Life Group Leaders Weekly
WEEK ONE (January 21-27)
OUR MISSION
TO CULTIVATE
"MEANINGFUL RELATIONSHIPS CENTERED ON GOD'S WORD AND PRAYER"
LIFE GROUP UPDATE
Greetings Life Group Leaders!
The wait is officially over! Spring Life Groups will officially begin this Sunday with 10 groups and 125 adults planning to participate.
Remember that each week you will receive a s'more mail from yours truly with some important information. Be sure to mark this message as safe and place in your inbox so they never fall into your junk or spam folders. You should get these on Thursday afternoons/Friday mornings every week in preparation for the following week.
Especially during the first couple weeks, be sure to focus on the relational element of Life Groups. Also be sure to remind your group that all the questions stem from the bible text first and the sermon second. Allow our mission statement to inform what is of greatest value when we gather together. If we focus on this on the front end, it will pay dividends by the end of the semester.
Thank you all once again for your willingness to serve as Leaders and Hosts. May the Lord cause us to grow in faith and love through this ministry. I hope you have a great first week!
In Christ,
Pastor Justin
Note: The purpose of this letter is for you as Leaders in preparation for your weekly gatherings. This email will come to you every Thursday afternoon or Friday morning. They will also contain important information to share to your groups each week.
LIFE GROUP TRAINING
Training is THIS Saturday, January 20th at 8:45am. I am delighted that almost all of you are able to attend as we will be engaging the "10 Ways to Kill Your Life Group."
It should be a fun morning! Please remember that we are also going to be taking some photos so be prepared for that.
Our GOAL for Saturday morning is to engage in peer-to-peer learning. That is why we are so grateful that almost all of our new and returning leaders will be there to learn with one another. Be sure to find a seat next to other leaders not part of your group so that Leaders and Hosts can exchange notes later.
We also know that your time is precious so we promise to have you out no later than noon.
THINGS TO REMEMBER
2) CONTACT EVERYONE IN YOUR GROUP expressing excitement that they have joined your group! Also, remember:
- Potluck - As expressed before, we strongly encourage you to do a potluck the first week. You should have already reached out to the members in your group via a phone call or email reminding them that the first meeting will be a 'potluck/social'. Be sure to consider the strategy of asking people to bring specific items that night to incentivize that they, in fact, show up to that first gathering. Share your enthusiasm and excitement that they have decided to join your group!
- Give details about your first meeting (i.e. What to bring to the potluck, address, cell number, start and end time, what else to bring, etc)
4) SERVE OPPORTUNITIES - If you want to see what serve projects are available, check out the "serve" page on our website at:
http://hanfordcrc.org/lifegroups/serve-opportunites
Remember that serve projects are 'first come, first served' and will open immediately after Life Group training on Saturday.
GOALS FOR THE GROUP MEETING
- Relationships! Provide ample social time for group members to mingle and to get to know one another. If there are newcomers, be sure to have name tags for everyone.
- Hand out and go over group covenants - your group will sign these during the 3rd week, but be sure to go over them as a group before the end of the first night.
- Service Projects - Hand out the service project fliers and begin a discussion regarding what project looks interesting to your group. If you've already chosen the serve project, give them the necessary details so they can get it on their calendar.
- Consider the uniqueness of your group and celebrate how the Lord has brought you together. Also, if there are new members in a pre-existing group, do everything you can to be accommodating as a group (i.e name tags, ice breakers, no 'insider jokes/comments', etc.) Please be extra sensitive to 'insider' talk with newcomers in your group. Ensure they feel welcomed and part of the group.
- Discuss Homework - Time permitting, go over a few questions in the sermon guide. Highlight the vital importance of doing our homework for the sake of group discussion. (Think of the 'potluck' example. If one person doesn't bring anything, no problem. If half the group doesn't bring anything, some will go home hungry. Same with homework.) Also explain the new optional self study section.
- Prayer - Thank God for how he has brought your group together.
IMPORTANT DATES AND ANNOUCEMENTS
COVENANTS:
- Be CERTAIN to go over the Life Group Covenant during the first meeting. You do not have to sign it at that meeting (do that on week 3), but you most certainly should go over it together on the first night to establish goals and expectations as a group. You should all have hard copies from Life Group Essentials Training.
- Also, be sure to utilize the "Leader's Guide" Covenant. Those are for you to help flesh out that discussion. Remember that it is the last page of the "Leaders Guide" that entire group will sign.
ATTENDANCE ROSTERS:
- Get them in! Every week we will remind you ;) If you need assistance, please contact Heather directly.
LEADERS WEBPAGE:
- Remember that the "Leader Tools" web page is available to you always. There are lots of resources there, along with the most recent "Life Group Leaders Weekly." Be sure to check it out each week. Simply go to: http://hanfordcrc.org/lifegroups/leader-tools
SERVE & SOCIALS:
- Once your group has decided on a service project, contact Heather right away to reserve your spot.
FEEDBACK FORMS:
- none this week.
THIS WEEK in our Sermon Series "The Acceptable Sins of Christians"
Exodus 14 to Numbers 12
Don't worry, I won't ready EVERYTHING in between. ;)
Title:
"Complaining"
Notes:
If a committed Christ-follower cheated on their taxes, we would talk to them about it. If they murdered someone, we would turn them in. But if they gossip or complain - we might let them do that for the rest of their life with no rebuke or confrontation. Why are some sins "acceptable" among Christ's followers? This series will tackle some of the sins that we seem to accept as normal. The series will challenge us to submit every area of our lives to Christ - even ones that are "acceptable" to most Christians.
First up is the topic of 'Complaining.' We will look at Exodus 14 to Numbers 12 as a Case Study in how God dealt with the grumbling and complaining of his people Israel.
LIFE GROUP LEADER SERMON GUIDE NOTES & AUDIO - From Julie Mendes
- A PDF and Leader Audio is on our "Life Group Leaders Page" website.
- Nancy will also print off hard copies of these and place them in your mailbox.
- The link to the leaders page is also below:
SERVE/SOCIALS
- SERVE PROJECT OPPORTUNITIES officially open immediately after Life Group Training. All projects are first-come first-served.
The Life Group Coordinator Team
Sharon Johnson
Amy Breslow
Amy manages all training events along with Life Group promotions and sign-ups
Julie Mendes
Julie makes sure the homework guides and audios are prepared for your weekly Life Group gatherings.
Heather Thomas
Web Manager
Heather will run the Life Group webpage and manage the 'Service' and 'Socials' aspect of Life Groups.
LIFE GROUPS
Pastor Justin
Justin will work with the team to carry out the vision of First CRC and will assist Coordinators in their respective tasks and objectives.
About Us
Email: hanfordcrc@comcast.net
Website: www.hanfordcrc.org
Location: 2175 Leoni Drive, Hanford, CA, United States
Phone: (559) 582-4423
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HanfordCRC/