Includes bibliographical references (page 201).

There are plenty of ways to get people to come to church. Keeping them there is another matter. Many of our churches seem more like teflon than velcro. So what will it take to make your church sticky? In this book, Larry Osborne shares proven strategies for closing the back door and keeping it shut, including a unique approach to sermon-based small groups. By using these groups to dig deeper into the weekend message, Osborne's multisite congregation has grown from a small group to one of the larger churches in the country - all without any marketing. Sticky Church tells the inspiring story of North Coast Church's phenomenal word-of-mouth growth and offers practical tips for launching your own sermon-based small group ministry. This is an ideal book for church leaders who want to start or retool their small group ministry - and velcro their congregation to the Bible and each other. Includes samples of sermon notes, study questions, and leadership training materials. --from back cover.

Part 1 The Sticky Church Advantage 1. Sticky Church : Why the front door is highly overrated -- A parable lots of people know but not many understand -- Why stickiness is so important -- The purpose and format of this book.

2. Who Are These Guys? : Why it might not matter if your church stinks at marketing -- Small leaks, big messes, and church growth -- Come-and-see evangelism -- The 80 percent factor -- Scalability and slow growth.

3. How I Learned about the Importance and Power of Stickiness : Killing the dream -- And why it was one of the best things I ever did -- Tools or sheep? -- Pastors who don't like Christians -- Why marketing too early can actually keep people away.

4. Why Stickier Churches Are Healthier Churches : Why closing the back door can make the front door seem bigger -- The telltale mark of a raving fan -- The high price of bait and switch -- How one seeker church made sure no one brought any seekers.

Part 2 How Small Groups Change Everything -- 5. Velcroed for Growth : Why most of our discipleship models don't work very well -- How people grow -- Velcroed for growth -- Why the New Testament is absolutely silent about small groups.

6. How Small Groups Change Everything : Critical mass, why it's so important and what it takes to get there -- The Holy Man myth -- The Holy Place myth -- Why empowerment needs a platform.

7. Still More Ways That Small Groups Change Everything : Why small groups make a church more honest and transparent -- Why they always increase the level and practice of spiritual disciplines -- The very best gift we can give a child or teenager.

8. Making the Message Memorable : How Sermon-Based Small Groups Made Me a Much Better Preacher -- A bunch of stuff that didn't work and the one change that did -- The simplest way to increase attention and note taking -- Why my sermons are always worth talking about -- Four stages of knowledge and why lots of people tend to bail out before they're finished.

9. Making the Message Accessible : How Sermon-Based Small Groups Made Us a Much Better Church -- Reeling in the marginally interested -- Why it doesn't matter why someone joins a group -- Why even the unmotivated will spend an hour preparing for their small group -- Facilitators and teachers -- The death of idiot questions.

Part 3 Sermon-Based Small Groups -- 10. Why Some Groups Jell and Some Don't : Why size matters -- Comfort zones -- The "me too" factor -- The magic number when attendance becomes predictably sporadic -- Getting the right people in the right group -- The difference between Christian unity and close friendships -- Schooling fish -- Why people are like Legos -- Why friendly people can leave new people feeling frustrated -- New groups for new people -- Why dividing to grow might not be such a good idea.

11. Flies on the Wall : What Happens When a Sermon-Based Small Group Meets -- Why there is no such thing as a typical -- sermon-based small group -- Refreshments and personal updates -- Why it's vitally important that everyone answers their homework questions ahead of time -- Three types of questions -- Why silly questions can be important questions -- Why you always want to look at some passages that weren't mentioned in the sermon -- Prayer -- Freedom to digress -- Worship -- Service projects and socials.

12. Overcoming the Time Crunch : Why most of us have just two time slots to work with -- The difference between selling out and adapting wisely -- Why cutting the competition is so important -- What Henry Ford taught me about small groups -- Cutting too much too fast can be hazardous to your ministry -- Hamstringing the competition -- Making leadership manageable -- Why summer breaks are essential for long-term success.

13. Determining Your Primary Purpose : Determining your primary goal -- What happens when everyone uses a different measuring rod -- Alignment -- What we can learn from Wall Street and LA Fitness -- Making disciples -- Staying healthy -- The need for warmth -- The dangers of mission creep -- Measuring success.

14. Entry Points and Escape Routes : My first small group -- The dreaded weasel factor -- Entry ramps and escape routes -- Why ten weeks is nearly magical -- How groups grow deeper -- What happens when life happens -- What happens when it doesn't -- Aligning sermon series and small group schedules -- Why it's no big deal.

15. Why Dividing Groups Is a Dumb Idea : What most church leaders think -- Why those who are actually in a small group see it so differently -- Small groups and steroids -- Another look at Legos -- What the military taught me about small groups -- Mayberry in San Diego -- Fresh blood -- Hiving versus dividing.

16. Finding and Developing Leaders : What to look for -- Whom to avoid -- The best fishing pools -- The worst fishing pools -- Why you don't want to ask for volunteers -- How to scare off potential leaders.

17. Training Leaders : Why staff members and lay leaders see training so differently -- Bite-sized training -- Time shifting -- Why turning down the intensity won't harm your leaders or your groups -- and why it might help -- What every rookie needs to know -- The one thing every veteran leader needs to know.

18. Why Cho's Model Didn't Work in Your Church : Why most of our small group models don't work very well -- The Korean connection -- Coming to America -- A nagging question, a surprising answer -- Why my parents won't walk into the Buddhist temple -- Prayer Mountain, military coups, and powerful pastors -- What a mobile society, extended families, Armenians, and mutts have in common -- and what they don't.

19. Before You Start: Five Key Questions -- What a poorly aligned set of tires can teach about vision and ministry -- Who are you trying to reach? -- What are you trying to accomplish? -- How do these two match up? -- The funnel test -- Mentoring, education, and apprenticeships -- Speed modeling Appendixes.

1. Writing Great Questions -- 2. Sample Sermon Note Sheet and Study Questions -- 3. Sample Growth Group Covenant -- 4. End of the Quarter Evaluation Form -- 5. Leader Training Topics -- 6. Leader Responsibilities -- 7. Host Responsibilities -- 8. A List of the New Testament "One Anothers" -- Study Guide : Follow-up Questions for Each Chapter.