I don't have a lot of input for you specifically, but I will say this, which came to my mind:

Our small group ministry at church started with a bang, and it was great. It seemed we had a lot going, at least compared to now. I would say, after getting the hype up about small group ministry, keep it sounding exciting when you talk about it to the church as a whole. Have testimonies that came out of small groups to share (you could at this point bring some from other churches, but use those from your own when you have them).

Also, having different topics for the specific groups will help garner interest as well. Also, have those who have been in (or are in) small groups be encouraged to invite others who are uninvolved. This I think is a good way to get other interested, especially since they'd then know someone in the group and not feel as uncomfortable.

Will be praying for you and your endeavors!

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You've got my support in whatever way I can help to break us out of our rigid "but we've always done this" mold…

KevinIC3s last blog post..Sometimes you park it!

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Jeff, I have been a part of 11 small groups through the past 10 years. More than I wanted actually! My husband used to be the small groups pastor so if a new group got started or one was in trouble, we got to deal with it.

If you are only starting ONE life group, then I'd invite people that would naturally have some affinity for being together and MOST OF ALL want to be there so I think some sort of target makes it more likely to succeed. I will be honest, according to research a church cannot support both small groups and Sunday School – you're asking your people to do too much……and generally if given both choices people will choose ONE, but not both. I think we should be okay with that. I mean if they are getting their needs for discipleship met in one way, then we should be rejoicing!

If you can get one up and running and be successful you can launch another one out of that next year after an appropriate amount of time.

I'd start with something interesting – marriage, spiritual disciplines, a felt need. Andy Stanley has some great DVD series on making wise choices "The Best Question Ever" and marriage "iMarriage" that are very discussion oriented. Ruth Barton has a great book on Spiritual Disciplines that might lend itself to a small group discussion : Spiritual Rhythms. Make sure everyone knows its confidential and dive in! I'd have food cause that just loosens people up. Generally speaking, more than 14 people and it gets unruly and people cannot share either.

Meeting in homes is best. We tried one in a room at church – it just doesn't have the same warm vibe. It failed. We usually have the host provide the meal the first two weeks then have people sign up to take turns when they know for sure they want to commit.

Weekly is best. We've tried other things and people just get confused when you try every other week, etc.

I'm not sure you can invite people to this and then require them to also attend SS………that might really keep people from attending. Just my thought.

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@Amanda: @Scott Thanks for the prayers. Those will be more beneficial than anything else. I hope you'll keep with me as I go down this road.

@KevinIC3: Hey, think you and Debbie might have time to be a part of the core group? It may get pretty intense, but in a good way.

@Ben: Funny thing is, and this might be anecdotal, but our down turn started when we did 40 Days of Purpose. I can't explain why, be we literally saw a +35% downturn in attendance by the end of the 40 days, and we've never really recovered. Hopefully, you saw my clarification statement I added to the post. This is not a church-wide rollout, but rather my own personal effort to do something for our church and community. I would much rather see a church-wide effort, but the support/ability is not there. I'm hoping this will expand into a church-wide thing.

@Gene: Thanks for stopping by. I'm kind of in the same boat. I'm still considered pretty young, but I myself am on the upper end of the age groups I'm initially targeting. I think that is one of the problems with our current ministries, is that they don't appeal to or are not perceived to be of benefit to the younger generations. Our little rural community is not equipped to deal with the mindset of the web 2.0 generation.

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Jeff, I agree with this comment: "I really feel that intimate relationships are a real missing element in our local body." That's one thing that I think small groups foster (the relationships; not the missing element). What you're talking about is essentially the exact thing I'd like to see in our church, and we're taking baby steps to get small groups (in addition to SS) rolling.

We've begun these with our worship team, only once a month so far, but the team is already deepening spiritually because of it.

We've also gotten a couple of men's small groups started in the early AM at Starbucks, and those are way more close-knit (and with deeper discussion) than any SS class I've been in. Probably because the people all want to be there and make great effort to do so.

Interested in reading further comments. Jan is a great resource on this, by the way. Have talked with her briefly about it before. I've found that our "master plan" is going to have to be long-term, and patience is something I struggle with sometimes.

Dean Lusks last blog post..Fall Reading List

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what about a "young adult supper club" to start with? the younger crowd may be responsive to it, and at the same time, the title isn't as threatening to the sunday school groups. eating together can help build community in that age group (that you seem to be lacking)…and having a short devotional during that time would be very appropriate. it could provide the basis for some deep friendships …and all involved may end up in sunday morning study in the end!

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Jeff,
We're faced with the exact same dilemma at out church. A mix of older, traditionalists vs. a younger, more progressive group. My opinion is that the ultimate success of the small group (building community and benefiting the church as a whole) is based on the "membership" each small group. I feel that there needs to be a mix of maturity, experience, etc… in order to benefit the church, as a whole. Otherwise, factions begin, and negative viewpoints are highlighted. I've formed good relationships with people that never would have given me the time of day because were were thrust into a situation that demanded mutual participation. Consequently, there was mutual accpetance and personal growth in the previously mentioned areas.

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