Next Steps Host Manual

Hello leader!

Thank you for hosting the Next Steps course. This series of videos and discussions is an important key to seeing men, women, and families join Cross Points Church.

Next Steps is what was formerly known as Grow Track. Pastor David Jones designed the videos and the accompanying booklet to answer the questions he heard over and over the past five-plus years. Next Steps is also the first in a new leadership training series the pastors and staff have been working on the past year.

This course covers the three main purposes of Cross Points Church. We exist to CONNECT you to Jesus, People, and your Purpose. Everyone is on a spiritual journey because we are designed to connect to Jesus. Everyone needs a spiritual home because we are made to connect to people. Everyone has a spiritual gift because God wants us to connect to our purpose.

Next Steps is for anyone who is a member of Cross Points Church or may be considering making this their church home. The reason is very simple. We want every member of Cross Points to understand the mission of the church which is Cross Points Church exists to connect you to Jesus, People and your Purpose. 

While Pastor David will share some of these thoughts on Sunday mornings, and you will be communicating these ideas to your team or Connect Group, we want to make sure each CPC member understands the mission of the church.

Thank you again for hosting Next Steps. Please continue to read the following few pages to prepare yourself for each session.

Hosting Overview

As the label implies, your role is simple but vital — host three sessions. There is no lesson to prepare. There are no scriptures to memorize. You don’t need to be an expert about Cross Points Church. Your position is to simply lead your group through one video each session, guide your group through easy discussion questions, and help each member fill out a simple form at the end of each session.

First and foremost, your role is to make each member of your group feel as welcome as possible. Though you may have people who have been a part of Cross Points for years, you may also have members of your group who are brand new to the church. You and your group are a first impression of Cross Points Church.

Though not mandatory, you may want to provide drinks and snacks. Make sure to have plenty of seating ready for your group.

Each session is designed to be one hour or less. The video portion is about 20-30 minutes, and the discussion portion should last another 20-30 minutes. If this is a part of a regular Connect Group, you may want to add a few questions, include an extended time of prayer, or add worship to the session.

In addition to the video for each session is the Next Steps book. While each video is very informative, Pastor David does not go into great detail on some of the subjects. The book is designed to fill in some of those gaps. Your role is not to teach from that additional material, but you may want to point out important segments at the end of each session. Some of the more important sessions will be pointed out in this manual.

Every session (and the corresponding chapter) does end with a “things to do” section. Make sure you are familiar with this section. Some of the items on the list you’ll complete during the session (based on prompts from the video or this manual), but other items are things your group members may do on their own.

Step One Session

Before the Video:

Once everyone is comfortably seated, take some time for introductions. Try to keep these brief as everyone will have a chance to share their story later in this session. 

You may try an icebreaker question. The theme for this session is “Everyone is on a spiritual journey.” Based on that theme, here are some sample icebreaker questions to consider:

• What is the last vacation you took?
• What is your dream vacation?
• What one place in the world would you most like to visit?
• Where is one place you never want to go back to again?
• If you could travel the world with any one person, who would it be?

After you have gone around the room and met one another, it’s time to show the video. Let the group know there are a few fill-in-the-blanks in the booklet that go along with the video (pages 8, 12-13). Also, let your group know there is a section to take notes at the end of the chapter (pages 24-25). Now, hit play, sit back and relax!

After the Video:

At the end of the video, Orah (who opens and closes each video) gives one easy thing to do. This session, she asks everyone to text “Step One” to 913.278.1840. This will guide your members to a link where they can fill out a short form. 

1. Fill out the Form:

Please reiterate these instructions to the group:

• Text “Step One” to 913.278.1840.
• Ask each person to click the link and fill out the form.
  • This form allows us to track which members have attended which Next Step classes.
  • It also includes one optional box to click, “I want to join CPC”
    • Encourage members of the group to click that box if they are ready – especially those members of the group who are long-time attenders of the church.
    • This will prompt CPC to send a notification to that person to gather more information.

If necessary, please help people with this process. It may be helpful for you to practice this process yourself before the session. Please feel free to contact Pastor Andy or another staff member to help you 🙂

2. Share Your Story:

The final screen of the video says, “Leaders, now take some time to share your story.” This is your cue to allow each member of your group to share their own personal story. A great way of phrasing this is asking, “How did you end up here?” It could be their testimony of salvation. It could be how they landed in your group or at Cross Points Church. Instruct them to share whatever they feel is relevant with this group of people.

Based on the size of your group, it may be best to split your group into two or more groups. Again, the goal is to be done with this section in about 20-30 minutes. People LOVE to tell their own stories, and we don’t want to shorten their flow.

Final Instructions:

Finally, point your group back to the booklet. You might share a section you found interesting, like the story of the church or our statement of faith. The statement of faith section (pages 18-20) includes a note to text “Bedrock” to 913.278.1840. This will send you a link to a sermon series on YouTube that Pastor David preached several years ago about our statement of faith. 

Also ask your group to look at the last page of “Step One” (page 23). Make sure they know there are some more steps they can take if they would like to stay up with all that is happening at Cross Points Church.

Close your session in prayer.

Step Two Session

Before the Video:

Once again, welcome your group into your meeting space warmly. The theme for this session is “Everyone needs a spiritual home.” With this in mind, you might use one of these questions as an icebreaker to continue to connect with your group.

• Where would you build your second home – city, country, mountains, beach? Why?
• Did you have your own room when you were growing up?
• How long have you lived in your current home?
• If you could add one thing to your home, what would it be? Why?
• If you could have just one person be a guest at your home for one night, who would it be?

Now that everyone is comfortable, let’s start the video for session two. Remind your group that there are some fill-in-the-blank spots in their booklet (pages 28-30). There is also a section to take notes (page 40-41).

After the Video:

Just like in session one, Orah ends session two by asking everyone to text, “Step Two” to 913.278.1840. This will guide them to a link where they can fill out a short form. 

1. Fill out the Form:

Please reiterate these instructions to the group:

• Text “Step Two” to 913.278.1840.
• Ask each person to click the link and fill out the form.
  • This form allows us to track which members have attended which Next Step clases.
  • As in session 1, it includes one optional box to click, “I want to join CPC”
    • Encourage members of the group to click that box if they are ready – especially those members of the group who are long-time attenders of the church.
    • This will prompt CPC to send a notification to that person to gather more information.
  • This form also asks if you are interested in joining a Connect Group. 
    • Encourage members of the group to click that box if they are not already a member of a Connect Group.
    • This will send a notification to the person in charge of that demographic of Connect Groups who will reach out to those interested.

If necessary, please help people with this process.

The information in the booklet in session two answers so many questions Pastor David hears month after month leading this class. You will have members in your group who love the details of the church. Encourage your group to take the time this week to dive into this chapter to answer many of their questions.

2. Share Your Story:

Close this session by leading a discussion of when the members in your group have benefited from being in a small group setting (whether within a church setting or in a different format). You may also ask about a time when your members wish they had been in a tight group of friends.  

Final Instructions:

Finally, point out page 30 of the booklet. One of the most underutilized tools of the church is our myCrossPoints app. Encourage your group to download the app by texting “App” to 913.278.1840. This will send them a link that sends them directly to the myCrossPoints app in the Google or Apple store.

Close the session in prayer.

Step Three Session

Before the Video:

Welcome to the final session of Next Steps. Congratulations, you are on the verge of leading a group of people through the call and purpose of Cross Points!

This session’s theme is “Everyone has a spiritual gift.” You might consider starting your group with one of these icebreaker questions:

• What is the best Christmas/birthday gift you have ever received?
• What is the funniest gift you have ever received?
• Who is your favorite superhero?
• If you could have any superpower, what would it be?
• What hobby or activity do you do just for fun?

Now that everyone is comfortable, let’s start the video for session three. Remind your group that there are some fill-in-the-blank spots in their booklet (pages 44-46). There is also a section for notes at the end of the chapter (pages 58-59).

During the Video:

This week’s video ends a little differently. Orah will ask you as the host to stop the video after she asks each person to text, “Gifts” to 913.278.1840 (you can also help them to directly to go to gifts.crosspointschurch.com in their phone’s web browser). This will take each person to an online Spiritual Gifts test or assessment.

1. Take the Spiritual Gifts Assessment:

Please reiterate these instructions to the group:

• Text “Gifts” to 913.278.1840.
• Ask each person to click the link and complete this test. It should take them about 5-10 minutes to complete.

After your group completes the test, they will be sent an email with the complete results AND they will immediately see the top two or three results directly on their screen. Before you start the video again, take some time to go around the group to discuss their results.

2. Discuss the Results:

Ask if your group members see these gifts within themselves. If their spouse or significant other is with them, ask if they see those gifts in their partners. Finally, ask how they see using their gifts within the context of the church and outside of it as well. 

If members aren’t sure how their gifts may apply, encourage them to look at chapter three of the booklet. Every area of ministry is listed along with the useful gifts within that ministry and the ministry leader.

After the Video:

After you’ve led this discussion, restart the video. Just like in sessions one and two, Orah ends this session by asking everyone to text, “Step Three” to 913.278.1840. This will guide them to a link where they can fill out a short form. 

1. Fill out the Form:

Please reiterate these instructions to the group:

• Text “Step Three” to 913.278.1840.
• Ask each person to click the link and fill out the form.
  • This form allows us to track which members have attended which Next Step classes.
  • As in sessions 1 and 2, it includes the optional box to click, “I want to join CPC”
    • Encourage members of the group to click this box if they are ready – especially those members of the group who are long-time attendees of the church.
    • This will prompt CPC to send a notification to that person to gather more information.
  • This form also asks if you are interested in joining the Cross Points Crew. 
    • Encourage members of the group to click any box of any ministry they may be interested in (multiple boxes may be clicked).
    • This will send a notification to the person in charge of that ministry who will reach out to those interested.

If necessary, please help people with this process.

Final Instructions:

Finally, end this session celebrating the completion of the Next Steps course! Some of your group members may be interested in joining Cross Points Church. If so, point them to the end of the Next Steps book (pg 56). It lists exactly what it means to join Cross Points – both for them as an individual and us as a church. 

Thank you again for hosting a Next Steps group. I hope you’ve enjoyed getting to know your group and maybe knowing a little bit more about Cross Points Church!