More time with fewer and fewer. 
Why? Because He knew something we often forget: disciples are made in small groups, not in large halls.
Rows are good for learning. Good for singing. Good for sitting under solid teaching. But if your goal is transformation—if you want to actually make disciples—rows just won’t do. You need a circle. A group. A place where people can see each other, know each other, and grow together. You need a space where real-life interaction occurs, where you can interrupt the flow with a question, where someone can say, “I’m struggling,” and find grace instead of judgment.
As Andy Stanley famously said, “Circles; not rows.”
Our entire ministry model is designed to move people into groups. We believe circles are better than rows. And we know anecdotally that within the context of our adult groups, men and women who may otherwise have never met are being used in significant ways in each other’s lives. At least 90 percent of the adults we baptize thank specific individuals in their small groups for the roles they played in their coming to faith and their decisions to be baptized.
In groups, people learn to love—not in theory, but in practice. It's easy to say “I love others” when you’re not close enough to be irritated by them. But in a small group, you get the opportunity to love real people with real problems and real quirks. You learn to listen when someone repeats themselves. You learn to show grace when someone’s theology isn’t perfectly aligned with yours. You learn to care even when it’s inconvenient.
In groups, people learn to forgive. To show grace. To listen well. To be patient. To confess. To receive grace. To change. Real discipleship happens when truth and grace are held together in community.
He called them by name.
He listened to their stories.
He answered their questions.
He visited their sick relatives and helped their sick friends.
He fished with fishermen and ate lunch with the little guy and spoke words of resounding affirmation. He went to weddings. He was even placed in charge of the wine list at a wedding. He went to so many parties that he was criticized for hanging out with rowdy people and questionable crowds.
In groups, people live out the “one anothers” of Scripture:
Love one another
Forgive one another
Encourage one another
Pray for one another
Serve one another
Bear with one another
Accept one another
Honor one another above yourselves
Teach one another
Submit to one another
Be kind and compassionate to one another
Admonish one another
Spur one another on toward love and good deeds
Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling
Carry one another’s burdens
You can’t obey those commands from a distance. You learn them by showing up, week after week, with the same people. People who see your strengths and your struggles. People who become your spiritual family. It’s in these groups that faith is not just taught—it’s caught. It’s where theory meets the friction of real life. It’s where iron sharpens iron.
We want to move disconnected people who are sitting in rows toward becoming connected people who are sitting in circles. If we do that quickly, they’re almost certain to stay and become connected into the life of our church. If they’re not yet believers, they’re going to hear the gospel in the context of having some friends around them, and that is the ultimate goal. We want them in the kingdom and not just in the building. It starts with a simple connection.