There are a few common problems every small group ministry faces. At Life.Church, some creative solutions have helped us learn to conquer these obstacles.

Staffing

One familiar predicament is how much staff should be devoted specifically to small groups. We always lean on the side of a smaller staff. We’re able to do this by empowering key volunteer leaders. When you’re considering staff additions, it’s important to look beyond just the number of small groups at your church. Building a solid volunteer leadership structure enables you to grow your small group ministry without adding staff members.

Attendance

Another common difficulty is getting people to join a small group. We’ve found that it’s easier to create momentum when you have a clear vision and direction. If you’re only working to create new small groups, your efforts will likely fizzle. Rather than focusing on spawning more and more groups, it’s often better to create awareness of existing small groups that are open to new members.

By encouraging people to join a small group first instead of lead one right off the bat, you’ll be able to introduce them to effective volunteer leadership. Some will even be empowered to start their own small groups because of the way leadership was modeled to them. This strategy allows you to leverage the strength of your leaders and ministry.

Awareness

The next challenge is how to generate that awareness. At Life.Church, we devote two primary seasons to intentionally promoting small groups and recruiting leaders. During these seasons, we focus on leveraging the message series with video promotion, resources, and lobby elements to create awareness for small group opportunities. Using any built-in momentum is vital to inspiring your attenders to be in God-centered community.