A lot of men are facing hard times today—the economy, marriage struggles, children kidnapped by a self-absorbed culture.
What is the battle you must fight today? Where will you find your strength? Will you depend on superior force or strategy? Will you depend on God? Or will you be divided and pray to God while you rely on your own best thinking?
A civil war broke out between Abijah of Judah and Jeroboam of Israel. Abijah mustered 400,000 troops, but Jeroboam fielded 800,000 warriors. Jeroboam secretly sent part of his army behind Judah to ambush them. A fierce battle was fought that day.
In the end, Abijah’s smaller force decimated Jeroboam’s larger army. In fact, 500,000 men of Israel were killed that day.
The difference? Jeroboam depended on superior troop strength and strategy. He assumed he would overwhelm Abijah by force. But Abijah and his troops put their trust in God: “So you see, God is with us” (2 Chronicles 13:12). And the result?
- “God defeated Jeroboam….” (13:15).
- “…and God handed them over….” (13:16).
- “So Judah defeated Israel…because they trusted in the LORD….” (13:18).
The Big Idea: To have the Lord on your side is better than having the right strategy.
Teach your men to prepare wisely for the battles they must fight today, but to never put their trust is their capabilities—whether strength or strategy. Instead, teach your men that having the Lord on their side is better than having the right strategy. God will fight for them, if they let Him.
Yours for changed lives,
Patrick Morley, Ph.D.
Man in the Mirror
|
Posted by
dwarrington |
Categories:
LifeBuilders |
When you were young and bought an old car, the first few times you turned the ignition key you probably weren’t sure it would start. You didn’t have much experience with it, so your faith was small.
Then, after a couple of weeks, you were pretty sure it would start because it hadn’t failed you yet. You had good reasons to have faith your car would start.
But after you owned the car for several years and it had never failed to start, you didn’t need faith to believe it would turn over. You knew it would start from all those previous times your car had never failed you.
Prayer is like that. At first we pray but we doubt. Then after several experiences with prayer and seeing God work, our faith grows. Finally, after many years of watching God faithfully answer prayer, your faith becomes knowing. Sure, you still have faith, but through experience you know that God rewards faith and answers prayer.
Isn’t this what we all want? To experience the reality that God’s word is, after all, true?
Yours for changed lives,
Patrick Morley, Ph.D.
Man in the Mirror
|
Posted by
dwarrington |
Categories:
General News |
When you have a men’s event, do you have trouble keeping men involved? If so, you’re not alone. Many churches struggle with a roller coaster men’s ministry. They have events that attract new men. But four months later, the leadership team is wondering, "Where did they all go?"
It doesn’t have to be that way. If you’re tired of a "roller coaster" ministry to men, the concept of "capturing momentum" is helping churches across America and the world keep men engaged.
It takes a lot of energy to plan and execute a successful men’s event, like a retreat, outreach luncheon, or father-son (or daughter) breakfast. But do you have a "believable" plan to integrate men into new or existing ministries of your church after the event? If you plan out in advance how to "capture momentum," you can involve up to 70% of your men in a meaningful "next step."
Be careful, though, not to fall into one of the two common traps: attempting too little, or attempting too much. If you just dismiss men at the end of your event, you’ve just wasted most of the energy you expended. It’s like warming your home to a comfortable 72 degrees on a cold winter day, but leaving all the windows open.
On the other hand, to attempt too much means that men won’t be able to visualize themselves succeeding at what you ask. For example, "Men, we’d like you each to sign up for the two week mission to Haiti we’ve been planning."
Instead, give your men a "believable next right step." Follow up discussion groups to unpack what a speaker said are great. Keep the commitment short (four to six weeks). A man should be able to think, "Yeah, I can do that." Don’t expect everyone to join in—the principle of the parable of the sower is always at work. Form men into groups right at the event. No good salesman would get his customer all inspired and then say, "Okay, I’ll get back to you within two weeks." Close the deal on the spot.
To capture momentum is a key insight to keep your ministry to men out of the roller coaster rut.
Yours for changed lives,
Patrick Morley, Ph.D.
Man in the Mirror
|
Posted by
dwarrington |
Categories:
LifeBuilders |
I was just telling a dear friend that I was feeling kind of puny because of so many unmet needs.
Many years ago I read in 1 Timothy 5:5, "The widow who is really in need and left all alone puts her hope in God and continues night and day to pray and to ask God for help."
I remember thinking, Wow! That’s what I want in my life—"to put my hope in God alone and continually pray to Him for help."
So I did it….I prayed the prayer for an unmet need—I asked God to always keep some unmet need in my life so that I would remain utterly dependent upon Him.
As the old saying goes, "Be careful what you pray for." For the 20 or so years since I prayed the prayer, God has been faithful….He has always kept some major unmet need in my life.
Sometimes, to be honest, it really hurts. Sometimes I think, Man, I wish wouldn’t have prayed that prayer!
But the big picture is now clear: God has graciously kept me from getting what I wanted. In my honest moments, I realize that if I had gotten what I wanted, it would have destroyed me.
It’s not for everyone, but you or some of your men may be candidates to pray "the prayer for an unmet need."
Yours for changed lives,
Patrick Morley, Ph.D.
Man in the Mirror
|
Posted by
dwarrington |
Categories:
LifeBuilders |
Church of God
Division of Church Ministries
Man in the Mirror Ministries