Staying Sharp
‘As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another’ (Prov 27:17). Find out how New Wine Core Groups allow church leaders to maintain accountable friendships to keep them on track
To be effective in our God-given calling we all need others to help, encourage and challenge us. Core Groups are the means by which church leaders in the New Wine Network can enter into a mutual mentoring relationship with other like-minded leaders to do just this. Each Core Group consists of five or six church leaders who commit to meeting regularly and frequently, and being accountable to each other as they seek to implement Kingdom values in their lives and ministries. Just a year after these groups were introduced, there are now more than 60 Core Groups meeting around the country. Organised by peer group, most are formed from leaders who have overall responsibility for leading their church, while in some areas groups have also been established for kids’ leaders, worship leaders or leaders’ spouses.
Stephen Beach, a Network member and vicar of St Budeaux Parish Church in Plymouth, speaks of his Core Group experience:
When I first heard about Core Groups I was quite cautious. When I saw how they were supposed to work, I started to think they sounded good. When I experienced a trial group at a conference I prayed, ‘Lord thank you for the fruitfulness that will come from this.’ Convinced that this would be a good thing to be part of, I went through the list of Network members within striking distance of Plymouth and made some phone calls explaining the idea. We soon had a group of five ready to commit. Two I knew; one I bumped into at another meeting; one was a name on a page. This is probably one of the easiest things I have done in ministry, with a high ratio of enjoyment over hassle and fruitfulness over time spent.
I find myself looking forward to the meetings, which happen roughly once a month for about two hours. In practice, they’re all the things they were intended to be in theory: helpful, supportive, encouraging, challenging and even productively scary. Which leaders do you know who do not need friendly encouragement and true fellowship in responding to the many biblical challenges and in pursuing the gifts of the Sprit without giving up? At one meeting we discussed prayer and time spent with God. Each of us realised that we always intend to have a ‘quiet day’ set apart for listening, but don’t get around to it. So there and then we each put a quiet day in our diaries and agreed we would check up on and pray for each other. We’re like-minded leaders calling each other back to develop in listening to God and then in sticking to our best intentions.
Would I recommend Core Groups to other leaders? Absolutely! Are you a leader, minister, vicar, pastor or curate who wants a long-term healthy relationship with Jesus leading to obedient ministry? Then committing yourself to a Core Group could be exceedingly helpful.
If you lead a church and would like to find out more about joining a Core Group, please contact your local Network leader or speak to the New Wine Networks team on 0845 437 8656 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
