shepherding group policy manual

8/3/2019 Shepherding Group Policy Manual

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Shepherding Group

Vision & Policy Manual

Created 12/21/11


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Shepherding Group Vision and Policy

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Fellow Shepherd,

If the pulpit is the tip of the spear, the Shepherding Group leaders are the

spearhead! You have been chosen for this mission by the leadership of Covenant

Baptist Church because of your teaching ability and excellence of moral character.

However, the purpose of this manual is to refine you and to challenge you to movebeyond teaching and modeling to leading. We call it shepherding!

I believe shepherding includes more than teaching and modeling. It is a

greater calling than your typical Sunday-school teacher. It is the full-orbed, life-altering, disciple-making method of Jesus Christ. It involves hospitality,

fellowship, community, outreach, service, mercy, prayer, guidance, wisdom,teaching, evangelizing, and much more. It is shepherding, and it is a divine calling.

This manual is meant to challenge you. It will perhaps overwhelm you. But I

ask that in the power of the Holy Spirit you take on the task, receive the mission

and serve your King to the best of your abilities. I believe that if you carry out thismission in the power of the Spirit and under the guidance of the True Shepherd, you

will see disciples made in your group.

On Mission,

Pastor Brandon Nealy


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I. The Role of Shepherding Groups

y To give the vision of Covenant Baptist Church a natural, functional, and practical expression.y To provide the environment for the mission of the church to be most effectively carried out. The

mission of the church is often best accomplished in small groups.

y To equip the saints for the work of the ministry.y To multiply and develop the leadership of the church.y To give intentionality to the good intentions of the church.y To keep the church close knit.

II. SG Leader Expectations

y To prepare each week to lead a meaningful, audience appropriate Bible study for Sunday morning.y To arrive and be in the classroom at least ten minutes early each Sunday to greet members and guests.y To maintain records to strengthen the group's pursuit of the overall purpose and mission of the

Shepherding Groups.

y To organize the class for ministry to members and outreach to prospects.y To participate in training opportunities as provided throughout the year.y To enlist an apprentice teacher and assistant. To develop and send out leaders from your class to serve

in ministry and to assist in creating new classes.

y To set a positive example for others by living as an authentic witness of Christ and being fully involvedin the life of the church.


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II. Teaching, Instruction

y A Few Teaching Tipso Always spend time in personal applicationo Review for two minutes the previous week's lesson. Any longer will be a bore right when you

need to be engaging. Asking, "What did I teach last week?" will only lead to awkward silence.

o Include as often as possible relevant testimonies. This would include Gods work in the lives ofyour group members and in the church as a whole.

o Regularly engage your class with ministry and missions opportunities (see announcements inbulletin or on web).

o Do not read the lesson to the class.o Do not read a bunch of verses and ask, "what do you think?"o Use as much personality as you have. Boredom is almost unpardonable except in policy

manuals.

o Do not use your class as a church business meeting. You will lose ethos, credibility and perhapsyour ministry opportunity if you do.

o Do not focus on second-tier issues of disagreement.o Do not promote your own issues, agendas, and hobby-horses.o Do not give place to gossip.o Do not ignore the curriculum. It is chosen by the church leadership.o Do not become inflexible with the curriculum. It isnt the Bible.o Avoid putting people on the spot.o Let each Sundays lesson stand on its own. Visitors need to feel as though they can grow

without having been there for the last month.

o Use multiple methods of instruction.o Stay connected to the maturity level of the group. Teach at a level that is just over their heads.

This will enable them to feel challenged without feeling lost. It will also help withattentiveness.

o Do not dilute the Bible teaching. It will not aid in the growth of your class spiritually ornumerically.o Give yourapprentice (explained below) chances to cooperate in the teaching and lesson

preparation.

o Be conscious of the Holy Spirit's moving in your class.y Lesson Preparation

o Be sure to spend personal time with God each day.o Begin preparing the lesson very early in the week.o Enlist your apprentice in helping you prepare.o Interact with other teachers in the preparation of the lesson.o Read other sources concerning your topic or text (commentaries, books, sermons).o Develop a preparation routine.


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III. Community, Fellowship, Hospitality

y The Rollo Keep a well-documented roll-book. Don't think of the list as an attendance roster, but an

outreach and ministry roster. They are your sheep. You are their shepherd.o The roll is to be open to all. It isnt church membership.o The roll should be easy to get on and hard to get off.o Invite everyone on the roll, all the time, to all the events.o Regularly encourage the people on the roll to attend and serve.o Remove them from the roll when they:

Join another church Move to another community Die Ask to be removed.

o Do not purge non-attenders. Continue to reach out to them.o Add people to the list by weekly asking in class if there is anyone who would like to be added to

the enrollment list. Explain that it is the roster for the shepherding group. Be sure to get email

and phone number if possible.o Always be seeking to add to your roll.o Keep track of who attends.o Keep track of how many visitors are attending.o Contact absent enrollees within the week with a synopsis of the classes activities.o Contact and challenge enrollees who havent been attending to consider returning.

y Care Groupso In each SG there should be a Care Group, preferably lead by the class Assistant. The class

Assistant and Care Group are assigned the task of meeting especially the physical needs of themembers of the SG.

o If the SG is small, the care group may only need to be one individual or couple.y Class Names

o Each class should have a name, which is used internally to promote unity and esprit de corps.Class names will correspond to the GreekAlphabet. Ex: Alpha Group, Beta Group, etc.

y Serviceo SG leaders should be actively leading their groups in service and mercy projects, which include

evangelism and/or mercy ministry. According to Thom Rainer, President ofLifeWay, 80% ofsuccessful small group programs conducted weekly outreach events.

o How to Motivate SG members to serve Group Prayer for more laborers. Remain passionate as a leader for service to the group, church and community. Communicate to the group your vision and ideas for service. Show appreciation for those who are serving. Be personally committed to service. Continue to supervise your SGs service.

y Guest Relationso Offer multiple fellowship opportunities outside of Sunday.o Invite all prospects to fellowships.

Prospects are those individuals on a compiled list of friends and family that get mail oremail invitations to all events. Invite them often. Ask your class members for prospectsinformation when appropriate.


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According to Thom Rainer, President ofLifeWay, 78% of successful small groupprograms develop and maintain prospect lists.

o Have refreshments in your group meetings.o Be present in the class when guests arrive.o Meet and greet visitors at the worship service.o Make you and your wife's name known to visitors.o Be sure all guests are engaged in conversationo Connect visitors to folks in the class with similar interests or demographics.o Often discuss with the class how to make the environment more welcoming.o Encourage members to be good inviterso Reach out to people in transition or crises.o Offer testimonies and gospel presentations at every opportunity.o Celebrate holidays. And be sure to send out invitations.o Teach class members how to share the gospel. According to Thom Rainer, President of

LifeWay, 85% of successful small group programs provide personal evangelism training for the

small group members.

o Offer to sit with or accompany visitors to other church functions and classes (whereappropriate).

o Follow up with first time visitors within 72 hours.o Contact SG members at least once a month to make sure their needs are being met.o Involve others in the class in making contact if necessary.

IV. Organization and Administration

y The Rollo Though the guidelines for keeping the roll are listed in the community section of this manual, the

administrative importance of the roll cannot be over emphasized. According to Thom Rainer,President ofLifeWay, 91% of successful small group programs are assertive in expanding and

recording enrollment.y Offices within the Group

o Shepherd/leadero Apprentice: This individual should be training to lead his own SG one day. He should fill in for

the leader during absences. He should participate in the lesson preparation and teaching of the

group when possible.

o Assistant: This individual should be assisting with the hands-on service tasks of the groupsincluding, but not limited to outreach, hospitality, and mercy.

o Both Apprentices and Assistants must be members of Covenant Baptist Church, be of goodChristian character, and be above reproach.

o The Executive Pastor must approve both Apprentices and Assistants.y Class Size

o As a general rule, the larger the group; the larger the back door of the class. Large groups doform around gifted communicators. However, large groups are almost impossible to properly

shepherd and minister to especially if you take enrollment seriously.o A few indicators the class is too big

The leader does not personally know each person enrolled. The group is too large for everyone to participate in discussion or group activities. The room is filled to capacity on a regular basis. More than 15 are present and less that 40% enrolled. When less than 40% are present it


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means the class is struggling with maintaining contact, ministry and care for all members.

y Splitting Groupso The great commission should take precedent to feelings of fellowship. So, split if necessary.o ThomRainers research on successful small groups indicates that allowing a status quo to

develop will greatly hinder future growth. So, split if necessary.o If asked to split and replicate your class by sending members away for another group:

Dont be insulted. Dont say negative things to the group. Keep the overall Mission of the church elevated above personal feelings and ego. Be joyful that God is blessing the church with growth. Remember that only healthy, growing groups get asked to replicate. Consider your group a constant source of future leaders and new classes. A discipleship

factory.

y Where do you find the time?o You will be especially busy as a SGL. So, here are a few tips on using your time wisely.

Use your class time for organization: Hash out the details of an upcoming service trip.Add visitors to the roll. Enlist a new care group leader. Think of an internal group

name, etc. etc. Take advantage of Sunday lunch: do follow-ups with visitors at local restaurants. Or

perhaps have your group over for Sunday lunch. Invite your care group or apprentice.Be on mission at lunch.

Preview the next weeks lesson on Sunday afternoon. Be chewing on it all week. Use technology as much as possible considering the technical IQ of your group.

y What to do when you are to be absento Do not announce your absence before hand.o Take responsibility for finding a replacement. This is the perfect opportunity for the apprentice.o Avoid combining classes.o Enlist an emergency substitute for when you are absent without enough notice.o Avoid being absent.o Contact the shepherding group director as soon as you are aware of the up and coming absence.

V. Leadership

y A few leadership tipso Your attitude sets the tone for the group. So be positive.o Never quit developing your skills as a teacher. Study!o Stay involved with the church.o Keep your commitment level strong.o Negotiate compromises when conflict arises.o Make decisions that are in the best interests of your class and not your own personal comfort.o Train and develop other leaders to help in your class. Identify and train an apprentice.

VI. Shepherding through Counseling

y Part of the task of the SGL will be to shepherd through counseling.y Most counseling will be the informal what do you think about this sort of counsel. However the

need may arise within your group for a more formal counseling plan. This plan will be referred to

as a Shepherding Plan.


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y There is a specific procedure that will need to be taken when any formal shepherding needs arisethat require counseling and the creation of a Shepherding Plan. [See Appendix 1]

y Some basic counseling tips:o If you are a SGL then you are competent to counsel. You would not have been chosen

otherwise.o If you feel like an issue is beyond your abilities to counsel (even informally) notify the Executive

Pastor for assistance. Dont just automatically refer the person to an elder or pastoral staff.

o Never counsel a woman alone. Always meet in a public place, preferably with another person. If married this should be your wife whenever possible. The Executive Pastor can serve as your second if other arrangements cannot be made.

o Never underestimate the role of prayer in counseling.o Dont be afraid to share truth in love.o If youre not using your Bible then youre doing it wrong.o Give them homework to do in-between meetings. Ground it in scripture and be willing to hold

them accountable.

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