SUMMARY: In this episode, Brian and Rick speak with David Francis, the Director of Sunday School at Lifeway, about recent trends in the adult Sunday school world. David shares examples of what he has discovered in his travels to churches around the country, particularly about many churches are beginning to offer a combined community of small groups and Sunday school ministries. David also proposes three rules of operation for every small group leader or minister of education: enlist, equip, and encourage.

In addition, Brian and Rick discuss a blog post by Bob Mayfield entitled Five Things for a Group Leader to Keep in Mind, and Rick continues his discussion of the difference between managing a ministry versus leading a movement by listing six characteristics of someone who is leading a movement.

The Groups Matter Podcast is a weekly show designed to resource, train, and encourage small group leaders. Each episode considers current trends and resources as well as timeless truths and methods of discipleship. It is hosted by Brian Daniel, a Bible study expert from the Lifeway Groups Ministry Team, and Rick Howerton, the discipleship and small group specialist at Lifeway and author ofGUEST: David Francis is Director of Sunday School at Lifeway. He is the author of 12 books on Bible study groups. The most recent is Countdown: Launching and Leading Transformational Groups, with Rick Howerton. All are available for free download at iTunes or lifeway.com/davidfrancis. Most Sunday mornings, you will find David and his wife Vickie at First Baptist Church in Hendersonville, TN. They attend worship at 8:30, teach a pre-K class at 9:45, and participate in a small Bible study group at 11:00. They love to travel, especially to see their sons’ families in Boston, MA; College Station, TX; and Los Angeles, CA.

EPISODE SPONSOR: This week’s episode is sponsored by SmallGroup.com. SmallGroup.com is an online subscription service that allows churches and group leaders to create customizable, sermon-based group bible studies. Visit the Groups Ministry blog for a quick how-to tutorial, or visit SmallGroup.com to begin your free 2-week preview.

RESOURCES: If you have a question you’d like discussed on our Groups Matter Podcast, please tweet your question to @BcDaniel or @RickHowerton.