14 Things Your Small Group Should Be Doing

Have you ever wondered what a small group is or if there are certain things your small group should be doing?

Well, the Bible gives us a beautiful passage of scripture in Acts that describes how the early church operated.

These verses are not only a wonderful example of what a Christ-centered church looks like, but they are also a great start to what a small group can be doing for one another!

Now, when I say small group, I am not referring to a small church (although these ideas can be applied to a small church as well).

This post is specifically geared towards smaller groups of believers that attend a larger church together and meet regularly in a small group to share life and walk with Christ together.

It’s a small Biblical community.

So let’s dig more into what small groups are and what they should be doing to model themselves after the examples of the early church that are given in the New Testament.

What Is a Small Group?

If you are unfamiliar with the concept of a small group, it is usually a group of less than 20 people that go to the same church but meet separately outside of their regular church gathering.

This group of people is dedicated to one another and aims to encourage and strengthen one another in their faith.

They are vulnerable with each another and receive accountability and prayer from one another.

While attending church and being part of a larger body of believers is important, there are also amazing things that God does through small, intimate groups of believers.

In today’s society, it can be so easy to join a mega-church and attend services for years without ever knowing or being known by anyone else.

And can we just be real for a moment?

If you attend a church where no one else knows your struggles and you don’t know what anyone else struggles with or needs, THIS IS NOT THE CHURCH OF THE BIBLE.

In the Bible, we clearly see that the example set forth in the New Testament is believers doing life TOGETHER.

They rejoiced together, cried together, prayed for one another, supported one another, financially gave to other believers, and so much more.

Does this sound like simply showing up to church once a week?

NO!

As our church says, anonymity is the enemy of discipleship and anonymity is not what God wants for you!

He has created you to be an active member of the body of Christ.

He has created you to BE KNOWN.

God has given YOU unique gifts to bless His body in both a large church gathering AND in small groups.

1 Peter 4:10

¹⁰ Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.

Why would people want to spend their time meeting together again during the week?

For those of us that run a tight and busy schedule, it can feel like it’s impossible to add one more thing to our calendar.

But if your schedule doesn’t have time in it to BE the church, then your calendar needs reprioritized.

Our time spent in corporate worship is NOT all that the church is meant to be!

God doesn’t want to be a check mark on your to-do list.

Instead, we should BE the hands and feet of Jesus and out of the overflow of that should come our weekly activities.

I’m not saying having your kids enrolled in sports is a bad thing.

But if that’s all you have time for and if it keeps you from being in a small group (or keeps you from even attending church), then something needs to change!

Teaching our kids that they are a higher priority than Jesus is called IDOLATRY.

Check out what the Bible says about idols:

Exodus 20:3

³ You shall have no other gods before me.

Jonah 2:8

⁸ Those who cling to worthless idols turn away from God’s love for them.

1 John 5:21

²¹ Dear children, keep yourselves from idols.

I know making our kids an idol has become all too acceptable in our society.

BUT THAT DOESN’T MAKE IT RIGHT!

Do you want to know how to teach your kids about Jesus?

Do you want your children to have a personal relationship with Jesus that will weather the storms of early adulthood?

Then show them how to make Jesus first in their life.

The Bible speaks very clearly about this.

Check out what Deuteronomy says about how we should teach our children about God:

Deuteronomy 6:4-9

⁴ Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. ⁵ Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. ⁶ These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. ⁷ Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. ⁸ Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. ⁹ Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.

Deuteronomy 11:16-20

¹⁶ Be careful, or you will be enticed to turn away and worship other gods and bow down to them. ¹⁷ Then the Lord’s anger will burn against you, and he will shut up the heavens so that it will not rain and the ground will yield no produce, and you will soon perish from the good land the Lord is giving you. ¹⁸ Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. ¹⁹ Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. ²⁰ Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates,

Did you catch that in both of these passages God tells us to teach our children pretty much all the time?

That’s a pretty high standard of how often we should be telling our kids about God!

So why should you make time for one more Jesus thing on your calendar?

Because it’s one of the most important things you will do all week!

Make time to be in Biblical community and don’t let the things of this world and your kids take the place that God alone should have in your life!

Why such a small group of people?

Does it really matter if there are 8 versus 80?

YES!

It definitely matters!!

Small groups should remain very small so that group members can really dedicate themselves to one another and be vulnerable with one another.

At our church, it is also commonly said that as attendance goes up, vulnerability goes down.

By keeping a small group truly small, people can share true strongholds and idols they have in their life.

I know this might be a hard concept to grasp in our culture today.

We spend so much time trying to keep up our image of perfection that it might seem odd that people would want to share their faults with one another.

But this is the beauty of small groups.

It is a place to set aside our Instagram perfect facades and share the crammed closets, cracked walls, and dirty laundry in our lives.

Why are small groups effective?

Because no other group is so effective in helping identify and drive out sin in our lives.

Wait?

Did I just mention that three letter s-word?

Yup, I did.

We all SIN.

Me (in fact I think both my hands are in the air).

You.

EVERYONE!

You can’t hide it.

You can post as many perfect selfies as you want, there is still sin in your life.

And if you don’t think you have sin in your life, then you are being deceived!

But a small group can help you identify sin in your life as well as pray for you and help you work through whatever it is you are going through.

And it doesn’t just have to be about working through sin.

Small groups can also help you through the trials that come!

Remember that God has not promised an easy life, but one filled with trials.

Small groups can be there to help you weather through those too!

Seriously, there are so many great benefits to joining a small group!

Are you convinced yet that you need to join one?

I hope so!

So let’s talk about what things your small group should be doing based on the example given in the New Testament!

What Things Should a Small Group Be Doing?

Sure it’s fun to get together and play games or watch a movie, but small groups are meant to be more than just hanging out (although hang out time is important too to build relationships as I will mention below).

Check out one of the main passages about the early church that will help shape our concept of small groups:

Acts 2:42-47

⁴² They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. ⁴³ Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. ⁴⁴ All the believers were together and had everything in common. ⁴⁵ They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. ⁴⁶ Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, ⁴⁷ praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.

So let’s talk about the things this passage calls out, plus a few extras!

Learning More About Jesus

Right off the bat, we see that the believers DEVOTED themselves to the apostles’ teaching.

At this time, the Bible wasn’t put together to be something that they would study together.

But what were the disciples teaching about?

JESUS!

And this is truly what I believe should be the number one priority of your small group.

Just as it should be the number one priority in your life.

Our small groups should be DEVOTED to learning more about Jesus and spending time helping one another wrestle with how to become more like Jesus!

This can include reading the Bible, completing a formal Bible study, covering a topic and finding scripture related to it, searching scripture together to find answers to group questions, discussing the latest sermon from church, or listening to new sermons.

But spending time LEARNING together is an important piece of a small group!

It’s a great way for us to learn from not only the Bible, but from one another.

The Holy Spirit can help give us revelations through what others say.

So by discussing scripture and spiritual topics, God can give us new insight through what others in our small group share!

Fellowship

Besides the apostles’ teaching, our key scripture in Acts also says that the believers were devoted to fellowship.

What is fellowship?

According to Webster’s dictionary, fellowship means companionship, community of interest, association, membership, and partnership.

This is very close to what the Greek meaning of the word in this text means.

In the original Greek, the word for fellowship was koinónia.

The meaning of this word is partnership, participation, sharing in, communion, and spiritual fellowship.

So the early believers DEVOTED themselves to partnering together and participating in one another’s lives!

A lot of times we think of fellowship as hanging out or doing activities together, which can be a part of it, but fellowship is so much more than that!

Biblical fellowship is a much stronger commitment to one another.

Check out other verses where this same Greek word is used:

2 Corinthians 13:14 (emphasis added)

¹⁴ May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

Philippians 2:1-2 (emphasis added)

Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, ² then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind.

1 John 1:3 (emphasis added)

³ We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ.

So the word used for fellowship in Acts 2:42 is the same word used to describe our fellowship with the Holy Spirit (2 Corinthians 13:14 and Philippians 2:1-2) and also with the Father and Jesus (1 John 1:3).

That brings a whole new light to the level of fellowship we are talking about here!

So your small group should be COMMITTED to one another and should be DEVOTED to spending time together.

Biblical fellowship means making it a top priority to be at small group EVERY WEEK.

It means making a commitment to one another to drop whatever you are doing to help one another in times of need.

Be truly DEVOTED to ONE ANOTHER!

Prayer for One Another

The last thing that Acts 2:42 says the believers devoted themselves to is prayer.

As I discussed in my post on the armor of God, prayer is basically the most important part of our whole armor because it activates our armor and allows us to fight against the attacks of Satan!

I referenced this verse then, but will go ahead and include it here again because it is so powerful:

Ephesians 6:18

¹⁸ And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. 

Here in Ephesians we are reminded to pray for all the Lord’s people.

That would definitely include the people in your small group!!

And what should we pray about?

All kinds of requests is what this verse in Ephesians says!

I have personally reached out to my small group to pray for SO MANY THINGS!

I have asked for prayer over marital strife, parenting difficulties, pregnancy complications, sickness, uncertainty of God’s direction, etc., and have been SO ENCOURAGED when my group members respond with texts, phone calls, and personal meetups.

How wonderful it is to have God’s family praying alongside you through difficult times!

I have even had a small group member come to the hospital to pray over me.

Small groups should be DEVOTED to praying for one another!

Pray for Those Being Persecuted

Besides praying for the other members in your group, you should also remember to pray for the church globally.

We specifically see in the Bible that we should spend time focusing our prays on those being persecuted.

Hebrews 13:3

³ Continue to remember those in prison as if you were together with them in prison, and those who are mistreated as if you yourselves were suffering.

And we also see in Acts that the believers were together and praying for Peter in the middle of the night!

Read all of Acts 12 for a really cool story about how an angel lead Peter out of prison when he was sleeping between two guards!

How awesome is our God!

Acts 12:12-17 (emphasis added)

¹² When this had dawned on him, he went to the house of Mary the mother of John, also called Mark, where many people had gathered and were praying. ¹³ Peter knocked at the outer entrance, and a servant named Rhoda came to answer the door. ¹⁴ When she recognized Peter’s voice, she was so overjoyed she ran back without opening it and exclaimed, “Peter is at the door!”

¹⁵ “You’re out of your mind,” they told her. When she kept insisting that it was so, they said, “It must be his angel.”

¹⁶ But Peter kept on knocking, and when they opened the door and saw him, they were astonished. ¹⁷ Peter motioned with his hand for them to be quiet and described how the Lord had brought him out of prison. “Tell James and the other brothers and sisters about this,” he said, and then he left for another place.

If no one in your small group is connected with anyone in a situation of persecution, I would highly recommend checking out the Voice of the Martyrs as they have ways to pray for the persecuted church!

Share Possessions Together

The next thing it says the believers did was that they shared things and even sold possessions and property when someone had a need.

This is a very foreign concept in our culture where most people “have everything they need”, but it doesn’t mean that believers can’t still do this today!

In fact, right now in our garage sits a freezer that someone in our small group gave us.

Was it a dire need?

No.

But was this other couple living in Biblical community by sharing their possessions with us?

You bet!

In fact, I’ve seen small group members give one another everything from food to furniture to books to decorations to cars.

There are so many things that we each have that we could share with one another!

And if we have something that no one in our small group needs, perhaps we can share it with a neighbor or friend and use it as an opportunity to share Jesus with them too!

1 John 3:16-18

¹⁶ This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. ¹⁷ If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person? ¹⁸ Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.

When we sacrificially give to others, this also pleases God!

Hebrews 13:16

¹⁶ And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.

So when you see someone in your small group in need or if you hear of someone outside of your group in need, we should be ready to generously give to anyone!

Share Meals Together

Next in the passage above, it says “They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people.”

What a beautiful picture!

How fun would your dinner time be if everyone came to the table with glad and sincere hearts!

Now this may not happen at your normal dinner table, but it definitely could be something you do with your small group!

Why not have everyone over for a potluck dinner where the focus of the dinner conversation is sharing stories of the good things God is doing!

This is a beautiful way to grow closer together and to bolster one another’s faith!

Fast Together

And while eating together is a beautiful thing to do, so is fasting together!

Check out how Acts mentions this:

Acts 13:2-3

² While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” ³ So after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their hands on them and sent them off.

Your small group could all fast and pray together when someone in the group is going through something really difficult.

Or you could all fast and pray together for your church, community, or country.

If you have never tried to fast, it can be rather difficult the first time you do it.

But knowing that others in your small group are doing it too can help give you the determination to finish it through.

You can also share texts or messages throughout the day with prayer prompts, verses, or encouragement.

This is another great way to grow together as a small group and build relationships with one another.

Worship Together

The final thing I want to note from the main text above is that it says they praised God (see verse 47).

It can be a beautiful thing to sit with other small group members around a campfire and sing worship songs together.

Maybe one of your group members knows how to play guitar or the piano and you can all sing along!

Doesn’t it help us focus our minds on Christ when we are singing praises to Him?

Giving Christ adoration together is a great way to draw closer as a group.

And there are more things that our small groups can be doing than what is listed above in Acts 2.

Let’s check out some other things that our small groups can be doing together!

Encourage One Another

Are you discouraged or disheartened by what is going on in your life or in the world around you?

Have you ever doubted or questioned God and His goodness?

If so, you are not alone in those thoughts!

And if you ARE struggling with this right now, check out Why Bad Things Happen to Good People.

But how sad it can be when you are alone with those thoughts!

This is where being in a small group can help!

We can encourage one another when we are going through trials or when our thoughts swirl around us!

Sometimes we need someone else to remind us of God’s goodness when we can’t see it.

We need someone to remind us that God promises to work things out for our good and His glory.

Our small group can help us remember that we can CHOOSE THANKFULNESS despite our circumstances!

This is exactly why 1 Thessalonians tells us to encourage one another!

Check it out:

1 Thessalonians 5:11

¹¹ Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.

So our small groups need to be a safe place where we can share our hurts and our doubts and receive the encouragement we need to continue to move forward.

And look at what it says just a couple verses later:

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

¹⁶ Rejoice always, ¹⁷ pray continually, ¹⁸ give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

Other small group members can help us rejoice in our suffering, pray with us through trials, and point out the small things we can be thankful for in the middle of life’s storms.

Small groups are essential for keeping our minds on God’s upper story of redemption when the lower story of our life seems to be a lost cause.

Hold Each Other Accountable

Probably the most difficult thing to do in a small group is to hold one another accountable.

We live in a culture where we try to make everyone happy and we try to be politically correct.

I’m going to be honest – this is not Biblical.

Our goal is not to just nod our heads and smile when we see someone make choices that are leading them off a cliff.

When we see someone making poor choices in our small group, we need to be blunt with them.

Check out what the Bible instructs us to do.

Galatians 6:1-5

Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted. ² Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. ³ If anyone thinks they are something when they are not, they deceive themselves. ⁴ Each one should test their own actions. Then they can take pride in themselves alone, without comparing themselves to someone else, ⁵ for each one should carry their own load.

If we really love someone, we will help them stay on course in their walk with Jesus.

That means pointing out when we see them doing things that don’t align with scripture.

It might mean having uncomfortable conversations.

It will be hard, but this is so important!

We might also have to inconvenience ourselves to help others.

Is there a marriage that seems to be falling apart in your group?

You might have to intervene, hold a special prayer night, financially support them to go to counseling, financially support them to go to a marriage conference, or have the couple over for dinner.

Is someone struggling with substance abuse?

Perhaps you can check in with them every day to help keep them on track or have them over to hang out on Friday and Saturday nights when they are most tempted with their addiction.

Is someone struggling with anger in parenting?

Perhaps you can financially support them to see a counselor, send them texts each night keeping them accountable for if they have lost their cool with their kids that day, or sending them a verse to meditate on each day.

We need to be accountable to one another and support one another through our trials.

Serve One Another

Besides sharing meals and possessions with other group members, we should also be willing to serve them in other ways too.

The Bible encourages us to show hospitality to one another.

Hebrews 13:2

² Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it.

1 Peter 4:9

⁹ Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling.

But did you catch that last part there?

WITHOUT GRUMBLING!

How often do we serve someone with some expectation about getting something back from them?

Whether it be their gratitude or praise or some physical thing back from them.

But the Bible says that we should give hospitality with no strings attached, no grumbling!

So if you are serving with the goal of getting something out of the deal, you need to re-evaluate your motives and change your attitude!

Titus reminds us that we should always be ready to do good!

Titus 3:1-2

Remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good, ² to slander no one, to be peaceable and considerate, and always to be gentle toward everyone.

Financially Support Mission Work

When most people think of money and the church, they think of tithing.

But did you know that the Bible also references believers collecting money to send to other believers?

Check out these passages!

Acts 11:29-30

²⁹ The disciples, as each one was able, decided to provide help for the brothers and sisters living in Judea. ³⁰ This they did, sending their gift to the elders by Barnabas and Saul.

Philippians 4:16-19

¹⁶ for even when I was in Thessalonica, you sent me aid more than once when I was in need. ¹⁷ Not that I desire your gifts; what I desire is that more be credited to your account. ¹⁸ I have received full payment and have more than enough. I am amply supplied, now that I have received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent. They are a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice, pleasing to God. ¹⁹ And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.

2 Corinthians 8:1-5

 We want you to know, brothers, about the grace of God that has been given among the churches of Macedonia, ² for in a severe test of affliction, their abundance of joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part. ³ For they gave according to their means, as I can testify, and beyond their means, of their own accord, ⁴ begging us earnestly for the favor of taking part in the relief of the saints— ⁵ and this, not as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and then by the will of God to us.

In each of these passages, we see that the early church gave to help other believers and also to financially support Paul (a missionary).

Our small groups can do the same thing!

As our groups are financially able, we should be sending financial gifts to bodies of believers that are in need (this is probably easiest to do through a missionary or Christian organization) as well as to missionaries.

Your small group could also send money to one of the organizations that I mention in my post about How to Keep Christ in Christmas (see #4 for the list!).

Help those in Need

Besides helping out those in your small group, your small group should be helping others outside of your group that are in need.

1 John 3:16-18

¹⁶ This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. ¹⁷ If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person? ¹⁸ Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.

Paul also reminds us in Acts 20 that we should help the weak and that it is more blessed to GIVE than receive.

Acts 20:35

³⁵ In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ ”

What does it look like for a small group to serve others?

You could serve together at a local homeless shelter, hand out supplies to homeless people, go to nursing homes to visit with residents, sort clothes at a donation center, package nutrient dense meals to send over seas, or even go on a mission trip together!

There are so many opportunities for us to serve others!

Your small group should be seeking out ways to serve those in your church, your community, and also opportunities to serve in ways that will help those globally.

Love One Another

And above all else, our small groups should be a place where we just come and love on one another.

The Bible clearly speaks about this in multiple places – check it out:

John 13:34-35

³⁴ “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. ³⁵ By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

John 15:13

¹³ Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.

Colossians 3:14

¹⁴ And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.

1 Peter 3:8

⁸ Finally, all of you, be like-minded, be sympathetic, love one another, be compassionate and humble.

1 Peter 4:8

⁸ Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.

Hebrews 13:1

¹ Keep on loving one another as brothers and sisters.

WOW!

Did you know the Bible spoke so much about us loving one another!

And this is far from every verse that speaks about us loving one another!

We should love our small group as our family because they are!

They are part of our heavenly family.

So let us love one another well!

And what does it mean to show love?

1 Corinthians gives us a good working definition of what love is:

1 Corinthians 13:4-7

⁴ Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. ⁵ It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. ⁶ Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. ⁷ It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

This means our small groups should not be places of gossips or slander.

We also shouldn’t dishonor one another or make fun of other group members.

No one should envy or be jealous of other group members.

We also shouldn’t be angry or upset if we disagree with other group members on topics or ideas.

Small groups should be a safe place for people to share what is REALLY going on in their lives and receive help, advice, guidance, and prayer.

Forgiveness should flow freely among group members and we should stick to one another through the best and worst days.

As I mentioned, our small group should be like our family and we should love one another with a Biblical definition of love (not what the world says love is).

Small Groups Are Essential

I hope you can see from these things that small groups should be doing a variety of activities together and should be investing time in one another.

I also hope that you can see how small groups are ESSENTIAL to the Christian walk.

We are not meant to do life alone.

Especially coming out of the pandemic when most churches closed and most people started being able to do everything they need to do from home, it’s possible to live your life without even coming in contact with other human beings.

But this isn’t what God calls us to.

This isn’t what the Bible tells us to do.

Instead, we are reminded to NOT stop meeting together.

Hebrews 10:24-25

²⁴ And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, ²⁵ not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

This passage nicely sums up what small groups can do – help us have love when we don’t want to, spur us to do good deeds when we don’t want to do any, and encourage us when we feel like we are at the end of our rope.