Growing Families International is dedicated to the instruction of God-centered parenting precepts leading to the expression of holiness as a family lifestyle. We designed our curriculums for discipleship use within the Christian community. Classes are offered through local church or school sponsored ministries, professional practices, such as medical clinics, or community outreach programs and conducted within the context of an established GFI community of leaders. Regardless of the venue that a class facilitator enters the ministry, the starting point for effective discipleship starts with the leader’s heart. Choosing leader(s) with a passion for God’s family and biblical parenting sets an example for those attending classes. We desire leaders who demonstrate a faithful commitment to Christ, to their family, and are connected to a local church, even if their personal ministry is not sponsored or endorsed by their church.
Setting up a Local Ministry:
Step One: Become familiar with the material. The best way to do this is by participating in a Growing Kids God’s Way class. This will introduce you to the small group dynamics that have made the Growing Kids curriculum so popular around the world.
Step Two: If you plan to use the curriculum in a church setting, speak to your spiritual leadership. Explain your goals and vision and provide your key leaders with a sample workbook or the introduction tape for Growing Kids God’s Way. When possible, provide the name of another pastor who already has the GFI ministry on going in his church, or the names of the GFI representatives in you’re region. Local church support is always appreciated but not a perquisite for leading GFI classes.
Step Three: If you are operating within a local church context start out small, possibly with a pilot group of moms and dads. A pilot group is a small, hand-selected group of couples with open and willing hearts to walk through the curriculum with you. The most important criteria for the couples who participate initially is a genuine desire to be better parents as a result of going through the class. Additionally, the pilot class is the training ground for the development of additional “ministry leaders” who can reach out to the local church and the broader Christian community.
How to Begin a Pilot Group
To begin a pilot group, choose the option below that best fits your vision and circumstances. Remember to keep this group small (5-8 couples). If you minister out of a local church setting, consider inviting key couples within your church, including deacons, elders, and if possible members of your pastoral staff.
- Option One: Send a leader couple to take the Growing Kids God’s Way class under an experienced leader possibly from another church, or community ministry. Once that couple completes the course, they will return to lead a pilot class of potential leaders from your church.
- Option Two: You may consider borrowing a trained leader couple from another local church or broader Christian community to lead your pilot group. This option is also highly recommended when available.
- Option Three: If there are no available classes in your area, start a small group on your own or with the assistance of an older couple willing to come along side your vision and ability to disciple others.
- Option Four: If there are no classes offered locally and no mature couples with leadership experience available, start the class and learn as you go. While this may not be the ideal way to start your ministry, thousands have done this with great success because their passion for God-centered parenting compensated for the lack of small group experience.
Step Four: Introduce the Growing Kids God’s Way to the church. Most churches get so excited about the potential of this curriculum that they fail to establish an effective program. In an effort to get the message out quickly, they try to put as many couples into the first class as possible. Well-meaning church leadership may not recognize the importance of establishing a small group, discipleship format for their parenting classes.
The most effective classes will be those conducted in a small group, discipleship setting. Typically, the dynamics of a small group provide the opportunity for enhanced discussion and relationship building. Furthermore, this setting enables you as a leader couple, to invest yourselves into the lives of your class members through your example, time, commitment, accountability, and love. Lifelong relationships are often developed in this “iron-sharpening-iron” environment.
What to Look for in a Class Leader:
Potential leader couples will ideally have the following characteristics:
- Active members of the church body.
- Strong husband/wife relationship (1 Timothy 3:4-5). The couple to couple discipleship will always be the ideal. As it was at the time of creation, leadership should be a co-regent style, where the husband leads with his God-given strengths that forms an example for the men in the class and his wife leads with the spirit of gentleness and grace complementing her God given gifts and attributes.
- Spiritually mature with evidence of consistent growth. There is no substitute for an intimate relationship with Christ in the leaders you select. Hearing Christ’s voice and following Him (John 10) is key to addressing all the challenges that will come by virtue of your position as a Growing Kids God’s Way leader.
- Respected among men and women in the church. Respect allows discipling and mentoring to fully engage the listeners. Leading the class is a team effort, and both husband and wife should be active in encouraging class members.
- Humble desire to help other parents. They must have a servant’s heart.
- Ability to communicate effectively. (Not necessarily eloquent, but able to express themselves and their excitement about the principles taught.)
- Should be willing to take advantage of GFI leadership training. We strongly encourage all leaders to participate in the various GFI regional and national conferences.
- For credibility sake, ministry leaders need to set the example by personally appropriating the principles in their own family. They do not have to be perfect parents, but willing students to learn and apply the principles from each week’s lesson.