Living life together with a group of people is sometimes difficult. We get into each other’s business. We rub each other the wrong way sometimes. We accidently (or purposefully) say something that offends someone, or they offend us. It even happens with the best of friends. If we spend enough time together we’re eventually going to have a moment when we don’t see eye-to-eye. And then there are those people who are gifted at creating these moments the night we meet them.
It’s a given that sin will show itself in our groups. Sometimes we pretend it’s not there. Sometimes we try to dismiss it and keep everyone happy. But sin will show up, because our groups are composed of sinful people with messy lives. It’s up to us as leaders to keep our guard up and be alert to notice when sin rears its ugly head. And it will show up often, especially if we’re attempting to get real with one another and allow God to work in our groups to transform us.
So in looking ahead at this week’s sermon – Dream Killers – I thought it might be a good time to pose this question: What do we do with sin in our small groups? This week’s sermon is about sin, and how it prevents us from living in the sweet spot God has planned for us. So how do we handle this when it presents itself in our groups?
What do you do when you have a person whose struggle with sin is bigger than you can handle? What do you do when you have someone who has finally come to terms with a major sin in their life and they are broken? And what about the person who refuses to deal with their sin, pretending like nothing is wrong, but the whole group knows about it? Certainly we can’t deal with all of these situations the same way. If there’s one thing we can be sure of, there’s no “one-size-fits-all” approach to dealing with difficult moments and messy situations in groups. But here is the definite – we must deal with it. Ignoring it is not the answer.
It’s a given that healthy small groups deal with sin. These “dealings with sin” will take on different appearances at times. But the constant through all of it is that dealing with sin gives God room to work. If we don’t ever address the issue of sin in our groups, then we’re just playing church. No real transformation can happen until people get real with the junk in their lives that’s keeping them from experiencing the fullness of life that God intends for them. So let’s not be afraid to get our hands dirty in the messiness of life as we lead our groups into a deeper journey with God.
