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Students usually get a boast in their faith when they hear about the miraculous things God is doing in the lives of others. God’s presence is often experienced in a more powerful way when two or more are gathered in His name. (That makes these meetings an ideal place to bring those you are witnessing to.) These meetings also become a vital place to receive prayer for special needs you have as well as to pray for other’s needs. There is a unique power in group prayer that is not available to the believer who prays alone. The following is a guideline for our meetings: There should be a meeting once a week at the same time each week which is most convenient for the students in that area. There should be no more than 20 people or so in a group. Once the number goes higher than this, the group should be split apart. The leader of the group should always be training others to eventually lead their own group. When a group becomes too large, whoever is most trained to lead a meeting should take up to half the group to their home each week. If you are the first person in your area to enroll in "The Way To Your Promised Land", start a group as soon as possible. Begin by inviting as many people as you know to try the course for 40 days. Many of these people will decide to stay once the initial 40 day period is up. In addition, you could begin mailing out postcards about "The Way" to all residents in your surrounding counties. You could also make up flyers that could be put on people’s cars at your local mall, shopping areas, or in any large parking lot. (All postcards or flyers or materials of any kind must first be approved by us.) Set aside two hours for each meeting. Friday evenings from 7-9pm is good for many people because they don’t need to rush home afterward. Begin each meeting by sitting in a circle or around a large table. Start on time, even if everyone is not there. Ask everyone to be there 15 minutes early. If anyone comes late on a regular basis, they should be told how inconsiderate this is to others. If they continue to be late, ask them to find a different group whose meeting time might be more suitable for them. Open with a simple and brief prayer. Long prayers put people to sleep and don’t impress anyone or make the meetings go any better. For the first hour, everyone will be asked to speak. For as the Scripture says in 1 Corinthians 14:26: "When ye come together, every one of you hath a psalm, hath a doctrine, hath a tongue, hath a revelation, hath an interpretation. Let all things be done unto edifying." Go around the circle and have everyone answer question #1, which is: WHAT WAS THE BEST THING I LEARNED IN THIS WEEK’S LESSONS? Then go around in the circle again having everyone answer question #2, which is: WHAT GREAT THINGS IS GOD DOING IN MY LIFE? Finally, have everyone answer question #3, which is: WHO DID I INVITE TO THIS MEETING, AND WHAT WAS THEIR RESPONSE? Each meeting needs to have an assigned group facilitator. Whosever home you are meeting at should make that assignment. It will be that person’s responsibility to keep the conversation on track. Whenever it veers off, they should gently, but firmly, return it to the subject at hand. They should let everyone know up front how long they have to answer each question. Never let the more talkative members dominate the conversation. Be sure to draw out the more reserved students.
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If you have 3-5 people at the meeting, let each person know they have about 4-5 minutes to answer each question. If you have 6-10 people, give each person about 2-3 minutes for each question. If you have 11-15 people, allow each person about 1-2 minutes to answer each question. If you have 16-25 people, allow each person about 1 minute to answer each question. After the first hour, even if the questioning period is not over, begin the second phase of the meeting. Each week pick a new person to highlight. Ask that person what they would most like prayer for. Have them discuss their need and all the circumstances surrounding whatever is challenging them. Spend about 15 minutes asking questions to better understand the problem. Then, go around the circle and ask each member what it is they think that person can do to gain victory over their problem. This phase should also last about 15 minutes. Finally, sit that person in the center of the circle and have everyone lay hands on them. Let each person there say a prayer aloud for the person in need. The next week, let the person who was prayed over begin phase two by sharing how the group’s prayers have been answered. They can also share what ideas they heard at the previous week’s brainstorming session that were helpful. Everyone in the group should continue to pray for that person, in their private prayer time, until they have received the miracle they seek. In addition to the weekly group meetings, each student should have a one-on-one meeting with their Personal Promised Land Guide (PPLG) by phone three times a week, if possible. In preparation for their conversation, the PPLG should review the lessons that their student just studied. They should do this by keeping copies of all their own lessons from the past. The PPLG should have their disciple read the lessons over the phone and then read their answers to the "Points to Ponder" questions to see if their student properly understood the material. If they spend a few moments on each question, this will still allow time for the PPLG to ask their student what is going on with them, and to ask for prayer requests. The meeting should end with the PPLG praying for his/her disciple. Because of the intimacy between a disciple and their life coach, only men should sponsor men, and women should sponsor women. Below you will find a form that everyone needs to fill out in advance of each weekly group meeting. No one should wing it. Everyone should come prepared by having their answers in writing.
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