Seven Habits of Highly Effective CG Leaders, Pt.1
Listening to the message on the Community App this past weekend reminded me of just how grateful I am for your investment in the lives of those in your Community Group. God has designed us to live in community, but transformational relationships don’t happen by accident—they take intentionality, time, discipline, and some skill. It’s not easy and it’s often messy, but it’s worth it!
So what are the essential practices, values, and skills of an effective group leader? Chip Ingram proposed the following seven habits which I believe sum it up very well, and are worth expounding on. As Community Group leaders, if we embrace and continue to grow in our integration of these seven habits, I believe we will see God show up in new and exciting ways!
Effective Community Group Leaders . . .
1. Live daily with the end in view.
The end is to grow in greater intimacy with God, which results in becoming more like Him—that is the essence of being a disciple of Christ. A life of discipleship is an intentional pursuit of the application of the biblical truths we study and learn that will help us grow to be more like Christ. One of the greatest gauges of the transformation within a Community Group is the transformation seen in the life of the leader. You can’t lead others in what you’re not experiencing yourself.
The next step then is to lead those in your group to greater surrender and intimacy with God. Hebrews 10:24-25 calls us to “spur” one another on to apply the things we learn, to live a life of giving, to hold each other accountable, and to share our story with other believers and seekers.
See also Ephesians 4:12-13 and Romans 8:29
2. Make a commitment to growth.
I had the privilege of witnessing the celebration of my grandparents’ 60th wedding anniversary. Saying vows to each other as a symbol of their commitment wasn’t the product of all that time together—they made vows to each other at the beginning of their marriage and that commitment was the very thing that carried them through many of the difficult times of life.
What does this teach us about life in community with others? It has to begin first and foremost with a commitment to growth. We often think we can just coast into that kind of relationship, but the reality is: spiritual growth builds on commitment, not toward it.
Jesus talked about commitment in Luke 9 when he said: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.” That a pretty serious commitment—one that doesn’t happen by accident. Paul goes on to use the picture of an athlete, making a commitment to discipline his body through training. In the same way, train “yourself for the purpose of godliness” (1 Tim. 4:7 NASB).
This commitment has to start individually, but also has to be established corporately within the group. One of the best ways to do that is with a group covenant. The exercise of developing a group covenant will help to refine and reinforce the purpose of the group, while ultimately creating greater ownership and buy-in by those in the group. For tips on developing a group covenant, click here.
3. Value process more than events.
The writer of Hebrews recognized this value when he addressed the lack of progress being made by the recipients of his letter. Though he had many more things he wanted to share with them, he was limited because of their immaturity. “You need milk, not solid food! Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil” (Heb. 5:11-14 NIV).
Process is defined as “an identifiable sequence of actions or events taking place over time aimed at achieving a given goal.” Spiritual maturity is not defined by the completion of a Bible study, comprehension of a set of doctrines or beliefs, adherence to a checklist of dos and don’ts, or even any length of time. Rather, much like physical fitness requires on-going exercise and work, growing in spiritual maturity requires an on-going process of becoming more and more like Christ. Peter describes it this way: “For this reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 1:5-8).
As a Community Group leader you play a unique role in helping your group members embrace the process required to grow in Christ-likeness. This gets carried out in everything you do: the way you facilitate your group studies, how you model prayer, encouraging intentional relational relationships, asking questions that require personal reflection, the manner in which you address difficult situations. The secret to seeing God-inspired life-change is hidden in the daily habits you develop within your group.
- See “Facilitate Process,” chapter 25 in Making Small Groups Work by Cloud and Townsend | Amazon CBD
In part 2 of this post we’ll hit the last four essential habits:
