Serving Together at the Worship Service

Asking your groups to serve together at the worship service at least once a semester is a great way to integrate groups into the complete life of the church. You can consider asking groups to serve no matter how many you have, but this will work especially well for churches with more than twenty groups. You’ll be giving your group members an opportunity to invest in the worship experience by serving in key volunteer positions, which will spark a feeling of responsibility toward the church. Relationships (small groups) and responsibility (serving) are two of the most important factors for assimilation.

So how does the serving work?

Identify the areas in your church where people with limited training can simply show up and serve. At The Journey, this means serving as a greeter, manning the refreshments table, handing out programs, or acting as an usher.
Assign each group to a worship service and give them a set time to show up for a brief training. We ask them to be there an hour before the service starts.
When the group arrives, give the training and assign people to specific roles.
Debrief after the service and ask how you could improve the experience.
Encourage the groups who serve to grab coffee or lunch together after the service.
Use this opportunity as a way to encourage people to serve on a regular basis.

– Nelson Searcy and Kerrick Thomas, with Jennifer Dykes Henson

The above excerpt is from p. 290-291 of Activate: An Entirely New Approach to Small Groups.

Drawing from the startling success of small groups at The Journey Church, Nelson Searcy and Kerrick Thomas debunk the myths, set the record straight, and show how church leaders can implement a healthy small group ministry that gets the maximum number of people involved and solves many of the important problems facing churches of all sizes. These practical strategies will produce life-changing results.

P.S. – Click here to grab your copy from Amazon today!

Your partner in ministry,

Nelson

About Nelson Searcy

Nelson Searcy is an experienced church growth strategist, pastor, church planter and coach, consulting with churches around the world. As founder of Church Leader Insights and the Renegade Pastors Network, he has personally trained more than 3,500 church leaders in over 45 denominations through live events, seminars and monthly coaching. Nelson is also the Founding and Lead Pastor of The Journey Church, with locations across New York City and in Boca Raton, FL. Nelson and his church routinely appear on lists such as “The 50 Most Influential Churches” and “The 25 Most Innovative Leaders.” He is the author of over 100 church growth resources and 18+ books, including The Renegade Pastor: Abandoning Average in Your Life, Ministry and The Difference Maker: Using Your Everyday Life for Eternal Impact, and At the Cross with the People Who Were There. He and his wife, Kelley, have one son, Alexander.