Invitation: Personal Ownership and Marketing.

Personal ownership

God has not called us into a Christian club. He has not called us into a closed gathering. We are called people so that we can be a sent people. Everyone God calls, He sends. So if we are all sent people, there must be somewhere in our world, in our sphere of influence, that we are meant to reach.

We are on mission in every part of our day. Every opportunity is a chance for a divine connection. A chance for God to move in our city. When we view our workplaces, our homes, and our neighborhoods through that lens, we start seeing them the way Christ does. As opportunities in front of us to shine His love.

There are systems and structures for people to sign up to join a small group, and we operate with a detailed system at FOUNT. But one of the keys we’ve found for health and growth is building a culture of invitation. Each leader taking responsibility and ownership to invite people from their own world. Not just relying on the system, but actually inviting people they know. This is when small groups reach a city and impact a community outside the walls of the church. If all we’re reaching is insular, the people who already signed up on a form, we’re not really living out the Great Commission. We’re not really living missionally. A personal invitation could be a life-changing moment for someone. Why would we not take that step?

The church only has so much reach within a city. Marketing, awareness, reach. All of that is limited. But when every person catches a vision for invitation, the reach becomes limitless. That’s when small groups become a natural part of a city. That’s when lives are changed. That’s when people meet Jesus who might have never walked through the doors of a church. They were first invited to a table. To a dinner with friends.

The best way to be bold in our invitation is to be secure in who we are in Christ. When our identity is secure, we can step out in inviting people. We can build a culture of invitation without looking to the outcome to validate us. Don’t hang on someone’s acceptance to feel accepted by Jesus. Let an invitation encourage you, but not be what your faith is built on. Your acceptance was secured long before the invitation was ever given.

Marketing and storytelling

Alongside personal invitation, the church as a whole has a role to play. As a staff, as a leadership team, you have the ability to celebrate, highlight, and elevate the things that matter most to your community. Whatever is seen as priority and elevated as a church becomes the thing your members see as important. If small groups are never talked about or celebrated in your services, your members will not see them as important. They will see them as an add-on. Not the main thing.

If you want your small groups to thrive, they need to be at the center. That means not just spoken about as an announcement, but incorporated into messages. Shared from leadership. Talked about in conjunction with the Word of God. Not just an ad slipped between worship sets, but highlighted as the biblical community Jesus designed.

The single most fruitful way we’ve celebrated our groups is by telling stories. People want to connect to people. They want to hear a story. They aren’t looking for another ad that tells them to sign up. They want to know the why. The impact. The purpose. How this is going to better their life.

Stories make that difference. Stories show the genuine, relational, impactful layers of small groups beyond a marketing campaign. Beyond a well-designed graphic. Beyond a catchy phrase. They share a person’s actual experience. When you highlight someone’s experience, how their life changed through being part of a group, the doubters and the ones on the fence start to open up. People see the groups as being about impact. Not about the church wanting numbers or growth. They see that the church wants health and transformation.

Even if you’re small and just starting, sharing a quote from someone in the group in their own words is a great start. A sentence on a slide. A short testimony during an announcement. As you grow, go deeper. Video testimonies. A variety of stories that show the different dynamics of the group. Someone coming for the first time and getting connected. Someone who’s been coming for a year and its impact. Someone who stepped into leadership. A first-time leader opening their home. Show all the layers so someone watching can see themselves in the people sharing.

Video testimonies, quote designs, and stories have been the main tool we’ve used to get people to sign up for Dinner Parties. People hearing that someone’s life was changed. That someone made lifelong friends. That someone had people praying for them in a hard season. All of those moments connect to the viewer. Those are the stories you want to tell in your church. That’s how to best market your groups.