2009 Journey Group Launch Update

I want to thank the Christian Formation Team for your participation and excellent insights during our ReGroup training sessions. I appreciate having a team of people who are passionate about our goals for the New Year and so willing to do the work necessary to bring them to fruition. I want to update you on a couple of conversation fronts that have transpired as a result of our last meeting on Sunday night.

First, at our staff meeting on Monday, it was communicated that while we have planned to launch several new groups in March to coincide with the Lenten season, we should look at starting 3 or 4 new groups in January to provide a place for our new members and guests. There are enough new family members and regular visitors to justify the launch of these new Journey Groups asap. I spoke with Phil and Desiree about this new proposal, and they are in favor of this idea. While we will continue to recruit and plan for the ReGroup training in January, we will also solicit folks to participate in 3-4 new groups which will also begin in January. I have secured several leaders from the staff and team to lead these groups. Here is a brief update on what we will offer: Desiree will offer a Beth Moore study from the book of Esther on Thursday mornings; Raigan will lead another Esther study on Wednesday nights, if needed; Andy is going to lead a short-term Disciple study (Andy will need a team member to co-lead his class for he will be out a couple of meetings. Anybody willing?); I will lead a Starting Point group (new member-type class). These groups will meet at various times, more than likely on-campus, as determined by those who sign-up to participate. We will first recruit participants for these groups from the new member and new visitor lists. All persons new to our church will be informed about what is being offered and be invited to attend an orientation session on Wednesday, January 7, the same night of the ReGroup orientation. These new groups will begin meeting the following week. They will have 6 sessions until the church-wide launch on March 4. What are your thoughts about this process?

Second, I want to update everyone about our plans which originated from our last session Sunday night. We have established a timeline for orientation and training in the months of January and February. On Wednesday, January 7, at 5:15 in Wesley Hall we will have an orientation meeting for new Journey Group leaders and co-leaders. We will offer our normal buffet meal followed by a meeting. The meeting will lay out two options for training. One will be a two-week intensive class offered on Sunday evenings (Thanks Monia!). Each class will be 3 hours and cover two sessions from the ReGroup manual. The second option will be a crock-pot approach and include four weeks of training- one session per week. It will be offered on Wednesday evenings. Participants who come to the orientation will decide which option fits their life. Our team members will pair-up to lead these groups. (Be thinking about which option you would like to lead.) Here are the dates for the training period: January 7- Orientation; January 11 & 18- ReGroup intensive training; January 14, 21, 28, & February 4- Regular ReGroup training. Our massive church-wide recruiting for these new groups will take place during the month of February. Group launch will coincide with the beginning of the Lenten season following Ash Wednesday on March 4. There will be 9 Sundays or Wednesdays following until the end of the school semester. This will be a great time to do an 8-week small group with one meeting for orientation and ReGroup training for participants (Thanks Tom!). Please think through this timeline thoroughly. Is it solid, and how well do you think it will work? What can we do better?

Our next Christian Formation Team meeting will be Sunday, January 4, at 5:00 p.m. in Wesley Hall 313. The meeting will last for 90 minutes.

I will post the ground rules and purpose of our group, determined from the ReGroup training, later this week.

ReGroup Training

I am excited, as I stated in my email earlier, to be taking this journey with each of you. I look forward to us working together to bring more of our church family into an environment where they can experience the joy of Christian community. I know that it changed my life. Maybe I will share the story with you sometime.

You will remember from our last Christian Formation Team meeting that we discussed the possibility of Journey Groups meeting on Sunday nights next year. I do think this might be a viable alternative to Sunday mornings and the busy work week. I did speak to Chef Clete to get his opinion about eventually providing another meal for this event, and he seemed a little reluctant to volunteer his services. However, I think if we give him the support he needs by way of volunteers, he would be more receptive. Even if we don’t do a food component initially, we can still try out the Journey Groups.

I have been thinking about what curriculum we would want to use for new groups. Once we have “tasted” the ReGroup material, we should have a better handle on whether or not to suggest it as a first step for new groups. Meanwhile, for those who are a little more familiar with “small groups” we should offer a short-term study to get them acclimated to group life once again. Finally, for those who are really committed, we should offer Disciple and Companions in Christ as a couple of curricula to explore. Many different levels for those who are at different stages of their spiritual journey should broaden our participation.

What are your thoughts and comments?