Friday, December 27, 2013

Eric Geiger: Two Days a Year in Small Group


The board game Monopoly was used in a fascinating way in World War II. As a nod to the Geneva Convention, Germans allowed organizations like the Red Cross to deliver care packages to prisoners of war, and these packages were allowed to contain items, including board games. The British devised a plan to take advantage of this by hiding things such as a file, a compass, and the local currency. But most importantly, the games contained a map. No matter how effective the escape kits were, if the POWs didn’t know where to go or which areas were occupied, they would most likely be recaptured. The captives needed updated information that would allow them to escape within a tight window of opportunity.

The window of opportunity churches have to accomplish the critical mission of teaching and training disciples through their groups is also tight. Regardless of ministry approach, the average group meets for about an hour a week for study. Considering vacations, potential bad weather days, and group breaks, at best the people meet for group Bible study 48 hours or less a year. That’s two days.

Two Days.

Clearly discipleship is not limited to those two days. Community must not be confined to the study time. But those two days of meeting around the Bible must not be squandered. Those two days must be maximized. If you only have two days a year to study in groups, it is wise to have a discipleship plan that intentionally guides people to greater maturity in Christ. Keep reading

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