Josh Hunt's blog

I picked up Neil Cole's new book recently: Search & Rescue: Becoming a Disciple Who Makes a Difference. Great read. I especially like chapter on the power of multiplication and I asked Neil if I could pass it along to you. Want some inspiring reading on the power of doubling groups? Read on: ------------------------- I was not the first lifeguard in my family. My father watched the same beaches I did when he was in his twenties. Before that, even before Los Angeles County lifeguards were established, my grandfather watched the water nearby at a beach club. My kids have competed as junior lifeguards on the beaches of Southern California. We have four generations of lifesaving and surfing in my family. The Coles first came to California in 1849 in search of gold, but what we found was in some ways better than gold; we found a home at the Pacific Ocean. The Coles swim, surf, scuba dive, kayak, and some have even been known to sail. We have salt water in our veins. We have passed o...

What is the one quality that trumps everything we have talked about so far? What one quality is more important than teaching skill or how many people you have involved, or visitation, or giving Friday nights to Jesus or organizational ability or anything else? Spiritual Vibrancy. Spiritual vibrancy trumps just about everything else. As Gomer Pile used to say, "Surprise, surprise, surprise!" Jesus said it would be true. Here is a verse I am meditating on and re-memorizing (you have to re-memorize after 50!): "I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing." John 15:5 (NIV) If you remain in Christ you will bear much fruit. You can take it to the bank. That is the promise of God. What causes what? One of the issues with statistics is that it cannot prove cause. It can only prove that two things occur together. You can ...

For parts 1, 2,& 3, see: www.joshhunt.com/mail252.htm www.joshhunt.com/mail253.htm www.joshhunt.com/mail254.htm #3 People skills Teachers with good people skills were two and a half times (147%) more likely to be growing than those with bad people skills. People skills matter more than participation in visitation, how many parties you have or don't have, how you spend your time, what your purpose is, or how many people you have on your team helping you. If you have ever read a John Maxwell book on leadership you know this. Turns out, John Maxwell is right. People skills matter. It matters a lot. What are good people skills? It starts on the inside If you want to get along well with people, it helps to like them. Really like them. Not pretend to like them. Not act like you like them. Really like them. Think kind thoughts about them. Think kindly of them. Cultivate a heart that loves them. This...

For parts 1 and 2, see: www.joshhunt.com/mail252.htm www.joshhunt.com/mail253.htm Four things made it into the "this really matters" list. What does it take to make it into the "this really matters" list? I set the criteria at 100% difference between the bottom group and the top. The teachers who practice these practices were twice as likely (or more) to be doubling as the ones who were not practicing these things. #1: Fellowship matters I asked teachers how many fellowships they have. Now, if you have ever heard me speak or read anything I have written, you know the drill: Invite every member and every prospect to every fellowship every month. I didn't actually ask about that. I didn't ask if the groups invited every member and every prospect; I just asked if they had a party. More specifically, I asked how many parties they have: 4. How many fellowships do you have a year? 0 - 4 ...

I have just completed three months of asking 1031 teachers thirteen question designed to help us understand what makes groups grow. This article is the second in a series of reports on this survey. I divided the findings into four sections: Things that didn't matter hardly at all. (Less than 10% difference in likelihood of growth in the bottom and top group) Things that only mattered a little. (Between 11% and 100% difference likelihood of growth in the bottom and top groups.) Things that mattered a lot. (If you are in the top group in these factors you are twice as likely--or more--to be growing than if you are in the bottom group. Between 101% and 1000% difference in likelihood of growth in the bottom and top groups.) Things that matter most. (If this is true of you, you are almost 11 times more likely to be growing than if it is not. More than 1000% difference in likelihood of growth between the top group and the botto...

I have just completed three months of asking 1031 teachers thirteen questions designed to help us understand what makes groups grow. This article is the first in series that summarize my findings. Before I begin, allow me to say something. (I have always found that line humorous, but you kind of have to think about it.) I don't like some of the answers I found in this survey. I have taught the exact opposite of what this survey reveals at some points. I disagree with some of these findings. But, the facts are the facts and I am going to report them just as they are. If you disagree with the findings, please don't shoot me, I am only the messenger. I asked thirteen questions. The first one was 1. Would you describe your class as. . . declining stable growing growing rapidly This question was used as a point of comparison with all the rest. For example, the next question (which was really four questions) read ...

Guess when this was written-- By the time he came out of his Hanoi prison, John McCain had learned the power of stories. He had been raised on them. The son and grandson of admirals forever at sea, he had spent more time with their legends than with the men themselves. Among the POWs, he was the prison storyteller, the one who helped pass the days by retelling, scene by scene, his favorite Marlon Brando movies, who offered a course he called A History of the World from the Beginning, the one who was allowed 10 minutes with a Bible one Christmas so he could refresh his memory of Bethlehem and lead a service in their cell. But it was not until he was home, a famous, crippled war hero, that he met Ronald Reagan and learned from the master that he now had the ultimate political weapon. The Story. You could argue that the story of McCain's remarkable rise, to the point where he now has a chance of snatching the G.O.P. nomination away fr...

Jason said to me, "Disciplemaking Teachers out to be required." I had just conducted the Disciplemaking Teachers seminar at his church. I had done the Double Your Class Seminar in their church sometime back. They had seen some results. I sensed two frustrations: Many teachers were slow to get on board. They didn't want to double. Where we did attract new people, Jason wasn't sure we were making disciples of them all that well. I think Jason's point is well taken. I do about 100 conferences a year. About 90 of them are on You Can Double Your Class in Two Years or Less. I love that seminar. But, the more I present it, the more I have the nagging feeling that figuring out how to double is not our problem. The problem is, we don't want to. Why? We have not made meat-eating, fired up, sold-out disciples. We need Disciplemaking Teachers. I so resonate with this quote from Robert Coleman's Master Plan of Discipleship. It all started with Jesus c...

I was privileged to visit Northpoint's new Browns Bridge Campus a few months back. This is an amazing story--brand new 3,000 seat auditorium filled twice on Sunday morning. How do they do that? Part of the answer, or course, is that a whole lot of people came from the main campus at Northpoint. They live in this area. They get Northpoint and it is closer. But, I have been to the main campus in the last year as well. It looked full too. How do they do that? Here is an amazing thing. At Browns Bridge, they don't even have a preacher. Six thousand people show up every weekend (my estimate) to watch Andy on a big screen. Go figure. How do they do that? Now, it is a really cool big screen. Three big screens, actually. One huge screen of the entire stage that duplicates the stage at Northpoint. It is very nearly life size. I think if Andy were standing on the stage he would be within an inch or two of the size of that image. Then, there are t...

"Follow my example" I read this verse this morning: "Join with others in following my example." Phil 3:17a (NIV) As I read this verse, I thought about the power of example. Nothing much happens till someone sets an example. If I were to say to you, "I know how you could. . . Loose 40 pounds Get out of debt in six months Double your church in one year How would you respond? Here is how I would respond: show me! Show me an example of someone who has done it. Show me and example of someone who has done it, then let's talk. I want to see an example. Your people want to see and example. If you would start a doubling group movement in your church, set an example. I remember the first time I heard Andy Stanley say (paraphrased), "I am in a group that is doubling; I want you to be in a group that is doubling." I thought, "How fresh! What an idea! That is great!" I have not caught Andy Stanley ...

It is amazing what happens when you listen to people. Everyone should be slow to speak and quick to listen. Somebody smart wrote that! For the last several months I have been listening to the people who attend my conferences. I have been using a very simple evaluation form -- one with two questions: What did you like? What could I improve? People always said kind things. I think that has more to do with them being kind than anything I did. I was not surprised at all by two of the suggestions. I was shocked by the third. I didn't actually track it, but it was probably the most common suggestion for change. First, here are the two I was not surprised by. Slow down. I work on that, but unsuccessfully. You just get me talking about doubling groups and I get all fired up. Provide a fill-in-the-blanks note-taking piece. I actually used to do this. Occasionally hosts would drop the ball and not make copies. I always did better when that was the case. I just speak better w...