leader resources

This information is available as a printable PDF here.

Studying the Bible in a small group community is so valuable! If you are stepping up to lead, thank you! Providing a place where others can learn, discuss, question, process, and grow together is no small thing. What you are doing matters. It changes lives, families, and churches.

There are no special qualifications for leading a group, beyond genuine personal faith and a willingness to serve others. But having some tools for leading discussions and knowing how to handle difficult situations will be helpful! Your church may offer (or require) some training, and I encourage you to take advantage of whatever is available. This material is not intended to teach you how to be a great small group leader, but simply to give you some information and tips to help you use these Noeo studies well.

Why Noeo?

My goal with Noeo was to give you a tool to take your group beyond “all the right answers on the homework,” and encourage us all to think deeply about what we say we believe.

How is this study different?

The main difference in format is that your group discussion time won’t be focused on reviewing homework. You’ll be able to clear up problems or questions, but the homework is intended to be preparation for a conversation about what was studied. There is a “Talk about it” discussion page following each week of lessons, designed to encourage thoughtful dialogue, raise important questions we ought to wrestle with, help us put words to what we believe (and why), and challenge us toward personal application.

TIP: At your first meeting, read through the “About this study” page, found at the beginning of each Noeo study. You should also read the brief explanation of the discussion format at the top of your first “Talk about it” page when you get to it. The more your group understands the “why” behind the format, the more easily they can get on board.

Why shouldn’t we go over the homework?

The homework really is a crucial part of the study, and you, as leaders, should reinforce to your group that their own personal study in God’s Word is the most important thing. But there are two big reasons for not using group time to review it together.

First: if you’ve led a group like this before, you know that while reviewing homework can generate great discussion, sometimes it just feels repetitive and unproductive. Instead of checking to make sure everyone has the right answers, you can spend the time together moving forward, doing something new with what has been studied.

Second, on a practical level, reviewing a week of homework takes a lot of time! If you go over all of the answers, you’ll rarely have an opportunity to go beyond. Noeo studies are designed to free up your discussion time for new thoughts and deeper conversation.

TIP: You may lead a group that is very devoted to the habit of discussing the homework! If they are resistant to changing the format, ask them to commit to trying it for 2-3 weeks, and see how it goes.

Why even do the homework if we’re not going to talk about it together?

Getting group members to show up with homework completed is always a challenge, isn’t it? It might feel like this study format lets them off the hook, but the homework truly is integral to the discussion time. As you go, this will begin to make sense, and the short answer is that you will be talking about the homework. Here are some insights to help you, as leaders, understand how it fits in.

The general idea with every question in the “Talk about it” discussions is to build on what was studied at home during the week. Here are two examples, from the study on Minor Prophets 1 and then the one on John. You can see that what was previously studied provides context to answer the questions.

As we saw in Lesson 6.4, Israel’s outward display of worship and religious practices gave them false security, allowing them to see themselves as staying in step with God. It is surprisingly easy to fool ourselves, and others, by doing all the “right” things, isn’t it? Have there been times in your life that you kept up appearances of walking with Him, but from an insincere heart? How did it feel?

How gracious of God to make sure we were told the “rest of the story” about Peter! If you feel discouraged today over your own shortcomings as a follower, be encouraged by his difficult, but tender restoration! Read Lamentations 3:22-23—how do we live in light of this truth?

But more importantly, many of the questions refer directly back to something that was covered in the homework. The first question below is from the Acts study, and the second comes from Philippians, Colossians, and Philemon:

Look at your answer to Question 3, Lesson 2.1, about what we, as believers, have to offer those in need. Talk about some of the ideas you came up with, and what it might look like to move toward someone with “what you do have.” What do you think holds us back from doing this more often?

Epieikés, or reasonableness, really should be a distinguishing mark on the Christian’s life. Read some of the descriptive words you wrote for Question 1, Lesson 4.2, and talk about how living these attitudes could affect those around you.

As leaders we always hope everyone in the group does all their homework, but of course we know that in reality, some will struggle to do so. Encourage those who are having trouble keeping up to at least read through the lessons for the week, answering those questions they relate to or that interest them.

A note about Bible translations 

Noeo studies were written using the English Standard Version (ESV) Bible translation. You should recommend to group members who may use other versions that if they find a question confusing, it might help to look at the passage in the ESV. Especially on questions that have a fill-in-the-blank, knowing the wording of the passage in ESV will make a difference.

If they aren’t already aware of how to do so, please make sure to show your group members how to use an easy app on their phones (such as the YouVersion Bible App), or website like Biblegateway.com, to easily look up passages in multiple versions. Many questions will suggest reading a passage in the New Living Translation (NLT) or Amplified Bible, in order to bring clarity or add additional insight. You don’t want someone to miss something or get roadblocked by not having access to these resources.

Leading your group through the discussion

Notice that the lead in to each week’s discussion is always the same! It reads:

It may take your group a week or two to get a feel for how much time to spend on this part of the discussion. Generally speaking, homework problems to go over in the group should be limited to things someone really didn’t understand. If you spend half an hour just reviewing questions people feel like chatting about, your discussion time will be cut very short. After a couple of weeks, they should see that the “Talk about it” questions will give them opportunities to comment on the things that interested or bothered them. Ideally, you’ll spend less than 15 minutes on this intro before beginning your discussion.

The following suggestions should help you with the “Talk about it” group discussion time:

• Always read through the questions ahead of time. If you need to, decide before you meet which questions to focus on. Feel free to re-word them or add additional questions to suit your needs.

• If you have group members who need some time to think about their answers, suggest that they read the questions beforehand as well. This isn’t necessary, but for those who take a little more time to formulate responses, It will help them participate better.

• Unless you have a very small group, don’t expect to have everyone answer each question! Depending on how much time you have available, you may need to decide beforehand which questions to focus on, and add more as time allows.

TIP: Make sure everyone opens to the “Talk about it” page when you meet together, so they can follow along as you read the questions, and you don’t have to repeat them.

• You’ll notice that often a “question” is actually multiple questions, designed to walk your group through a train of thought. Don’t rush through them all at once. It can be overwhelming to have several questions posed at the same time, and you will get better responses if you break them down and take it a step at a time.

• Don’t be afraid to let your group feel some discomfort. Especially if the question is quite personal or heavy, it's ok to let it sit for a bit. Don’t panic and move on, assuming no one will answer! Acknowledge that it’s a “big question” and give them some time. Being willing to vulnerably lead the way with your own response may encourage them to jump in as well. 

• The group discussion is Intended to be a conversation, not a checklist of questions to answer. At times your conversation might lead to bunny trails, deep emotions, or personal stories. All of these are ok, in fact they should be encouraged and treated with respect. But you will absolutely need to have some “verbal tools” for moving the discussion forward as well! Comments such as, “I wish we could talk about this one all day, but we should probably move on!” will help you gently keep your group on track. You are shooting for a balance of letting your group have meaningful conversations, but without getting so far off-track that you have to skip other important topics.

• Occasionally there will be questions that say something along the lines of “share your response if comfortable, and pray for one another.” If possible, stop right then and pray about the matter, especially if it has stirred up emotions, rather than tacking it on to a closing prayer at the end. 

• There are some questions designed to be a little provoking, to encourage your group members to put words to, and defend, what they believe. Reading through the questions ahead of time will help you be prepared. Rather than try to avoid controversy, instead learn to guide your group through it when needed, helping them hear each other’s perspectives. You can preface a question with a comment about how there will be differing opinions, but you trust everyone to express themselves graciously! Again, having some verbal tools for handling differences of opinion will be helpful. Making sure people feel safe, heard, and respected creates a group where true heart and life transformation can take place.

Sometimes the Amplified Bible does such a good job of communicating and expanding on an idea. Hebrews 4:12 reminds us that the Bible is not just a textbook we read and study, but that it has power to work deep within us, exposing flaws and prodding us to change and grow. I pray this will be the heartbeat of your groups, as you explore conversations about His Word together. 

For the word of God is living and active and full of power [making it operative, energizing, and effective]. It is sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrating as far as the division of the soul and spirit [the completeness of a person], and of both joints and marrow [the deepest parts of our nature], exposing and judging the very thoughts and intentions of the heart. (Hebrews 4:12, Amplified Bible)