How To Create And Lead A Small Study or Discussion Group
There are many tips, principles, and do’s and don’ts, but
here is a sample of how I put together a “study” or “discussion” for a small
group.
·
What scripture are you exploring? Research it as much as possible.
·
Ask unique, searching questions to draw everyone
in right at the beginning.
o
They can be light or fun to begin with
o
They can progress to something much deeper
o
Spend most of your time crafting GOOD
questions….it is more than half the battle.
·
Ask the questions, and don’t anticipate the
responses. You must be willing to allow
the group to take you some places you had not anticipated going. That is the freshness, and fun of a small group.
·
Somewhere, ask for personal, specific
applications or illustrations. They can be positive or negative, but they must
be real life, real experience examples
and applications.. No general or
hypothetical stuff…it is worse than boring and helps no one. Include people’s stories! What can you do with this discussion THIS
WEEK?
·
Let the flow take you to the conclusion of your
time. Try something new….go with a
hunch….take a risk and go with your gut feeling of how to end. Allow spiritual
gifts to be expressed.
A jump start for you:
sample study
TITLE: MOVING ON!
Phil 3:13 “forgetting what is behind, and looking forward to
what lies ahead, I press on…..”
·
What is your favorite childhood memory…of an
event or experience? (hint: I would ask this BEFORE reading the text....let a good participation question lead INTO the scripture)
·
When is the first time you can remember feeling
DEEP sorrow? What was the occasion and
what conclusions did you draw from it?
Were your takeaways from that time accurate or faulty? Are they still affecting you today?
·
Sometimes we must “de-construct” things in our
past, and re-construct them with accurate information in order to be free to move
FORWARD. We can get stuck in our
childhood emotions and find it difficult to move forward, as this scripture is
urging us to.
·
Stories.
How do you relate to this? What
do you need to do to move ahead, rather than continue to live in the past? What
can you do, or at least begin to do, right now?
From here, you may go several directions. Be sensitive to your group. Go with the LIFE
that is surfacing. I have not done this
particular study like this…I am just at Starbucks thinking it through and
jotting it down. You can do the same
thing. Get a passage….give it a try!
Happy group leading!