There is alot of talk in the Small Group world about "the empty chair" Now, the empty chair is usually a reference to every small group always having room for another person to join them. I do want to make a point though that an empty chair is not always an open chair. It is always easy to have an empty chair or make a reference towards an empty that could be filled but the idea of an "open" chair is a little bit different. The use of the word open is more than just a change of terminology. It is also an attitude of openness and inclusivity.
The following excerpt is from the book "7 Deadly Sins of Small Group Ministry". Bill Donahue quotes Bill Hybels on page 129. 'As much as God loves uplifted hands, he may love outstretched hands even more. Our God is radically inclusive. Listen to the angel's announcement: "I bring you good new of great joy that will be for all peoples" (Luke 2:10) Listen to the Savior's plea "that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us" (John 17:21) Outstretched arms, radically inclusive community: that's our standard.
The open chair is an essential part of the daily walk of each believer and in the small group the chair needs to be open and inclusive, not just empty.
1 comment:
I've found the open chair to work well in groups where each member is reminded constantly about filling it.
Moreover, what I ask them to share with the group about the person who should be filling the chair has a lot to do with whether it's filled or not.
For example, if I just ask a small group member to tell us about an unchurched friend they would like to invite to the group, the person naturally shares things about the person that surround how badly they need God and community... or what is commonly called gossip. We hear all the hurts and habits of the person. Ugh!
So, now I've taken to being very specific. I ask my group members to share two things they LOVE about the person they'd like to invite to the group to occupy that empty chair. I go on to challenge them to share a hobby or interest of that person in upcoming weeks, then talk to the group about who is seeing a relational fit between the person being praised and another group member's own interests.
The empty chair is more about building relationships with unchurched people outside the meeting than it is about inviting guest to come to the meeting for me I guess.
Dave Earley, a small group writer I really enjoy, wrote, "Win them to you, then win them to your group members, and then you'll win them to Christ." (from 8 Habits of Effective Small Group Leaders). Inviting them to fill the empty chair probably comes into play between the 2nd and 3rd part of the quote.
Great blog, by the way. Keep up the great work!
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