Every church traditionally has some type of small group experience--Sunday School classes, study groups, mission groups, and others. Today, small group experiences may be more important than ever. In a recent article, Thom Rainer identified eight major changes in churches over the last decade. One of these was the vital importance of groups in the church. According to Rainer’s research, ten years ago churches had groups but they were of marginal importance. Leaders “did not see how groups could enhance the health of the church in discipleship, evangelism, prayer, ministry, and fellowship.” On the other hand, he observes, “Healthy churches today make groups (community groups, home groups, Sunday school, life groups, etc.) a high priority.” We can identify several reasons why this is true. First, most people have a desire to connect. Although we have become a society immersed in social media, most of us have few deep connecti...
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