Leading a Bible Study ...Continued from page 1

Establish a format and let the group members know what that format is. People appreciate being in a Bible study that focuses on the Bible. So keep the discussion on the topic and move the group through the questions. Tangents are often hard to avoid?and even harder to rein in. So be sure to focus on the answers to questions about the specific passage at hand. After all, the purpose of the group is Bible study!

Finally, as someone has accurately observed, “Personal growth is one of the by-products of any effective small group. This growth is achieved when people are recognized and accepted by others. The more friendliness, mutual trust, respect, and warmth exhibited, the more likely that the member will find pleasure in the group, and, too, the more likely she will work hard toward the accomplishment of the group’s goals. The effective leader will strive to reinforce desirable traits” (source unknown).

 A Dozen Helpful Tips

 Here is a list of helpful suggestions for leading a Bible study discussion group:

 1. Arrive early, ready to focus fully on others and give of yourself. If you have to do any last-minute preparation, review, re-grouping, or praying, do it in the car. Don’t dash in, breathless, harried, late, still tweaking your plans.

2. Check out your meeting place in advance. Do you have everything you need?tables, enough chairs, a black board, hymnals if you plan to sing, coffee, etc.?

3.  Greet each person warmly by name as she arrives. After all, you’ve been praying for these women all week long, so let each VIP know that you’re glad she’s arrived.

4. Use name tags for at least the first two or three weeks.

5. Start on time no matter what?even if only one person is there!

6. Develop a pleasant but firm opening statement. You might say, “This lesson was great! Let’s get started so we can enjoy all of it!” or “Let’s pray before we begin our lesson.”

7.  Read the questions, but don’t hesitate to reword them on occasion. Rather than reading an entire paragraph of instructions, for instance, you might say, “Question 1 asks us to list some ways that Christ displayed humility. Lisa, please share one way Christ displayed humility.”

8. Summarize or paraphrase the answers given. Doing so will keep the discussion focused on the topic, eliminate digressions, help avoid or clear up any misunderstandings of the text, and keep each group member aware of what the others are saying.

9. Keep moving and don’t add any of your own questions to the discussion time. It’s important to get through the study guide questions. So if a cut-and-dried answer is called for, you don’t need to comment with anything other than a “thank you.” But when the question asks for an opinion or an application (for instance, “How can this truth help us in our marriages?” or “How do you find time for your quiet time?”), let all who want to contribute do so.