Peer Ministry Leadership

Leadership Training

by

Inside / Outside Circle Experiences

© 2017 written by Lyle Griner
free for local church groups only
 

Seated in a circle of chairs, sitting on the floor, or even standing, while one circle of people faces outward towards a partner in a second circle of people facing inward. It’s a great face-to-face, heart-to-heart, and person-to-person experience with multiple uses.

After each discussion, shift one of the circles. “Outer circle move two spaces to the right.” Or “Inner circle move three spaces to your right.”

The Allowing Rule: Never only answer a question. Always expand, expand, expand.    
 
 Lists and ideas to get you started! 
1. The Best / The Worst
2. Deep, Deeper, Deepest
3. WHEAT Questions
4. READY GO… (Resource)
5. The CROSS-GEN Experience
6. Circles for Prayer
 
 
THE BEST / THE WORST
Invite participants to share either their best or worst experience or example 
from one of the following:
  1. Halloween
  2. Haircut
  3. Family gathering
  4. Class
  5. Teacher
  6. Music
  7. Religious experience
  8. Movie
  9. Feeling
  10. Food
  11. Travel experience
  12. Rule or Law
  13. Attempt at something new
  14. Trait about me
  15. Family
  16. Place to travel
  17. Childhood memory
  18. Time of year
  19. Sport
  20. Discussions
 
DEEP, DEEPER, DEEPEST
Deep, really not very deep, but fun!
Deeper, deals more with ideas and beliefs.
Deepest, this gets personal and will be more about feeling and stories.
Use Deep for a few rounds, then move on to Deeper OR ask a participant to choose their depth and pick a number.
Deep
  1. Food I gag on…
  2. If an imaginary friend became real, I would want…
  3. Something I carry or wear that holds meaning is…  because…
  4. Three favorite words that describe me are…
  5. My favorite technology is…  Frustrating technology is…
  6. My least favorite haircut was…
  7. If I could win an award, it would most likely be for…
  8. If I didn’t have to sleep, what would I do with my extra time?
  9. One thing that takes up way too much of my time is…
  10. The grossest thing I tried to eat…
  11. My most unique relative is…
  12. If I were famous, it would most likely be for…
  13. If I got to endorse a brand, it would be…
  14. If I had a superhuman power, it would be the power to…
  15. If you looked in my closet or school locker…
  16. My “go to” snack food is…
  17. I procrastinate when it comes to…
  18. Three things I love to smell…
  19. If I gpt to choose the pizza toppings, they will be…
  20. My morning waking up routine…
Deeper
  1. Education should focus on…
  2. In order for the church to survive…
  3. Peace can only happen when…
  4. People mostly think about God when…
  5. Three words that describes the whole human species…
  6. Human morals everyone should follow are…
  7. People with vastly different beliefs and cultures…
  8. A person who lives life to the fullest is…
  9. 42,000 religions. Christianity divided into 30,000 versions, probably because…
  10. In order to eliminate poverty…
  11. For a society, music, art, theater…
  12. In 1,000 years, people will…
  13. The best ways to help people in need are…
  14. The biggest waste of human energy is…
  15. Justifying the taking of a human life…
  16. Every human should have the rights of…
  17. Fertile soil for hatred is created when…
  18. Morality is decided by…
  19. The difference between knowledge and wisdom is…
  20. Faith in God comes from…
Deepest 
  1. My faith is…
  2. One of the deepest things I often think about is…
  3. I worry about…
  4. My life has been made better because of…
  5. I could be described as quirky because…
  6. Sometimes I don’t tell everyone… because I am afraid they might…
  7. I feel uncomfortable when…
  8. Something I carry or wear that holds meaning is…  because…
  9. One thing that makes me very angry…
  10. A couple of important things on my bucket list are…
  11. I am passionate about…
  12. One thing I do to fit in is…
  13. I have a hard time with people when…
  14. Some things that make me anxious are…
  15. I feel most genuine, most real when…
  16. I feel I have to pretend, put on a mask, perform for people when…
  17. I used to believe… but now I…
  18. The last time I cried was because…
  19. Things that give me meaning, purpose, and hope are…
  20. I measure my own life by…
WHEAT QUESTIONS 
from Peer Ministry Leadership
Learn and practice WHEAT one person at a time.
<CLICK>  free WHEAT cards
Where
  • Where are you from?
  • Where else have called home?
  • What do you like most about your neighborhood? Town? Area?
  • If I considered moving there, what would you tell me?
Hobbies / Interests 
  • What do you enjoy doing in your free time?
  • What are you most passionate about?
  • How did your interest begin?
  • What is most satisfying about…?
  • What do you hope to do in the future with…?
Experiences and Events
  • What is a favorite life experience or event?
  • What life event has shaped you? Or defined who you are?
  • What is something at your church, (school, family) that has challenged you?
  • What has been most significant (exciting or meaningful)?
Acquaintances
  • Do you know…?
  • Who is a person you think I would want to know? Why?
  • Who is one of your favorite people?
  • How did you meet…?
  • What do you enjoy most about…?
  • What is your favorite memory with…?
Travel
  • What is your favorite place to get away to?
  • Any travel adventures coming up?
  • Any travel mishaps? Something that didn’t go as expected?
  • What drew you to go there?
READY GO… 
500 talk starters
<CLICK> $10 with 100’s of uses!
I love the idea that a curriculum could be a single word. One word that triggers thoughts, beliefs, emotions, and wonderful conversation. READY GO…  is a curriculum of 500 words. Ask a random participant to pick a number between 1 and 500. Use that prompt to enter into conversation. Here is my secret! When someone picks a prompt you don’t like, use another one. As you get to know a group, you also sense what they need to talk about!
The CROSS-GEN Experience
E.g.:People 40 and above in the middle, people 30 and below on the outer circle.
 
Or kids in the middle, parents and adults in the outer circle. Here are some questions to get you started. Add your own!
  1. What is the best thing about being your age? Most challenging?
  2. Who and how has someone of a different generation influenced your life and faith?
  3. What is an early memory of being included in your faith community? When did you hear or sense these words, “We need you!”
  4. Age groups are often separated from each other. What could happen if age didn’t divide us?
  5. What does your culture value about various ages? What do they not seem to value?
  6. When might people feel dismissed, ignored, or not valued because of their age? Do you?
  7. In what ways might an age gap be beneficial to our church? A hindrance?
  8. What is unique about the people in your age group?
  9. What has influenced values and interests of your generation?
  10. What stereotypes do people have about various generations?
  11. How does your generation feel about church? Relevant? Trusted? Important?
  12. What does your church need to hear from your generation? What is your generation looking for?
  13. What are the advantages of being in your age group? Disadvantages?
  14. What types of things are people in your age group looking forward to? Hopes? Dreams?
  15. What is some of the favorite music of your age group?
  16. How does worship connect or disconnect people in your age group?
  17. How does your congregation assist people of every age to discover and use their gifts in Christ’s service?
  18. What are some of the opportunities already present in your congregation for all of the generations to gather together?
  19. Where are there opportunities to build relationships across the generations?
  20. How might your congregation be more intentional in linking the generations in worship, learning, service, and building community?
CIRCLES FOR PRAYER
  • Include one prayer experience as you conclude your circle.
  • Use the whole circle time to share prayers with various people.
  • NOTE… many of the ideas found in the CANDLE TIME prayer kit  <CLICK> could be used for this.
Two examples.
OUCH PRAYER
Take turns sharing OUCH stories. We all have them.
It may be a physical pain, hurting heart, spiritual longing, mental struggle, living with grief, bullied experience, an unpleasant confrontation, or another hurt.
Listen, as you are aware that God is also listening.
As your partner ends his or her story, place a band-aid on the back of the person’s hand.
Use a fine point marker to write a prayer word that is needed on the band-aid such as hope, love, comfort, forgiveness, healing, strength, or patience.
Together say… “Lord in your mercy, hear our prayers.“
HAND PRAYER
Consider rotating to a new partner for each of the following.
Thumb – It is closest to your heart.
Pray for those closest to you. Your family and friends.
1st finger – The finger used to point directions.
Pray for those who teach, guide, and shape your life.
2nd finger – The tallest of your fingers.
Pray for those in authority, who govern over us, making tough decisions.
3rd finger– It is your weakest finger.
Pray for someone hurting, suffering, alienated, or treated unjustly.
4th finger – The smallest of your fingers.
Pray humbly for yourself.
Your whole hand– Used to reach out and support.
Pray, acknowledging God’s loving, inviting reach and support.