More practical help with dynamics

I came across a blog post today and thought it fit nicely with the topic of our last Leadership Development (group dynamics). If you're having difficulty getting some people to contribute to the discussion, Allen White has a few tips for you - Getting People To Talk

March Leadership Development

Hey, friends...in case you missed the last Leadership Development, here are the basics. The topic was leading in difficult dynamics. We brainstormed a list of challenging group dynamics, covered a few basic principles (here are the notes - Dynamics worksheet - with notes), then spent the rest of the time discussing specific dynamics around tables and sharing our best thoughts with each other. Here are a few practical take aways that surfaced:

• For the over-talker - focus their energy by asking them to help others engage in the discussion (give them something to do other than share their thoughts)
• For sporadic attendance - ask people to own part of the agenda or provide something particular for the group so that they have a stronger reason to show up
• For child care - rotate a different adult with the kids every 15 minutes so that no one misses too much of the group time and the kids are always supervised

These are just a few of the great ideas that surfaced from the table discussions. If you're facing a difficult dynamic in your group, I encourage you to talk with your coach or other leaders and get their ideas and input. There are solutions out there!

Dave

p.s. - you can always call (402-938-1562) or email me (davei@cccomaha.org) too!

March Leadership Development

As leaders, we all run into those tricky situations and moments when we're not exactly sure how to lead the group. Those dynamics can derail a small group meeting and make the best of us doubt our leadership ability. But it doesn't have to be that way! I hope you can join me on Sunday, March 6, from 6:00 - 7:30 PM in EC 188 at the Old Mill campus for Leadership Development to discuss how we can lead in these dynamics so that our groups thrive and our leadership stays strong.

Curriculum resource

Here's a curriculum resource you may want to check out. It's a 7 session DVD based curriculum from Ray Vander Laan. I really appreciated his earlier material in That The World May Know, and this seems to be of the same high quality and depth. Check out Walking with God in the Desert here.

Notes from Bill Donahue

In case you missed the last Leadership Development night on 1/30, let me give you the basic idea. Bill Donahue spoke to us on the topic of developing apprentice leaders in our Journey Groups. Our Journey Groups are the most fertile ground for new leaders. This matters because of what we value - people connecting in community so that they grow in their relationships with God and others. Because we value this so strongly, we will be driven to develop new leaders so that more and more people can connect in a Journey Group. Here are the notes I took during Bill's talk. Also, if you haven't picked up your copy of Bill Donahue's book Leading Life Changing Small Groups, stop by the Journey Group booth in the atrium some Sunday and grab one (1 per group). He focuses on this topic in section 3 of the book. It's great stuff!

Unrelated Items

Here are a couple big items from the Journey Group world...

1. I have learned of an opportunity to show love and support to a family in need. The situation is a young mother leaving an unhealthy home with 4 kids (all under the age of 6!). They are living with family so the basics are covered, but they won't have much of a Christmas this year. I'm wondering if one or more of our Journey Groups would/could adopt this family for Christmas. If your group wants to help out, drop me an email or give me a call.
2. Make sure that Saturday, January 8, is highlighted on your calendar for the Mid-year Journey Group Huddle. This will be a key time to come together as a whole team to remember the great importance of what we do as leaders, to be encouraged, and to hone our skills so that we can serve and lead at full impact. Keep an eye out for the e-vite coming soon!

Attractional vs. Missional

At our most recent leadership development session we were talking about these two basic approaches to outreach. Both are easy to identify. Both are even modeled for us in scripture. But which would you say describes the ideal strategy? Attractional is best seen in the crowd affect of Jesus gaining greater and greater numbers attracted to himself as he went public with his message and power. People were drawn to him like a magnet – not just to see the miracles, but to hear the teaching and learn about the kingdom he was powerfully demonstrating. Come and See is a good summary of the attractional model.

Jesus also propelled people away from him in missional ministry. After the 12 had been with him a while, he empowered them to go preach about the kingdom. Missional ministry equips people to go and tell. Go and serve. Take the kingdom everywhere people are who need Jesus.

Wouldn’t it be great if we could harness the power of BOTH. As you look at your ministry – your group – which model are you drawn to? Does your group attract seekers who can be led to faith in Jesus? When you look at the Christians in your group, what potential do you see for equipping those people to take the mission outward from your group.

Take a few minutes to glance through the handout you’ll find here: Leadership Development 11-07-10 Evangelism

Be sure to look ahead at what’s coming up in Jan 2011 between Lee Strobel’s visit to CCC and Easter. Those three months will hold a lot of opportunity for enriching your ministry with attractional and missional evangelistic energy! Get in front of your group with the tools and options Tim has outlined in the handout above. Stay tuned for more details about Lee Strobel, The Jesus Class, Intersections evangelism training and Mark Ashton’s evangelistic message series in March and April.

November Leadership Development

Last night we hosted the Leadership Development for November and it was a great night. I was excited to see so many leaders there and encouraged/challenged by the discussions we had about evangelism in our groups. Tim Perry's notes will be available soon, but I wanted to go ahead and post two resources that we presented to help develop evangelism as a central element in your Journey Group.

One of the resources is the Initiates Interest in the Gospel series of our RISKS material. This 6 session material explores different Biblical metaphors of evangelism (like the sower) and is available for free on our website at http://cccomaha.org/journey-group-resources.php

The other resource is the Intersections material that CCC has developed over the last several years. This training gives you the tools you need to seize opportunities to share your faith and the gospel. We'll be highlighting this more at our mid-year training in January and I would encourage every Journey Group to use the 6 session study at some point between January and May. If you want more info right now, contact Tim Perry at timp@cccomaha.org

Serve Together

One of the consistent remarks we heard through the survey at the end of last year was "my group needs to serve together more." With that in mind, I wanted to make sure you were aware of the service opportunities that are available through CCC right now. Click over to the home page and look for the Extend a Helping Hand link in the news feeds for the list of opportunities. Discuss the options and decide as a group which project you want to support. Dave

Key November Dates

Hey Everybody, I hope you're having a great week so far! I wanted to touch base with you on a couple key dates in November for Journey Groups. November 7 - this is our second leadership development night. On 10/3, we discussed how our character impacts our leadership ability. On 11/7 we will be discussing how to lead our groups so that we keep a healthy emphasis on evangelism. We'll meet from 6:00 pm - 7:30 pm in EC 188 at the Old Mill campus.

November 15 & 22 - this is more of an FYI since it doesn't directly deal with existing Journey Group leaders. These are the days we are planning to host orientation for new leaders to be ready to go in January. I am currently working to identify the new leaders for this orientation. If you have any suggestions, pass them along and I'll follow up with the individuals. Pray with me that God will call out and raise up the leaders we need. The need is great, but our God is greater!

If there is anything I can do for you or your group, don't hesitate to reach out to me.

Dave