Small group leaders can involve others in follow-up conversations by noticing who in the group is equipped to help, bringing apprentices along to observe, and preparing teammates to handle specific needs. Follow-up conversations outside group meetings are a powerful way to make disciples. But you don’t have to do them all yourself. Sharing the load helps more people get care and grows new leaders at the same time.
You Don’t Have to Do It All Yourself
When someone in your group is facing a crisis, wrestling with a question, or needs focused encouragement, a one-on-one conversation can make a huge difference. These follow-ups let you help a person in a very targeted way, based on what you’ve observed they need. The trouble is that a caring leader can quickly end up with more conversations than they can handle.
Moses ran into the same problem. He was trying to settle every dispute for the entire nation of Israel by himself, from morning until evening, until his father-in-law Jethro stepped in with some honest advice.
Exodus 18:17-18 Moses’ father-in-law replied, “What you are doing is not good. You and these people who come to you will only wear yourselves out. The work is too heavy for you; you cannot handle it alone.”
As you gain experience and confidence in mentoring conversations, start looking around. When a need comes up, take stock of the resources in your group. Is there someone on your leadership team you could call on? Is there someone in the group who has walked through a similar struggle or wrestled with the same question? Often the best person to help isn’t the leader at all.
Bring Along an Apprentice
One simple way to involve others is to invite them to come with you to a follow-up appointment as an apprentice. First, get permission from the person you’re meeting with. Then let your apprentice know ahead of time what you plan to talk about so they can prepare. During the conversation, let them watch how you listen, ask questions, and point the person to God’s truth, and notice how they participate and what they have to share.
This kind of on-the-job training is exactly how Paul built leaders who could carry the gospel forward without him.
2 Timothy 2:2 And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable people who will also be qualified to teach others.
An apprentice might be ready to take over future conversations sooner than you expect, especially if the issue is something they’ve experienced themselves. If your co-leaders are working through mentor training, these appointments are a great way to put what they’re learning into practice. Some of these follow-ups may even blossom into ongoing mentoring relationships, and before long you’ll have people in your group who are ready to lead groups of their own.
Prepare the Person Who Helps
Some people on your team or in your group will be ready to step in without apprentice visits. Before you ask someone to help, carefully assess how deep and complex the need is so you can make a wise assignment. A grieving widow, a new believer with questions, and a couple in marriage trouble may each need a different kind of helper.
Proverbs 15:22 Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed.
Once you’ve chosen someone, make the assignment specific and help them get ready. Talk through what they should and shouldn’t do. Help them pick a topic or resource to discuss together. Pray for them before the conversation, and then debrief afterward to find out how it went and what both of you can learn. That kind of support keeps the person being helped safe and helps your teammate grow in confidence.
The Takeaway
Small group leaders can involve others in follow-up conversations by sharing the load, bringing apprentices along, and preparing teammates well. When you do, more people get the care they need, and your group becomes a place where new disciple-makers and leaders are raised up.
