How to Lead a Great Cell Group Meeting

1 Comiskey has hit one out of the park! This book will not collect dust on mybookshelf! I ll use it over and over again as a reference tool in the groups I leadand oversee. And I plan to have every one of my Group leaders read it as well. MIKEMACKF ounder, Groups Pastor, Northeast Christian Church Only when the Holy Spirit touches a person s heart in the safe environment ofa well planned small Group Meeting do we truly see the incredible plan in whichGod has invited us to participate. In How To Lead A Great Small Group Meeting ,Joel has captured the essence of leading life-changing small Group meetings andgiven us a practical road map to success! THOMCORRIGANP astor, Founder - Pilgrimage TrainingAuthor of Experiencing Community Wow! This book taught this old dog a few new tricks. I read this book andimmediately made two changes in my facilitation , thanks for the tips!

2 RANDALLNEIGHBOURS enior Editor, CellGroup Journal If you ve ever led a small Group Meeting , you ll find yourself nodding inagreement with Comiskey s honest struggles and helpful advice. Withoutbeing overly simplistic, Joel synthesizes the many parts of leading asmall Group Meeting . As a small Group leader and trainer I ve waiteda long time for a tool like this. TOMBRUNNERS enior Pastor, Hope Church Joel Comiskey is one of the world s leading authorities on the subject of smallgroup ministry. Because he writes from an experiential rather than theoreticalperspective, he offers valuable insights that can transform your small groupministry into a greatministry. This book is required reading for every groupleader and pastor who desires to lead an effective ministry in their church. TERRYCANTRELLSr.

3 Pastor, Wesleyan FellowshipPraise forHow to Lead a GREATS mall Group Meeting This practical, down-to-earth, user-friendly manual makes it easy for anygroup leader to apply these insights immediately. I highly recommend it! LARRYKREIDERI nternational Director, DOVE Christian Fellowship International Comiskey hits all of the basics of leading a successful small Group . This practicalmanual is a must-read for emerging leaders and a Great refresher for those whoare already leading a Group . Coaches can use this resource as a discussion starterwhen they meet with their Group of leaders. JEANNETTEBULLERA uthor, CoachNet, Inc. Joel Comiskey s latest book should be placed in the hands of all who desire toeffectively facilitate a small Group . It is a collection of suggestions gleanedfrom surveying many experienced leaders.

4 DR. RALPHW. NEIGHBOUR, JR. While reading Joel Comiskey s book, I kept picturing our leaders in alively discussion during a training event. We ve needed a Great resource thatteaches small Group dynamics while casting a vision for authenticsmall Group leadership. It s evident Joel is a practitioner of community life ..he knows our world of ministry. KERRYBOWMANS enior Pastor, Eagle Alliance Church Every small Group leader needs this ready-to-use resource. Whether you are anovice or a seasoned veteran, you will find practical guidance for yourself andthose you train. I highly recommend this book. BOBLOGANE xecutive Director, CoachNet, Inc. Among the many enthusiastic books written about smallgroups, there is almost nothing written about the Meeting thank God for this excellent book. Let s get it into the hands of every smallgroup leader.

5 There are valuable insights in it for everyone. JIMEGLIS mall Group Pastor, The Vineyard Church, Champaign, ILPraise forHow to Lead a GREATS mall Group MeetingHow to Lead aGREATS mall Group MeetingHow to Lead aGREATS mall Group Meeting .. So People Want to Come BackJOEL COMISKEYTOUCH PUBLICATIONS, , Texas, by TOUCH Publications, Box 7847, Houston, Texas 77240 USA800-735-5865 2009 by Joel Comiskey[This book is a slightly modified version of How to Lead a GreatCell Group Meeting , published in 2002 by Cell Group Resources, animprint of TOUCH Outreach Ministries, Inc. The original title isstill in print and available through numerous sources.]All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced,stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by anymeans, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, orotherwise, without the prior written permission of the in the United States of design by Neubauer Design GroupInterior Illustrations by Don BleylText design by Rick ChandlerEditing by Scott BorenISBN# 978-0-9825352-2-6 All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated,are from the Holy Bible, New International Version, Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society.

6 Used Publications is the book-publishing divisionof TOUCH Outreach Ministries, a resource and consulting ministryfor holistic small Group -driven us on the World Wide Web AcknowledgmentsI owe a debt of gratitude to the TOUCH Outreach team for theirexcellent work on this book: Scott Boren, editor Rick Chandler, publishing production/graphic design Don Bleyl, artist This team added to the book s personality, taking it from the manuscriptstage to book thanks to Michael Mack, a prolific small Group author andfounder of , for providing key resources have been especially helpful in writing this book: CellGroup Journal, a quarterly magazine by TOUCH Outreach Ministries(archived articles from this resource are available on the TOUCH website), and , an online ministry dedicated to equippingsmall Group leaders.

7 In this book, I ve drawn heavily from both ofthem, and I highly recommend them ( ).I especially want to thank my wife and children for their encouragementto me throughout the writing of this ..11 Chapter OneA PURE HEART:PREPARE YOURSELF ..21 Chapter TwoGATHERING ARMS:HOW TO STRUCTURE A Meeting ..29 Chapter ThreeLEGS THAT SUPPORT:FACILITATING OTHERS ..43 Chapter FourAN OPEN SOUL: PRACTICING TRANSPARENCY ..53 Chapter FiveAN INQUISITIVE MIND:ASKING STIMULATING QUESTIONS ..63 Chapter SixLISTENING EARS ..73 ContentsChapter SevenAN ENCOURAGING TONGUE ..85 Chapter EightWARM HANDS: REACHING OUT TO NON-CHRISTIANS ..97 Chapter NineWALKING TOGETHER: MOVING THROUGH THE STAGES OF LIFE ..109 Chapter TenEYES THAT SEE THE DETAILS ..119 Chapter ElevenKEEP LEARNING AND GROWING ..131 Notes ..133 Index ..139 Contents10 IntroductionSilence.

8 Jerry s attempt to stimulate discussion failed. Is thereanyone else who d like to comment on this verse? Still no decided it was best to break the silence by launching into aspontaneous comment about a few Bible passages. At least they rereceiving God s Word, he assured know how this leader felt. I ve faced similar periods of strainedsilence as I led the lessons in my own small Group . More than once I vethought to myself, Why are my own discussion times so dry? What sthe missing link? Many small Group leaders, immersed in the battle, begin to doubttheir talent and leadership skills. They blame their personality or anapparent lack of gifting for the barren lessons, the uneasiness in thegroup, and the fact that only a few people good news is that the vast majority of small Group problems aresolvable.

9 I ve written this book to help you turn a dry gathering into adynamic Group InterestSeventy-five million adult Americans regularly attend a small Group (not including all the teenagers and children in groups). There are300,000 churches in the , but more than three million the interest in small groups mounting, especially in the face ofan impersonal internet society, the need is Great to understand thedynamics of small groups (both to participate in as well as to lead). LyleSchaller, after listing 20 innovations in the modern church, says, The decision by tens of millions of teenagers and adults to place a highpersonal priority on weekly participation in serious, in-depth, lay-led,and continuing Bible study and prayer groups is perhaps the mostimportant of all. 2 The small Group phenomenon is certainly not limited to the largest church in the history of Christianity, Yoido Full GospelChurch in Seoul, South Korea, is based on 25,000 small groups.

10 Thelargest churches in the world, following the example of YFGC, are alsobased on small secular organizations now hold regular small- Group meetings,from boards to task forces. Knowing how to lead such meetings not onlysweetens the atmosphere, but it often determines business success fact, small- Group dynamics is a science in its own right. One ofmy first college courses covered it as we worked through the bookEffective Group Discussion. We learned how to actively listen, respondpositively, summarize, and many other small Group secular organizations seek to increase productivity throughsmall Group dynamics, God s purposes must guide the Christian smallgroup. Effective small Group leaders live under the power of the HolySpirit and communicate God s purposes for the Group . The Christianleader will become more effective and more fully meet the needs ofgroup members by learning the skills of small Group of a Small GroupSome experts choose the broad path and define a small Group asanything small that meets as a Group .