The Best Team of Small Group Leaders in the Country (Seriously)!

I often brag that we have the best small group leaders in the country. A statement I truly believe. The concentration and quality of our leaders is so great that other pastors comment to me on them. I’m aware that other passionate, committed, missional small group leaders exist around the country, but finding the concentration of these people in one ministry is rare. How can I be so confident of this? Read the statements of our students below and you will begin to see the significance of our small group leaders’ pastoral ministry to students. Each bullet point represents a different student. And this is only a sampling of the statements we received. This year my small group leader…

• helped me become saved, encouraged me to be closer to God, taught me more about God
• has taught me about how God wants me to radiate His glory.
• helped me realize that I needed God!
• has shown me other points of view that I hadn’t thought about my faith. I have really enjoyed my time with her.
• taught me a lot by using her own personal experiences, she also always brought other Bible verses and writings in addition to what was given to her
• helped me by letting us talk about whatever was on our hearts and minds, I love Mike
• took us out a lot, and just gave really good advice and showed us he really cares
• really got to know me and helped me along in my walk, and she taught me how to trust God and rely on His plans for me
• explained all the lessons completely and made everything clear to me.  She was so kind and loving to all of her girls.
• was a really good listener in our small group and always gave us a good time
• was available to talk whenever needed and answered any questions we had
• helped in hard times, talked to us about anything, and listened
• provided us with care and concern; listened to us
• has helped me to grow in my relationship with God, she has shown me how to live or Christ
• has helped me to grow in my relationship with God, she has shown me how to live or Christ
• challenged me to be nice to people that I didn’t want to be nice to and I had to pray to God for help in doing this
• challenged my faith in a good way, she gave me suggestions on how to get closer with God
• has helped me grow in my spiritual walk; has encouraged me to pursue my goals with my gifts and talents; has always been there to talk about whatever
• helped me to work through a lot of my problems in a Godly way
• was the best example for us girls and was always there for me no matter what
• she has been so helpful.  Whenever I need to talk to someone, she is there.  She has made it easier for me to be open about my faith, even if some people don’t understand.
• helped me to grow in my relationship with God
• taught me about faith
• has encouraged me to come out of my comfort zone
• has encouraged me in different situations (mainly with friends to do the right thing).  She has really been there for me and someone I can go to for Godly trust.  I love her!
• has been there for me to talk to and be a spiritual role model and leader in Christ.  She’s not perfect but sure is close!
• encouraged me in my faith and showed me a great example of a good Christian woman to follow after
• has encouraged me to grow and helps me look at things out of a Christian point of view, like if I’m going through something at school or home
• helped me to realize how much more I can give to God and how I can reach out to others
• had much wisdom and made it easy for me to apply the lessons to my life
• has helped me on a personal level with my struggles as a Christian
• shared many personal experiences to show how God can help people grow
• has really given me a great role model for me in helping me be a better Christian
• has always been there for me.  We’ve enjoyed great times together here and he and I had a very meaningful conversation that helped me while I was hurting.  He also has challenged our small group each week with something.
• he has helped me through some hard times with my personal relationship with God, family, and my girlfriend
• prayed for me and gave me verses to minister to my friends with
• he has taught me about forgiveness and he helped me pick out a life verse to help me in my life.
• he has brought up different points of view, was a big encouragement, he always cared, he was there to listen
• tried to fit 12 kids in a 5 passenger van so we could go to Rita’s (to achieve the dream of free water ice).  It, however, failed.
• taught me how to be a better follower of God by telling us how to be nice to people you don’t even like
• has been awesome and helped me get through a tough time in my life
• taught us how God wants us to live our lives
• helped me with my relationships
• helped me learn more on what I could do to be more like God
• help us further understand what we already know
• helped me interact with God by group discussions
• taught me more about God and how important it is to worship him and spread his word
• taught me a lot of good things about God
• showed us the way to have fun.
• changed my life; he became like a big brother
• helped me with problems at school and at home, taught me ways to act Godly
• acted as the hands and feet of Jesus, showed us we can trust God with anything
• helped me to remember that God is always there with open arms, Leslie is awesome!!
• is amazing, she really encouraged me a lot
• has helped me realize how to help show other people the glory of God
• helped me grow in relationships with God and my friends.  She also taught me how important it was to be consistent and keep praying
• taught me to always look to God
• showed me how to radiate God’s light
• helped me grow in my relationship with God by teaching me more about him, and what his purpose is
• invited me in like an old friend when I was new.
• gave me support and encouragement
• has listened and talked to me
• taught me a lot about my relationship with God
• helped me grow closer to God
• has encouraged us with her words, she is a very good role model and I definitely look up to her
• I only came 3 or 4 weeks, but she is a good person to talk to about anything
• taught me more about God
• was great!  She read in the Bible, gave us stories, etc.
• helped me get closer to God
• has been able to give us good advice for our problems, and she has set a good example for us girls.  We really appreciate what she has done.
• was nice and cared for us, and gave us very good advice.
• gave me advice and listened and helped me grow in my faith with God.
• gave me very helpful advice in a very tough situation that I’ve been through.  She has been a very positive role model in my spiritual life and has challenged me more than she knows.
• has helped me forgive people more quickly
• helped me through tough times and used God too
• encouraged us and made our experiences fun!
• I wasn’t here much at all, but my small group leader sent me letters.
• was so fun! She helped me with lots of my problems.
• helped me understand the relationship between God and me.
• he taught me about God.
• he helped me not to sin.
• taught me how to express my feelings and religious beliefs.
• was very nice and brought me closer to God.
• is a really good and nice small group leader, made my relationship grow with God.
• is a great role model in a Christian way.  She made sure we each could experience God.
• was great, I love Benj.  Yea Benj!
• he was great, I love him.
• helped me learn about God and become a better Christian.
• would have deep discussions on what we were talking about in large group.  She is amazing!
• we would have deep discussions on what we would be talking about that night and she would always have answers to our questions.
• has really discussed with us in depth the things we learned, what really helped was she shared her experiences with us.
• has helped me with better loving others and showing the bad points of gossip.  She has been a great leader to talk to and I know she is always there.
• has helped me learn and understand more about God.
• has directed me in my search in the Bible.
• created a fun environment where we could learn about God.
• taught me to stand up against peer pressure.
• encouraged me to read my Bible more.
• encouraged me to stand up against peer pressure.

Need I say more? Now you know why I believe we have the best team of small group leaders in the country.

To read more of what God did to transform our student’s lives this year read:

Stories of Spiritual Formation

High School Students make Great Small Group Leaders

Older Adults/Parents make Great Small Group Leaders