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Advantages of small group strategy for church growth
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Paul Jang
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2008-03-29 00:23:45, hit : 2,930 |
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Advantages of small group strategy for church growth
It is not easy to begin a small group strategy as well as to succeed in the implementation of its program in the church because of too much of a change. Nevertheless if a healthy, thoroughly planned small group ministry can be successfully implemented, the church can enjoy some of many advantages and benefits.
Ron Nicholas introduced six advantages of a small group to which Howard Snyder pointed as follows: (
1) It is flexible. The group can change its procedure readily and meet the needs of its members. My own group changes every three months.
(2) It is mobile. You can meet in a home or even an office. It is not bound by a building. Think of the three thousand people in Acts 2 meeting in homes!
(3) It is inclusive. You are missed if you don't come. The small group is open to all types of people.
(4) It is personal. The small group creates a place where his needs and the needs of those others who commit themselves to it can be met.
(5) It is risky. A small group puts us at the edge of adventure in our Christian life. As we discover ourselves and others through conflict, care and confrontation, we grow.
(6) It is an excellent way to evangelize.
The true friendship of a small group will be noticed by the world, if the church is actually in the world (Nicholas et al. 1985, 20-21).
These are good advantages of a small group in the implementation of its program.
More effective promotion of the close fellowship between the members can be expected because the small group is easy to have an intimate interrelationahip one another in small size (McBride 1993, 16). In a large group the people have tendency not to open their mind because they have a dislike to disclose their privacies. But in a small group they are apt to open their mind because they can associate with each other intimately, so they can have fellowship with God, namely vertical relationship (McBride 1993, 21).
By the results of these vertical and horizontal relatioship (McBride 1993, 21) they can grow in quantity as well as in quality. What then are the benefits to the church from the small group ministry? Jeffrey Arnold pointed to the benefits to the church as follows:
Once a heathy, thoroughly planned small group ministry is implemented, the church can begin to enjoy some of many benefits. Among these are the discovery of spiritual gifts, the development of lay leadership, effective congregational care, worship, evangelism, and spiritual and numerical growth (Arnold 1992, 31).
Garry W. Kuhne pointed to five corporate benefits of the small group ministry as follows: (1) protection against the effects of sin, (2) conbination of encouragement and stimulation, (3) meaningful worship experiences, (4) the sharing of needs and (5) mutual prayer (Kuhne 1978, 148-151).
Of course, the samll group affords many benefits to the church as mentioned above by Jeffrey Arnold and Garry W. Kuhne. In brief, the small group ministry can bear good fruits for the church growth in quantity and in quality. Derek Tidball said that the cell/small group system has had a great value in the history of Church (Tidball trans. by Jung 1990, 277). In fact, many churches now recognize that a primary task of pastors and church leaders is to equip lay people to use their gifts for the growth of the church (Arnold 1992, 33).
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Introduction
Ch Growth 