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LIFE Group Meeting ≠ LIFE Group

By Paul Wilkinson

At the BACE Conference last week, Tom McCormick, Small Groups Minister at Hope Church in Las Vegas, NV, made the simple but profound point that the group meeting time does not equal the totality of the group. I was convicted that I don’t always talk that way when I talk to our people about LIFE Groups. I generally emphasize the meeting time, something like: LIFE Group X meets at 9:30 on Sunday morning . . . and, oh yeah, they do lots of activities outside of that meeting time too!
What if it were just natural for me to talk about the LIFE Group as a family community that impacted each other’s lives through prayer, breaking bread, and fellowship? Not to mention that we disciple each other according to the Apostle’s teaching as we help each other more fully believe and follow Jesus, be changed by Jesus, and live on mission with Jesus.
What if we began to talk about LIFE Groups and live out our LIFE groups the other way around? Hey, LIFE Group X gathers throughout the week to share meals, support one another, and reflect together about what the Lord is teaching them through prayer and Bible study . . . and, oh yeah, they also gather at 9:30 on Sunday mornings.
Join me in praying for those kinds of groups families.

Paul Wilkinson is the Adult Minister–Groups Associate, Brentwood Baptist Church. Paul attended the 2018 BACE (Baptist Association of Christian Educators) Conference last week in Oklahoma City on Discovering and Developing Leaders.

F Leader , I Leader , L Leader , Paul Wilkinson

Group First Impressions: Armen’s Take

By Paul Wilkinson

As I contemplated the blog for this week, it struck me that I have with me an example of someone who walked into a group without any prior information and stuck to it. Armen is interning in the Adult Discipleship department with me. If you haven’t met him yet, then you will be meeting him in the near future (and if you want a PhD Theologian to chat with, contact him!). I encouraged Armen to visit a group that fits his demographic and compare it with some of the other groups that he had visited on the Brentwood campus and groups he experienced elsewhere. Armen truly felt as if he belonged to the group and has continued to engage with them: building relationships, substitute teaching, and helping with outreach. Here were the 3 major sticking points for Armen:

Community Feel
- I felt encouraged by seeing a group of people who are trying to seek Christ.
Strong Teaching
- A teacher who seeks to tell me what the Bible is saying, and challenging me by asking: are you living out the Bible’s teaching?
Big to Small
- The group made a big church like Brentwood Campus feel small, especially, when I would see people in the hallways that I knew from group (not to mention them sitting together in worship service!).

Keep these points in mind. We do them very well as groups, but we could always make subtle improvements. Do you invite visitors to sit with you in worship or into smaller care groups? Do you have some outreach, invitation initiatives going? What are a few things that you could push between now and summer that might turn GREAT into REALLY GREAT!!
Paul Wilkinson is the Adult Minister–Groups Associate, Brentwood Baptist Church.