Archive for Groups serving

What about Students and Kids?

By Jay Barbier · Comments (0)
Saturday, April 25th, 2020

I was recently reading “It begins with Prayer” by Dwayne McCrary of LifeWay. It made me start wondering why students and kids have been left out of the equation when it comes to ministry. We include them in the group to reach and teach them but far too many times we as disciples of Jesus exclude them in the work of ministry. Is this a result of lack of trust or possibly the lack of intentional effort in making disciples? We as a church have made the Great Commission, Matthew 28:19, a classroom experience instead of practical application. You see, the thrust and the emphasis in this verse of scripture is MAKE and you do this AS YOU GO. One of the greatest ways to learn is by doing. This is what Jesus did! As He lived His life He brought along 12 others and taught them how to love God and love others. Jesus poured out His life into His disciples and He has called us to do the very same thing.

I’ve heard so many churches say the Youth are the future of the church, but we know the correct response is they are the church now if they have put their faith and trust in Christ. Maybe the reason so many teens stop coming to church after High School is because we have excluded them in the very thing that helps people build community and stay involved in church their entire life. I wholeheartedly believe serving is one of the main factors for people to build friendships, grow in discipleship, and actively become a part of the local community.

So what about students and kids? I’m glad you asked! We can involve our younger Christ followers by including them in almost every area of church ministry. Think of this, how about we teach our Youth how to be a part of evangelism by bringing them with us as we visit and lead others to Christ. We can teach them about caring by allowing them to make contacts through small groups. This list could go on for a long time. Serving matters, we must be intentional in involving students and kids in ministry as we go!

Written by Jay Barbier, Youth Specialist, Tennessee Baptist Mission Board

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Creating Care Groups That Serve Others

By Clint Calvert · Comments (0)
Friday, April 24th, 2020

Now more than ever people need care. How can the church effectively provide this care? People in the church need to be organized and trained to care for one another, their neighbors, and isolated, hurting people.

In the past, Sunday Schools or small groups might be organized in terms of care groups. These care groups were designed to discover the needs of people in the Sunday School class or small group to be sure the needs got met. The expectation to meet these needs might be shared with other church leaders or the pastor.

Two shifts are needed. The first shift needed is for the group itself to respond to the need once it is discovered. The second shift is for the needs of people who have never attended the group to be considered as a means of ministry and outreach to them. The pressure people are now experiencing presents an opportunity to address church and community needs differently.

Care groups may not be a new idea to your church. But shifting the expectation for service to the care group itself might be. Consider these steps in re-framing your care groups from needs discovery to needs meeting groups:

  • Determine the number of care group leaders needed and expectations for them
  • Enlist care group leaders and provide training for them.
  • Create care groups by organizing people by geography, life situation, or interest.
  • Balance the care groups mixture of regular, sporadic, and never-attenders.
  • Provide regular feedback for care group leaders so they can learn through serving

The need for care is not the only need people have. People also have a need to serve. People need the spiritual growth that comes from serving others. If the need for serving others is understood as a means to spiritual growth, people may start finding value in serving.

Written by Clint Calvert, Church Leadership Catalyst,  Minnesota-Wisconsin Baptist Convention.

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Connecting Service and Prayer

By Bobby Howard · Comments (0)
Sunday, April 19th, 2020

Over the years, I’ve heard countless believers who have served “on mission” make statements like this: “I went into this experience planning to give to others, but I received so much more from this experienced than I could ever have given.”  In my ministry, this has pertained to students serving meals at a homeless shelter or at a day camp on an international mission trip, adults doing various local work projects, medical professionals involved in a medical mission experience, and even people serving in weekly church ministry roles.

A foundational presupposition for many of us is that Bible teaching, reaching the lost, and serving in various ministry roles are keys to a healthy Sunday School or Small Group Ministry.  In It Begins With Prayer, Dwayne McCrary highlights some advantages to countering a consumerism mentality when encouraging people to be involved and serving in a group ministry.  The idea is to avoid inviting people to be a part of the group in order to be loved and ministered to and instead invite them to be a part of a group where they can serve and make a difference for the sake of the Kingdom of God.  

So, what is the connection between serving and prayer?  There are at least two important connections.  One involves motives and the other involves wisdom and discernment to discover the most effective ways to serve the Lord and use one’s spiritual gifts.  

In terms of motives for serving, McCrary clarifies how motive can be determined by asking if the only reason we are serving is in order to get something in return which he says will “reveal our motives and who we really love . . . . ourselves .”  It is in the context of prayer that we can seek God’s will and ask Him to reveal the motives of our heart so we can assure we are serving in a Christlike manner.  A memorable quote from McCrary is, “When we invest in others with the intent of helping them become all God wants them to be, then we become all God wants us to be.”  Prayerfulness about motives for serving is vital.

Another consideration is that many believers busy themselves with too many things, often even “good” things, at the expense of God’s best for us in terms of using our unique giftedness for ministry service.  In fervent and faithful prayer, God can grant wisdom and discernment to help us make decisions about opportunities for serving in various capacities. To haphazardly make choices about serving in regular roles in a church or missions context can essentially lead to ineffectiveness, burnout, and frustration.  Who would not want to be serving in a way that places us in the center of the Lord’s will?  Assuming no one would want this, it’s easy to see how prayer, as a key spiritual discipline for a believer, is a vital aspect of determining the scope of ministry service. Leaders in our Sunday School and Small Group ministries can strengthen the health of the group by modeling and advocating for prayer as a key part of serving others.

Written by Bobby Howard, Church Strengthening – Generations: Adult, South Carolina Baptist Convention

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