The mighty combo: Micro connections and micro groups for Listen Pray Care

Micro-connections in micro-groups. What do we mean by that?

Think micro. And active communication will increase.

Group size matters. That was the original idea behind starting small group ministries in church. 

When smaller groups are formed, you can feel the dynamics change. 

I have seen this in the Bible studies I am involved in. Our smaller groups have more intimacy and it is easier to feel like participating. My kids in college say they love the smaller class sizes. They feel it is easier to ask questions and get actively involved in smaller classes.  

Almost automatically, when the group is smaller, there is an increased sense of intimacy and community. 

Larger groups serve an important purpose. We do things together, corporately. In a big way. Like worshipping and learning with a teaching platform. Small groups are better places for individuals to relate and actively communicate with others. Especially if time is an issue. And believe me, time matters in the responsibilities of Christian leaders (even though I wish it didn’t).

While leading youth ministry, I was always looking for effective ways to build community. I wanted our youth to feel like they were part of a family that cared about them. In order to do that, we needed an opportunity to hear each person’s story for the week. When the group met as a whole with larger numbers, we struggled to have time to listen to each person. The result? A lot of youth simply didn’t share.

We made a change. We decided to break into smaller groups for a portion of our meeting. Our young people immediately had a better opportunity to share something personal and group bonding naturally became much deeper.

Listen Pray Care groups are designed to take place within a group that has an overall different purpose--like teaching, service, or worship. In order to work within that framework, to meet your goals, your groups will need to be very small.

From a distance, it looks to me like people visiting before the larger gathering starts, randomly turning to each other in groups of two or three. I repeat, Listen Pray Care groups need to be very small.

As far as what we learn in Listen Pray Care groups, we only learn a small amount of information within short amounts of time. It’s kind of like those little visits before the gathering starts. Usually the conversation is not very long, but valuable sharing is taking place. It’s powerful and personal.

Only making micro-connections is perfectly fine. Trust me. God multiplies what is learned there into amazing things. It’s like planting a seed with God-sized potential.

Want more information on forming micro-groups and making micro connections? The video (above) is helpful, and I also discuss it in detail in my book. Subscribe to our YouTube channel for more helpful videos.