Vision for Breakouts
Q: What is the purpose of the Breakout Groups? A: Our goal with the Fellowship meetings is to invest in the local church, pour into leaders, and provide a forum for growth and relationship building, so we can do ministry and life better. The breakout groups are the best opportunity for attendees to engage in conversation around key topics and ministry areas.
Q: How do the Breakout Groups encourage Fellowship? A: When I’ve attended “fellowship” events, whether through my own church or past BCF meetings, the same thing always happens…you come and you sit with people you know, who you have exisisting relationships with and you don’t really meet anyone new. You aren’t enlarging the circle of Christians you can learn from. And because of this habit to stay in a comfortable place, a lot of great relationship opportunities are missed out on. The Breakout Groups encourage us to be grouped by ministry area or interests, rather than pre-exisisting relationships – so it’s an opportunity to have conversations and build relationships with people who have similar interests or challenges.
Q: How can the breakout groups facilitate ministry or spiritual growth? A: Having served in ministry as a pastor and as a volunteer, I know there are problems I can get stuck on. Whether it was managing summer youth groups when all my volunteers were on vacation at the same time or coming up with ideas to improve First Impressions – I would have loved to been able to discuss these challenges with people who had been there, and perhaps had found a winning solution. Having a network of people you can seek advice from is a vital resource to growth, and sometimes it’s good if that network is expanded beyond your church so you get a broader perspective. We also hope the presenters, facilitators and discussions around the different topics are valuable for growing ministry.
Q: What is your vision for the future of Breakout Groups?
A: I honestly believe the breakout groups could be one of the most powerful tools BCF offers church plants and existing churches. I would love to reach a point where we have multiple ministry-specific groups, like First Impressions, Youth, Children’s, Discipleship, Worship & Music, Leadership, etc. that are meeting quarterly if not more often. I think reaching a point where we could bring in ministry-specific speakers, share resources and offer volunteer trainings and such could be a powerful tool for growing our churches.
