6 Ideas To Make The Most of The Spring Group Trimester...While Social Distancing

Are you ready for this?

Our last trimester of the Community Group year is about to begin (April 12 - May 23). At the beginning of the groups year, none of us could have predicted it would end like this.

While Community Group members often begin to check-out near the end of the group year, this season feels different. Actually, it doesn't just feel different, this season of social distancing restrictions is different. It is hard to predict the future, so as we look for the best ways to care for and connect with our groups under COVID-19 restrictions, we are taking it one week at a time, one day at a time.

As we prepare for the next 6 weeks of group, here are:

6 Ideas To Make The Most of The Spring Group Trimester

1. Continue to meet...online.

Many of you have already been connecting with your group online with a variety of video platforms and have worked through some of the kinks. If you still have questions about how meet with your group online, contact your coach, or check out our "How To Lead An Online Group" page. We want to help every group figure this out!

2. Meet for a shorter amount of time.

A typical in-person community group meeting usually lasts for 90 minutes to 2 hours. That is long for an online group meeting. The sweet spot for an online group is somewhere between 45-60 minutes.

3. Continue to discuss the sermon.

You may be wondering, what should my group meeting look like online? We would suggest your group continues to use the same format of an in-person meeting. Spend 10-15 minutes catching up, spend about 30 minutes discussing the sermon, and then wrap up by sharing prayer requests and having someone pray.

Some of you have asked, "Where are the sermon discussion questions?" 

Our Northridge website has been updated with pertinent info in this COVID season, so the way you may normally navigate to find the questions has changed a bit. You can always find the sermon discussion questions in the same place right here on our Group Leaders website. They are posted each Sunday morning at 8:00am.

4. Update Your Group Description.

As people look for a group on the online Group Finder, please make sure to update your Group description on Group Vitals to let people know you are meeting online instead of in-person.

How do you update your description? Watch THIS short video. 

5. Include your kids.

Say what? How is that supposed to work? 

While Community Group meetings are designed for adults to experience Biblical Community, those with kids at home also develop relationships with the other kids in group. 

With groups unable to meet together in-person, your kids may actually be missing group more than you!

Here is one way some groups have helped their kids connect with each other during this season:

Instead of having the men and women meet all-together in one online meeting, they have separate men's and women's nights. At the beginning of those meetings, you can take the first 5-15 minutes for the kids to connect, be silly, see each other's faces, and talk, and then have either the man or the woman in the house watch the kids while the other connects in their meeting.

6. Change it up.

While we are encouraging groups to function as normal with a typical community group schedule of connecting, sermon discussion, and prayer; taking a week or two to change it up will keep your group from growing weary or stale. 

This may be especially true if you met for all 3 weeks of the trimester break.

Here are several ways we have seen groups try something new to connect during this season:

• Playing games together online with the website: https://jackbox.tv/.

• Doing a Netflix Watch Party: www.netflixparty.com/.

• Delivering/Hiding Easter eggs in different family's yards (w/ their approval).

• Doing separate video chats with the men and women to dive a little deeper.

• Sharing short video messages together with apps like the Marco Polo app. 

What would you add to the list? What has your group tried? Email me and share your ideas. I'd love to pass them along to other groups!

We are praying for you as we begin a new group trimester! Please let us know if you have any questions or there is anything you need!

Thanks for helping people still experience Biblical Community in these unique times!

Leading Your Community Group Through Gaining Ground

This Sunday, March 24th, we are kicking off both a new Community Group trimester and a new sermon series, "Gaining Ground." 

We've asked all of Community Groups to participate in discussing this sermon series together in their groups. This is a significant series for our us as we look ahead to where God is leading us as a church.

Here are a few details to help you be prepared for a new trimester and discussing this series:

Preparing To Lead Your Group Through Gaining Ground

• Pickup and use the Gaining Ground Booklet (Preview HERE)

All sermon notes and group discussion questions are included in this booklet as well as other content related to our Gaining Ground generosity initiative.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Week 1 and Week 2 Discussion Questions were printed in the wrong order. Please use the discussion questions on page 32 for Week 1 and the discussion questions on page 28 for week 2.

• Pray Daily

Both ask God, "What would you have me to do?" and be praying that God may use this series to help each person in your group refocus their lives on their part to play in making more and better followers of Jesus.

• Worship Together at Night of Worship (3/24) and the Salt Road Rally (4/7)

Set your calendars and invite your group members to sit with you for our Night of Worship services this Sunday 3/24 at 4:30pm or 6:30pm and to join you for our Salt Road Rally in Webster on April 7th at 5pm.

• Plan A Party For Week 4 (April 14th-20th)

The final week of the series ends with a celebration Sunday as we make commitments together as a church toward our Gaining Ground generosity initiative. Instead of doing sermon discussion for the final week, we are encouraging all groups to throw a party together to celebrate what God is doing in the life of our church and in the lives of our group members. 

Preparing to Lead Your Group Through the Spring Trimester

• Review the Beginning of Trimester Agreement (Download HERE)

The beginning of each new trimester provides a great opportunity to remind your group of why we meet (To Apply the Bible, Build Relationships, & Care for Each Other) and review how we can make the most of our group experience.

• Share your Group Volunteer Schedule (Download Template HERE)

Bring a preassigned volunteer schedule week 1, give people a chance to review it, and revise as necessary. The healthiest community groups share all of responsibilities of leading group each week.

• Set Growth Goals (See examples HERE)

One of the best ways to encourage spiritual growth is to commit together with your group members 1 specific area you need to grow, and then encouraging each other throughout the trimester to follow through.

Questions?

Contact your Group Coach or search this website. We'd love to be a resource to you!

Jason DeGraaff

Community Groups Pastor

Life Is Better Connected