2. Issues with Formal Cell Groups
• Cell groups require a balance between disciples, stable
members, a new folks
• Cell groups tend to grow faster than one can properly
mentor
• Cell groups need a method to integrate within our
mission center framework
• Cell group leadership can turn into a “social status”
• Cell groups that meet too often can get boring and
repetitive
3. Our Reality
• Our Target: 18-30 year olds that do not attend church
• Most of our folks have little money, the others almost have none
• Most of our folks live in various areas of Chicago, about 1 ½ hour
radius
• Most of our folks do not have stable families
• Many of our folks are bisexual
• Many of our folks struggle with addiction
• Many of our folks are not Christian and/or atheists
• We have to grow and develop new leaders
• Many of our folks require HEAVY investment before trust can be
established
• Most of our folks have an Internet connection (over 90%)
• We have no full time ministers
4. Small Group
• What is your reality?
– Who are the people you are trying to reach?
– How do you see your ministry integrating with
the Community of Christ?
– How many stable members do you have?
– ??
5. Leadership
• How is our leadership team structured?
– Team of 4
– Focused on ministry, communication, and
organization
– Each leader is assigned
• A block of cell groups to be responsible for
• People to directly mentor
• An area of expertise to develop
6. Worship
• What does worship look like?
– Typical cell group format
– Topics / Scripture / Prayer
– Communication
– Duration and Location
– Mentoring
– Food Coordination
– Yo Buddies / Me-Toos / Chatanooga Style
Prayers
7. Communication
• How do we communicate?
– We use Google for our email / calander /
contact tracking
– We use Myspace / Facebook
– Each leader is assigned a subset of folks for
mentoring
– Each meeting call list to invite and coordinate
food
– General followup
8. Mentorship
• How do we mentor?
– Each cell group is led by 1 leader and
someone they are mentoring
– We use folks as part of our cell group worship
– We integrate folks with other church-related
events
• Youth program, etc
– We help folks out with daily-life stuff
9. Mission Center Integration
• How do we integrate into our mission
center?
– We are an official congregation
– Each leader tries to speak in various
congregations
• We treat those events as cell group events, include
invitation
• Often times we have more cell group folks than
church folks
10. Breaking the Bank?
• What about $$?
– We have a call list of 90 people and around 25-35 that attend regularly
– Our yearly budget is $2000
• $500 of that is for our trip on Memorial Day
• $500 of that is for a congregational free retreat
• So, our worship and activities only cost around $1000 and most likely it will
be around $500
• We talk about offering in 4 ways
– Giving of yourself by coming to cell group to build a relationship with
God and your church family
– Giving of your invitation to make a difference in your friends’ lives
– Helping out by bringing food or items to address personal need
– Helping out financially
• We do not pass an offering plate
• We use PayPal for financial donations
11. Multiplication
• What about multiplication?
– We use places that allow for 30-50 people
– Gives us time for proper leadership mentoring
– Necessary due to the required commitment
• Good ministers do not grow on trees
– Once we reach 50+ on a regular basis, we will
have to cross that bridge
• But we will not buy a building
12. OnEdge Approach
• Misc. Notes
– Although we meet once a month, formally we usually
have a number of things going on each month
• Personal visits
• Social gatherings (e.g. Super Bowl, Baby shower)
• Dinners / etc
– We try to make all things unique to make non-
members comfortable
• We have baptized people in pools and Jacuzzis
• We do a yearly Carnival Church
