DISPATCH FROM BELIZE

The Belize outreach was a major success! We made strong inroads into the culture of this desperately hurting nation in Central America. Meetings with key business leaders, national political leaders and church leaders all gave us great hope that this beautiful nation can be revived! Thank you to all who gave financially to make this happen – it was a powerful time, and great results were seen.

Belize needs a men’s movement - over 80% of all children are born outside marriage, the average income level is one of the lowest in the Western Hemisphere (over 30% live in total poverty), the per-capita murder rate is 700% higher than the U.S. and drug usage is epidemic. This is a nation that has spiritually resisted most efforts to reform, restore and revive. It needs the RESURRECTION power of Christ to change the hearts of the men!

Rob Carman, international Christian leader, gave a passionate introduction to our mission at the Kiwanis meeting in Belize City, then followed that with dynamic messages all week. Ed Preston from Oregon, a ‘Gideon’s 300’ partner, was strongly received in the business event we conducted, titled “Creating a Motivated Team”. Omar Reyes, a Pastor from Forth Worth, introduced us to key business and church leaders from across the nation. We conducted meetings across the nation, and will hit the other key cities next time we’re there this year.

We had great discussions and a time of fellowship with the mayor of the national capital city Belmopan, met with business leaders in key cities and hosted an evening with key pastors from across the nation.

Our host, key connect is dynamic missions leader Scott Stirm. He’s been in Belize for over 20 years… a passionately dedicated man. His coordination and insights, key contacts and generous spirit made this a highly successful outreach. And, we will be returning to Belize regularly over the next three years.

Please pray for Belize, and go with us in 2012 for one of the three outreaches we will conduct. For friends in North America, it is a short journey – and one that you can do with some other men, young leaders and teens.



Belize can be a model for taking cultures from dysfunctional to healthy, from ashes to beauty. Pray with us for great wisdom, favor and protection… the enemy will not give up without a great fight.

Thank you for praying for this outreach, thank you for giving financially to the Lord, the men and families of Belize will forever be profoundly grateful to you.

Keep the fire hot!
Your friend, brother and ally,
Grace/Peace
Paul

5 Ways to Kill Your Men's Ministry!

Here are five ways to guarantee your ministry to men will die this year.

Of course, you will want to make sure you don’t do them! Let me know what you would add to this list. We’ll make it part of a teaching section on the CMN website.

1. Make sure the senior pastor is not involved
The pulpit is the propulsion center of the church. What is celebrated from the pulpit will be part of the life of the church. What is neglected will have no energy, and many will see it as secondary in importance. The DNA of the pastor fills the life of the church, and the pastor’s commitment gives life to the ministry to men. We are taking men to a particular place—to a passionate, committed lifestyle of following Christ. This singular purpose is to be at the heart of every pastor, biblically. Discipling men was at the core of the life of Jesus, and it must be our center priority.

2. Make fellowship a priority
Fellowship is always the by-product of purpose, never the goal. The focus must be maintained. It’s about building men strong spiritually. Keep the main thing the main thing. Have fun, hang out, do fun events, but — make the process the center of your purpose…everything continually points in to that, building strong men. We do events to bring profile and energy to the men’s movement, but that’s not the focus of a ministry to men, it’s the highly visible place that introduces men to your ministry to men.

3. Try not to offend anyone
If you back off the passion of reaching and building strong men, you will not get anything done. Iron does sharpen iron. Sermons don’t set men free, truth does.

Confront men with the life of Christ! What is it to be a real man, to be like Jesus. Don’t back off calling men to a higher level of living. Don’t lower the ministry to the level of your men’s lives. Bring them up to the life of an overcomer. That challenge may make men uncomfortable, but it’s what they need to break out of a ‘normal’ life.

The pain of staying the same must become greater than the pain of changing to move men to decisions that will bring transformation.

4. Guys are busy, don’t ask too much from them
The best guys are always busy…that’s why they get stuff done. Men who are not busy are not men of vision and capacity. For some of your men, you will have to help them adjust their priorities, if they’ve made the smaller things larger in their lives. Jesus called men who were working. They were busy people. He never called a man who was just hanging out.

5. Just let things happen
The ministry to men takes hard work. Nothing just happens... if you wait to see what will happen, that's what will happen, nothing. Here’s a great timeline of how to create and sustain momentum: prayer, planning, preparation, perseverance and perspiration…then, you’ve got to repeat it again, and then, repeat again.

“The very greatest things — great thoughts, discoveries, inventions — have usually been nurtured in hardship, often pondered over in sorrow, and at length established with difficulty.” -Samuel Smiles, Scottish Author

Put a system for discipling men into place, equip your leaders, empower them, THEN — watch, measure, adjust, push, lead and encourage.

YOU CAN DO THIS!

And, it’s what we are about as followers of Christ.

Build men, Build churches, Transform nations!
Make it a great month!

grace/peace
Paul

2011 Strong start... January amazing.

I'll post more in the next few days - but, the past 30 days has been amazing... events in South Carolina, Houston, Orlando - meetings on top of meetings - great stuff going on around the world! Strong reports from Europe, Argentina, Phoenix and Tulsa!
Events coming up soon in Jackson, Mississippi - Shawnee, Oklahoma - Christiana, Pennsylvania - Belize - and more...

Website for CMN has changed to www.christianmensnetwork.com - the www.cmnworld.com site will redirect - but, right now, they're working on that...

Found a great quote this morning...
“The very greatest things – great thoughts, discoveries, inventions – have usually been nurtured in hardship, often pondered over in sorrow, and at length established with difficulty.” -Samuel Smiles, Scottish Author (1812-1904)

So true.

Have a strong week!

Paul

THREE KEYS TO MOMENTUM!

CONSISTENT. CONSTANT. CLEAR.

These three elements will help you build a powerful men’s movement in your church. To have a fixed focus, to stay engaged and to have a clear goal.
Men follow leaders who have a sense of where they are going. Focus gives us the space to put our full energy into something. If there is no clear focus, men tend to hold back. In the book “Daring” we talk about it in depth.
To stay engaged is the role of a strong leader…don’t give up, back off or waver in your commitment. Regardless of your own feelings, Proverbs 16 says it is the role of a man to commit his heart to a task, and then the answer comes from God. We commit, he fulfills. Success is the result of constancy of purpose.
Clarity is not a common thing in our world. There are a hundred opinions on every issue, and the obfuscation, manipulation of facts is a trademark of many national discussions. Clarity comes from the Word of God. The Bible provides a clear path for life… your men’s movement must be Bible centered, not fellowship centered. Fellowship is always the byproduct of purpose.

Minister to men where they are at… then take them where they need to go. Work with the men who are in front of you. Don’t look over their heads, looking for the ones you hope will be there. God has always used the man who was overlooked by the world, to do some of the greatest works for the kingdom.

Give your men clear goals that can be reached. Engage them for a 6 week course, or a 3 month study… it has an ending. Then have them do it again. It takes time to make a rugged disciple.
Your ultimate goal should be to get men studying God’s Word with other men. Small groups are the place where men can find the security to share what they are really dealing with.

Whatever you do… just start. It won’t happen until you do that.

Christian Men’s Network is here to help.

Grace/Peace
Paul

DISAPPOINTMENT.

Disappointment in life is not based on where we are, or what we find… it’s based on where we expected to be, or expected to find. The size of the gap between expectation and reality is the degree of disappointment we carry in our hearts. Jesus came to cover the gap! He fills, heals and closes the gap. Fill your life with His life, and yesterday’s disappointment will become the fuel for your tomorrow.

Do not carry last year’s disappointment into this year. Forgive, release, look forward. Looking to the past, carrying your failures, thinking often about disappointments and hurts will narrow your vision, sap your energy and fog your focus.

God is all about new beginnings… the God who lives outside of time, created time so you would have a new year, a new month, a new week… a new day!

Take a moment, meditate on the Word of God;

Revelation 21: 3 I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, “Look, God’s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them. 4 He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.” 5 And the one sitting on the throne said, “Look, I am making everything new!”

Lamentations 3:22 Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed,
for his compassions never fail.
23 They are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.

Romans 5:3 We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. 4 And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. 5 And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.

NOW, get up, get going. Make the phone calls, write the emails, run your business, love your kids, have food with friends… face your future free of the weight of the past, and live today fully alive!

YOUR BEST YEAR!

pc

(photo from Ps. Phil Pringle's early morning prayer)

GUTS - MEN.

Bill Scheer and GUTS church in Tulsa just held their first Maximized Manhood meeting this morning... Pastor Bill wanted to start with his key leaders - then spread the men's movement throughout his church - then, to the region!
Started with 150 strong men! This is going to be epic in Tulsa!

Hearing reports from around the world of same thing happening this week and next...new groups starting - big fresh wind in the sails of the men's movement globally!

Old proverb - "When is the best time to plant a tree? 20 years ago. Second best time? Today." So - maybe you wanted to start something last year, or the year before... don't get down - get started now! It's not difficult... Jason Debus from Phoenix said it best, "Two guys, Two books, Two study manuals - you've got a ministry to men!"

Proud of Bill.
Awesome.
Let's crank it!
paul

Live 2011 under Wide Open Skies!

Love this from 1 Thessalonians Chapter 5 in the Message translation...

4-8But friends, you're not in the dark... You're sons of Light, daughters of Day. We live under wide open skies and know where we stand. So let's not sleepwalk through life like those others. Let's keep our eyes open and be smart. People sleep at night and get drunk at night. But not us! Since we're creatures of Day, let's act like it. Walk out into the daylight sober, dressed up in faith, love, and the hope of salvation.

9-11God didn't set us up for an angry rejection but for salvation by our Master, Jesus Christ. He died for us, a death that triggered life. Whether we're awake with the living or asleep with the dead, we're alive with him! So speak encouraging words to one another. Build up hope so you'll all be together in this, no one left out, no one left behind. I know you're already doing this; just keep on doing it.

His life is in you - let's take on hell with a furious love of freedom - for everyone.

ALIVE!
pc