Hey, do any of you guys participate in Bible studies with people in your church throughout the week or month, and what's been your experience I know my church is starting one now
I do one weekly, and it is a fantastic experience I recommend everyone try. I also help run an online bible study, which is also a wonderful time.
I've had hit or miss experiences with them. I think the most important factor to having a good study is interaction within the group. At the same time, the group leader needs to keep a close pulse on when to reign in the one or two people who always seem to show up that have a particular view they can somehow work into most any passage of Scripture or topical discussion. My parish had a Sunday school for a few years and there was a man who was a dispensationalist and would immediately turn any discussion to the ideas of C.I. Schofield and a woman who considered herself a Pentecostal and always found a way to bring up the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Betwixt the two of them talking past each other, they succeeded in killing participation in the Sunday school and the rector canceled it a while back.
A case of 1 Cor.14:29-33. 'prophets' having no control over their own outbursts. Such a difficult thing to manage without the extremes of 'shutting people up' or 'letting them take control'. Perhaps a thread could be started on "Useful Phrases and sentences to facilitate, 'group moving on' "