Arthur Flake, the author of Sunday School for Southern Baptists
Arthur Flake was one of Sunday School great pioneers.
His first principle of growth was “Know Your Possibilities”
Every Small Group has great, yet sometimes unreached potential.
Groups say “we don’t have any prospects” or maybe you just “wait and see” who shows up on Sunday. This is not enough.
1) Begin with prayer and ask God for wisdom, insight, and understand of ways to reach people.
2) Think about friends, work associates, relatives, school friends. Are they actively involved at a church. I mean, do they go pretty much every week?
3) If you don’t already have one, intentionally develop a conversational relationship with them. Invite them to lunch, or coffee, or maybe a fellowship.
How about Prayer Walking a neighborhood? Pick a neighborhood where your group can focus.
1) Select a specific time each week to prayer walk the streets of that neighborhood.
2) Go in groups of two or three and simply walk the streets and pray for the families at each home. You may choose to knock on each door explaining that you are there to simply pray for them, it might be a good idea to have a flyer with church/group information on it. Go to these folks and invite them to a function.
3) People will notice, if you stick with it.
The most important thing is to open up and maintain lines of communication. Invite, invite, invite. Every prospect, every person even remotely associated with your class, should be invited to every function of your class. Fellowships, events, mission projects, new curriculum, etc. Send hand written post cards, call, text, email, Facebook, knock on their door (call first though), don’t stop, don’t let-up, until they say “leave me alone” or “I go to ‘this other’ church now” keep asking. It shows you care.
