Pray first. After leading my first group, I promised God I would lead a group every year He gave me men. God has been faithful to send me the right guys every year. If you are unsure who to invest in, start praying. Everyone will start to look like a potential group member.
Start with your circle of influence. The best groups start with established relationships. Look in your small group, your church relationships, your work and neighborhood, and among friends and acquaintances.
Ask church staff or ministry leaders to recommend people. Your church staff is an excellent resource for finding people.
Avoid the peer group mistake. The biggest mistake I see from first-time leaders is forming their group with guys from within their friend group or spiritual peers. They think it will be less pressure. These groups are not bad, but that is not a discipleship group. It is an accountability group.
Start with leaders. One option is to start your first group with a handful of leaders who would be willing to recruit and lead a group the following year.
Start early. Don't wait until the week before your launch to recruit. I start having discussions months in advance and am on the lookout for potential group members all year long.
Set the bar high. When you approach someone to be in your group, don't sugarcoat the process. They need to count the cost on the front end or you will lose them along the way. In one of my early groups, I had a guy who thought we were only reading one book for the whole year. He was surprised to discover that it was a new book every month. Most people like the challenge and are willing to work hard for something worthwhile.
Ask one-on-one. This is a big decision for most people. Don't ask them in front of others. They may be embarrassed and say yes on the front end but drop out because they weren't committed. In all my years of leading groups, I have only had one person turn me down. God is always at work on both sides, the asking and the responding.
Give a deadline. Make them commit by a specific date.
Don't chase. When it comes to salvation, we do whatever it takes to reach them. But for discipleship, it is up to the believer to supply the energy. It is the mentor's responsibility to give them the opportunity, but they need to initiate beyond that.
