Don’t think long and hard about this. Just give me your gut reaction.
What word(s) or phrase pops into your head when you think “small group?”
It could be good, bad, beautiful, ugly, off-base, off-color, or off-putting. I just want to know what people think about when the word “small group” comes up.
Perform a Google Search for “How to Increase your Twitter Follwers” and you get plenty of websites/services to follow.
Many of these are services, where you opt in to following 10 people then auto-following everybody else back, guarantee that you’ll have 20,000 Twitter followers in 30 days.
Others give ways to buy Twitter followers. I’m not kidding. For only $87, this site will get you 1,000 new followers.
Other sites tell you things you need to do with your Twitter account, such as making sure to fill out your bio section, learning the language of Twitter (Reply, Retweet, Direct Message, hashtags, etc.), and following the people who update about things you want to read. (these are all good things, and should be done, but they’re not what I’m focusing on in this post)
But my goal in using Twitter isn’t to have more and more followers.
I would much rather have influence than followers. Because followers often represent people who aren’t listening, but are merely speaking. They don’t care anything about what you have to say…they just use Twitter as a platform to get the word out about their business/life/hobby.
If you want to increase your followers quickly, it will cost you $87.
If you want to build your influence, it’s a little tougher and takes longer.
(If you need a refresher on the language of Twitter, read my post HERE. If you need some reasons to start Twittering, click HERE. If you have no idea what Twitter is, click HERE.)
1. Be authentic. Give people a snapshot into who you are. What makes you tick? What do you enjoy? What unique angle/wisdom can you give on an event that you’re attending? A book that you’re reading? A blog that you follow?
2. Share helpful content. If your posts only benefit you and your dog, people probably will tune out after a short period. For example, I’m a small groups pastor, so I try to post content that applies in my field. I try to be authentic, but I make sure the content is broadly applicable whether you live in Tennessee or California. Whether you’re young or old. Whether you go to my church or meet in a house church.
3. Invite conversation. Try to phrase some of your updates in a way that invites others to join in the conversation. Pose a question. Leave your update open where others can share their thoughts, opinions, and disagreements. If it’s broadly applicable, helpful, and uniquely you, others will want to join in.
4. Post consistently. If you only post occasionally, people will tune out. If you only post once/week, you’ll never show up in your follower’s timelines (because they’re based on the latest posts), and people will never see your updates.
5. Create conversation with others. I’m making a distinction here from #3, above. Creating conversation means that you reply to others. Retweet things you find important, inspirational, helpful. Continue the dialog with others.
6. Don’t post only facts. When you have a conversation with someone, do you merely share facts with one another? If you do, your friendship will quickly dry up.
7. Respond timely. If you’re consistently putting helpful information out there in a way that invites conversation, you will inevitably receive replies to your updates. Make sure to thank those who are spreading your ideas. And do it in a timely manner. Also, if someone sends you a Direct Message, try as much as possible to respond in a timely manner (I use the 24-hour rule on any email sent to my inbox).
8. Give some link love. If you read an article, or a blog post, that you think may be of interest to others, share a link and give credit to the person that wrote it (by using their Twitter handle). You may not see this as a way to boost your influence, but trust me…sharing links gives encouragement to others, and helps to give you credibility among those who follow you.
9. Be careful what you post. A tweet is forever. What you post today will be visible for years to come. Influencers have the future in mind with the things that they say and do.
Isn’t it the same in all of life? Gaining influence is much more difficult than merely having a platform for your opinions. You can go to the local mall and scream out your thoughts…but likely nobody will listen.
Working to gain the respect and trust of people is a much harder, and longer, process.
But in the end, I think it’s worth it.
Is your church looking to hire a lead pastor?
Do you know of a church looking to hire one?
I’m doing some legwork for you (or them). Here is an interview with a friend of mine, Alan Danielson.
Ever felt like God called you and equipped you to do something…yet the opportunity to express those gifts didn’t quickly come to fruition? Friends of my blog: meet Alan. Alan, meet the friends of my blog.
I “met” Alan about a year ago through his blog. I thoroughly enjoyed his updates that got my mind stirred about ministry. Then, I had the privilege of being in a small group with Alan via Tokbox. I loved hearing his heart, and seeing him offer sound, biblical wisdom to those in the group who were hurting and needed pastoring. Unfortunately, because of scheduling conflicts, I had to pull out of the group, but Alan and I have maintained contact.
Here’s my official, unsolicited endorsement of Alan: Alan is a leader. A pioneer. He thrives on shepherding a team of folks to accomplish the mission and vision of a congregation. Alan is creative. He would bring great enthusiasm and wisdom (a rare combination) to any team he were a part of. He has expertise in preaching/teaching, small groups, online ministry, and writing. He’s spoken (and been on staff at) mega-churches, small churches, conferences, and home-based small groups. But maybe the thing that has impressed me the most about Alan is hearing him pray. The way that a person prays says a lot about their spiritual maturity. Alan prays as one whose heart beats after God.
In order to give you a snapshot of Alan, and not just my words about him, I put together some questions that a typical “search committee” (or whatever form of a team a church body would assemble in order to find the person God has especially called to lead that local congregation)
I asked Alan to keep his responses brief, so to see his resume, preaching/teaching videos, recommendations, family pictures, blog, and more, you can find him at http://www.alandanielson.tv.
When it comes to ministry, what thing(s)/areas of ministry are you most passionate about?
I’m most passionate about mission and evangelism that results in discipling relationships.
Besides ministry, what things are important to you?
My relationship with God, my family, and Star Wars!
What do you do for fun?
I collect Star Wars memorabilia and create hand-made lightsaber replicas.
How has the Lord gifted you for full-time vocational ministry?
I’m a relational leader and an effective communicator.
How do you know you’re called to ministry?
I’ve been in vocational ministry since I graduated high school in 1990 and led literally thousands of people. God has chosen to use me and that constantly affirms my call.
What is it about doing full-time ministry that gets you going in the morning?
Personally connecting with people and helping them discover the ways they can grow to become like Jesus!
What strengths do you bring to the table?
Relational ability, communication, activating people to action, developing/implementing strategy, and faith.
What are your weaknesses?
Organization, spreading myself too thin, balancing work and health, and cheese burgers.
What kinds of things do you look for in a church where you would serve?
Cultural relevance, unapologetic evangelism, great family ministry, and good theology.
What makes a healthy church?
Unity, clear vision, passionate leadership, articulate leadership, and simple strategy.
What is the purpose of church?
Joining with others to fulfill Christ’s Mission through which we experience radical spiritual Formation and unbreakable relational Connection
How important is “teamwork” to you? Does it matter to you who you serve with?
Prime importance! Chemistry is the biggest factor in determining a team’s success, so yes, it definitely matters who I serve with. If the right chemistry isn’t there, disappointment will surely follow.
What is your Myers-Briggs score?
ENFP, so I’m in need of professional help!
Orange carpet or brown?
Orange, because my wife is an Oklahoma State University fan. Hey, if momma ain’t happy, nobody’s happy.
To read more, and connect with, Alan, you can find him HERE.
I asked this question on Twitter:
I was hoping to get a list of the conferences that people I know and trust are attending. I did. And the list was huge. It included men’s conferences, pastor’s conferences, conferences close by, and others far away. Some designed to equip you to be a better leader. Others focused on spiritual growth. Some were for men with funny accents. Others for pastors whose last name ended in “Q.” And still others designed for pastors whose wives graduated from a state university 2 years prior to their husband graduating from seminary. And, I’m sure, all great conferences in their own right.
But a couple of people mentioned The Summit conference. They said that small group experts were gathering together to talk through small group-related topics. Since I’m involved in small groups ministry, I checked into it.
For budget reasons, I pick and choose the conferences that I attend with much discretion.
For ministry-related reasons, I pick and choose the conferences that I attend with much discretion.
For conferences-mean-I-get-further-behind-with-regular-work reasons, I pick and choose the conferences that I attend with much discretion.
For I-love-my-family-and-don’t-want-to-do-a-ton-of-traveling-if-I-can-help-it reasons, I pick and choose the conferences that I attend with much discretion.
I think that The Summit answers all of these reasons.
The Summit is:
Quote from The Summit site:
These men represent decades of experience with small groups including the six basic types: free market, closed, open, organic, multi-group, and cell church. We’ll use a question-and-answer format to tap into their collective knowledge and give you real-world answers to your small group challenges.
Sign up HERE for the event that happens on Thursday, February 18th, from 10:30-12:00 CST.
I’ll be watching. What about you?
I have lots of conversations with people from areas other than Tennessee (aka, God’s Country).
If they’re from further south, they think Tennessee weather is cold.
If they’re from the north, they laugh when we Tennesseans say, “It’s cold outside!”
A 50 degree day in the middle of July in Tennessee is freezing…in January, that same temperature would make for a beautiful day.
Cold…hot…it’s all relative, to a degree (pun intended).
One of the most important aspects of small group life at Grace Community Church is discipleship. I often say to group leaders that making disciples is the #1 priority of their group. Everything else falls under this. If your group ends up bringing 50 new people in, meet 5 times/week, and blaze through 100 curriculums/month, but don’t help those in the group become more faithful disciples of Jesus, the group is a failure.
But I quickly follow that up with the fact that discipleship is relative.
Before you write me off as a post-modern, left-wing, “what’s right for you isn’t necessarily right for me,” spiritual person, hear me out…
A step of faith for me looks different for a step of faith for you. It looks different for the guy who’s just checking out Christianity. It looks different for the guy who’s grown up in Church but is far from God. It looks even different for the student who’s been saved for 6 months and is working through different issues at school. It looks even different for the wife whose husband is deploying (to see what we’re doing to help these women out, check this out HERE).
I’m not sure we can boil “discipleship” down to 4 easy steps. It’s never easy…and it’s not going to be the same 4 steps for everybody.
Taking a step of faith, similar to your perception of “hot” and “cold,” is a matter of where you find yourself in life.
Has your small group helped you take steps of faith?
If you live in the Clarksville, TN area, and are the spouse/girlfriend of a soldier who is, or will be, deploying, then you need to get connected with The Lantern. Started as a small group, it’s grown to a once/month gathering focusing on specific topics that those affected by a deployed loved one will face. I absolutely love the direction that this ministry is headed!
Here’s a quote from their website, telling a little more about who they are:
Our story is similar to that of most Military wives. We are a group of women made up of mothers, professionals, students, exercise-aholics, scrap-bookers, and divorcees from all over the country and all faith backgrounds, who are married to the Military, er, men in the Military. We have learned, often through painful trial and error, that we cannot continue to burden the challenges that come with a Military lifestyle alone. We have learned that when we rely on our own strengths, experiences, and plans to get through deployment and reintegration periods (often many periods), we fall short and our marriages, children, careers, and mental sanity suffer. It is only when we give our lives back to the One who made them that we are able, through His strength, love, and incredible grace, to live full lives despite our current circumstances.
Here’s a video we put together to help promote this ministry that will start on Thursday, February 18th, and continue every 2nd Thursday of the month, but check the calendar for specifics.
Though I could write for days and days on the University of Tennessee Volunteers, that’s not what this post is about.
I’m writing this post to thank the great volunteers that we have at Grace Community Church.
You see, each and every week, we have to set up and tear down our entire audio equipment. And video equipment. The entire stage. And preschool areas. And preschool stage. And their computer check-in stations…which so often don’t work. And children’s areas. And their stage. And their audio. And their video. And their computer check-in stations…which so often don’t work. The hallway, with the banners and the tables and the countless handout cards. The coffee. The welcome areas. Volunteer central. Information central.
We couldn’t do what we do without our amazing volunteers.
Is God evil?
Of course not. Well…most would agree that He’s not.
But does God allow evil things to happen?
Take a peek into a conversation that Job had with his wife:
Then his wife said to him, “Do you still hold fast your integrity? Curse God and die.” But he said to her, “You speak as one of the foolish women would speak. Shall we receive good from God, and shall we not receive evil?” In all this, Job did not sin with his lips. (Job 2:9-10)
Did God cause this evil to happen to Job? No. The verses prior say
So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord and struck Job with loathsome sores… (Job 2:7-8)
We are quick to praise God for the good things that happen to us, and give Him credit for all of the blessings we receive.
But aren’t we also quick to shake our fists at God when things don’t go as we would like? When we don’t get that promotion. When we get sick. When our children get sick. When our marriage isn’t what we want it to be. When all of our efforts fall flat. When we strive with all of our might, yet get nowhere.
I don’t presume to know why God does what He does.
But this passage says that God allows evil things to happen. And if you read through the first few chapters of the book of Job, you get some insight into how God worked, and how He allowed Satan to work on a short leash. God didn’t cause evil. But He allowed it with a purpose.
So if God allows evil to exist, does that make Him evil? That’s a question you need to wrestle through yourself. I’ve wrestled through it. Last week, I was sick. Not deathly sick. But sick enough to stay home from work. I felt rotten. I had some sort of mild case of the flu, mixed with an ear infection, an eye infection, a sore throat, a sinuses that were trashed. I also lost my voice.
And last week was one of the most important weeks for me in my job at Grace. I needed my voice. And I needed to be at 100%.
So why would God allow me to be sick? Here are a couple of reasons I came up with. For purpose of generalization, I’ll call it “suffering.” Some of you may laugh at this being called suffering, and honestly, I would, too, but suffering has varying ranges. Bear with me.
1. Suffering slows us down. Our lives race on at such a fast pace that sometimes we just need to slow down.
2. Suffering causes us to think less of this life on earth and long for a better life. When you’re going through suffering, life on earth isn’t as much fun. We don’t value it as much as when everything is rosy. We long for something better.
3. Suffering gives us time to reflect and evaluate. What does your relationship with God look like when you’re falling apart physically? Do you only praise God when everything is perfect? Job was a great example of a man who praised God in the good times and in the bad. (Job 1:20-22)
4. Suffering puts the most important things in perspective. When we are going through suffering, perishable things don’t matter as much. We tend to devalue those things that are temporary.
5. Suffering allows us to be comforted by others. If you never suffer, you can never receive the blessing of being encouraged and comforted by others.
6. Suffering reminds us we’re not in control. When everything is going our way, we can slide into the thought process that we’re really controlling our future. Suffering brings us back to the reality that we really have very little control.
7. Suffering allows us to be healed. God is the ultimate healer, and we would never get to see that aspect of God, and receive that great blessing, if it weren’t for suffering.
8. Suffering, and recovering, helps us to comfort those whom we will come in contact with who suffer similarly. Although suffering tends to make us quite self-centered, I believe one of it’s main purposes is so that, after God (and others) comforts us, we can extend that same love and care to others. (2 Corinthians 1:3-7)
9. Suffering gives us the chance to see who our real friends are. Job had some pretty rotten friends (Job 4-25, 32). Those who truly love us will stick by in good times and in bad. And ultimately they want what’s best for us.
10. …
What would you add?
Whether you’re a church leader, a business leader, a small group leader, or the leader of a local gang, you should constantly evaluate your system.
We just had a small groups launch yesterday at Grace Community Church. 10 new small groups launched, with over 150 people committing to joining new groups. Amazing, right?!?
There’s room for improvement.
There was room for improvement last time we had Connect.
There was room for improvement this time.
I’m not a prophet, but I’m going to make a statement that will inevitably come true: There will be room for improvement next time.
We don’t allow these problems to cripple us, but rather we learn and grow from them. Some we can’t help. But others we can.
I’m willing to change the system, if that’s what’s needed, in order to more effectively carry out our vision.
As the old saying goes, “Don’t throw out the baby with the bathwater.” But what’s often not said:
“Go ahead and throw out that bathwater.”
I lost my voice on Sunday, and still haven’t been able to get it back. I’m able to squeak out a whisper most of the time, but that’s about all I’ve got.
Why is it that people feel the need to speak softly to me now? As if somehow their soft voice mimicking my hoarseness makes me feel better. Or makes the conversation go more smoothly. Maybe they’re doing it consciously, but honestly, I think it’s an unconscious reaction much of the time.
I see the same thing in other areas of life. We take on characteristics/attitudes/quirks of those we spend time with. We begin to laugh at the same jokes. Use the same illustrations. Care about the same things.
Whether consciously or unconsciously, we are easily influenced by those closest to us. Which places an even higher priority on finding friends who will help us to grow in our faith, instead of taking steps further from God.
I’ve lost my voice. And if you spend much time around me, you may lose yours, too.
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