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Key Phrases: growth group, connection card, servant evangelism, The Journey, Fill Factor, Focusing Your Groups (more...)
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Product Description

Church leaders want to know how to make small groups work for their church communities, yet a quick look around shows that while small groups are all the rage, much of the time they create more problems than they solve. Nelson Searcy and Kerrick Thomas, founding pastors of The Journey Church in the heart of New York City, suggest that this failure is due to widely held beliefs about small groups that just aren’t true—and they aim to debunk the myths and set the record straight! Drawing from the startling success of small groups at The Journey Church (which has had over 100-percent participation in small groups for more than 4 years) Searcy and Thomas show how church leaders can implement a life-changing small-group ministry that gets the maximum number of people involved and solves many of the important (yet irritating) problems facing churches of all sizes.


About the Author

Nelson Searcy and his wife Kelley founded The Journey Church of the City in New York in 2002. In a few short years, it has become a dynamic force that brings God’s message to over a thousand 20- and 30-somethings each week. Nelson trains church planters through his own seminars as well as through Saddleback Church training events. He is the publisher of the online resource Evangelism Online and prior to starting The Journey, he was the founding director of the Purpose Driven Community at Saddleback Church. Nelson is the coauthor with Kerrick Thomas of Launch: Starting a New Church from Scratch.
Kerrick Thomas is a teaching pastor at The Journey Church and regularly co-leads training events with Nelson Searcy. Prior to his move to New York to plant The Journey, he received a Masters of Divinity from Princeton Theological Seminary.

Product Details

  • Paperback: 192 pages
  • Publisher: Regal (June 2, 2008)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0830745661
  • ISBN-13: 978-0830745661
  • Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.com Sales Rank: #14,577 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Nelson Searcy
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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
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Inside This Book (learn more)
Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
growth group, connection card, servant evangelism, current group leaders, forming your groups, small groups system, promotion month, potential group leaders, initial asks, upcoming semester, filling groups, small groups table, groups catalog, group covenant, new group leaders, weekend service, positive peer pressure
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
The Journey, Fill Factor, Focusing Your Groups, Facilitating Your Groups, Big Idea, Activate Principle People, New Testament Challenge, Rethinking Small-Group Strategy, Big Number, Rethinking Small-Group Methodology, Rethinking Small-Group Leadership, Holy Spirit, Rethinking Small-Group Structure, Focus Step, Facilitate Principle, New York, Days of Purpose, Form Step, Big Ask Principle, Men's Prayer Breakfast, Turning First-Time Guests, Rick Warren, Danger Zone, Filling Your Groups, Group Leaders Training
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Activate: An Entirely New Approach to Small Groups
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12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding Practical Book on Small Groups Ministry, July 7, 2008
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Searcy and Thomas have written an outstanding book on starting or developing a small groups program within the local church. The material presented demonstrates a depth of insight that only comes from experience - it's easy to see how Journey Church in New York City went from a handful of people to over 1100 in worship attendance and over 1200 people in almost 100 small groups in just a few years. The book is easy to read, very well organized, very practical, yet gives the important `why' behind each of the main ideas presented. (I would characterize his other book Fusion: Turning First-Time Guests into Fully-Engaged Members of Your Church in the same way.) The material is covered in several sections within two parts: the Activate Mindset, and the Activate System. The first half talks about several novel principles and shares some solid insight in sidebars and examples. The second half is really nuts-and-bolts on how to apply this approach not just as a set of disconnected ideas, but as a complete system that can be put in place. It doesn't tell the reader what needs to be covered or try to set an agenda for the groups, so there is still a lot of freedom for application and customization of the system to best match the needs of the church.

Part One: The Activate Mindset
* Rethinking Small Group Methodology
- Think Inside Out... Not Outside In
- Think Larger... Not Smaller
- Think Friendship... Not Intimacy
* Rethinking Small Group Structure
- Think Short-Term... Not Long-Term
- Think Promotion Months... Not Ongoing Sign-ups
- Think Church of small groups... Not with small groups
* Rethinking Small Group Strategy
- Think Easy... Not Hard
- Think Ahead... Not Behind
- Think Full Staff Participation... Not Staff Specialist
* Rethinking Small-Group Leadership
- Think Apprentice... Not Expert
- Think Decentralization... Not Staff Control
- Think Leader Multiplication... Not Group Multiplication

Part Two: The Activate System
* Focusing Your Groups (with 5 Focus steps)
* Forming Your Groups (with 3 Forming steps)
* Filling Your Groups (with 11 Fill factors)
* Facilitating Your Groups (with 5 Principles)

Some may be put off by the subtitle `An Entirely New Approach to Small Groups'. That type of marketing line seems to be best left for readers and reviewers to decide, but the material in the book is not as self-promotional as the title. I had previously read several books by Donahue and others stressing being a Church of Small Groups (not with). What I particularly liked about Activate was that several foundational principles were in common with these other books, while several aspects of the approach were quite different - and Searcy and Thomas discuss the reasons why. (For example, the approach to sign-ups and promotion is different in the Activate system, but with a good rationale.)

I would strongly recommend that pastors and/or those responsible for starting or growing a small groups ministry read `Activate' in addition to the excellent books from other successful practitioners in small group ministry (e.g. Bill Donahue and Andy Stanley, including Building a Church of Small Groups: A Place Where Nobody Stands Alone and Creating Community: Five Keys to Building a Small Group Culture).
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12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars POWERFUL!-CAN'T REMEMBER THE LAST TIME A SMALL GROUPS BOOK LIKE THIS HAS COME OUT!, May 19, 2008
By E. Ramirez "Christ Is King" (Brooklyn, NY United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This is a powerful refreshing book on small groups. I have read it twice already and have it all highlighted with many new insights into my personal small groups theology. We have built our church on small groups here in NYC, and have read about every small group book there is.Many are pretty much the same.However, What makes this one different is that (1).It is in fact a radical paradigm shift!Many books I read are 80% things I agree on already. What makes this book better is that I actually learned a lot more than what I already agreed on. The idea of losing control is in istelf worth the book. (2).Nelson and kerrick are powerful practicioners in that they can articulate a plan of action in real steps and not only give you a "YOU NEED TO DO THIS" thesis. They actually give you a plan and a "Why", and PROOF that its worked. BOTTOM LINE: This is Simply one of the best books ever on small groups. Even if you dont agree on everything in this book, I promise you you will gain a lot from it. The price of the book is peanuts compared to the wealth of insight you will recieve. Thanks again guys, pastor Eddie Ramirez, Victory Outreach- Alcance Victoria Brooklyn, NY.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Best Book I Have Ever Read on Building Community (Small Groups), August 7, 2008
This is by far the best book I have ever read on building authentic and meaningful community in the church (and as a Pastor of 11 years - I have read a lot). After reading this book I bought four more copies for other people in my church to read.

This semester based system that Searcy and his staff has come up with makes complete sense and is something that any church no matter what the size could implement. Also what I like about this system is that it looks to take care of both the "attendees" and the leaders. Also, the focus on spiritual depth and being missional, makes the small group system very healthy.

I got the opportunity to spend a week at this church with Nelson Searcy for a Masters class and he is the real deal. If you are looking for something fresh in the area of small groups and a system that is simple and not overly complex, you need to check this book out.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars New idea for small groups
Whether you agree with Nelson Searcy or not, you will find his thoughts on small group life to be new and challenging. Read more
Published 17 days ago by Paul Steen

5.0 out of 5 stars Finally, Small Groups for Me
This was the book for me! Out of the three books I've read from Nelson Searcy, Activate gave me the most to chew on and imagine. Read more
Published 1 month ago by MasterAP

5.0 out of 5 stars Buy This One Only if You're Interested in Small Group Leadership!
I've read many books about small groups and small group leadership. This one is the best! It's down to earth, practical and focuses on the "how-to". Read more
Published 3 months ago by Donald N. Nelson

5.0 out of 5 stars Practical, helpful insights into a new way of thinking
This is an impressive little book that shifts the paradigm on small group ministry in the local church. Read more
Published 4 months ago by S. Brown

5.0 out of 5 stars THE book you need to read on SMALL GROUPS
I'm a church planter in Western MASS and we're preparing to launch small groups this Fall (it's now April) and I can't say enough good things about how helpful this book has been... Read more
Published 6 months ago by Mike R. Sorcinelli

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent
Well put together book from someone who has actually done what they are writing about. This is a book about practice and not theory.
Published 9 months ago by D. Heins

5.0 out of 5 stars This Is a Complete System
Looking for a soup-to-nuts primer on small group ministry? For most churches, Activate: An Entirely New Approach to Small Groups by Nelson Searcy and Kerrick Thomas will neatly... Read more
Published 11 months ago by Mark C. Howell

4.0 out of 5 stars Solid ideas
I like the concepts in this book - semester based small group experiences, definite start and finish date, clear timelines for recruitment, leader development, content planning... Read more
Published 15 months ago by TOz

5.0 out of 5 stars This Book is AWESOME
This book is awesome. The first chapter alone is worth it's weight in gold. I found myself having a continual "A-Ha" moment. Read more
Published 17 months ago by Donald D. Plourde

5.0 out of 5 stars Thank you for the nuts and bolts!
What I loved about this book is that it doesn't just tell us "People need to be in community". Instead, it tells us how to lead people into a small group experience and how to... Read more
Published 17 months ago by Bob Franquiz

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