By Steve Gladen
When one part of your body isn’t in alignment with the rest, it makes the whole body unhealthy. So how do you keep your small group in alignment with your church? Here are three felt needs of people and how you can meet these needs.
- People need to be involved in church on a regular basis. It is important that your small group members attend your church and sit under the same weekly teaching. The church body receives teaching to live out throughout the week.
- People need to be actively involved in a small group. This extra involvement with the church is important when it comes to living in community as believers. People need fellowship and relationships. Relationships formed in small groups go deeper and have a lasting purpose.
- People need to find an area of ministry that is best suited for them. There is a unique importance to both small groups and church ministries, but they should never be confused with each other. Ministries help people desire responsibility and ownership within the church.
If people are only involved in one of these three areas, they are not allowing the church to function in a healthy way. Each of the three aspects of the church are important, but when they work together, it allows for the whole body to be healthy.
Adapted from Training Pathway: Small Groups. Check out more training videos on Ministry Grid here.
Steve Gladen serves as pastor of small groups at Saddleback Church. He oversees the strategic launch and development of more than 7,000 adult small groups on multiple campuses.
