A Simple 4-Step Process to Leading Small Group Gatherings

The following steps are meant to provoke ideas and be a guide. You'll need to fill in the blanks in ways that are appropriate for your group:

1. Relate -- Before your gathering officially begins, make sure that everyone feels connected. Pay close attention to the environment being created and especially notice if anyone is unusually withdrawn or downcast.

2. Review -- For many people, group time is a "break" from life. Give them a chance to talk about what is going on in their lives. They might update prayer requests from previous weeks, or share new challenges and goals they are pursuing.

3. Read and React -- Spend time in God's Word (use discussion guides if necessary). Talk about it, let it sink in. Allow as many as desire to talk about how this passage is going to impact their life moving forward.

4. Reach -- Before you leave give everyone a chance to reach out to the group for help, and give the group a chance to reach out to each other in assistance. Reaching for each other is one of the primary ways we obey the "one another" commands of the New Testament.

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