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Don’t Let Your Small Group Bible Study Get All Over The Place
The most fundamental principle of the liquid method is the funnel. If you picture the image of a funnel, you’ll better understand the idea of the “flow” when it comes to using the liquid method. The funnel is a tool we use to give direction to a substance that would otherwise end up all over the place. If you’ve ever tried to pour liquid into a narrow opening of a container without using a funnel or something like it, nine times out of ten you end up with a real mess. The same thing is true with small groups. Who of us hasn’t been in a group that had lost its direction and ended up “all over the place”?
The liquid method serves as a guide for your bible study small group to funnel God’s word from the head to a heart. It also keeps a group from becoming messy or diverted from the aim of the study. It’s often said that the difference between the head and the heart is eighteen inches. Many times the same truth applies to small group curriculum. What the funnel does is move God’s word from the head (large opening) to the heart (small opening) through a series of specific and well crafted questions.
The liquid method is generally comprised of a series of four simple, but carefully constructed, inductive questions that take your bible study small group through the process of observing, understanding and applying God’s word to life in a way that is both relational and relevant. At first glance, you may be tempted to think that these questions are too shallow or that they don’t take you deep enough into Scripture. Or you might think, “This is too repetitive.” But stick with it because the funnel is guiding each individual and the group to a specific place of understanding and life change. There are subtle nuances to the liquid method that may be missed initially. Once you grasp the strategy of these questions, you’ll find that they offer small groups a very different kind of experience relationally. As group members respond to the questions, God’s word begins to open up and he uses the collective knowledge of the group to help everyone in the group learn. It’s that simple—it’s not limited to a single teacher, a single curriculum, or a single personality. Not only do group members learn what God says in his Word, but they also see firsthand what he does in the lives of his people.