MONTH 12Connection Points

ByDr. Owen Weston DMin, PhD.

What is the next big event on the calendar for which we can challenge our congregation to bring friends?• Plan the event (when, what, how, who)• How to bring the crowds

(from the congregation / marketing)• Getting people involved

(in production, in preparation)• Getting the program ready

(who is in charge and who is helping)• Getting the people ready

(love the visitors)

Summary of 11 month: Children and Nursery.

1. Most growing churches will need to have a growing children’s and nursery ministry where parents and children are excited to be involved.

2. Churches grow when young families like what the children’s program is doing for and with their children.

3. Successful Children’s programs involve parents4. Good programs have a decor like Disney World

Summary of 11 month: Children and Nursery.

5. Director of children’s ministry, paid or volunteer must have a call and love to work with children.

6. Children and nursery must have the 5-fold teams with the help of aids running them.

7. Its imperative that the children have fun 8. Age specific learning and activities is a must. 9. Children need to take their activity sheet home10. A secure, clean, health driven facility is necessary.

MONTH 12 Connection Points

• How to have successful Small Groups, the key to growing churches:

Baseball diamond strategy Sunday School Success Task oriented Term scheduled Free-market driven

No successful church has been able to stay alive without small groups of one type or another:• Sunday School was the most common.• Ministry groups, like Praise and Worship teams

or Choirs were also common• Men’s and Women’s ministry could sometimes

be called a small group.• Prayer teams, Bible study could also be small

groups

SO WHAT IS A “SMALL GROUP?”• A Church “Small Group” is any 4 or more persons

getting together on a regular basis (at least once a month), to do a ministry or task in which they get to interact with each other (connection point).

- if it is less than 4 participants, it is not a effective small group

- There is great debate as to when a small group is too large to be a Small Group ( normally around 14-25, but Some could be 50+)

Small Groups must have a purpose for existence – there are 3 types: 1. Prayer and Bible study2. Fellowship and fun3. Ministry or task

The BEST “Small Groups” combine aspects of all 3 e.g. prayer, fellowship, and taskGroups that just focus on one are harder to

maintaine.g. Sunday School that only has “1”, prayer and Bible without Fellowship or fun nor Ministry or Task, struggles to survive.

• It is interesting that when the church was started in Acts 2:46-47, it had large meetings and small groups: “So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, 47 praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.(NKJV)”

• Notice the small groups had Fellowship and Fun, (ate food), Prayer (praising God), Outreach Ministry (Lord added souls daily).

The Process: Base Ball Diamond or…• Whatever Small Group ministry you have, do you have

a schedule that shows what a person will achieve and how they should proceed through these groups?

• Saddleback church introduced the “Base Ball Diamond” strategy. A person will start on 1st base and then proceed to 2nd, 3rd until they reached home – the ultimate goal for disciples.

• Its imperative that the steps necessary to become a disciple are clearly shown and how and why one should follow these.

• In “24 to Double” we have encouraged churches to use the Pastor’s Class or Breakfast as the first small group. The Pastor’s small group introduces a new-comer to the vision of the church, why we are Christians, how to become a disciple (involved) through knowing our Spiritual Gifts and then helping them to be trained in the small group of their passion.

• This is when the new-comer, after finishing the pastors group, starts as a leader in a task or ministry oriented small group.

• A Leader is one who is using their gifts, whether its an Apostolic gift or the gifts of Helps and service, to do ministry in the church.

• Again Small groups that are long-term, longer than a semester, like a Sunday School class, should be structured with the 5-fold model: Administrator (helped by a Secretary/treasurer), Fellowship leader or coordinator, Outreach coordinator or Evangelist leader, Pastoral care, and Teacher.

• Small groups that operate for one semester at a time should be under a 5-Fold leadership structure overseeing and coordinating all these type of Small Groups. In future “24 to Double” training, we will eventually call this leadership team over all Small Groups, “Team Six”.

• Team 7, Children and Nursery, is also a part of Small Groups but by necessity it stands alone as separate team. In larger churches Youth will also be taken out of Small Groups and stand alone.

• Studies show that even Sunday School classes should start over every year to give people “a way out” and opportunity to try other classes.

• All other Small Groups should start over and enroll new students each semester for the same reason as above.

• Some Small Groups by their very nature can only be offered in the summer. E.G. Summer Missions trip. Most small groups do not meet in the summer, but start again in the Fall.

• Twice a year, at the beginning of each semester, “Small Group enrolment rallies” are offered after church. Leaders who are trained and approved, have booths set up to “sway” people to be a part of their small group that semester.

• These are normally for the “Free-market” Small Groups, the church plans to have that semester. These groups are as varied as one can imagine.

• Free-market small groups can be anything from Bible Study to Biking, baking, or bowling, etc. Any person who has an idea for a small group, is willing to learn how to lead, and can gather at least 3 others to be involved in the group, can have a group that semester.

• If a Group involves new people, brings new people to the church or performs a specified task, it can be offered again next semester.

YOUTH SMALL GROUPS• The youth program needs to be one of the strongest

small groups or connection groups in the church. It is to have the same type of Small group and team structure as the Adult church. In fact we have found the youth do a better job at doing this than the adults.

• The youth need to have the 7 teams made up of youth. These teams, like all the adult church teams, will need to have the 5-Fold leadership structure in operation along with a secretary and treasurer (gifted with the gift of “helps and service”).

• Just to remind us, youth gifted in the 5-Fold means a youth with the administration gift for the Administrator, another with the teaching gift for the Teacher, the Outreach-coordinator with the mercy or evangelistic gift, Pastoral care with the pastor or encouragement gift and Fellowship-coordinator, normally prophetically gifted.

• The youth have the same job description for these positions as the adult church.

• The youth program will need a front door team to help youth feel welcome. They will need a follow-up team doing what the adult team does, but to bring youth back.

• The only team that is different is the Children’s and Nursery team where the youth are asked to have youth volunteer for the children’s and nursery ministries of the church.

• Youth, as has been pointed out in previous monthly training, are also asked to help at the front doors, during adult church services and in the adult music program as needed.

• Youth are to have Connection or Small Groups as described in this month’s training only with adult supervision.

• Youth programs need to be exciting, activity centered, with lots of fun, food and games, decided and run by the youth, but chaperoned (not run) by adults

• NOTE: Nationally, the average youth Pastor’s tenure is around 2 years, so the church that trains a youth program in this model, is not only developing strong future church leaders but developing their youth pastor into a successful future senior pastors.

Summary of Month 12

• A “Small Group” is any 4 or more persons getting together on a regular basis (at least once a month), to do a ministry or task in which they get to interact with each other

• It is imperative that the steps necessary to become a disciple and get involved are clearly shown

Summary continued

• Team 6 structured with the 5-fold must be set up to handle Free-market short-term small groups.

• Long-term groups, lasting a year, like Sunday School, need their own 5-fold in each class.

Summary continued

• Free-market groups can be any ministry, task, activity, small group chosen and completed each semester.

• Having rallies twice a year after Sunday morning services for the church to sign up for small groups leads to a lot of excitement and energy in the church.

Summary continued• Youth ministry should be one of the strongest

small groups in the church• Youth ministry needs to be structure with the 7

teams like the adult church.• The youth program needs to be run by the 5-Fold

in each team made up of youth with the corresponding gifts.

• Youth need to run their own program and thereby raise up leaders and future pastors.

Next Month 13 or 2nd year first month• How to double your crowd with 2 services or

with starting a satellite campus• Why 2 Services or sites?

Double your crowdDouble your venueDouble your optionsDouble your disciples– workersReach a new “Demographic”Really conquering your city or area for Christ

• The right and wrong way of going to 2 Services or 2 sites