Calm Your Concerns About Your First Time in a Life Group
I'm a first timer to this life group thing, now what?
No worries, we get it. Doing something new for the first time can be somewhat intimidating, but it doesn't have to be. Here's how you can be prepared for your first time in a life group:
- Connect with the leader before your first time. This may be a phone conversation, email, friend request on Facebook, or meeting face-to-face. Knowing who to look for will help you feel more prepared.
- Keep an open mind. We know first impressions are important, that's why we train our leaders on how they can make a good one. If you feel like the group is a bit stiff the first time, give it a few tries before you write off the idea.
- Be flexible. We like to tell people that finding a group that fits the best is sometimes like trying on a pair of shoes. Sometimes the shoe fits the first time, sometimes you have to try a few to find the one you're looking for.
- Be yourself! Don't try to impress anyone with your bible knowledge or how awesome your life is. Life groups are meant for people to feel like they can be themselves, being genuine goes a long way.
- Share contact information. Your leader knows to do this, but make sure you have some way of getting in contact with the people in your group! This will help you to get to know one another in between your group meetings.
- Remember it's not as awkward as it seems. We know in your mind you're thinking about how awkward it must be to walk into a house, room, or restaurant to meet complete strangers. What you need to remember is that at our very core we all want the same things: belonging, care, love, respect, etc. Everyone who is there is looking for the same thing.