Helping Group Leaders Find Their Blueprint
At Grow Through Groups, we often emphasize that the success of a small group ministry in a church hinges upon the individuals who lead groups—your group leaders or facilitators. Even if your overall ministry plan is somewhat undefined or loosely structured, with strong, capable, faithful, and relational small group leaders—your ministry will grow and flourish.
It is not always about finding the perfect teaching content, lesson series, or curriculum. It is not always about finding the most “highly trained,” theologically educated, license-holding minister to lead the ministry. It is not always about putting together some over-the-top plan or choosing the right ministry model.
More often, the success and fruitfulness, of your small group ministry is determined by the people you deploy and unleash to lead groups.
And so, as a pastor or Small Group Ministry Director in your church, it becomes imperative that you develop a system to effectively recruit, train, and support small group leaders. This is one of your most important tasks. In time, you will discover that your potential to multiply small groups throughout your church and community is tied to how effectively you coach, support, and multiply small group leaders.
This is why the Grow Through Groups team has developed a complete coaching system to help churches equip, coach, and support their group leaders. That system is called The Small Group Leader Blueprint and it is the focus of a lot of our training events.
This system includes:
A series of interactive video training lessons.
A engaging digital assessment that, once completed, provides each leader with a personalized PDF report of their unique blueprint profile.
A coaching guide for team leaders, ministry directors, or pastors.
And so, let me take a moment, and introduce this system to you:
In 1 Peter 4:10, the Apostle Peter reminds us that every believer has received a gift from God, and we are called to use that gift to serve one another:
As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.
In this context, the word “gift” comes from the Greek word charisma, which refers to “a gracious, divinely empowered ability.” The word "manifold" (or varied) reminds us that God's grace expresses itself in many forms—including different leadership styles and temperaments for communication and relating to others. This means there is no single way to lead. Rather, God’s grace is displayed through the varied leadership styles of His people.
To be a good steward of God's grace means to recognize, embrace, and faithfully use the unique way God has shaped you to serve others.
Small group leadership, then, is an act of stewardship. Understanding your unique leadership style is part of living out this call to serve and build up the Body of Christ (Ephesians 4:11–13). When you know how God has naturally wired you to lead others, you can do so from a place of strength, authenticity, and grace. Understanding that design helps you lead with greater confidence and effectiveness.
The Small Group Leader Blueprint is a personalized profile designed to help you identify and develop your God-given small group leadership temperament.
Whether you are a bold challenger, relational connector, gentle shepherd, or deep teacher, this tool will give you the language and insights to lead groups more effectively in your local church.
When you know your blueprint and embrace it fully, you will:
Gain clarity about how God has shaped you to serve others.
Lean into your unique small group leadership strengths.
Grow in self-awareness, understanding both your strengths and potential blind spots.
Make disciples more effectively by using your natural wiring and the relational and teaching gifts God has entrusted to you.
Gain an engaging coaching framework that fosters personal growth and sustained ministry impact.
Whether you’re new to leading small groups or have years of experience, discovering and working within your blueprint is a powerful next step toward becoming the small group leader God has called you to be.
God has gifted you to lead. This tool will help you understand that gift, grow it, and steward it well for the sake of building up others to make and multiply disciples of Jesus.
Using the Blueprint System to Coach Group Leaders
As a small groups director or team leader, you have the opportunity to build up, coach, and support a diverse team of group leaders—each with unique leadership strengths, emotional temperaments, relational styles, and disciple-making approaches.
No two leaders are exactly alike, and that’s part of God’s intentional design.
A thriving small group ministry reflects the diversity of the body of Christ, and one of the most impactful ways to strengthen that ministry is by helping each leader lean into their God-given strengths while also growing in areas that stretch them.
Effective team leadership often benefits from moving beyond a “one-size-fits-all” approach.
Look for ways to get to know the unique design of each group leader on your team—how they communicate, how they disciple others, and how they organize group life. Building intentional coaching relationships with group leaders can be one of the most meaningful investments you make. Simple practices like finding regular rhythms for one-on-one conversations, offering consistent encouragement, and creating space for leaders to share challenges can go a long way in supporting their growth.
Using the Small Group Leader Blueprint as a coaching framework can help you develop existing leaders and support the multiplication of new ones. As you help leaders clarify their own leadership approach and grow in their disciple-making skills, you’re also equipping them to raise up future leaders from within their groups. By using this framework, you can give leaders a practical pathway to train others and reproduce an army of qualified, confident group leaders who are ready to lead well and make a lasting impact in your church.
Leading a team of small group leaders is about more than simply giving the team a general sense of direction. It’s about investing in people on a personal level, helping each leader grow, and creating a culture of shared purpose. Every leader brings unique strengths and challenges to the table, and as a team leader, your role is to help them thrive in the ways God has wired them to serve.
Great ministry coaching is about affirming the strengths God has given to each individual leader, encouraging growth where needed, and building deep relationships that foster learning and trust. Below are five best practices that can help you support and develop a healthy, diverse team of small group leaders:
Know Each Leader’s Blueprint: Understand their natural leadership design and how they approach disciple-making. Affirm what they do well and help them stretch where needed.
Build Relational Trust: The group leaders on your team are far more likely to open up about their struggles, ask for help, and receive feedback when they know you care about them as individuals. Take time to get to know each team member beyond their group responsibilities and learn about their families, work, passions, and personal walk with God. Share your own growth areas as a leader so they feel safe to do the same.
Encourage Cross-Learning: Help leaders learn from others on the team who have different leadership styles and strengths. Leaders can get stuck thinking their way is the only way to lead a group—but when they observe how others lead with different approaches, they often discover fresh ideas and gain new perspectives.
If you’re ready to take the next step in developing and coaching your small group leaders, I invite you to watch the video below. If interested, you have the opportunity to complete a simple yet powerful assessment for yourself, gain personalized insights into your leadership style, and explore a supplemental online course designed to help you apply what you learn in real ministry settings.
Whether you're new to group leadership or leading a full team of group leaders, this system is designed to give you clarity, confidence, and a practical coaching framework that equips you to lead more effectively.
There are two versions of the Blueprint available:
The Individual Edition is designed for small group leaders who want to understand and strengthen their own leadership approach. It includes the full assessment, a personalized results report, and access to a video training course that helps leaders apply their strengths and grow in disciple-making effectiveness.
The Team Leader Edition includes everything in the Individual Edition plus a bonus video session, a downloadable Team Leader Coaching Workbook, and practical guidance for coaching, developing, and multiplying group leaders across your church. This version is ideal for pastors, ministry coordinators, and small group directors who want to build a strong, healthy leadership culture across their teams.
To learn more and get started, visit growthroughgroups.com/small-group-leader-blueprint and discover how this tool can transform the way you lead and support your small group ministry.
