{"id":32160,"date":"2022-09-10T15:58:48","date_gmt":"2022-09-10T20:58:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/6-strategies-for-moving-worship-service-attendees-to-small-groups\/"},"modified":"2022-09-10T15:58:48","modified_gmt":"2022-09-10T20:58:48","slug":"6-strategies-for-moving-worship-service-attendees-to-small-groups","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/6-strategies-for-moving-worship-service-attendees-to-small-groups\/","title":{"rendered":"6 Strategies for Moving Worship Service Attendees to Small Groups"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Dylan Gillis photo – Unsplash<\/div>\n

By Ken Braddy<\/em><\/p>\n

Ed Stetzer once said we should seek to move people \u201cout of rows and into circles.\u201d When he said this, he was referring to creating the most important movement in the church\u2014the movement of people from the church\u2019s worship gathering to involvement in Bible study groups.<\/p>\n

People who are involved in Bible study groups serve more, give more, pray more, and are retained at a higher level than those people who aren\u2019t connected to a Bible study group. It\u2019s imperative that churches move people \u201cout of rows and into circles.\u201d<\/p>\n

Forget what you call your Bible study ministry\u2014Sunday school, small groups, community groups, connect groups, or something else\u2014it is the place your church has chosen as a primary means of making disciples.<\/p>\n

Growth happens in groups, so we must be intentional about creating a pathway for people to become involved in the church\u2019s most important ministry.<\/p>\n

To give you some ideas for creating this movement, here are some strategies for encouraging people to step out of worship and take a step towards group life.<\/p>\n

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Talk about groups often from the pulpit <\/strong><\/h3>\n

A tried and true reality in church life is this: If it\u2019s important to the pastor, it becomes important to the church.<\/p>\n

One way pastors can help create movement from the worship service to the church\u2019s Bible teaching ministry is to regularly speak about the importance of belonging to a group from the pulpit.<\/p>\n

My pastor has said regularly, \u201cIf you are going to give the church just one hour on Sundays, please attend a Bible study group and not this worship service.\u201d I admire him for taking that stand.<\/p>\n

He understands that although we have a great worship service with strong biblical preaching, people will ultimately drift away if they aren\u2019t connected to others relationally.<\/p>\n

Promote your upcoming Bible studies<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Most churches use ongoing Bible study curriculum in Bible study groups. The curriculum has a study plan that can be taken advantage of by savvy church leaders.<\/p>\n

Bible Studies for Life<\/em> is created in six-session units of study. Explore the Bible<\/em> normally studies one book of the Bible, sometimes two, every 13 weeks. The Gospel Project<\/em> moves people chronologically through the Bible.<\/p>\n

To create movement out of the worship service, promote attending groups when new studies start. Say to your congregation, \u201cIn two weeks many of our groups begin a new study on the gospel of Mark,\u201d or \u201cMany groups will start a new study on dealing with difficulties in life.\u201d<\/p>\n

Emphasize that you\u2019d love to help connect people to a group at the start of one of these new studies, and that you believe the group would fit them perfectly.<\/p>\n

Invite unconnected members and guests to take a connection card that is normally found in the pews, fill in the information on it, and then write the words \u201cgroups\u201d in large letters and place it in the offering plate.<\/p>\n

Promise to have a group leader from an appropriate group contact the person or couple with an invitation to the new upcoming Bible study.<\/p>\n

Interview individuals and couples about group life<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Attending a group can be intimidating for people who don\u2019t have a background in church life. From time to time, a pastor can really help people understand what happens in Bible study groups by interviewing a person or a couple, or both.<\/p>\n

During the worship service (or perhaps as an illustration used during the sermon) a pastor can interview a few people about their experience in Bible study groups.<\/p>\n

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Helping the unconnected members of the worship service know groups are places where people have fun, care for one another, study the Bible together, and serve in a variety of ways can reduce the barriers that keep people away from Bible study groups.<\/p>\n

Pastors can provide each interviewee with one or two questions in advance of the interview so they can be prepared to respond well.<\/p>\n

If unconnected members hear their peers encouraging them to come and get connected in a group, you might be surprised how much of an impact that can make in creating movement toward groups.<\/p>\n

Emphasize group involvement at your new members\u2019 class<\/strong><\/h3>\n

I lead my church\u2019s new members\u2019 class multiple times each year on one Sunday morning. During this one-day class, I always emphasize how important it is to be involved in a Bible study group.<\/p>\n

I like to cite Thom Rainer\u2019s research that discovered if people don\u2019t attend a Bible study group, over 85% of them cannot be found in five years. I then ask if they want their children growing up unconnected to the church, which of course, they don\u2019t.<\/p>\n

Our church\u2019s Sunday school is experiencing rapid growth, and this is due in part because we are emphasizing belonging to a group during the new members\u2019 class. <\/strong><\/p>\n

Clearly present the options<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Many people who attend our churches begin the journey by looking for information on our church\u2019s websites. It\u2019s wise to make sure people who come to the church\u2019s website find clear information about when and where groups meet.<\/p>\n

Basic information such as the location of the group\u2019s meeting place and constituency are vital. It\u2019s not necessary to put the name of the group online, such as \u201cThe Joy Class,\u201d if it doesn\u2019t tell people who the group is designed for. In fact, it works against connecting people if they see a class name like that but cannot tell who should actually attend the class.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s much better to label a class something like, \u201cMarried Adults 30-35\u201d or \u201cWomen 50-60.\u201d The designation should tell everyone who the group is designed to reach. If people can\u2019t understand their options, they won\u2019t move toward a group, and the movement we want to see dies quickly.<\/p>\n

Have a well-staffed greeter center<\/strong><\/h3>\n

This final strategy is an important one. When guests journey into our churches, they quickly look around for key things like the worship center, restrooms, and an information center.<\/p>\n

When guests drop by the greeter center to get connected to a group, they must be greeted by people who know the options. And one last thing\u2014you must coach your greeters never to point and tell a guest that their classroom is \u201cdown that way.\u201d<\/p>\n

You should have enough workers so that each guest family can be escorted one by one to their classes, starting with the youngest family member.<\/p>\n

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Ken Braddy<\/h2>\n

@KenBraddy<\/p>\n

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Ken is the\u00a0director of Sunday School\u00a0for Lifeway, a church groups practitioner, and author of several books, including Breathing Life Into Sunday School<\/em>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n