Week 11
Opening Reflection: Starting a Spotfire
Listening to Jesus Foundations and Listening to Jesus were created for anyone—regardless of their biblical knowledge or spiritual maturity. Many people feel unqualified to make disciples because they don’t think they know the Bible well enough or are not spiritually mature enough. This material is designed to grow your knowledge and faith over time, but all you need in order to begin is a willing heart.
As mentioned earlier, we call a small gathering of disciples a Spotfire to denote a flame. The term was originally used to refer to a secondary fire that ignites outside the main perimeter of a larger one. We came across the name from Josh Cutting, a ministry partner in the British Isles. For our purposes, a Spotfire is started by the flame of the Holy Spirit in one person who is led to share it with others. The Spotfire is perpetually fueled by listening to and obeying Jesus as he continues to provide all that is needed to keep the Spotfire lit. Our vision is to see Spotfires ignited all over the world.
Forming a Spotfire
Start by praying and asking Jesus to show you whom to invite into a Spotfire (see “Finding a Person of Peace,” page 164). Ideally, aim for 3 to 8 people.
To help others grow in confidence and leadership, consider rotating facilitators each week. Raising up additional leaders is especially helpful when you’re unavailable or when someone feels led to start a new Spotfire.
If your Spotfire grows beyond a manageable size, multiply into smaller Spotfires and identify someone to facilitate each one.
Be clear from the beginning about the commitment involved in being part of a Spotfire.
Choose a regular time and place that works for everyone, and establish clear start and end times. Then, honor those as consistently as possible
Facilitating a Spotfire
As a facilitator, your role is to guide the spotfire, not to teach. Focus on encouraging conversation and appointing someone to lead each week’s session.
Early on, people may be slow to open up. That’s okay—trust takes time. Set the tone by modeling humility and authenticity. Share your own joys, struggles, temptations, and victories.
Your openness creates a safe space, giving others permission to do the same.
Establish a confidentiality agreement early on: personal matters shared in the Spotfire stay within the Spotfire.
If someone asks a question you can’t answer, be honest. A wise response might be:
“Let’s find out together.”
“I’ll get back to you.”
“Let’s each ask Jesus and share what we hear next time.”
Encouraging Participation
From your very first meeting, set the expectation that everyone is encouraged to share each week. For ongoing meetings, ask members to come prepared to answer these Truth and Obey questions from each Weekly Review: – What was the most significant revelation from my readings? – What was the most significant revelation from my circumstances? – Was I faithful to act on my primary focus this week? – What should my top priorities be next week in my home, work, and ministry? – Which of these three should be my primary focus next week?
Begin each meeting with prayer. To ensure everyone has a chance to speak, ask members to keep their sharing to five minutes or less. Offering guidance here helps keep the focus on what matters most and makes it easier to see how each person is engaging with Jesus throughout the week.
While the order of sharing isn’t important, a helpful rhythm might be:
Update on last week’s primary focus
This week’s primary focus
Most significant revelation from Scripture
Most significant insight from life circumstances
Building Community
Pray regularly for one another—not just during meetings, but throughout the week. Practice loving accountability, especially when someone falls short of their commitments. If progress stalls, gently guide them back to the key reflection from the “Obey” section of the tSOAR Weekly Review: “Are you setting aside time for your main focus?” Keep the tone encouraging, not guilt-driven—aim for growth, not perfection.
Be intentional about praying for each person to follow through on their primary focus. Stay connected through a Spotfire chat or messaging app to share updates, encouragement, and prayers throughout the week.
Remember: Listening to others share what God is saying to them is also a key part of your own spiritual growth. After everyone has shared, use the remaining time to follow the Spirit’s lead in further conversation. If things feel quiet, consider asking about areas of life that didn’t get much focus that week.