9 Ways Your Group Can Be Missional Right Now

One of my desires is that every small group to which I am connected will develop a missional strand in their DNA. In other words, I want them to exist for a purpose greater than just meeting together. Groups can become missional in many ways, but often it requires taking a few baby steps to get going. Here are some thoughts I came across yesterday which can be good first steps for a group that wants to be more externally-focused:

1. Find a single mom or single dad with whom your group can develop an ongoing relationship.

2. Have your group trained to provide respite care for foster families and volunteer to babysit for a local foster family.

3. Plan a group project to raise money to care for orphans.

4. Your group can throw a shower for a family adopting or fostering an older child.

5. Consider donating medical supplies, an appliance, or other items to an orphanage or women’s shelter as Christmas gifts.

6. Build a long-term relationship between your small group and a widow.

7. Go Christmas caroling with your group to several widows’ homes and take a basket of holiday goodies.

8. Speak up together for the oppressed, including widows, orphans, and others.

9. Sponsor a child (or children) as a group.

This list comes from a blog post entitled, "9 Ideas for Small Group Ministry to Widows and Orphans." That title is, of course, ripped directly from James 1:27 which says:

Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

You can read the entire post by Rick Morton by clicking here.

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