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Following a LIFEgroup Agenda
(having a chart before the course)

I have five children. Each of them have successfully learned to ride a bicycle. I think the first one suffered the greatest harm as I learned some trial and error lessons at his painful expense. In fact I still didn't have it all figured out when my third son had just mastered riding his two wheeler. I took Josh and his older siblings dirt biking down by a local hot spot called Dry Creek. At one point Josh hesitated at the top of the hill after his two brothers and I hauled down this steep dirt road. His eyes were huge as he looked down at us. I encouraged him to be brave and follow. Unfortunately, Josh's fear dominated him half way down the dirt road, he forgot how to use his brakes. Then he forgot how to steer the bike straight, and veered into the soft dirt, his front wheel stuck and he crashed hard onto the soft dirt next to a vineyard of grapes. Some boys near us at the time yelped in awe as they watched Josh fly through the air and crash dramatically. As I rushed to my tearful son, he looked me in the eye and said, "Dad, you almost killed me." I think I have had LIFEgroup leaders feel the same way about me in the past when I launched them into leading a study without adequately giving them direction and support.

Like riding a bicycle, learning how to start and safely stop, there are essential elements that contribute to a successful LIFEgroup study. These guidelines are not meant to restrict, but to give confidence as a leader gains confidence and experience, then it becomes easier to become creative in setting agendas for each meeting.

There are certainly times in a LIFEgroup when it becomes apparent that the Lord has another agenda for the evening. Like Jesus, at times like that we need to say, "not my will but Thy will be done."

Merriam-Webster defines agenda as:
1. a list or outline of things to be considered or done <agendas of faculty meetings>
2. an underlying often ideological plan or program <a political agenda>

A LIFEgroup agenda I have found very useful is called the 4W's:

Welcome
Worship
Word
Works

1. Welcome (15 minutes):

The welcome sets the tone for the rest of the meeting. Each welcome should include 1)welcoming all visitors, 2)reviewing the purpose of the meeting and 3)an opening question.

Welcoming visitors "breaks the ice" with them so everyone else will know their name and they can be drawn into the group discussion. Don't make a big deal of them being there, or embarrass them in any way. Simply recognize their presence and let them know that you are glad they are there.

When people come to the group, it is important that I give them time to unwind, take their minds off of the stresses from work, and begin to focus on the Lord and His desire for the evening. Often I use a simple "ice breaker" question to give people an opportunity get to know one another better. Here are a few examples:

What foreign country would you like to visit? Why?
What's the story behind the longest time you've gone without sleep?
Describe the circumstances around your first kiss.
Who is the most famous person you've known or met?  How did it happen?
When I go into a restaurant, what I really like most is ____________.
When I dated, I was considered ____________ because ________________.
If you could do one miracle (other than make the whole world Christian) what would you do?
What do you miss about your childhood?
If given a choice, how would you choose to die? How do you not want to die?
What is your biggest fear of death?

The welcome allows people to warm up to one another. Those with limited Bible knowledge can easily engage in these questions and participate.

The purpose of each meeting is to experience Jesus' presence, power, and identify His purposes for our lives for this week. When we experience Jesus in this way we are drawn more into our mission to "reach seekers and nurture believers." It is important to remind the group of these purposes often. Without these reminders, it is easy to become a social gathering instead of the body of Christ.

An opening question is imperative almost every week. This question draws everyone into conversation and introduces the theme for the evening. Your weekly Bible study will usually include one or two possible opening questions, but feel free to use your own. Try to avoid using general questions like "tell us what your week was like?" Although sometimes these questions work very well, it is easy to get in the habit of spending the first 30-45 minutes just catching up about mundane things that don't increase our understanding of one another or God.

2. Worship (20 minutes):

Each LIFEgroup is designed to help people connect with the Lord, and become consciously aware of the Lord's presence. Helping people to focus on the Lord during this time means more than turning the lights down and putting on a worship CD. You do not need to be a skillful worship leader to bring people into the presence of the Lord. I believe that worship is more "heart" than "art." This means that if you will genuinely enter into the Lord's presence, you will be a tool that God can use to lead others into His presence. At this point it is good to read Scripture (Psalm 100 is a good place to start). Like Mary, we want to seek the better thing, enjoying the presence of the Lord in our midst. This is a key time for the group to begin to focus spiritually, and turn from socializing with one another.

Great resources include Worship CDs developed by "WholeHearted Worship." Doing Life Together DVDs combines beautiful video backgrounds, onscreen words and a wonderful reason to purchase a big screen TV, only for the purpose of having worship in the home (of course).

These resources make it possible for you to incorporate worship in your LIFEgroup even if you do not have someone in your group who plays the guitar or piano. anyone can operate a CD /DVD player and encourage the group to enter into a time of worship through song.

For those of you who are blessed with "live worship" through guitar or piano, it is important to make sure that the worship leader always provides song sheets. There are few things more alienating than for a new person to be the only one who does not know the songs.

Consider assigning someone in your group to prepare for the worship time each week so that there are smooth transitions from song to song, reading of scripture, leading into a time of prayer. I have often had people read the song prior to singing it to help people think more clearly about what they are singing.

Commonly, after the welcome time, I will ask the group to begin to pray. Then after an appropriate period of time, I transition into a time of singing praises to the Lord. I also encourage groups to simply begin praying. I encourage people to pray specifically, clearly and in short prayers. Rather than spending time explaining our prayer concerns, if we clearly articulate our prayers, there is no need for explaination in advance. How often have we spent so much time talking about the prayer needs that we run short on time to actually pray.

Worship in the group will vary week to week depending on your group. Sometimes it will be so sweet to sit at the Fathers feet that worship will take 30-40 minutes and seem like it was only 5. Other times it will feel forced or strained. That is OK. Don't let it get you down. It could be an indication that the group has burdens and concerns that are preoccupying them. This is where leadership is so essntial in identifying the obstacle and leading them to focus more finely on the Lord.

3. Word (40 minutes)

The Word of God is living and active. It is God's truth that will change lives. Jesus said, "You shall know the truth and the truth will set you free (John 8:32)." The Word of God is the final authority for our lives and conduct. By making sure that God's Word is the central focus, we avoid falling into the pit of "group grope" where we share from our wealth of ignorance :). Isn't that what got us into the mess we are in in the first place? People's opinions do not mean much unless they are solidly grounded on God's Word. Make it a habit to ask the group for Scripture that might support, or give greater focus to the opinions being expressed.

In our regular LIFEgroup Leader huddles we equip leaders with skills to maximize the use of the homework, how to ask good questions, summarize the "fact" questions, and how to develop active listening skills.

For our other groups that choose to use curriculum, we have a long list of acceptable curriculum that is Bible based and practically relevant. The ultimate goal is that every member of the group will learn to feed off of the Word of God during the week. Be sure to ask group members to share from their own personal, devotional times. Ask if anyone has a memory verse to share, or a nugget of truth that the Lord gave them for blessing the group.

The Serendipity Bible is another wonderful resource full of ideas for Bible study discussion questions if the group is studying books of the Bible.

The lesson, or Word time, normally lasts forty minutes. I like to take ten of those forty minutes to pray for specific needs of the group in terms of personal application of the study.

Consistency in the Word of God is critical for life transformation to take place in our LIFEgroups. At times it may be easy to focus on the needs of the individual members, in a manner that the Word becomes a fogotten friend. If members start showing up to the group without their Bibles, you can be sure that it is not a good sign.

4. Works (15 minutes)

This is the "so what" part of the agenda. How is God's Word going to make a difference in my golf game? In my interaction with fellow laborers at work? The way I treat my family? The focus becomes outward on how I am going to bring the beauty of Christ into my broken world. Jesus created us to be salt and light in this world, and so the focus of this element is on how we will influence our world for Christ:

• Pray for pre-Christians

• Pray that the group will have a heart to multiply and expand the tentpegs.

• Pray about All Church outreaches and how they can be used to invite the un-churched

• Pray for those who are stepping forward as apprentices

• Pray for those who are attending the Pastor's classes

• Pray about adopting an International Student as a LIFEgroup

• Pray about adopting a college student living on campus

• Pray about the group's role in helping with the Children's Ministry

• Pray about going on a missions trip as a group.

Ultimately, LIFEgroups are focussed on Jesus and His heart for His church. When we focus on Jesus we cannot go wrong.

Secondarily, we ask if people were encouraged in the faith. Did we experience genuine Christian fellowship (koinonia - or koinonitus). Paul said to the Corinthian church, "What then shall we say, brothers? When you come together, everyone has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation. All of these must be done for the strengthening [edifying] of the church" (1 Corinthians 14:26).

Two suggestions:

1) Occassionally break into gender groups for greater transparency and sharing of needs. You probably don't want to do this every week, but at least monthly. There are often issues going on in marriages, or gender specific challenges that aren't comfortable to share in mixed company.
2) At least monthly, focus your ministry time on the spiritual needs of those outside of the LIFEgroup. Discuss reaching out to those outside of Christ and indentify Divine appointments, opportunities in each life where there is an opening to be salt and light to a lost world. This will keep the group focused on evangelism, and bring the power of God into these relationships. He is the greatest evangelist.

Remember the 4W's are not four laws, but a simple tool for leading people into the presence of Jesus and helping them to live out what they believe. The wineskin is important for holding the wine, but the most important focus is the wine itself!