Take advantage of Father’s Day to launch new men’s small groups

Father’s Day is right around the corner and presents a great opportunity to promote an upcoming event that will connect more men this summer.  Here’s an idea that I’ve used for several years running.  It’s easy to do and works great every time.

Here’s how it works:

1. Calendar a men’s small group connecting event two weeks after Father’s Day.  Depending on the size of your church and the community you live in, you may want to offer a morning and an evening opportunity (This year we’re holding the event on Monday night and Tuesday morning).
2. Order a book or an easy-to-use study that will appeal to men.  Right now, you probably couldn’t go wrong with either Happy, Happy, Happy (think Duck Dynasty), All Pro Dad (Mark Merrill), or Dare to Be Uncommon (Tony Dungy).
3. Develop a sign-up form/insert to be used on Father’s Day and the weekend following.  Be sure and include the phrase “And don’t forget to invite a friend!”
4. Have your pastor refer to the connection in the sermon on Father’s Day.  “Men, there are few things more important than developing relationships with other guys who are growing closer to Christ.”  I’ve written a detailed article on how to make this kind of ask right here.
5. Include the insert a second time the week after Father’s Day and have your pastor refer to it again.
6. Consider sending a church-wide email to the men in your congregation inviting them to sign up for the men’s summer study.  Be sure and include the phrase “And don’t forget to invite a friend!”
7. Run the connection!  See also, File This Under Connecting Ideas and How to Launch Groups Using a Small Group Connection.

Pretty simple stuff really.  Choosing the right book or study goes a long way to help men take a baby step and get connected.  From there, who knows!  At least you’re helping a few take an important next step.

Mark Howell is the Pastor of Communities at Canyon Ridge Christian Church in Las Vegas and LifeWay’s Small Group Specialist. Mark founded SmallGroupResources.net, which offers consulting and coaching services that help churches across North America launch, build, and sustain healthy small group ministries. You can read more from Mark at MarkHowellLive.com and follow him on Twitter at @MarkCHowell.