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Potential Pitfalls and Benefits of Small Groups

I found this list at Andy Naselli's blog. You can read the entire post here. 

Potential Pitfalls of Small Group Bible Study
  1. The vertical pushed out by the horizontal: they can turn into little more than social groups.
  2. The message sidelined by the method: members can become addicts to one way of encountering God.
  3. The blind led by the blind: meetings can become simply opportunities to pool ignorance.
Benefits of Small Group Bible Study
  1. A good place to listen to God: each can help the others study the Bible.
  2. A good place to talk to God: each can pray for the others in an informed way.
  3. A good place to care for one another: each can carry the others’ burdens.
  4. A good place from which to reach the lost: members can work together to advance the gospel.
This is a good reminder that even good things come with inherent dangers. We must be careful to guide our small groups toward these benefits and away from the pitfalls.

Check out the book from which Andy got these lists: Iron Sharpens Iron: Leading BibleOriented Small Groups that Thrive.

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