How to Share Responsibility?

Jonathancavalieri   -  

HELP! How do I help my group members to take ownership of the group?

As a HOST do you ever feel like you are doing it all? Preparing your home, facilitating the conversation, coordinating serving opportunities, getting the bread and juice for communion, planning summer hangouts, emailing the prayer requests, and researching what study to do next…the list could go on. Doing everything is too much for one person and even more important, that’s not the way small groups are designed!

Each member has a vital role in the small group and you, as the HOST, have a great opportunity to help members realize their unique contribution to the group.

God has given each of us a unique S.H.A.P.E. which includes our Spiritual Gifts, heart, abilities, personality, and experiences. Have a conversation with each group member about their S.H.A.P.E. and talk about how they can contribute to the group. A Connect Group, just like any team, needs the members playing positions where they can best help the team be successful.

Here is an idea…encourage the group members to champion one of the purposes they are most passionate about to help your group as a whole balance all five of the purposes.

  1. Serving: Think about who in your group is passionate about serving. Ask them to coordinate monthly or quarterly serving opportunities.
  2. Discipleship: Who in your group is passionate about discipleship? Have them research new studies and present them to the group when you are ready for a new series.
  3. Worship: Have the person who is passionate about worship organize the times your group takes communion. This person might also facilitate the prayer request email sent to everyone after group.
  4. Community: Who in your group is all about the fellowship hang outs? Have them coordinate the monthly or quarterly times your group gets together for summer BBQs, concert nights, beach days, or dinner parties!
  5. Sharing Faith: Have the person who is passionate about evangelism remind your group each meeting to pray for friends and family who do not have a relationship with Jesus yet. This person can lead the group each meeting for 5 minutes to talk about the intentional conversations the group members are having with non-believers and how each group member is building relationships with their communities.

Some more ideas to help group members take ownership…

  1. Food / Snacks: Think about who in your group has the gift of hospitality. Encourage them to create a food calendar to share the responsibility of beverages and snacks.
  2. Sharing HOST duties: Have you thought about rotating the group facilitator? Do you always find yourself asking the questions and leading the conversation? Have someone in your group create a schedule that gives each member a meeting time when they facilitate the group. You can help them prepare by encouraging them to take a look at the session before they arrive, select a few discussion questions from the guide, and be equipped with a few tips to engage each member in conversation.

If you are a HOST looking for more tips on how to get your group take ownership, please connect with me at jonathan@mstarqtown.org