The Fellowship of Men
Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?”
And I said, “Here am I. Send me! - Isaiah 6:8
Most men lead lives of quiet desperation and die with their song still inside them.
~ Henry David Thoreau ~
The isolation, loneliness, and disconnect of good men is the greatest crippling force of our time, unraveling the fabric of society and endangering the very foundation of civilization.
The greatest threat to the enemy - not only the one out there but also the one within - is small groups of men, connecting, serving together, and praying while doing. Men who inspire, challenge, and encourage one another, and seeking the Kingdom of God together.
Quiet Desperation
Less than one in ten men in your community are connected to trusted friends or fully crafted into the Body of Christ. These are the men at your workplace, the ones you pass at Harbor Freight, or the ones helping you load your truck at Home Depot. Despite their brave faces and friendly smiles, they live lives of deep isolation and loneliness - without real friends or meaningful family connections. If you look into their eyes, you'll see the raw pain of loneliness and the longing for acceptance, purpose, and brotherhood.
Struggling
Some are saved; others are lost - but all are struggling in quiet desperation. Many are on the verge of giving up, and a few are just one mistake, one more disappointment away from taking their own lives - literally. They are living sub-optimal lives, and the penalties of a fallen world are stacking up against them - quickly. They dwell at the crossroads of emptiness and longing - in the wilderness, on the edge of despair - with no one to hear their quiet prayers or their silent cries.
The Reformation of the Heart
John the Baptist and Jesus began their ministries with the same words; In the English Bible, it reads, "Repent, for the Kingdom of God is at hand." However, the original Greek reads, "Metanoia, for the Kingdom of God is at hand." Metanoia is the profound transformation of a man’s heart and mind, leading to genuine repentance, renewed purpose, and alignment with higher truth found in the Word of God. It is the inward reformation that ignites lasting change in both actions and character. Metanoia means to transform the way you think; To ignite the Kingdom of God within you.
The Fellowship of Men
The Fellowship of Men is a para-church men’s ministry - a local, in-person, come-as-you-are assembly that meets on Sunday evenings, alongside numerous smaller activity groups that gather weekly, monthly, and seasonally.
The mission is to reconnect men - young and old, brothers in Christ, and the men of the highways, byways, and hedges - with one another and with the Body of Christ. It is to truly serve, restore, inspire, challenge, and encourage individual men and local churches to become all they are called to be in Christ. It seeks to transform the hearts of men, return them to the Word of God, and see them - and their restored families - fill the churches of our towns and cities with renewed vigor, unity, and purpose.
Sunday Evening Meetings
The Sunday evening meeting is a time for the larger group of men to connect with one another and to humble themselves before God. It is a weekly reunion of the body of Christ - to learn from one another, to give testimony, to pray for each other, to worship together, to partake in communion, to baptize new believers, and to break bread as a brotherhood - chili or soup, and bread. It is also an opportunity to connect the men to the leaders and members of the smaller activity groups.
Activity Groups
Small and larger activity groups are the heartbeat of the Fellowship. If the larger fellowship meeting is the flywheel that keeps the momentum going, the activity groups are the pistons that turn the engine and drive the body forward. It is a place where every man has a name, every man counts, every man has a voice, and every man can make a real difference. The activity groups are led by dedicated men with technical skills and expertise, a heartfelt passion for the activity at hand, a love for their brothers, and a deep commitment to helping men become all they can be in Christ.
Activities
The activities are as wide as the Lord’s grace and stretch from Bible study to fishing, hunting, book clubs, chess, recovery, counseling, life skills, movie nights, golf, breakfasts, steak nights, hiking trips, mission trips, evangelical outreach, first responders, search and rescue, cycling, camping, grappling, skeet shooting, men’s choir, leadership training, park runs, and many, many more. Every group is independent, chooses its own structure and rhythm, and is funded by the men involved. The only difference between Fellowship groups and secular groups is that they are infused with the Spirit of God and carry a true brotherly love, where the men genuinely care about one another. In every group, and at every meeting, there is someone — sometimes rotating, sometimes more permanent — with "chaplain’s duties" who starts and/or ends the activity with a brief time of reflection and prayer.
Building a Cathedral
Building a fellowship of men is a slow, hard, and intentional process – connecting men, one at a time, to one another and to the body of Christ. Like building a cathedral – one brick, one man at a time – each bonded and supported by six others. Each man is challenged to walk in humility, faith, strength, courage, and love: to love his brother as himself, to love God above all, and to hold on to His Word, His promises, and His grace.
It is an endeavor to change and restore the fabric of society – to ignite the Spirit of God in each other, to once again become the light and salt of the earth. It is to become a brotherhood of servants, saints, princes, and kings – declaring the Kingdom of God in our homes, schools, churches, and cities. It is to tell a new story, to sing a new song – one that tells of the coming Kingdom of God, of hope, of redemption, and of Jesus, who is the Christ.
An Open Invitation
The Fellowship meetings and activity groups are places where you can invite anyone - from the contractor you chat with at Harbor Freight to the CEO you meet at the Chamber of Commerce. It is a place where a man can invite his barber, his doctor, his priest, his grocer, the weird guy at the cigar shop, the quiet student in the back of his classroom, his brother-in-law, and his nephew with the awkward sidekick. The invitation is very simple and sincere: 'Come around Sunday evening. There are a few guys I’d like you to meet who are also into this or that… If you can’t make it this week, come next week.'
Jesus is the Christ
The Fellowship subscribes to a simple set of principles. The central and most important principle follows the thinking of the Moravian Church: "In essentials, unity; in non-essentials, liberty; in all things, love." In this case, the essential is: “Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God” (Matthew 16:16). This is the one prayer, one promise, and one truth that connects and unites the Fellowship of Men.
Volunteer Grassroots Movement
The Fellowship is a volunteer, grassroots Christian movement led by tentmakers, chaplains, laymen, veterans, first responders, pensioners, ex-cons, recovering alcoholics, truckers, and Uber drivers. It is a ragtag army of rough and dangerous men determined to spark a pan-revival and change the world. The Fellowship is a church that owns no buildings, has no permanent staff, nor does it have a music, children’s, or pottery ministry...
A Strange Mixture
The Fellowship is a strange mixture of the First Church of Acts, the Moravian Church, Habitat for Humanity, Team Rubicon, Doctors Without Borders, the Red Cross, Toastmasters, the Knights of St. John, the Peace Corps, Alcoholics Anonymous, the Gesundheit Institute, Executive Outcomes, Free Burma Rangers, the (original) Boy Scouts, and your local Ham Radio Club.
An Adventure
The Fellowship has the thrill of The Expendables (Stallone & Co.) — a call for adventure, action, brotherhood, redemption, and legacy. It has the familiarity of Cheers: "A place where everyone knows your name" — along with your strengths and weaknesses. Yet, it carries the urgency of the men in Black Hawk Down, the mission focus of Saving Private Ryan, and the determination of Hacksaw Ridge — all to ensure that, in the end, no man is left behind.
Men of Faith and Purpose
The Fellowship is for men of faith and men of purpose. For men who are unapologetically masculine - men who have chosen to live life to its fullest, whatever the cost may be. It is for men who want to live with integrity, purpose, and meaningful interactions. It is for the faithful and the not-so-faithful, for the strong and the meek, for those who are full of spirit and those who are poor in spirit. It is for men who fly high and those trying to mend their broken wings. It is for the young and the old, the warriors and the peacemakers, the huntsmen and the shepherds, the hardworking men and the romantic drifters. It is for all men who still have a breath to breathe and a stretch of life to live.
Discipling Men
Men were created first and are the first among equals - called by God to a higher standard, entrusted with the ultimate responsibility, and set apart to take the lead. Discipling men is different from discipling women. The first part of it is very similar to a father teaching his sons to become men. It starts with the basics: make up your bed and clean your room, pull up your pants, stand up straight, be on time, stand your ground, become good at something, and look people in the eyes when you greet them. It is about teaching young men and young Christians true humility, faith, strength, courage, and love – laying down your life for those around you. Trying to sharpen soft iron is a futile effort. ‘Iron sharpening iron’ is a hard and refining process; it means to forge, to cut, to shape, to temper the edges, and to sharpen steel into a useful tool. Discipling men is the development of the full spectrum of manhood: spiritual, physical, mental, and emotional growth and maturity.
Every Man is a Missionary
Every Man is a Mission Field
Discipleship is not a one-way street with qualified teachers and perpetual students. It is more like the philosophy of Dr. Patch (Hunter) Adams: 'Everyone who comes to the ranch is a patient, and everyone who comes to the ranch is also a doctor.' This means that every man is a missionary, and every man is a mission field - every man has something to gain and something to contribute.
Fishers of Men
Jesus called us to be fishers of men (Matthew 4:19) and said, ‘I tell you, lift up your eyes and see that the fields are white for harvest’ (John 4:35). He also said, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore, pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest’ (Luke 10:2).
The Harvest
The Fellowship are the men, the humble fishermen - rough and tough - and their metaphorical fleet of ships, big and small, that will go out, lower their dragnets, and bring in a great multitude of fish. It is the country folk, the farmers, and the boers who will build a fleet of combine-harvesters to reap, harvest, and bring in the full harvest from the fields where others have labored for centuries.
The Ends of the Earth with the Gospel of Christ.
These are the men, the groups, the teams, the entrepreneurs, and the pioneers who will mobilize their assets, leverage their resources, build the scaffolding and the bridges, and set up communication structures to finish the work of the Great Commission. They are the men who will take full advantage of a connected world and rapidly advancing intelligence. They will go where few have gone before - bridging the final gap, crossing the last cultural barriers, and reaching the last of the unreached people groups. In the end, it will be a symphony of humility, prayer and action, an arc of divine grace, and a constellation of networks that will reach the ends of the earth with the Kingdom of God and the Gospel of Christ.
Dominion
And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed. Daniel 7:14
Throughout the Whole World
And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come. Matthew 24:14
The Great Banquet
The Fellowship of Men is the wine press, filling the new wineskins with the new wine - the ordinary men, men from the shadows, the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame; the outcasts and the outsiders; the men of the highways, the byways, and the hedges - coming and bringing with them their restored families to fill the halls of the Great Banquet of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God.