Leading A Study or Discussion Group

 

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!