At least two things make The Well different: we do follow up within our studies and groups, and we date each other. Yeah buddy, date – but more on that in a minute. By follow up, we mean we help women learn how to shepherd their groups. Shepherding is not the same as facilitating, whereby the facilitator often leaves the follow up to someone else and the work of ministry to others higher up on the food chain. No, no. We want women to learn to notice for themselves the women in their groups because they will never actually go into the harvest if they don’t ever learn to see the harvest in the room with them! If they lead something, they learn that they’re responsible to contact women who aren’t there each week, to go see them if they’re in the hospital, send a card, bring a meal or arrange a meals list, etc. They learn to serve as priests because Jesus called us to be a kingdom of priests. Very few ministries are engaged in follow up – but it’s key in ours. We want to make sure that if a woman falls away, it’s because she wants to, not because no one noticed that she left. Dating is the other thing that makes us different, so if we ever stop dating each other and just wind up doing Bible studies and events, then buy the coffins because we’re dead as a ministry! We will have gone the way of too many other women’s groups, which have activities happening, but no discipleship. The date is a key way to participate in the Great Commission and is what generates just about all the mentoring that takes place within and through The Well ministry. So, we don’t want to have groups for the sake of having groups or make connections just for the sake of making friends. We want groups and connections that help women become disciples of Jesus Christ who can make a difference with their friends and everyone else they encounter. Dating is key to that. So, if you lead with us, I hope you’re figuring out this difference and helping to maintain it, and if you’re a part of us, you just got clued in on what we’re doing.
