The coffee is lukewarm, the cookies gone, and people are heading for the door. While your small group meeting has officially ended, what will the couples or families who attend do until you meet again? During the week ahead, how can what they’ve studied stay on the front burner?

There are many ways to keep your small group alive and functioning between meetings. Some are as simple as encouraging couples or families to sit together in church or to work together at a volunteer event. Others require more organization, like forming chili cook-off or trivia night teams. Use the dynamics of your group to promote togetherness. For example, if the families have young children, urge them to organize play dates and picnics.

Modern technology can also help. During the week, contact people through email and phone calls. For those intimidated by the small group setting, your personal connection might be what keeps them coming back. And don’t forget couple to couple or family to family connections. If all agree, supply the group with phone and email listings so people can contact each other.

All types of social interaction, from casual cookouts to morning coffees can also benefit families. But as you encourage people to mix, remind them about maintaining boundaries. For example, all group members should be invited to events to avoid cliques. And discourage the husband of one couple from meeting with the wife of another, and stress same gender or couple meetings only.