Yesterday I received an email from a small group pastor about curriculum and courses for new believers. I can’t count how many times people have asked me about this same subject, so I thought it was time to write a post about it.
The problem is usually put to me this way: “We’re a fast growing church with a TON of new Christ-Followers and we don’t know what to do with them. What’s the best material out there for new believers?”
In my opinion, the two best are “Christianity Explored” and “Alpha”. You can find them here:
Both of these focus on getting mature, new, and non Christians together to explore the foundations of the faith.
That said, I have three important suggestions regarding new believer classes:
- Get Your Sr. Pastor’s Support. Your Sr. Pastor needs to be the voice of this ministry. If he doesn’t talk about it from the stage OFTEN (weekly would be great), it will never take off.
- Pick a Curriculum and Stick With it! Whatever you start with will probably not get you the results you were looking for but that’s not unusual. Most fast growing churches are fast paced and used to seeing immediate and explosive results. Keep in mind that spiritual growth is almost never immediate or explosive! It will probably take 12 to 18 months for you to figure out a rhythm and system that really workds for the new believers in your church. Be patient and give it the appropriate time. Then you’ll see success.
- Find Passionate Volunteers. There are people in your church who have a heart for new believers. Get them involved. Delegate responsibility and authority to run the class. DON’T abdicate though. The worst thing to do is hand it off and assume it’s done. Be involved, but don’t micro-manage
I’ve been working on this just this week! I had set my mind on Alpha but now I have a new one to explore! I talked to some Alpha trainers at Catalyst and really got a sense that it was what I was looking for.
What do you think about self-study tools like “Survival Kit” for new believers or the various ebook’s I’ve seen popping up written for new believers? My thought is these might be received but not read because of the lack of accountability.
Hey Clark,
Alpha is great, so I don’t think you’ll go wrong with it.
As for self-study tools, they are a good supplement for discipleship but should never be the only new believer resource a church offers. Discipleship never happens in a vacuum. Discipleship happens best within the context of relationships! That’s why groups matter so much.