July 2005, Vol 1, No.3
A Call to Arms: The Battle for Men’s Souls
From Man in the Mirror’s Mini-Course In Men’s Ministry
We are in a life
and death battle for the souls of men:
-
There are 98,000,000 men in
America 18
years of age and older.
-
Evangelism: Regrettably, 63 million men make no
profession of Christ.
-
Discipleship: Amazingly, 90 million men are not involved in
any kind of discipleship. Only 8 million men are involved
in discipleship-only 1 out of every 12 men. Can you imagine
fielding a football team on which only 1 man knows how to play
the game?
Is it any wonder
why America is mired in the moral decay of divorce, adultery,
pornography, abortion, and 100 other major problems?
Hugh O. MacClellan,
one of America's leading Christian philanthropists said recently,
"The greatest need we have in America is to reach our men."
Go to the MIM Online Mini-Course In Men’s Ministry
Building a Sustainable Men’s Ministry
by Gary Yagel
Step 1: Find
1-3 Men’s Ministry “Go to Guys.”
Step 2:
Equip Your Men’s Ministry “Go to Guys,” and Help Them Build a Team
Step 3: Clearly
Define the Purpose of Your Men’s Ministry
Management guru
Peter Drucker says that there are only 2 questions that business
leaders have to answer, What is your business, and
How’s business? Success, according to Drucker, is
largely a result of staying focused on those 2 questions.
The business of
men’s ministry is helping men grow into mature disciples of Christ.
Jesus’ approach to discipleship was 3-fold: He called men into a
love relationship with himself, he called them into a bond of
brotherhood with other men, and he equipped them for their mission.
The objectives for your men’s ministry might be, 1) to help men
deepen their love relationship with Christ, 2) to help them build a
bond of brotherhood with a few men, and 3) to get Biblical teaching
to them that is specific to their needs and calling as men.
As your leadership
team gets together to pray and talk about what shape men’s ministry
should take in your church, discuss among yourselves what Scripture
teaches about spiritual growth, and what the implications of Jesus’
approach to discipling men should be for your men’s ministry.
Hammer out a written purpose statement along with some specific
objectives. It is worth the effort to define clearly what
your business is.
Once you have
defined your purpose and objectives, it is time to ask, How is
business? Be brutally honest about where the men of your
congregation are. Are they satisfying their souls, feasting on the
love of their God, worshipping and delighting in him? How many of
them have a relationship with a Christian brother in which they
discuss the real issues of their souls? Is the church getting
Biblical content to the men that is specific to their needs. In all
the surveys Christian men say that their number one struggle is lust
and sexual temptation. Their number 2 struggle is usually with
their anger. Are they being taught how to love their wives, how to
lead their homes, how to discipline their covenant children? This is
the kind of Biblical content they want and need.
Defining what you
believe God wants your purpose and objectives to be is a vital step
in establishing a sustainable men’s ministry. Only when you know
where you are going can you take the best path to get there. In
August, we will discuss how to choose the best strategy to help you
reach your objectives.
How I Would Start a Men’s Ministry In My
Church
By Pat Morley
There is no one
right way to build a men's ministry in your church. However, here's
how I personally would go about it.
A Leader
Let's assume "you're the man." You have a growing passion to reach
men in your church, especially those on the "fringe".-men barely
inside or just outside the front door. You long for the day when men
will grow strong in faith and take up spiritual leadership in their
families, church, and community. Well, if that's you, guess what?
You've just completed the first step! That is finding a man
passionate about reaching other men.
You may be a
layman, the senior pastor, or an associate pastor. this isn't rocket
science. You do need to be respected by other men in the church. But
you don't have to be experienced or a great orator to lead a men's
minsitry. If you have a consuming diseire to see men's live
change-that is enough. If your passion focuses on the "ends" of
changed lives, then God will help you put together the "means" to do
it.
The Senior Pastor's Support
Okay, what's step two? If you are the senior pastor, you get to skip
step two. If you're not, that's step two-getting your senior
pastor's enthusiastic support. A church will always go in the
direction of the pastor's heart. No middle position here. If he is
not actively "for it" then time, attention, thinking, planning,
money and people resources will flow to other ministries in the
church.
A Leadership Team
Campus Crusade for Christ founder, Bill Bright, has often said,
"Everything boils down to leadership." The height of your men's
ministry will be determined by the depth of your leadership.
Step three? You
will need a committed leadership team. (However, your leaders don't
have to start out committed-that can come later). Personally, I
would prayerfully write out a list of the ten or twelve most
spiritually respected men in my church. I wouldn't pay attention to
how busy they might already be, or whether or not I think they would
be interested. Focus on men who have a heart for God and for
reaching others. Let them make up their own minds under God's
leadership.
Then I would pray
for God to give me favor with those He would have involved. Next, I
would approach each of them and say, "God has put it on my mind to
explore the need and desirability of starting (or reorganizing) a
men's ministry in our church. I believe you are one of a handful of
men that the other men in our church would follow. I want to have a
meeting to discuss the possibilities. Would you be willing to pray
about coming to this one meeting and give your counsel?" (By the
way, be sure to get your senior pastor's approval. Better still, ask
him to come and share his vision for the men of the church).
Read the rest of this article
Around the PCA
Beryl Hubbard, the
Associate Director of the PCA Chaplains, was trained at the General
Assembly, along with 6 of our chaplains to become a presenter of the
Great Dads Seminar. “This is a great tool to equip dads,” said
Beryl, “and it is also a great outreach tool to the lost. I am
looking forward to seeing how God uses it in our chaplain ministries
around the nation and world."
Visit the Great Dads website.
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