The Community Groups at Lincroft Bible Church meet twice per month. As groups pastor, I believe that every model and method has its pros and cons. For our busy Northeastern culture, having groups twice a month has some distinct advantages. One of those is that it gives great flexibility and freedom to the group leaders. They can…
A Ministry Discussion with Jordan Jones, Pt. 2
This series of posts is based upon an email exchange with my friend who is also a pastor in Northern Kentucky, Jordan Jones. He oversees the youth ministry of his church, while I primarily oversee the Community Groups at mine. To see where God is at work in our churches and lives, we are discussing various…
Simple Small Groups–A Short Review
While most small group literature is of the, “Hey, this worked for me! So you should do it my way!” variety, Simple Small Groups by Bill Search is refreshingly…well…simple. Instead of providing a new model or method, Search wants to help make whatever model a church is using better (p. 13). In other words, Search’s advice…
Don’t Lift up Goals, Lift Up Jesus
If you want to inspire people to the mission of God, you must lift up the Son. When we grasp the glory of Jesus, it becomes the sustaining inspiration that transform life. Isaiah was inspired by seeing Jesus in the temple (Isa. 6:1-8). Peter was inspired by seeing Jesus after his resurrection (Acts 1:1-11). Paul…
Your Small Group Model Probably Won’t Work in Jersey
I’m almost six months in as Pastor of Community and Outreach at Lincroft Bible Church. My first big task was re-launching the small group ministry (now: Community Groups). The church had three groups already in existence when I got here, so I wasn’t operating from a clean slate. Here’s what I have learned so far.…