Have you ever tried to pound a nail into the wall with a screwdriver? Have you ever tried to dig a hole with a golf club? There are certain situations where choosing the correct tool makes all the difference. When we try to accomplish a goal with a tool designed for a different purpose, we end up with frustration, wasted time and energy—and sometimes a broken tool.
The same is true in ministry. How often have we set out to accomplish a goal without first finding the right tool to maximize our energy and effectiveness? And how many times have we tried to use a really useful, well-designed tool to accomplish something it simply wasn't designed to do? Rooted is one of the most practical tools in our discipleship toolbox, as long as we know what Rooted is…and isn't.
What Rooted Is
1. Rooted Is a Proven Strategy for Launching New Groups and Group Leaders
Rooted is a proven resource for connecting 12-15 people into a group who want to keep meeting after the experience is complete. This happens through ten weeks of discipleship, practicing the rhythms we find the early church living out in Acts 2. There are many great small group resources available, but most of them are designed for existing groups, not for launching new groups and new group leaders for long-term success. When we start groups with discipleship rhythms, friendship and a healthy group are always a natural outcome.
2. Rooted Is the Best First Group Experience for Someone New
How many times have we tried to connect someone new to our church into an existing group, only to watch it go badly? Often, this happens because our groups are doing exactly what we want them to do, they're growing closer to God and each other. That kind of growth creates history, shared experiences, inside language, and deep chemistry. This is great! But it can make it really hard for someone on the outside to break in. Introducing a new personality can also disrupt the growth dynamic and chemistry of an existing group.
This is why it's always easier to join a new group that's launching rather than trying to break into one that's already established. No matter how friendly and welcoming a group might be, a new person can always feel like an outsider. Rooted answers the question every church needs to be asking: how are we consistently launching new groups where people can connect at the ground level?
3. Rooted Is a Repeatable Discipleship Process
Rooted is designed to be offered once, twice, or even three times a year. As our church grows and God brings new people to us, we need a regularly scheduled, prescribed process to launch these people into new groups. Just like we schedule new-here classes or membership opportunities, we need to schedule Rooted as our process for beginning someone's discipleship and group experience. It's not a one-time event, it's a rhythm.
What Rooted Isn't
1. Rooted Isn't Designed to Be Done Alone
Rooted is a tool for the local church to launch new groups and new group leaders. It's not a study or curriculum meant to be found and completed by individuals for personal growth. Personal study is vital to spiritual growth, but being part of a group adds the accountability and community that ensures growth sticks and goes the distance.
2. Rooted Isn't a Class
Rooted is a group experience, not a class. The goal is for those leading through Rooted to facilitate conversation and guide experiences, not to teach. We need great teaching in our churches, but Rooted is not the environment for that. Rooted is the environment to live out and practice the rhythms of following Christ together. Trying to turn Rooted into a class will frustrate the leader, frustrate the participants, and fall short of the desired results.
3. Rooted Isn't a One-and-Done Experience
Rooted is designed to be an ongoing part of a church's discipleship strategy, something we offer regularly as the way we begin someone's discipleship journey and launch new groups. Similar to a new-here class or membership process, Rooted is a step for everyone who finds our church and wants to connect. It's not a one-time initiative we check off the list. It's an ongoing experience we return to again and again to connect people to God, their church, and their purpose.
One Final Thought
When we use the right tool for the job, it's amazing what we can build. Rooted is the right tool to begin someone's discipleship journey, launch new groups, and develop new leaders within our church. Use it well, use it often, and watch what God does!
Learn more about The Rooted Experience and get a free preview of Rooted today.
