It’s Kerrick Thomas here again, Executive Pastor at The Journey and co-author of Activate with Nelson. He asked me to share my answer to this Small Groups question for you today:

Q:Thanks for taking the time to put your process on paper. Much appreciated. Quick question: How do your support and recovery groups look within the semester system. We too operate on the semester system, but many of our recovery groups have a look and feel of their own due to the nature of the group.

Your thoughts?

A: Thanks for your question. I’m glad that our small groups system has been beneficial to you. That’s the entire reason we wrote Activate in the first place.

To answer your question we do and have had support/recovery groups at The Journey in our semester-based small groups system. However – we run these groups through our semester based small groups system and not separately (not outside the system on an on-going basis as many other churches do).

This can work in two ways:

1) You have a group that meets for 10-12 weeks to support those dealing with a difficult topic that just ends after that semester. An example that we have seen in the past is a group that met for women with eating disorders. We had a couple of leaders who wanted to lead a group on that topic and found a great study. So, they led the group. It filled up. And though they didn’t lead on that topic every semester – those who attended that group were helped and some great life-long friendships and accountability relationships were formed out of the group.

2) You could also have leaders who really feel called to lead groups on specific support/recovery issues. And they lead on that topic semester after semester (with different studies/books). Some people might sign up for that group for muliple semesters. Some might just attend once and not again. But the mix in the group is different from semester to semester. An example of that might be a men’s group meeting on purity/lust issues or a group for those who have struggled with alcohol.

Again – we do have these kinds of groups – but we haven’t formed a separate ministry out of them – but instead operate them within the context of our semester-based small group ministry.

I hope that helps!

God bless…

Kerrick

P.S. For answers to all of your small groups questions, check out The Small Groups Intensive:
https://nelsonsearcy.infusionsoft.com/cart/store.jsp?view=4&i=p285&navicat=39

“Only passions, great passions, can elevate the soul to great things.”
– Denis Diderot, French Philosopher

I’m excited to announce that my next book – Ignite: How to Spark Immediate Growth in Your Church – is now available for pre-order at Amazon.  I wanted to take a moment this morning to share a little sneak peek into what it’s all about.

Here’s the write-up:

Ignite is the ultimate how-to book for church leaders who want to reach more people for Jesus Christ. Pastor and founder of Church Leader Insights, Nelson Searcy, will provide practical, inventive guidelines for bringing first-time guests through the doors.

This book sets forth a step-by-step, biblically grounded, proven plan for creating immediate church growth by utilizing a “Big Day” to mobilize the church for evangelism. This user-friendly guide will show church leaders what they need to do to reach the unchurched in their communities and break through the debilitating growth barriers that are holding them back.

Through the inspiration of testimonies and stories, combined with the down-to-earth, applicable teaching that Searcy readers have come to expect and appreciate, Ignite will give church leaders the tools they desperately need to reach and keep modern-minded, unchurched people to create and sustain growth momentum.

You can order your copy of Ignite: How to Spark Immediate Growth in Your Church by clicking here. 

With the new Star Trek movie coming out in less than a week, I thought it would be a good time to share this quote. I’m planning on seeing it, how about you?

Yes, I’m a trekkie!

“The miracle is this – the more we share, the more we have.”
– Leonard Nimoy, Actor

When I first started The Journey, a long time Pastor in NYC said, “Take the summer off, you can’t grow in the summer.”

I followed that advice our first year and our church almost went under.

The next year, I determined to “plant as many seeds” as possible during the summer months.

And guess what?

We grew during the summer and even more that fall.

I’m going to say more about this in an email blast to our entire network family next week.

But since you’re a friend and “CLI Insider” I wanted to give you advance notice.

I have a new report called “How to Maximize Summer” that contains my lessons about growing through the summer.

Snag it now, before the rush at:

http://www.churchleaderinsights.com/summer/

No-cost. No strings.

I think you’ll find it helpful.

Your friend,
Nelson

P.S. Feel free to forward this link to your friends (or put on your blog or Twitter). Here’s the link to my free “How to Maximize Summer” report:
http://www.churchleaderinsights.com/summer/

P.P.S. Here’s another “insider” advance notice – applications for my new Tele-coaching network are now available. Best to apply now. Learn more at:
http://www.churchleaderinsights.com/coaching/telecoaching.php