This is Kerrick Thomas once again – Executive Pastor at The Journey and co-author of Activate: An Entirely New Approach to Small Groups with Nelson. Nelson asked me to follow-up on the following question regarding the semester-based small groups that we use and recommend:
We have been using one type of model for small groups (ongoing) and one type for some on-campus studies (semester based). We have definitely seen the most growth in the semester based system and have decided to merge the 2 models under one umbrella. Your book has been a great resource as we are processing through how that would look.
My question is this…In listening to your online seminar you mentioned that some experts have said that when you reach the 4,000 to 5,000 range of participants that your model will begin to break down. Have you given any thought to the adjustments you will have to make?
We currently have about 1500 people in groups, but an average weekly attendance of about 4500 adults and students (another 1000 kids). I expect we could bump that upper “limit” in the next year to year and a half. Any thoughts?
This is a great question. However, we don’t see why there would be any problems with the Activate semester-based small group system past 5,000 people. It just hasn’t been attempted yet. The people who said they weren’t sure if the system would work at a larger church were not using the system (they were doing on-going small groups). And honestly I think they said that as an excuse not to put in the work to give it a shot.
If a college can effectively enroll 30,000 students for a semester of classes – I don’t see why a church couldn’t get 5,000-10,000 people in small groups each semester.
The key is to have a scalable structure in two areas:
1) You must have total staff involvement. You aren’t just hiring people to do groups – but every staff person has a small group responsibility (that’s only a small part of their job description). So, as your staff grows to reflect the size of the church – the number of staff who are helping run the system grows as well. And each staff can effectively manage and help set up 15-25 small groups each semester each.
2) You must be constantly raising up new small group leaders. And that’s the best part of the semester-based system. With every new group you add the potential for raising up new future leaders is multiplied.
These are two issues we are going to cover in-depth in the upcoming Small Groups Tele-Coaching Network that Nelson and I will be leading. I would encourage you to consider being a part of it if you guys are implementing this model – I think it will be helpful.
You can read more about the Coaching Network and get an application at this link:
http://www.churchleaderinsights.com/coaching/smallgroupstelecoaching.php
It is just about to begin and consists of one 2-hour phone call each month for 8 months – please fill out an application if you are interested.
God bless…
Kerrick
P.S. For another great resource to give you an in-depth look at what’s involved in implementing semester-based small groups at your church, purchase a copy of the The Small Groups Intensive.
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