community size matter

Over the past several weeks I have been observing and listening to different conversations, different groups of people all at different places in life, in their work, in their walk with God and wherever it is we are at the time. It is has become very evident to me that community is what is desired throughout our generations. Not just my generation, but the generation below me, the generation above. There is this inner desire for community. It has started to make me think about my own student ministry and how we are doing at bring that community to the students of the next generation.

Well, there are things that are great and there are things that are not so great. One thing that we have going, is that everyone is connected to each other in some way. Whether it is school, grade, work or gender, they all have a connecting point. We are able to digress well after our services when in community groups. The problem however is that the need for more leaders is getting quite extreme. That is the major disconnect that I seem to be realizing.

In order for students to really want to get connected with a leader or another student, the groups need to be smaller, or they need to be in the position to be in a bigger group but then split into smaller groups.

In my own life, small groups have been a huge part of my growth and learning experience. Whether it was in high school and I was hanging with my youth minister and a few other guys, to the few guys that I hung out with in college. Small groups have been a huge part of my life.

In a conversation with a friend a while back, we talked for a few hours about how the world is turning to more of a conversational style. That people want to be able to converse with each other and not want to be told what to do. The question is how do we as youth workers, accomodate that need of students? How do we accomplish the task of growing students to know who God is, how to chose right from wrong, how to be encouraging and loving and so on.

I am still trying to figure it out. What are you doing or have done in the past that really works for community groups?