The 5 Things That Differentiate Average Small Groups From Transformational Ones

I’ve been fascinated by groups for a long time. Earlier in my professional career, I was a Licensed Professional Counselor in Boone, NC, leading group therapy sessions. I then went to North Point Community Church in Alpharetta, GA—one of the largest churches in the country—where I got to reimagine an approach to groups.

To be honest, I started to nerd out on this whole idea of groups. I’m an analytical guy and wanted to know if getting together with a group of people consistently and intentionally actually leads to spiritual growth. My position at North Point provided an amazing opportunity to carefully and methodically study hundreds of groups, discovering the principles and practices that separated the truly transformational groups from the average or below-average ones. It’s not often that you get to set up your own research and development lab to study real people in real groups, and I ran with it.

I gathered the wisest men and women I could find. I interviewed countless leaders and group members to discern which subtle—or not-so-subtle—differentiators led to life change and which ones stifled it. I pored over dozens of models, books, and studies, I went to conferences, I consulted other thought leaders, and I led half a dozen different types of groups myself.

We stepped back from the “how” and started tinkering with the “why” behind amazing groups. We asked leaders what they actually needed and wanted. We identified the best leaders and tested best practices based on the principles we were discovering. There were five aspects that started coming out—five Core Components that seemed to consistently lead to transformational, talk about for the rest of your life kind of groups.

I want to help you understand and apply those same principles in your group. I’ll share the five Core Components that build transformational groups and equip you to lead the kind of group people to talk about for the rest of their lives (in a good way). These five Core Components can be applied in any group whose goal is to experience spiritual growth, whether in the business, organizational, church, or academic sphere. Together, they will help you avoid boring, stagnant groups and replace them with healthy, enjoyable, life-transforming groups.

The Five Core Components

To help you remember these five Core Components, we’ve put them into a metaphor of going on a sailing voyage. The five Components correspond to five aspects of setting sail that is vital for a successful adventure:

The Destination:

Determine the Goals of Your Group

The Captain:

Lead with Intentionality and Vulnerability

The Crew:

Clarify Your Group Culture

The Ship:

Design Your Time for Transformation

The Route:

Plan Ahead to Get Where You Want to Go

These five Core Components differentiate exceptional leaders and transformational groups from typical or boring ones. They will provide you with a framework to build a Group Map to help get you where you want to go. With that said, none of these in and of themselves are a silver bullet. Ultimately, the Holy Spirit guides our relationships, and even the most well-prepared groups sometimes just don’t take off. However, from my years of studying which groups become that group, I have found that these five aspects are the most pivotal and powerful to building a truly transformational group.

What This Book Is and Isn’t

So, do these five Components cure lame small groups? Not necessarily. But they can help.

The health and maturity of the leader is the greatest determinant of the efficacy of any small group, just like in other teams, businesses, ministries, and organizations. The foundation of any leader is found in their view of God—their theology—and their view of themselves— their identity.

I believe the health and maturity of the leader make up about 60% of the small group equation. The best teaching I have found that addresses the theology and identity that shapes the core of the leader is already written about in the book The Cure by John Lynch, Bruce McNicol, and Bill Thrall.3 This book has helped me—along with hundreds of thousands of others—mature into who Jesus made me to be as a new creation. It has had a huge impact on my life, and I strongly recommend it as a key resource for any leader or group.

If 60% of the small group equation is the health of the leader, I would say 25% is determined by the best practices of that leader in facilitating a group, with the remaining 15% made up by group variables like chemistry, life events, and other dynamics that you have little control over. While we will venture into a higher-level discussion on how a leader views God and themselves and how that affects their group, the majority of this book will focus on equipping you with some best practices, the 25%. These are the practical, how-to tools for a group.

Small groups are a key discipleship tool for most churches and faith-based organizations, but practical best practices are hard to find. These five Core Components work to help direct a new group or re-focus an existing group. They will serve virtual groups, in-person groups, or hybrid groups. They will help redirect lame groups and refine already great groups. They will further develop the new leader, the group member, or the seasoned leader.

Don’t be overwhelmed. You are right where you should be on your journey. Every day each of us gets a fresh opportunity to trust God and others with ourselves, maturing into who we already are as forgiven and righteous sons and daughters. Leading groups is difficult and not for the faint of heart, but it’s worth it. You won’t use everything recommended in this book, but our hope is that you will be equipped to lead more effectively. The Father designed us for connecting relationally to grow spiritually, Jesus made it possible, and the Holy Spirit will guide us. Enjoy the journey.