't get past that statement. I do not question it outright with my words, but do I question it in my attitudes or actions? Do I show a disbelief for his love by what I do or do not do? Do I question it by how I treat others? Do I question it by not acting in faith to his calling?

Even still ... even though ... even now -- God says gently, "I have loved you deeply ... and I always will."

What Larry the Cable Guy, Nike, Frank Sinatra, and Burger King Have in Common

2011-01-03T22:38:00.001-05:00

Two opposing world-views. Two ways of living life. Two patterns for how to operate. Which will you choose? The culture this world teaches one thing and the Word of God teaches the opposite:

“Get ‘er done!” – Larry the Cable Guy

“The Son . . . can do only what he sees his Father doing.” – Jesus (John 5:19)

“Just do it.” - Nike

“I do nothing without consulting the Father.” – Jesus (John 5:30)

“Apart from me you can do nothing.” – Jesus (John 15:5)

“I did it my way.” – Frank Sinatra

“For I have kept the ways of the Lord.” – David (Psalm 18:21)

“Blessed are all who fear the Lord, who walk in his ways.” – David (Psalm 128:1)

“Have it your way.” – Burger King

“Observe the commands of the Lord your God, walking in his ways and revering him.” – Moses (Deuteronomy 8:6)

Can you think of others you'd add to this list?

2011: The Year of Relationships

2010-12-31T18:21:00.000-05:00

On New Year's Day of 2010, one year ago, I began a new practice that I'm continuing next year. I had read John Eldridge's New Year's Eve post about his annual practice of asking God for a theme for the coming year. Last year, I heard God say the word more. Since 2009 had been a very difficult year, that word really scared me at first. I did not think I could take more of the same. But then I heard God complete the theme: more Jesus. See my 2010 New Year's Day blog here to read more.

The past year has still been a tough year. It wasn't more of the same from 2009, but there were definitely lots of challenges. I got through 2010 because of God's fulfilled promise of more Jesus.

I spent more time with Jesus on a regular basis this past year, and those times have been rich and rewarding. But more than just time spent with him, I have sensed more of his presence and power in my life than ever. Like monster truck rallies, I felt MORE POWER! I'm hoping for even more of that in 2011.

Over the last several weeks, I've been asking God for a theme word or phrase for next year. What I believe I'm hearing is relationships. This is a key word for me right now. I desire for God to strengthen my relationships on every level:

Continue to grow in my relationship with my Father. That's where it all starts! If I have a strong relationship with him, I believe he will strengthen my other relationships as well (see Matthew 6:33).
Continue growing in my relationship with my wife, Heidi. Next to my Father, this is my most vital relationship. I still have a lot to learn here!
Continue to invest into my relationship with my kids, Jordan, Dru, Sarah, and Annie. I want to be a good steward of what God has entrusted to me, and, next to Heidi, they are the best gifts and responsibilities he has given me.
Invest into my relationships with our small group leadership team and leaders. I tend towards the task-oriented/achiever side of leadership. Like many other small group pastors I know, I love vision and implementing it through strategies. (Alan Danielson wrote a great six-part series of blogs titled "The Problem with Small Group Pastors." Start here to read this series. See his Triple-Threat Leadership graphic here.) I desire to be a more relational leader, and it takes effort and Christ's power to move in that direction. This year, I'm going to be very intentional about this.

I believe I needed more Jesus before I could successfully strengthen and build my relationships. God is at work, and I can't wait to see what he does in 2011.

How about you? What theme is God giving you for 2011?

Healthy small group leaders are friends with non-Christ-followers

2010-12-21T22:33:00.001-05:00

The attributes for healthy small group leaders includes many things. One that is not usually on the list but that I believe is vital is that they intentionally build and invest into friendships with folks who do not yet have a relationship with Christ.

Small group leaders may or may not have the spiritual gift of evangelism, but they do intentionally seek out friendships with those who are seeking and those who could care less about God. These friendships are genuine and unconditional—no strings attached. Yes, they pray diligently for their non-Christ-following friends and watch for opportunities to share their story and the gospel, but they don’t “use” the friendship to force conversations about Christ. Rather they allow God to use them to shine his light. They allow the overflow of God’s love to pour out of their lives naturally.

Jesus was known as a friend of tax collectors and sinners (Luke 7:34). Why? Because he “came to seek and to save what was lost” (Luke 19:10).

Healthy leaders model this Christ-like attribute for the rest of the group. They model praying regularly for friends and neighbors who do not yet know Christ. They model inviting friends to the group. They team with other group members to pray for and reach out to seeking friends. They get out of their comfort zone to go into the world of non-Christians.

What do you think? Would you consider this an attribute of a healthy small group leader? Why or why not?

This post excerpted from my new book, Small Group Vital Signs, available in 2011 from Touch Publications.

Healthy Small Group Leaders Are Friends

2010-12-20T13:18:00.001-05:00

The Best Small Group Leader Ever called his group members friends. But perhaps that word meant more to him and them than it usually means to you and me. “Greater love has no one than this,” Jesus said, “that he lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13). Real friendship is sacrificial.

A healthy group is a group of real friends. A healthy leader considers the members of the group as friends, not as students, participants, or “those people who come to our house every week.” As the leader, you invest into the friendships first, especially with the Core Team.

On Facebook I asked for stories about favorite small group leaders. Linda from our church wrote:

Joe and I have been in small group with Gary Wood for about five years now. I wasn't sure about a "bible study," but this group is so much more. Our group is small, but the friendships we have formed are everlasting. Our small group, with Gary as our leader, not only studies the Bible, but we hold each other up; we encourage each other in good and bad times; we have moments where we laugh and sometimes cry; we love each other, no matter what; and we know in our hearts that Jesus Christ is always with us. Gary keeps us focused, and he is one of the best friends Joe and I could ever have!

Wouldn’t you want someone in your group say the same about you?

How else is friendship a vital part of leadership?

_____
This post is excerpted from Chapter 2 of my new book, Small Group Vital Signs, available in 2011 from TOUCH Publications.

Convergence: New DVD-Driven Study

2010-12-13T17:57:00.000-05:00

Imagine inviting Donald Miller (Blue Like Jazz) along with Dan Allender and Tremper Longman (Intimate Allies, Breaking the Idols of Your Heart) to your group and having the opportunity to listen in as they discuss a difficult or confusing spiritual issue. Imagine the discussion this could prompt with your group as you study what the Bible says about these issues.

A new study series called Convergence does just that. In this series, Donald Miller hosts a discussion with other well-known speakers and authors about the challenges we face trying to integrate faith with real life.

Don't miss the SPECIAL OFFER below!

Frustration and False Gods from All Things Converge on Vimeo.

I had the opportunity to preview one of the sessions from this series (from the lesson on "Frustration and False Gods: Living in a Fallen World"), and was really drawn into it. This was way more than just a talking head teaching a lesson. Rather it was a real conversation among three Christians honestly dealing with an issue we all face--one that I've heard many groups try to deal with. In this case, Miller, Allender, and Longman didn't just give some pat answers. Instead, they wrestle with the issue together, discussing applicable Scriptures and providing thoughtful application. This discussion provides a diving board into a dynamic discussion around God's Word as it applies to the issue at hand.

Several things I really like about Convergence:

The videos are just the right length. The one I previewed was 18:25. Others range from about 15-18 minutes ... just right to be engaging and to give enough content to discuss afterwards without being too long (like some others DVD studies).
They've made the videos easy to get and use. You can either buy the DVDs or download them from the website (www.allthingsconverge.com) at a very reasonable price.
The easy-to-use Participants Guides and Leaders Guides are downloadable for free on the website. The questions in these guides are well-written, and the guides are very simple and easy to use.
If you want to test drive a study before either buying a DVD or downloading a whole lesson series, you can download one session for $3.99 from the web site.
Other videos include authors and speakers such as Henry Cloud, John Townsend, Randy Alcorn, Phyllis Tickle, and Lauren Winner on topics ranging from spiritual practices and personal growth to marriage and parenting. You can get a lot of mileage out of the Convergence studies!

Now here's the BEST PART! The first 25 people from my blog will get a free download. To take advantage of this offer, just go to the Convergence site and use the promo code MACK.

Bad Trip

2010-12-09T10:33:00.001-05:00

In my time with the Father this morning, I read Zechariah 5. Strange chapter at first glance. The "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" chapter of the Bible. Seems like Zechariah ate too many poppy seeds the day he wrote this. There are huge scrolls flying through the sky, like those airplane banners you see at Myrtle Beach ... only without the airplane. There is a woman named Wickedness held captive in a basket coming down out of the air. Then there are stork-like flying women who swoop down and extract the Wicked woman-carrying basket. Sounds like a bad trip!

Wickedness is taken away, which represents Jesus taking away the sins of his people. It's interesting that the basket was taken to Babylonia, which represents the kingdom of this world in Scripture. This reminds me of when Jesus sent the demons from the possessed man into the pigs on the hillside (The story is in Mark 5:1-20.).

God's people who had come back from Babylon had brought with them some of the wickedness of that land -- the commercialism, greed, stealing, and lying that was prevalent there. In order for God's people to be God's people, that wickedness needed to be removed -- sent back to where it came from. That wickedness was worshipped in Babylon. Only God was to be worshipped in Israel.

Aren't you thankful that God takes away our sins? We can have a relationship with him because our Wickedness has been removed.

Maybe its not such a bad trip after all!

What kinds of wickedness has the Church absorbed or embraced from our culture? What have we conformed to from the pattern of our world? What's in the basket?

What does God need to remove from your life, your small group, your church, and take back to where it came from?

Nothing Small About It!

2010-12-08T11:07:00.000-05:00

There is no such thing as a "small group" when it is focused on the presence, power, and purposes of Christ!

This morning I was reading Zechariah 4, where the prophet receives a vision from God about the rebuilding of the Temple. Verse 6 is probably on the Top 10 List of most quotable verses in the Bible:

"Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit," says the Lord Almighty.

In this passage, might refers to military strength--strength in numbers, while power refers to individual strength. Neither has the capacity to get God's work accomplished. It can only by done by the power of the Holy Spirit.

We often say there is strength in numbers. I've often said, "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed people can change the world. It's the only thing that ever has." I've used illustrations of the power of a team, like horses bridled together who have a synergistic effect in pulling a load. But none of that comes close to the effect when we join God in carrying out his work!

There's no strength in numbers unless the Lord is leading the way!

We usually do ministry by starting with our own strength, then adding more people to form a team, and then, when all that is still not accomplishing as much as we'd like--when we start getting frustrated--we pray. Instead, we should start with the power of the Holy Spirit to carry out God's work, then develop a team, and then divvy up the tasks to gifted individuals.

In verse 10, the Lord tells Zechariah, "Do not despise these small beginnings, for the Lord rejoices to see the work begin, to see the plumb line in Zerubbabel's hand" (NLT). (Zerubbabel was the chief engineer for the project.)

Don't be anxious when a ministry or small group gets off to a slow start. God rejoices to see new ministry begin when it's in partnership with him. He loves an entrepreneurial spirit! (God is, after all, an entrepreneur himself.)

This Temple was smaller than the original. As they built the foundation, it was obvious to observers that this Temple would not be as impressive as the one built by Solomon. Bigger is not always better. God doesn't rejoice in the size of a church, organization, or ministry; he rejoices in the work itself, in the process. He rejoices in a job being done well, with integrity (the significance of the plumb line in Zerubbabel's hand).

It is not by our own work or strength or action anyway, but only by the working of God's Spirit that really matters. God rejoices when we partner with him and do his work by the power of his Spirit. He accomplishes far more through this partnership than we could ever accomplish by our own power! More than we can even imagine!

A Great Deal Today

2010-11-27T13:44:00.000-05:00

I don't usually do this, and I probably won't again very soon, but I had to share some news about this 3-day inventory-reduction sale that TOUCH is holding through tomorrow. Click below to go to the sale page.

3-DAY INVENTORY REDUCTION SALE

FRIDAY ~ SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 26-28th

Randall has drastically cut the prices on some of their best-selling items, including my book, Leading from the Heart. The retail on this book is $16.99, TOUCH normally sells it on their web site for $11.99, but today and tomorrow it's only $4.99.

I know I sound like a TV pitch man here, but I'm almost afraid to tell you about this, because I know my royalties from these sales will be meager. But this is a great price. I must be CRAZY!

Seriously, if you oversee a small groups ministry, buy a bunch of these today as gifts. Leading from the Heart would make a great Christmas gift from you and a way of saying thank you for all that your leaders do during the year.

Another book in this sale that I highly recommend is Scott Boren's The Relational Way. I use this book constantly. I keep going back and rereading sections of it, and it's probably the book I quote the most in my own writing. Buy this one for yourself! I wrote a review of The Relational Way on the TOUCH website. Just click on "Learn More" under the book to read that review.

I had the honor of editing or proofing several of the books on this list, most recently Christ's Basic Bodies, by Ralph Neighbour. If you want to be challenged, get yourself a copy and read this inspired book.

Just so you know, I write for, but do not work for TOUCH. I'm not making any money from this, except some royalties from sales of my own books. I just think this is a great deal!

Again, here's the web address for the 3-day sale.

Jesus' Re-Incarnation

2010-11-26T22:07:00.000-05:00

Since today is officially the start of the "holiday season" (I know ... "Christmas" is the religiostically correct term, but I'm still digesting Thanksgiving), and since Advent does begin this Sunday (for those who celebrate it, which I haven't since growing up Catholic, but plan to again this year after a 22-year hiatus), I thought I'd share a little about the Incarnation during halftime of the game (Arizona vs. Oregon ... Boise State - Nevada to follow). Whew, is that the longest introductory sentence ever to a blog?

Actually, it's not the first Incarnation I'm thinking about, but the second.

When the Lord Jesus had finished talking with them, he was taken up into heaven and sat down in the place of honor at God's right hand. And the disciples went everywhere and preached, and the Lord worked with them, confirming what they said by many miraculous signs. (Mark 16:19-20, NLT)

This is the transition from what we sometimes call Jesus' earthly ministry to his new ministry in heaven through the work of his new body, the body of Christ, the church.

This is referred to as "the ascension," but I'm going to call it "the Second Incarnation." In the First Incarnation, Jesus took on a human body. He became one of us. In the Second Incarnation, he lives as the body of Christ, his church. Jesus said, "As the Father has sent me, so I am sending you" (John 20:21). That's the Second Incarnation. (I was tentative about calling this Jesus' "Re-Incarnation" but I couldn't resist the idea. Don't worry--I'm not suggesting Jesus' soul literally transmigrated to another being's body at his death.) Jesus has promised that he will never leave or forsake us, so now he does his work in and through us. As we go everywhere with his message, he goes with us and works in and through us.

Do you know what this means? (No, it doesn't maen I've converted to Hinduism.) It means I do not do "my" work. He does his work through me. Jesus is not far away, managing our efforts like a play director or, worse, a puppeteer. He lives in me and through his church. While he is physically seated at the Father's right hand, he is also with us through his Holy Spirit and is present with us whenever we meet together. What incredible power we have because of that!

Yes, Jesus came as Immanuel--God with us--in what we call the Incarnation. But when he ascended physically, he did not leave us or forsake us. He never will. Christ still lives in his new body--the body of Christ. So Merry Christmas! God is with us.

What do you think about this?

How do you see Jesus operating in the Second Incarnation?

How is he Immanuel today in his church, the body of Christ?

Just need to be fed? Grow up!

2010-11-24T17:43:00.000-05:00

Tomorrow our family will gather, like most of yours, to celebrate Thanksgiving. I'll be giving thanks for many things this year, but one of the tops is for my kids.

I'm particularly thankful that not one of my kids will ask me to cut up their turkey for them or feed them their cranberry sauce tomorrow. In fact, the girls are ready to help prepare the meal. We won't have any babies with us this Thanksgiving, but if we did, they could feed them their Gerber Turkey and Gravy. This is no big deal, of course. It's just a natural part of growing up.

So why do we so often hear long-time church folks say, "I just need to be fed!"?

I blogged about this the other day (click here to read) and shared about two possible reasons. Today I want to share my thoughts on what we can do.

If you consider yourself a mature Christ follower, you are now responsible to do 2 things: (1) feed yourself and (2) feed others. See Hebrews 5:11-6:1. The writer's main message here is what I'd like to tell those who say, "I just need to be fed!": GROW UP!

Pretty simple and should be pretty natural as we develop, but for some reason, this is often the exception rather than the rule in churches and small groups.

There is no magic formula here. Your way of feeding yourself may be very different than mine, but I will share here how I am making room in my own life to feed myself.

When I was a young Christian, I read the Scriptures kind of like a young child reads a picture book. I wasn't going for a whole lot of depth, just getting some basic understanding of the Bible. I read through the whole Bible, but could not have told you much more than the basic story. It was good; I needed that introduction to God's Word, and I was just learning how to feed myself as I read through it. But (and here's the important part) I'm glad I'm not still reading the Bible that way.

Today I read with more concentration, and by that I don't mean mental focus as much as I mean intensity or purity, like a laundry detergent is more concentrated. So now I read less, usually much less, Scripture each day, but I really take time to hear from God in what I read that day. This is the spiritual practice of meditation or reflection on God's Word.

I take an hour or two each day and I usually read one chapter of Scripture, sometimes even less, depending on how I sense the Holy Spirit leading me. Sometimes I read the passage from two or three or more versions. I read a couple good Bible commentaries. (My favorite right now is Warren Wiersbe's commentary set, although I also consult several others as well. I use WordSearch, so all of this is right there in one place.) I also journal my thoughts as I meditate on the Word, writing what I hear God saying, and I often include a prayer.

I'm just finishing reading through the minor prophets. Lots of people skip over these, thinking they're boring or irrelevant. As you learn how to feed yourself from the meat of God's Word, however, you'll find, as I have how much rich flavor and nutrients God has placed in these books. If you will take the time, God will reveal himself and his will through these passages like you've never seen before. You can do this. Your small group members can do this. It must become just as normal and natural as learning to feed ourselves from the dinner table.

Once I begin feeding regularly on God's Word myself, I can also feed others as well. But notice that I used the word begin. You don't have to have it all completely figured out to start feeding others.

When my kids were very young, I began involving the older kids in helping to feed the younger ones. So 3-year-old Jordan would hold Dru's bottle in his mouth. Four-year-old Sarah would feed Annie her strained peas. Yeah, it was messy sometimes, but it was worth it!

Tomorrow I won't be feeding my kids their Thanksgiving meals. And not one will say, "Daddy, I just need to be fed!" They've learned how to do that long ago. Now it's time that you and the members of your group learn to do the same in your growing relationships with God. I'm writing more about that in my new book, Small Group Vital Signs, to be released early next year.

How would you respond to someone who says, "I just need to be fed!"?

How can you as a leader help your group members learn how to feed themselves?

Vital Signs Subtitle Contest...Win a free book!

2010-11-24T12:15:00.001-05:00

I'm currently working on my new book with the working title of "Small Group Vital Signs." But we don't have a working subtitle yet. That's where you come it! While Randall Neighbour, the editor at Touch Outreach Ministries, has the final say on the title and subtitle, I'd still like to get input from you, the reader!

Here's the deal: If we end up using your subtitle, I'll send you one of the first books off the press at no charge to you!

The "rules":

It should have "7" in the subtitle. There are seven main chapters, each describing one of the vital signs of a healthy, vibrant, virile, dynamic, redemptive, disciplemaking, fruit-bearing, life-changing, world shaking group.
Don't try to get all those adjectives in the subtitle. Randall will never go for it!
The book will describe not only what a good, healthy group is and does, but what is beyond healthy--not just a group that's surviving, but thriving and making a real impact.
I believe that the subtitle should have action words in it.

Think of it this way ... what subtitle would make you want to buy and read it?

You can respond to this post, send me a message on Facebook, or Twitter.

So put on your thinking cap and send me those subtitles!

Vital Signs

2010-11-22T21:57:00.000-05:00

I spent most of today writing the Introduction of Small Group Vital Signs (working title). I'm excited about this book because it will be intensely practical. From my experience, a lot of small group leaders and pastors struggle with developing truly healthy, vibrant, life-changing, fruit-bearing groups. We all wish we had radically redemptive, world-shaking, disciple-making, growing and going missional groups, just like in the Book of Acts. Reality is far different for most of us, however.

So how do we proceed? What can we do to move our groups from unhealthy to healthy to dynamic? What are the vital signs? Well, that's the topic of the book. I've been blogging about this on and off now for the last year. Click HERE to view posts about "group health."

By the way, I'm trying to come up with a working subtitle, something like: "7 all-natural cures for what ails your small group" or "7 action steps to radically transform your small group" or ... well, what do you think?

I'll give you a free book when published if we use your subtitle!

I'm planning to share thoughts about this book as I go. Stay tuned!

Peter Pan and Adam Sandler Christians

2010-11-22T14:05:00.000-05:00

I just need to be fed.

I love hearing people say this when they are very young followers of Christ. Babies need someone to feed them. My role and responsibility as a mature follower of Christ in the church (and by that, I mean the body of Christ, not an institution) is to help feed those babes in Christ.

I despise hearing people say this when they are mature followers of Christ. And yet I hear it often from many of them.

The New Testament is so clear on this. Infants need to be fed (1 Cor. 3:1-2; 1 Peter 2:2; Hebrews 5:13). They need pure spiritual milk. But the mature need to be feeding themselves. In fact, by that time, they ought to be feeding others (Hebrews 5:12, 14; 6:1). They grow not by being fed, but by feeding themselves on the meat of God's Word and then by becoming spiritual parents who feed others.

Something's wrong!

But I'm not sure which it is. I see two possible conditions at play here:

The Peter Pan (or Michael Jackson) Syndrome
Do we have a bunch of mature believers who simply refuse to grow up? Perhaps they have never been taught along the way how to feed themselves--or that they're even supposed to. Somehow they have never put childish ways behind them and became mature (1 Corinthians 13:11; Ephesians 4:13). Has the church coddled church members and enabled this kind of immature attitude? These are people who have attended church services and small groups for years. They may even be in positions of leadership, but they still expect others to teach them rather than taking on the adult responsibility of teaching others.

The Adam Sandler (or Arrested Development) Syndrome
Another possibility is that some people who we assume are mature are actually still just infants who have an emotional, mental, or spiritual condition that keeps them from growing up. (Adam Sandler has played lots of these kinds of roles, like Mr. Deeds, Billy Madison, and Bobby Boucher.) They may have been baptized 20 years ago, but their spiritual development stopped 19 years ago. They actually still do need to be fed. The question here is, How can we get them unstuck so they can grow up as they should?

I remember a man who lived up the street from me when I was growing up. When I was 10, he was about 40 but still had the maturity level of a 10 year old, living with his mom and dad. As I grew up, he grew older, but not more mature.

Truthfully, I have a lot more compassion for the latter group than the former. One is simply childish while the other is childlike. And I think that there are more Peter Pan than Adam Sandler Christians in our churches.

So ... what do we do about this? What do you think?

I'll blog later on some more of my thoughts about it.

Does Solitude Come Before Discipleship or Vice Versa? It's a Matter of Perspective

2010-11-08T13:21:00.000-05:00

I write this blog primarily for leaders. When I'm writing, I'm thinking about leaders and I try to speak to the hearts of leaders. So sometimes I might say something that can be misconstrued if read from a different perceptive than my target audience. This just happened today.

I posted a brief excerpt from my November 6 blog, "Solitude Before Community" on the new Discipleship Network site from NavPress. The blog on that site, along with the corresponding responses can be found here. In that excerpted Discipleship Network blog, I said,

It seems to me that in today's church culture, we put everything else in front of solitude. Some put discipleship first. They say it all starts here. That we have to teach people how to grow and serve and share their faith....

Well, that drew the attention of at least one member of this discipleship network! He responded, in part,

How do we expect people to practice solitude without teaching them...or telling them they should practice it? Am I being silly here? ... [W]hen I think of discipleship I am thinking that hands on teaching of what it means to be Christian and how to pursue Christlikeness. Is the practice of solitude important? Yes it is. Should it be taught. Yes. But it cannot be practiced without being taught. So I think discipleship comes first, or concurrently if you want to look at it that way....

I totally agree with him! Unfortunately, I did not differentiate my audience in that post, so please let me do so here. As leaders, our first priority is to spend time with God, and we need to get away with him in solitude, like Jesus often did, to accomplish this.

As leaders, our teaching, discipling, mentoring, evangelizing, serving ... all come from the overflow of our hearts that primarily comes from time spent with the Father.

Yes, by all means let's teach people how to have an intimate relationship with God, how to spend time alone with him as well as in community. But as leaders, let's make sure we're modeling that ourselves first.

Solitude Before Community

2010-11-06T15:37:00.002-04:00

“Why is it so important that solitude come before community? If we do not know we are the beloved sons and daughters of God, we're going to expect someone in the community to make us feel that way. They cannot.” --Henri Nouwen

I've been blogging a short series about our inner life, discipleship, community, and ministry, inspired by Nouwen's Spring 1995 Leadership article (see blogs from November 1 and November 2). Nouwen suggests that many of us start by trying to do ministry ourselves. Then, when that doesn't work, we try to beg others to help us, and then, finally, when it still isn't working, we decide to pray about it. But Jesus acted in reverse. He began with God in solitude, then created a community who would carry out the mission together, and then finally they would serve together. It was within that context of what today we might call a "missional community" that Jesus did discipleship (note, not in a classroom or even in a circle in someone's living room!).

It seems to me that in today's church culture, we put everything else in front of solitude.

Some put discipleship first. They say it all starts here. That we have to teach people how to grow and serve and share their faith.
Some put evangelism first. Our first priority, they say, is to carry out the mission to make disciples.
Some put leadership first. Everything begins with leaders who model the abundant life and bring others along, right?
Some put community first. After all, they say, all of this good stuff happens in the environment of authentic Biblical community. So we have to build small groups.

Jesus said, "But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well." We seek God's Kingdom by being committed to the King.

I've been involved in small groups ministry for a long time. I guess I'm kinda known by being a small groups champion and cheerleader. Several years ago, the leadership team at Northeast came up with words that would describe each staff member's personality or passion. The word they used for me was community. Makes sense, but truthfully I didn't like the tag. Can you say pigeon-hole? Silo? Type-cast?

I think we put the cart before the horse when we put community before solitude.

We need both, but especially as leaders, we must prioritize solitary times with God. As Dietrich Bonhoeffer put it in Life Together, "One who wants fellowship without solitude plunges into the void of words and feelings, and one who seeks solitude without fellowship perishes in the abyss of vanity, self-infatuation, and despair. Let him who cannot be alone beware of community. Let him who is not in community beware of being alone."

Perhaps a reason that our small groups are sometimes not very healthy and they do not bear much lasting fruit is that the group members have so little time alone with God. On the other hand, in a group where individuals have been alone with God, they arrive with hearts prepared to share out of their overflow what God has been telling them. They reach out to others out of the overflow of what God is doing in their lives. They serve others together out of the overflow of time spent with a loving God. They step up to leadership because they sense God's calling upon their lives.

Again, Bonhoeffer said, "Only in fellowship do we learn to be rightly alone and only in aloneness do we learn to be rightly in fellowship.” In your small group are people learning to be "rightly alone"?

Solitary means fasting from people for a specific time period in order to connect intimately with God and revive our souls. When group members are regularly spending time alone with God, it changes everything in the group!

Here's how Nouwen said it

When you are aware that you are the beloved, and when you have friends around you with whom you live in community, you can do anything. You're not afraid anymore. You're not afraid to knock on the door while somebody's dying. You're not afraid to open a discussion with a person who underneath all the glitter is much in need of ministry. You're free.

Do you really want your small group to be healthy? Start here! Discuss this as a group the next time you meet. Plan some solitary time alone with God yourself.

What do you think about this?
How does your time alone with God affect your community? Your ministry?
How's your own solitary time with God?

Scary Questions God Is Asking Me

2010-11-03T22:00:00.000-04:00

God is trying to get my attention about my relationship with him, and it's scaring me.

On Monday I wrote about an inner life that is "like a banana tree filled with monkeys jumping up and down." Today in my time alone with God, as I was meditating on Habakkuk 3, he spoke to me about three more inner-life issues. Actually, he used this passage to ask me three questions about how I understand my relationship and my time spent with him. First, the passage that started the scary questions:

Habakkuk 3:16-18 (NLT)
I trembled inside when I heard all this; my lips quivered with fear. My legs gave way beneath me, and I shook in terror. I will wait quietly for the coming day when disaster will strike the people who invade us. Even though the fig trees have no blossoms, and there are no grapes on the vine; even though the olive crop fails, and the fields lie empty and barren; even though the flocks die in the fields, and the cattle barns are empty, yet I will rejoice in the Lord! I will be joyful in the God of my salvation.

Here are the three questions God asked me through this passage:

1. What Are Your Assumptions?
Habakkuk's lips trembled with fear, he became weak-kneed and he shook in terror as he heard from God. I read Warren Wiersbe's comment on this in his Bible Exposition Commentary of the Old Testament: "Many people have the idea that it's always an enjoyable experience getting to know God in a deeper way, but that's not what the saints of God in the Bible would say."

That's true. Think about Moses who trembled in God's holy presence; Joshua and David who fell on their faces before the Lord; Peter, James, and John, who were left face down in terror at the Mount of Transfiguration; and John who fell at the feet of the glorified Christ in Revelation.

Do I assume that my time alone with God will always be nice and comfortable and peaceful, or am I ready for him to drive me to my knees as I come into his holy presence? (This kind of reminds me of a line from a the song "I Can Only Imagine.")

2. What Are Your Motives?
I kept reading in Wiersbe's commentary: "God doesn't reveal Himself to superficial saints who are only looking for 'a new experience' they can brag about, or to curious Christians who want to "sample" deeper fellowship with God but not at too great a price."

How are your heart and attitudes, Mike? What are your real motives for wanting to draw closer to God today? I need to ask the Holy Spirit to reveal the answers to these questions to me, because I am not aware enough of my own motivations.

I had to ask myself some hard questions here, allowing the Holy Spirit to honestly search me and know my heart, to test me and know my anxious thoughts, to see if there is any offensive way in me (Psalm 139:23-24). I wondered why God was even asking me these questions. I think my motives are right when I come to him. But are they? Do I cherish my time alone with God because I might be able to blog about it later? Uhhhhhh..... What are your motivations for blogging, Mike? And how about your ministry? And the things you post on Facebook? And the things you write? And ... (What questions would God be asking you here? Do you study Scripture to look like a Bible scholar in your group? Do you have a quiet time so you can appear pious among your friends?)

Are our motives ever pure? I'm not sure. But I do believe God is calling me to make mine more pure. I need to test my motives more as I go through my day. It's part of the practice of guarding my heart.

By the way, I believe my motive for this blog is to honestly share my own struggles, because I think it might help you. I really hope this is true.

What Are Your Expectations?
One phrase in the Habakkuk passage really grabbed my attention: "I will wait quietly for the coming day when disaster will strike the people who invade us." Wow. This was not what Habakkuk wanted or had hoped for (see chapter 1 of his book). But this phrase is more than Habakkuk's quiet resignation. It shows his strong faith in God and therefore his surrender to God's will. Habakkuk trusted God.

Could I say, “I will wait quietly for the coming day when disaster will strike”? Could I have that kind of peace in the midst of chaos? Could I trust God, knowing my nice little life (a phrase I'm borrowing from John Eldridge) was coming to an abrupt stop?

Habakkuk had a big disadvantage here. He was a prophet of God, so he knew what was soon to happen. Habakkuk did know what the future held, and he still trusted in the God who held the future.

The abundant life may not be what we've always thought it is. As Wiersbe says, “Habakkuk couldn't rejoice in his circumstances, but he could rejoice in his God!"

Habakkuk had learned what Paul also came to understand: "Always be joyful. Keep on praying. No matter what happens, always be thankful, for this is God's will for you who belong to Christ Jesus" (1 Thess. 5:16-18). Paul knew this even as he sat in a prison singing praises to God. Jesus knew this in the Garden and on the cross. Not just resignation to the circumstances, but surrender to God's will.

This one is really scary. Why is God showing me this now? Why is he asking me about this? Unlike Habakkuk, I don't know what the future holds. But I know God is there. So I'll learn to wait on him.

So, has God ever asked you any of these questions? I'd like to hear how you responded to them.

Silencing the Monkeys in the Banana Tree

2010-11-01T23:47:00.000-04:00

I came across a quote in an article by Henri Nouwen recently that made me laugh and then made me think:

Your inner life is like a banana tree filled with monkeys jumping up and down.*

This is hilarious ... and true ... and sad. I'm so distracted with so much. Even as I write this, I have Monday Night Football on and am eating a couple pieces of toast. I'm thinking about my day tomorrow and a meeting I need to plan, and a million other things.

Maybe you're like me. I sit down to have a time with God every day. Just an hour or so to be close to my Father. To hear from him, talk with him, surrender my day to him. And then the monkeys start jumping up and down.

I really desire to be a man after God's own heart, and I know that starts in solitude with God. Nouwen defines solitude as "being with God and God alone," and we need to create space in our lives for that. But it's so hard to spend time with God alone when the monkeys are in the trees.

God wants to tell me, You are my beloved. You matter to me. Be still and know I am your God. But I still hear the monkeys constantly chattering, What about what you thought about last night? Try harder. Work more. Prove you are beloved. You can't. You're not good enough.

For me, this is all part of what it means to become more like Christ, who heard the same monkeys chattering and yet was not distracted by them. He was able to stay focused on hearing God's voice above all the noise. As Nouwen put it,

Jesus listened to that voice all the time, and he was able to walk right through life. People were applauding him, laughing at him; praising him and rejecting him; calling "Hosanna!" and calling "Crucify!" But in the midst of that, Jesus knew one thing—I am the beloved; I am God's favorite one. He clung to that voice.

In the same article, Nouwen says that solitude with God comes first, and then community and then ministry. This is important for people who desire to be leaders after God's own heart, leaders who bear fruit because we are connected with Jesus. But more on this in upcoming blogs.

So ... how do you silence the monkeys? What do you do to be with God and God alone?

* from the article, "Moving from Solitude to Community to Ministry," Leadership magazine, Spring 1995.

Lessons from Lynyrd Skynyrd & Mother Teresa

2010-10-28T14:42:00.000-04:00

I'm conflicted.

I was talking yesterday with a fellow Louisville groups minister and writer, and he kidded me about my new author's page on Facebook (and yes, I did just link to it so you can check it out!).

When I was thinking about adding this page on Facebook, I admit I was very conflicted. I want to be a humble man of God. I try to be. But I'm not always very good at it. Lots of room to grow here. I love the song by Lynyrd Skynyrd, "Simple Man," written from the perspective of a mother talking to her son. Here is part of the song (the complete lyrics can be found here):

And be a simple kind of man
Be something you love and understand
Baby be a simple kind of man
Oh, won't you do this for me son if you can?

Forget your lust for the rich man's gold
All that you need is in your soul
And you can do this, oh baby, if you try
All that I want for you my son is to be satisfied

I want to be that simple kind of man, the kind of man who works not to satisfy myself, but the God who created me for his purpose.

I explained to a friend that it's like Mother Teresa said, "I'm just a little pencil (or maybe a laptop?) in the hand of a writing God." I thank him for giving me a gift to share.

Today, Bernice posted a question on the page asking me a valid question: "Is this a money maker or what is your purpose, just curious??" I'm glad she asked. Here's my response:

My heart is for God to use me to help leaders. The way I feel called to do that is partially through my writing, and I would like to let more people know about it. I don't want to self-promote, and I'm not getting rich through the sales of books I've written. But when you write, you hope and pray God will use it to have as widespread effect as it can.

I want to honor God through what I do and I hope and pray that God will use my life to somehow advance his purposes in his kingdom.

God has created me with a two-fold passion for small groups and leadership, and he's given me a love for writing. I want to be a good steward of what he's given me. I don't want to be a "self-promoter." I fight the urge to do that. And, to be truthful, I do feel some pride well up when any worldly success comes. It's almost like I want to prove myself to my dad (who passed from this life 11 years ago): "See, dad! I'm a success." That feeling comes from a black part of my heart that I ask God to continue to heal.

Now I know that by putting up my own author's page on Facebook, I risk looking arrogant. My intention may be misunderstood. God knows my heart. He'll eventually judge my intentions. So I took a risk. Now I'm explaining it (probably over-explaining it!). I guess I'm sharing this because I do care about what my friends think in a (hopefully) positive way. I want you to know my true heart. I want you to see what's on the other side of the page.

My hope is that I someday get to hear my Heavenly Father say, "Well done!" My prayer is simply that all the attention and glory goes to him, not me. He deserves it. I don't. He's worthy of it. I'm not. If I'm going to be an author or a leader or anything, I want to first be a man after his heart.

How is God using you today to send his love letter to the world?

Revive Refocus Retreat Rewind

2010-10-27T13:29:00.000-04:00

Here are a few pictures from the retreat!

Chase Lackey led us in worship. Thanks, Chase.

Participants experienced personal, group, and corporate time with God.

Jay Close and the Northeast Prayer Team modeled "Community Prayer" in a group for us. Here, Jay gives a brief explanation.

At the end of the retreat, we were invited to do a prayer walk through the woods at Emerald Hills. For me, this was a highlight of the day. I came across this meadow, and though this picture doesn't do it justice, this was a great place for me to stop and draw close to my Creator.

This is one of the many "prayer pagodas" along the trail. Many of the retreat attenders used these as prayer stations to stop and pray (individually or with a small group) about some specific Scriptural subjects dealing with our relationships with God.

Looking forward to the next one!

Happy Belated Anniversary Blog!

2010-10-25T17:24:00.000-04:00

Well, I missed my anniversary, but only by 2 days. Hey ... I was busy! Please forgive me.

Yes, I started writing this blog on October 23, 2009. Time flies when you're blogging. This past Saturday, October 23, 2010, we were holding our Revive Refocus Retreat. (Read about it here and a review of it here.)

I don't have a list of my 10 favorite blogs or anything fancy today, but it is a good time to reflect and evaluate if I'm accomplishing what I've hoped to communicate here. I want to challenge readers to ...

become leaders after God's own heart
develop the hallmarks of a healthy, life-changing group
seek how to live in authentic, missional community today
keep stretching their understanding of and vision for real discipleship

So, how am I doing? What can I do better? How can I help you most? Looking forward to hearing from you!

Revive Refocus Retreat Review

2010-10-24T21:13:00.000-04:00

Our Revive Refocus Retreat for Leaders yesterday was powerful. Our prayer team spent months praying for and planning this day and they did a great job leading it. Our numbers were lower than we had hoped for, but it wasn't about numbers anyway. It was about what God would do when we made ourselves available to Him to work and move in us ... and that he did.

As leaders we need to get away from the busyness and create space in our lives for God. Jesus did this on a regular basis. We don't do it enough. Can't wait till our next one. Planning starts tomorrow!

Revive Refocus Retreat

2010-10-22T21:30:00.000-04:00

Tomorrow is our "Revive Refocus Retreat" which we've been planning for several months. This retreat is for leaders to grow and experience God more deeply through prayer. The reason for this retreat is simple: the best. most fruitful, life-changing groups are led by healthy leaders who have a strong, growing relationship with God. But let's face it, leaders are usually busy people who face stress, frustrations, discouragement, and even burnout.

There are some things a leader can do to avoid or beat burnout (which I discuss in my book, The Pocket Guide to Burnout-Free Small Group Leadership, by the way). The #1 burnout buster is to realize and always remember that you are not the real leader of your group. God is. Your role is to "lead from the second chair."

As I wrote in Burnout-Free, "your main job as a leader is very simple: to stay very close to God," and sometimes we just need to get away ("retreat") from our everyday worlds to spend some focused time on God. We need to revive our souls and refocus our minds.

This is not the last Revive Refocus Retreat we'll do for our leaders. I hope to make it a regular experience. I'll let you know how this one went soon.

More Rethinking Our Small Group Model ... Going Deeper

2010-10-21T14:52:00.001-04:00

In Alan Danielson's blog post today, he discusses "the most overrated church comment." What is that comment? "I want to go deeper." I totally agree, and I'd add a second, related comment: "I need to be fed." I've heard both comments quite a bit. (People have even left our church and other churches, making these comments as they left.) Both comments illustrate a couple concerns in our churches: (1) consumerism and (2) a misunderstanding of spiritual maturity / discipleship.

Consumerism is a blight in our churches that emanates from our culture but really comes straight from the pits of hell. When the Enemy is able to get the church to think like consumers rather than as functioning members of the body of Christ who look not only to their own interests but also the interests of others, then he has destroyed authentic Bible community and the subsequent spiritual growth that happens in that community.

A misunderstanding of discipleship also leads the church to a very unhealthy condition which can hamstring its effectiveness. As Alan says in his blog, "I want to go deeper" usually means "Bible study" and, he says, "it reflects a person’s desire to be thought of as pious or spiritual." Alan then gives three more accurate ways of viewing what it means to go deeper:

Going deeper into my commitment to God’s Church
Going deeper into my commitment to the world
Going deeper into my commitment to being mastered by Christ

(Read Alan's blog for more details on these.)

As I commented on Alan's blog, I think this is another important element in (re)defining what discipleship in small groups means. The early church was committed to these three values, which caused them to make a huge impact on their world.

The greatest discipler ever was Jesus. He discipled his small group as he ministered to the world in the context of a community committed to one another. He taught them Biblical principles as they were ministering or in a debriefing shortly after ministry opportunities. My question: how can we do that today?

I have more to say on this topic, but I'll save it for a separate post. Stay tuned!

Resources for Healthy Small Groups

2010-10-15T12:05:00.000-04:00

I write and talk a lot about healthy small groups. (To see my blogs on the topic, click here.) To review, the seven hallmarks of a healthy group are:

Christ-Centered
Healthy, Growing Leader
Core Team
Goals & Plans
Authentic Biblical Community
Disciple-Making
Mission-Minded

The result or "fruit" of a healthy group is a group that is: Growing, Reaching Out, and Reproducing.

Three secrets to helping groups become more healthy: (1) look at what God's Word has to say, (2) openly talk about these issues, and (3) make plans and make changes to be a healthy group.

Touch Outreach Ministries has provided the perfect tools for groups to do just this. Each of the six agenda books in their Community Life Series is written to help groups start out or become healthy, Christ-centered, inward-connecting, outward-reaching, forward-moving, missional groups.

If you want your group or groups to be strategic about becoming healthy, I really encourage you to check out this series. (Fine Print Obligatory Disclosure: I wrote 2 of the books in this series, Launch into Community Life and Moving Forward.)

Seven extremely cool things about this series:

They're designed so that each group only needs 1 (count them, 1!) guide. It's basically a leader's guide that includes resources that can be photocopied for group members. What a great deal when finances are tight!
Each book includes a challenging devotional for the leader, which helps build in healthy group hallmark #2.
"Between-the-meeting" options help groups be more than just one-day-per-week meetings.
You can get them all in a bundle to check them out or to be really strategic and order them for all your groups.
You can now get the series or the individual books as ebooks / digital editions!
Now you can also get intergenerational supplements for this series! These can be used specifically for the kid's slot during your meeting. This is HUGE for groups with kids!
If you are a new group, or you think it's time to restart, you can use the Launch Into Community Life guide. It's focused on helping groups start as a healthy group.

For more information on this series or to place an order, go directly to the Community Life Series page or call 1-800-735-5865. Tell them Mike sent you!

Thankful for God's Jealousy, Vengeance, & Anger

2010-10-14T13:26:00.001-04:00

I am thankful today for God's jealousy, vengeance, and anger.

I haven't always felt that way. In the past, as I've studied the Old Testament and read about God being a jealous God, seeing his anger burn against the people he created, and observing his vengeance, I frankly didn't like it. I don't like thinking of God that way. I want a God who is soft and cuddly, the prince of peace, the good shepherd. Basically I want a Teddy Bear God, not a Righteous Judge.

But God's nature includes both, which allows him to provide us with exactly what we need. I've been taking a tour through the minor prophets lately and yesterday came to Nahum 1. The first thing Nahum says is,

The Lord is a jealous God, filled with vengeance and wrath. He takes revenge on all who oppose him and furiously destroys his enemies!

Wow ... what a way to begin your book! Sure makes me want to keep reading! While these sentences are about God's "burning anger," it's really about his power and the fact that he is in control (sovereign) over all things. The person who put up this church sign fully understands this!

While his anger may seem troubling, it is actually very comforting to realize that God has everything under his control.

I don't have to worry about vengeance and wrath. He's got it!
I don't need to become angry over injustices in the world. He's got it.
I don't need to worry about natural disasters. He's got it.
And He's got me, regardless of the situation!

Verse 7 completes the picture: "The Lord is good." I believe that. He's got me!

To lead from the heart, we need an accurate and whole picture of God. A leader after God's own heart is surrendered to him and trusts him. He's got it!

Continuing to Rethink Our Small Group Model ... Where Do Groups Meet?

2010-10-13T15:08:00.001-04:00

In my last post I discussed "Rethinking Our Small Group Model." A couple small group architects, Alan Danielson and Ben Reed posted some intriguing comments, which inspired another blog post.

Basically, Alan said that if Jesus' group met in America today, they'd meet in a variety of places outside church buildings and homes. Ben responded that homes would be a primary place although not the only place Jesus' group would meet. Ben thought that meeting in more public places might feel awkward and look "showy."

Seems to me place was simply irrelevant for Jesus and his group. They met everywhere: synagogues, streets, homes, beside a well, fields, gardens, cemeteries, mountainsides, lakesides, seashores, boats ... everywhere they went. The gospels give the impression that they were constantly on the move. They made disciples and carried out their ministry "as they went."

The early church did much the same. Their mission (and ours) was to "make disciples as you go ..." And the gospel message spread as they did so. Yes, the home was a focal meeting place for the early church. Max Lucado wrote about this in his book, Outlive Your Life: You Were Made to Make a Difference. In his "UpWords" devotional titled "Open Your Door, Open Your Heart," Lucado says the home was used as a valuable tool for sharing the gospel and making disciples, but it was not the only tool or only place they met.

For many small groups today, "location is everything." For Jesus, relationships were everything, wherever they happened to be. The location of their ministry was determined by the leading of the Father and the needs of the people. The focus for them and the Christ-followers in the early church was not on meetings, but on ministry. The environment Jesus used for discipleship was not a living room or a classroom, but life itself. And life itself was focused on serving and sharing the Good News.

My big question is: How do we do that today--in the culture in which we find ourselves? Is the current small group paradigm of meeting weekly for 90 minutes in a circle somewhere the best model for sharing the Good News, making disciples? I'm not sure it is, and if it isn't, then what is?

Rethinking Our Small Group Model

2010-10-09T12:36:00.000-04:00

What is "authentic biblical community"?

It's within the environment of authentic biblical community that disciples are made and we live out our faith. But what does that look like for us today? Recently I've been thinking a lot about what a model for discipleship should look like today, and truthfully, I have more questions than answers. I began writing about this last week in my blog I titled "What If Everything We've Always Believed About Small Groups Was Wrong?"

It seems others are thinking about this as well. Alan Danielson blogged about the "First Small Group Gathering Ever." I love the way he poses this:

What is your small group doing to have an exploding reputation in the community? Are you meeting safely inside a home or church building, insulated from the rest of the world? Or are you doing life together in public, so that evangelistic ministry opportunities can be seized? Does your small group look look like Jesus’ small group, or does it look like something different? I’m just asking.

Hmm. I wonder, Is it even possible in today's culture for our small groups to look like Jesus' small group? If you say no, why not, and then what should they look like? If you say yes, then how?

I've read other blogs dealing with the same questions Alan and I are asking, and I'll share some of those in a future post. But I want to keep asking and thinking about this and I'd love to hear some of your thoughts, so please respond!

Conversation Tips pt. 1

2010-10-08T10:23:00.001-04:00

Check out the following "Conversation Tips" from Tripp Crosby's October 6 blog. Must reading for any small group leader or member! In fact, you might want to develop a dialogue with your group around these tips!

Top 10 Ways to Take Your Small Group Deeper!

2010-10-07T15:44:00.000-04:00

Subgroup into smaller groups of 2-4 for deeper sharing during application or prayer.
Divide the sexes. Split up the men and women for portions of the study of for prayer and accountability.
Meet between meetings. Guys or gals go out to breakfast or lunch together during the week.
Get accountable. Ask some tough questions and expect people to share what's really true.
Serve together. Serving is one of the best environments for growing spiritually.
Purposely get out of your comfort zones. What's a God-sized plan for your group?
Desire to grow! People grow when they are committed to it. Make a commitment as a group.
Read the Word. Without any study guides. Just read a book of the Bible a chapter at a time and discuss how to live it out.
Do a daily devotion together. Find a daily devotional such as Oswald Chambers's My Utmost for His Highest, and as a group commit to reading it every day. Use Facebook, Twitter, texting, or email to discuss what you're reading and learning.
Retreat. Get away on a spiritual retreat together as a group. Plan to meet as a group with God there.

Special Needs in Small Groups

2010-10-06T12:11:00.000-04:00

I received the following question from a fellow small groups director. It's a great question and one most small group leaders have dealt with or will deal with.

How do you handle special needs or even just very socially awkward (haven’t necessarily been diagnosed) adults in groups? Our young adults group is doing great, but recently they’ve had many requests for adults to join their group that either have Down Syndrome, or Asperger's, or are deaf, etc. Their needs are great and very different from those of the typical 18-30 year old. They feel the need to be inclusive, but also have noticed that this makes it difficult for others, especially the new people coming, to check out the group. Any thoughts?

Here's my response:
This is a tough one and one we’ve dealt with on numerous occasions, at least to some extent.

First, let's identify some important values. Our strategy must flow from biblical values.

We believe everyone has a right to get connected in authentic community.
Authentic community is not about “me.” In authentic community, we celebrate our differences and accept one another “as is.”
God is the one who arranges all the parts of the body, every one of them, just as he wants them to be (1 Cor. 12:18). Everybody is different. In his book, Everybody’s Normal Till You Get to Know Them, John Ortberg talks about a deep theological truth: everybody’s weird!
While the above are true, some people need something other than a church small group to help them connect and grow. We try to look at what that person needs first.
We also always try to look at what’s best for the group over what’s best for any one individual.

Then there’s reality! Of course, we have to deal with the reality as much as the values. And, as you can see, some of these values conflict with one another (or seem to).

So here are my suggestions:

Pray. Meet with the leaders and pray together over this. What is the Holy Spirit up to? Why are these people with special needs showing up? Does God have something very unique and powerful planned for and through this group? You don’t want to miss out on a movement of God because there seem to be challenges. As humans we can make our plans, but what we really want is for God's purpose to prevail (Proverbs 19:21)! How God answers your prayer will determine the rest of your steps.
Talk with the leader(s) of the group about values 1-3. Ask them how they can develop this kind of authentic, accepting community. This is challenging, but acceptance is the message of the gospel, and how Jesus treated people.
Consider all your options. Are there groups within or outside your church that would provide better options for the individuals with special needs?
Work with the leaders to determine if this group is really the best place for each of the participants. If another option would be better for him or her, I try to coach the leader(s) to refer. If the leader(s) need my help, I’ll get involved, but that’s not my initial tactic. At Northeast, we have a good counseling center, and perhaps a counseling group would be a better fit and would better meet the needs of some people.
I would arm every leader, especially those who have challenging people in their groups, with Pat Sikora’s book, Why Didn’t You Warn Me: How to Deal with Challenging Group Members. It’s a very helpful resource for just about every challenge you can imagine. I bought a bunch and I hand them out to leaders all the time. The book is available on Standard Publishing's web site here.
The leaders may have a tough decision to make. Some new people may not continue because a number of special needs people are in the group. That's too bad, but probably a reality. Is this a "What would Jesus do" kind of question? I think I know what Jesus would do.
I would tell new people, "We try to accept everyone, even people like you!" (OK, I might leave off the last part, but you get the idea!)

Why Didn't You Warn Me?

2010-10-03T22:29:00.001-04:00

"Leading a small group isn't easy," says my friend Pat Sikora. "It seems that more people are more wounded than ever before," and it seems most of them are in our small groups! That's why, when I was developing a new series of small group books for leaders several years ago for Standard Publishing, I called Pat and asked her to write a book we'd call, Why Didn't You Warn Me? How to Deal with Challenging Group Members.

Every small group leader should have this book on his or her bookshelf! Get the book from Standard here or from Pat's website here.

Pat creatively describes 18 common challenging people, like Mona Monopoly, Griselda Gossip, and Quentin Quiet, for example, and gives you step-by-step suggestions for dealing with them with grace and sensitivity. It's a great reference book. I hand them out to every new small group leader at our church.

Pat and I go way back. She wrote articles for The Lookout magazine when I edited a small group column there about 20 years ago. Then she wrote a series of articles for me after I started SmallGroups.com in 1996. I'm still a big fan of her work. You'll find great material on her Why Didn't You Warn Me? website too.

What if Everything We've Always Believed About Small Groups Was Wrong?

2010-10-02T16:48:00.000-04:00

What if everything we've always believed about small groups was wrong?

What if we have it all backwards?

What if the model for discipleship is actually something other than sitting in a circle, answering an icebreaker, studying the Bible (hook, book, look, and took) or watching a DVD, and taking prayer requests?

What if we were to go and make disciples (or, more accurately, make disciples as we go) in community rather than meeting in someone's living room?

What if we were to teach people to obey everything Jesus commanded us, rather than just teaching them curriculum material?

What if our model looked more like Jesus' (ministering first and then debriefing, taking advantage of teachable moments to learn)?

Just wondering. What do you think?

The End is Near!

2010-10-02T14:32:00.000-04:00

I came across the following video on Alan Danielson's blog. I agree with Alan: this is a great example of a bad small group experience.

The End Times from Renaissance Church on Vimeo.

What needs to happen to save this group?

Who Is the "Right Person" to Lead a Small Group?

2010-10-02T12:14:00.001-04:00

SmallGroups.com is currently featuring my article, "The Right Person to Lead a Small Group," on their homepage. Click here to read it. This article explains why people resist a call to leadership because of questions about competency and commitment and how to overcome those obstacles. The article first appeared on this blog on May 12.

By the way, if you are not yet a member or regular user of SmallGroups.com, I highly recommend this site. (I guess this is the place where I disclose, if you did not already know, that I founded this ministry. It's come a long way since I put a few articles on the web from my basement!) Go to SmallGroups.com to check it out!

Christians and Religious Knowledge

2010-09-29T09:27:00.000-04:00

Have you seen the news lately about a Pew Forum survey on religious knowledge? Apparently Christians did not fare well. I took the survey online this morning and scored 80%. (Hey, it was really early, before my first cup of coffee.) Christian haters on the Internet and TV are using this as a "gotcha." Some Christians are doing the same, pointing out that we need to become much more religiously literate.

I'm scratching my head. Is religious knowledge the hallmark of Christianity? The people in the Bible who were known for their knowledge were the Teachers of the Law and the Pharisees (I got that one right, I think). The earliest church leaders, on the other hand, the ones who had been with Jesus for three years, were still known as "unschooled, ordinary men" (Acts 4:13). A false teaching prevalent in the times of the first-century church was called gnosticism, and part of that teaching is that knowledge is supreme. The apostle Paul fought this teaching in several of his letters, especially Colossians.

Our command as Christians is to love. Paul made it strikingly clear for us:

"Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up" (1 Cor. 8:1; see also 1 Cor. 13:2, 8; Eph. 3:19).

Don't get me wrong. We need to understand the basics of our faith. We should be able to explain what and why we believe when asked. And we should all be growing in our knowledge and depth of insight.

But knowledge is not what we should be known for. Knowledge puffs up. (A friend took the Pew Forum quiz and actually bragged that he got 100%.)

Christians should be known for their capacity to love. So for me, let the skeptics and modern-day religious people babble on about knowledge. I'm sticking with Paul. I'm choosing love. Love builds up. Love never fails.

A Sense of Us

2010-09-25T15:33:00.001-04:00

There are some biblical principles that are as true for small groups as for marriages, teams, partnerships, or any kind of enterprise where two or more are involved. One of the most important principles is "a Sense of Us."

A Sense of Us means ...

Us is always more important than me.
Us always makes me better.
There is no us without me.
The personality of each me makes the us ... well, us.
Us is more than just the aggregation of more than one me.
A healthy marriage does not really begin and end with me, and neither do healthy groups or teams.
Oh, and most importantly, there is no possibility of us without Him.

And here are the10 Commandments of Us:

Consider us as better than me.
Bring all your me to us.
Never allow me to get lost in us, but ...
Look not only to the interests of me, but also to the interests of us.
Do not hold tightly to the rights of me.
Think about us, not only me.
Love us.
Be an encourager of us.
Build up us.
Look for how God will use us to reach another me.

Training Group Members

2010-09-23T20:23:00.001-04:00

I saw this video recently on Alan Danielson's YouTube page and it got me thinking about training small group participants how to be productive members of a healthy, growing group. (By the way, if you've never read it, check out Alan's Triple-Threat Leadership blog here.)

How would you help your group members live in authentic community? One thing I occasionally do is bring a list of some of the New Testament one another commands to the group and have them evaluate the group on a 1-5 scale on each one. Get a pdf copy of the evaluation here.

At Northeast, we give each new group member a copy of Randall Neighbour's little handbook, Community Life 101. Randall wrote it to help members, as the subtitle says, get the most out of their small group experience. The fact is, people enter a group with all kinds of expectations, which may or may not have anything to do with the biblical values that make groups thrive (and many of which are totally self-centered). Community Life 101 helps our group members catch the biblical values that make groups great.

When group members live out the biblical values for community, groups grow and naturally multiply.

So what values, principles, and topics would you "teach" to your small group members? Share them by leaving a comment below.

As for me ...

2010-09-16T09:27:00.001-04:00

Today as I was reading Micah 7, I stopped at verse 7: "As for me, I look to the Lord for his help. I wait confidently for God to save me, and my God will certainly hear me."

"As for me..." This phrase appears 54 times in the Bible (NIV), often as a comparison of a godly person's response to others in the world. The instance that immediately comes to my mind is Joshua 24:15: "But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord." (For deeper study, also see 1 Samuel 12:23; Ps. 55:23; Ps. 71:14; Ps. 73:28; Jer. 26:14; Micah 3:8. Even Pilate uttered these words at Jesus' trial: "As for me, I find no basis for a charge against him"[John 19:6].)

Here, in Micah 7, the prophet has shared his heartfelt sorrow for the decline of the society around him. He said that the godly people have all disappeared (v. 2); they've become skilled at doing evil (v. 3). With that in mind, Micah says, but as for me ... Micah, like other leaders after God's own heart, decided to be distinctive and distinguishable, even if others thought he was just weird.

So how do I respond? Others around me are doing ____, but as for me, I will _____. As for me and my family, we will _____. How would you fill in those blanks?

The world around us is getting increasingly evil. Even Christians (but are they "Christ followers"?) I know rationalize sin, dishonesty, and lack of integrity. But as for me, I will put God first and obey him. I will, by the Holy Spirit's power, live a life of integrity and authenticity. I will, by His power within me, love God with all my heart, soul, strength, and mind, and love my neighbor as myself.

Everyone who desires to be a leader after God's own heart must also complete this phrase, As for me, I will _____.

Create in me a clean heart O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me (Psalm 51:10-12).

Source of My Peace

2010-09-08T10:06:00.000-04:00

Today's Bible Passage: Micah 5

Scripture:
"And he will be the source of our peace" (Micah 5:5).

Observation
In verse 2, Micah prophesied the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem. Verse 3 reveals that the people would be abandoned to their enemies until his birth, which was fulfilled as the Jewish people came under Roman rule. Verse 4 shows the Messiah as a shepherd leading his flock, a foreshadowing of Jesus as our Good Shepherd (John 10 and other passages).

Verse 5 gives us our hope in Jesus as our Shepherd-Messiah-Savior-Lord. He is our peace.

He told his followers, "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid" (John 14:27). He is our "Prince of Peace" (Isaiah 9:6). He brings a peace to those who believe in him -- a peace unlike anything the world has to offer. But he does much more than just give us peace. He is our source of peace!

Application

When life is uncertain, troubled, hectic, seemingly unraveling, Jesus is my source of peace. When I abide in him as my true source of power and provision (John 15:5), I will have that peace that is beyond all understanding (Phil. 4:7). When I feel overwhelmed, overburdened, overworked, underresourced, underloved, and under pressure, Jesus is the source of my peace. I can rest in him. He's got this!

Prayer
Jesus, today I'm feeling anxiety and pressure, and I'm feeling overwhelmed and underappreciated. I bring these to you and surrender them to you. As I abide in you today, provide me with that peace that transcends all understanding, a peace that can only come from you. Help me to remember throughout the day today that you truly are my source of peace, and to abide in you. Help me to do what your Word encourages me to do: to trust in you with all my heart, to not lean on my own understating but in all my ways to acknowledge you, and I know that you, Lord, will make the path straight for me today.

Filled with Power

2010-09-02T10:21:00.000-04:00

Today's Bible Passage: Micah 3

Scripture: "But as for me, I am filled with power and the Spirit of the Lord. I am filled with justice and might, fearlessly pointing out Israel's sin and rebellion" (Micah 3:8).

Observation
Micah compares himself to the false prophets and other religious leaders of his time who didn't know right from wrong, hated good and loved evil, treated God as a magic Jeannie, were leading people astray, took advantage of their leadership positions to make money, hated real justice, twisted all that was right, led the people for the bribes they could get, taught the people only for money, and yet claimed they depended on the Lord. Yeah, they were messed up!

Micah, however, was a leader after God's own heart. He led not for what he could get out of it, but out of God's calling on his life. He led out of God's power within him by the indwelling of the Spirit of the Lord, not out of his own limited power, wisdom, or abilities.

Verse 8 brings to mind many other Bible verses, but especially Zechariah 4:6: "'Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,' says the LORD Almighty."

It also brings to mind the leaders of the early church. In Acts 1:8, Jesus promised power when the Holy Spirit came upon them so that they could be his witnesses from Jerusalem to the whole world. That promise came true in Acts 2:4 when the apostles were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to boldly proclaim the truth. And it continued as these leaders stayed true to their calling regardless of the circumstances: "[The religious leaders] brought in the two disciples and demanded, 'By what power, or in whose name, have you done this?' Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them ..." (Acts 4:7-8).

The early church leaders knew where their power came from. They knew they could do nothing of any significance apart from Jesus and his Spirit (John 15:5). This is why they were so committed to prayer. Prayer is our "power cord." Prayer is way more powerful than we understand, but the early church knew this: "After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly" (Acts 4:31).

Application
The power behind, or actually within all true spiritual leadership comes from God's Spirit. We tend to too easily forget this and rely on our own human strength and abilities instead, and we wonder why we are not more effective. The answer is not outside ourselves, it is inside, through the indwelling power of the Holy Spirit.

"As for me, I am filled with the Spirit of the Lord!" That must become my mantra, my constant prayer. Not by my own might or power or abilities, but by the power of his Spirit ... in all I do. As I lead my family, as I lead my group, as I lead in my church, I will seek his wisdom, direction, and power.

Prayer
Thank, you, Father, for your power. You have filled me with power and your Spirit. I am filled with justice and might. By your power I can be fearless and bold to be your witness, to speak your word, to carry out what you have called me to do.

Evil for Evil?

2010-09-01T09:40:00.000-04:00

Today's Bible Passage: Micah 2

Scripture: Micah 2:3: "But this is what the Lord says: "I will reward your evil with evil; you won't be able to escape! After I am through with you, none of you will ever again walk proudly in the streets."

Observation
I don't like the New Living Translation here. It sounds like God does evil in return for their evil. The Biblical principle, however, is once again that you reap what you sow. They will face the consequences of their actions. The tables will be turned.

This is a very interesting verse. God has said, "I condemn you because you lie on your beds and plot evil." Now He says, "I am going to plot evil against you." What does He mean by that? Was God actually going to do that which was evil? No, God intended to punish the evildoers, which was right, but from their viewpoint it was wrong because they wouldn't like that. They would call it evil. —J. Vernon McGee's Thru The Bible

God does not do evil, though some people still claim he does. When a disaster strikes, many people say, "Why did God let (or make) that happen?" attributing evil to God. By allowing us to face the natural consequences of our own actions, he brings consequences of punishment and judgment to us, which often looks like evil from our limited human viewpoint. But they are really discipline, meant to bring us into God's will.

The verse could say it this way: "I will reward you with what you will perceive as evil for the evil you are doing. The tables will be turned!"

God is gracious and kind, full of compassion and love, but he does not sugar-coat our sin. He loves us too much to allow us to wallow in our sinful behaviors. He so wants us to experience life to the full! So he has created this world in such a way that we face consequences when we are living outside his will. He disciplines us so that we will live life the way he intends us to.

But why does God allow bad things to happen to good people? (This is another question that attributes evil to God.) But the whole question is faulty. No one is good. We've all gone astray from God. He disciplines us for our bad behavior, not our good deeds. The whole point is to align us with his perfect, abundant, purposeful will for our lives.

Application
I am a child of God, and I'm glad my Father loves me enough to discipline me. He allows me to face the consequences of my wrong actions in order to help move me onto the right path--his path. He loves me way too much to allow me to continue living my own way. He desires for me to live life to the full, and I can only do that his way!

When things are not going my way in life, I will not question God's intentions. He is not evil and is not doing evil to me. I will try to see these hard times as ways God may be trying to get my attention, return me to the right path, and discipline me so that I may experience life to the full. I will try to view God during these times as a loving Father. I will ask him to reveal to me what he is trying to teach me and ask him for his power and patience to go through it and learn from it.

Prayer
My loving Father, thank you for your compassionate discipline in my life. Father, help me to learn from the difficulties I am presently enduring. Help me to grow to the place you want me to be. Help me to get onto the right path and live life your way, not my own or the way of the world. As a leader after your own heart, help me to be wise in the way I model this for others. Help me to help them discern what you are doing in their lives when you are applying your loving discipline.

Love and Hate

2010-08-31T10:02:00.000-04:00

Today's Bible Passage: Micah 1

Scripture: Micah 1:2-3: "Attention! Let all the people of the world listen! The Sovereign Lord has made accusations against you; the Lord speaks from his holy Temple. Look! The Lord is coming! He leaves his throne in heaven and comes to earth, walking on the high places."

Observation
Micah warns the people that God is coming to judge them because of their idolatry. The people were rebellious against God, treating him as an object rather than a person or totally ignoring him in deference to false gods, idols.

"Left to ourselves we turn God into an object, something we can deal with, some thing we can use to our benefit, whether that thing is a feeling or an idea or an image. Prophets scorn all such stuff. They train us to respond to God's presence and voice" (from The Message Introduction to Micah).

We have a loving God who hates sin. In fact, it is both his love and his hate that compelled him to send his only son, Jesus to die for us. Micah provides us with an accurate picture of God as one who loves us but hates our sin, our rebellion and idolatry. He wants nothing else to compete with our love for him, because he knows that nothing else in this world truly satisfies us. He loves us too much to let us settle for less than him.

"As you read Micah, catch a glimpse of God's anger in action as he judges and punishes sin. See God's love in action as he offers eternal life to all who repent and believe. And then determine to join the faithful remnant of God's people who live according to his will" (from the Life Application Bible Introduction to Micah).

Application
To be a man after God's heart, I must also be a loving person who hates sin. It's not up to me, though, to judge or punish, but to determine to live my life according to God's will. To be a leader after God's heart in my family, small group, and church, I must live as a model of someone who loves God and others but hates sin as much as God does. I must be in a real, abiding relationship with God as my Father, not see him as an object or just a means to my own ends. I must not have other things in my life that compete with God for my affections and devotion.

Prayer
My Father, I thank you that I can and do have a relationship with you. May nothing compete with that for my affections and devotion today. Help me to be a model for others of someone who loves you and other people and hates sin. I ask that your love--and your hate--overflow from me as you pour into me today.

I Want to Be a Remnant

2010-08-27T13:13:00.000-04:00

Today's Bible Passage: Amos 9

Scripture: "In that day I will restore the fallen kingdom of David. It is now like a house in ruins, but I will rebuild its walls and restore its former glory." Amos 9:11

Observation
In this chapter, God has given Israel 4 affirmations of things he would do. The first 3 are negative. They basically say God will destroy Israel. He will hunt them down no matter where they go and make them face the consequences of their sinful behavior. But the last affirmation is positive. He will rebuild and restore the kingdom to what it was meant to be.

God is a God of rebuilding and restoration. He does the same in our churches and our lives. A very important and telling phrase in this passage is in the last verse of this book: "... says the Lord your God." Your God. God is personal. He loves us and came to give us an abundant life. Verses 13-15 illustrate the abundance God wants to provide for us who follow him.

Application
The promises of God are given to those who are not destroyed in his first 3 affirmations. God will judge fairly. He will separate the chaff from the wheat, the goats from the sheep. He will do this in a personal way, not on outward commitments and pledges, but on the true condition of our hearts. He knows us more and better than anyone.

I want to be a remnant! After God has separated out all the fakes and phonies, I want to be left standing, a man after God's own heart. Not perfect in my own right, but forgiven and perfected (made holy, sanctified) by the Holy Spirit.

Prayer
My Father, I thank you today that I can call you "my God." Lord, I want to be a man after your own heart. No hypocrisy. No faking, no phoniness. I want to be an authentic follower of Jesus, period. Help me to be exactly what you made me to be. Lord, God, it is yours to judge. It is yours to separate the fakes from the followers. I want to be left standing with you as your remnant when all is said and done. Only by your grace, your power through your Holy Spirit alive within me, can this be accomplished.

Small Group Charades

2010-08-26T21:33:00.000-04:00

Today's Bible Passage: Amos 5

Scripture: Amos 5:4-6, 21-24

Observation
Amos 5:4-6: God's constant call to us is "Come back to me and live!" "Come to me you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest" (Matt. 11:28). There is a call to repentance here: Come back to me (see v. 6 as well). God is pleading with them here. See v. 5: "Don't go to worship the idols ..." This is the voice of a lovingly jealous husband: Come back to me. Please don't go ... But God's concern is with his bride, not his own feelings. He does not want them to suffer the consequences of their wayward, sinful actions.

Both the NIV and The Message translate this "Seek God and live." Seeking God comes first, before surrender, sharing, serving, and being a good steward. (See I'm a Leader...Now What?) This phrase is found more than 30 times in the Bible. See Isaiah 55:6-7 for what it means to "seek the Lord." Part of what it means is to forsake your own way and turn (or return) to the Lord.

Why should we come back to and seek the Lord? (1) so we may live (v.4); (2) there is no other way to God and the abundant life that comes from being in a relationship with him (v.5). All other ways are false idols; (3) not doing so will have consequences--both directly from God and indirectly from him through natural consequences.

I believe that most of the time the punishment or consequences we face come through the natural consequences to our actions. But they all come from God anyway, because he has ordered his world in such a way that when we do not do things his way--according to the natural laws of his creation--we face the consequences. This is the Biblical value of "we reap what we sow."

Amos 5:21-24: This is another common call from God that shows his heart. See also Isaiah 1:13-17, esp. in The Message. See also Hosea 6:6 and Matt. 15:6-9 for other places. God wants our hearts in worship, not a show or a ritual.

Application
God is not pleased with us just because we show up at a small group meeting or a weekend service. That's why small groups must be more than just a meeting. A small group must be about seeking God, loving him and one another, including those outside our groups, wherever we are meeting or going. A small group is about living for God and carrying out Christ's mission, not just a weekly meeting. And a small group should be about justice and mercy for outsiders, not just another meeting for insiders.

In his Bible Exposition Commentary of theOld Testament, Warren Wiersbe says, "No matter how many people attend religious meetings, if the result is not obedience to God and concern for our neighbor, the meetings are a failure."

Prayer
My Father, I seek you today. When I go astray from you and move toward anything of this world as an idol, help me to come back to you in repentance. You are my only way, my life, and my truth. There is no other way, life, or truth. Give me the power and wisdom to live that way with you and for you today. And as our small group meets, Father, move us toward the message in this and other passages. Help us to do more than just have a meeting. I don't want us to play games with our group. Help us to come together tonight in your presence, for your purposes, and under your mighty power. By the prompting and power of your Holy Spirit, help us to carry out the mission Jesus has given us. In his mighty name, Amen.