First Night - IN PERSON

The first night of your LH Group is an exciting and potential packed moment. In it lies the opportunity to make connections and build relationships as well as set a trajectory of growth and fruitfulness for the rest of the semester. In order to help you succeed in on your first night, we offer these suggestions to get started.

Prepare

No one plans to fail, they simply fail to plan. Especially with something of such importance as an LH Group, preparation is key.

The first place to start preparing is in prayer. Be in prayer for your group, and its members. Pray for a welcoming atmosphere and lasting relationships.

Secondly, prepare your space. Take the time to prepare the environment. Use the acronym ALL to help gauge your setup.

Aroma - Smell is a powerful sense, and if the room stinks, your group may not be far behind. Seek to eliminate bad odors, and don’t underestimate the powerful aroma of coffee, Febreeze, or essential oils.

Lighting - Lighting can play a big role in creating a welcoming environment. Harsh, bright lighting can cause people to feel self-conscious, and exposed. On the other hand soft lighting can make a space feel warm and safe.

Layout - Every meeting space is a little different, but as much as possible try to layout the room to have the seats in a circle. Circles allow for everyone to be visible to each other, as well as making it easy for everyone to hear each other.

Set a Relational Foundation

The first night of group is exciting, and it will be tempting to just dive right into studying, but the first night is a rare opportunity to set a relational foundation for you group.

Setting the relational foundation really begins with what we discussed above in preparation. Having your meeting space set before people arrive allows you to be a welcoming presence and ready to greet your members as the arrive.

Make a point to greet everyone you can. If you have a larger group, plan ahead to have a spouse or friend from the group be intentional about assisting you in greeting people and welcoming them in.

Everybody is nervous the first time they attend a group, especially if they don’t know anybody. Break the ice by going around the circle and having everyone introduce themselves, and tell one or two things about themselves (i.e. where they were born, their favorite place they’ve visited, or their favorite food) Have fun with it.

While people are introducing themselves, make sure to write down their names. Maybe even make a chart with where they were sitting in the circle so that you can better remember them. This exercise will come in handy for three reasons.

1 - You’ll be ahead of the game with taking attendance, which you’ll need to report each week,

2 - You’ll have the opportunity to start praying for your group members by name

3 - You’ll have a cheat sheet throughout the evening as you talk to be able to call people by their name.

As just mentioned, make sure to take attendance the first night of group, and each night thereafter. This will help you in praying for your group, and following up with those who did not attend, as well as help the Discipleship Team improve upon our group systems.

You will receive an email after each of your Group Meetings reminding you to take attendance. To take attendance click the link in the email, and check off every person that attended. If someone who attended your group is not listed on that page, you can add them on that same page. If you have any questions about taking attendance, please contact:

The LH Groups Team - groups@lighthouse.church

The main goals for the evening is to get to know people and to let them get their feet wet with the new relationships they are forming.

Set Proper Expectations

The first night of group is also an excellent time to set the expectations for the rest of the semester. You may have a few housekeeping type items to go over with you group, such as the curriculum you’re using, childcare costs, or a snack schedule.

You will definitely want to discuss the following:

• Expectations of participating in an Outreach Partnership together as a group, as you pray for that Partner weekly together.

• The need to raise up new group leaders for future groups.

Finally, when it comes to expectations, you want to create and fulfill the expectation that group will begin on time, and end on time. This expectation really does bring comfort and security to people.

All told, your first night of group is a moment of a great anticipation and opportunity. Take the opportunities to prepare, build relationships and set expectations and anticipate a wonderful semester of fruitfulness and connection.