Last week I sent out a one question survey asking how long churches have had their men’s team ministry to their widowed and single parents. Twenty-two churches responded and I must say, I’m pleased. Here are the results:
- 1-2 years: 19%
- 3-4 years: 0%
- 5-6 years: 23.8%
- 7-8 years: 9.5%
- 9-10 years: 19%
- 11-12 years: 4.8%
- 13 or more years: 23.8%
We see from this survey that almost a quarter of the respondents (five churches) have had a men’s team ministry for thirteen or more years and over 50% of the respondents (thirteen churches) have had a men’s team ministry for seven or more years. What this small sampling demonstrates is that the practice of churches providing practical, consistent and effective care to their widowed and single parents by using teams of men can work for years and, potentially, decades.?
This type of ministry has never before been demonstrated in our culture. So I believe we are on one of the cutting edges of men’s ministry. What it proves is that the love of Christ – identifying with someone with a long term need, committing to them, and sacrificing for them – is efficacious. And when men are taught what the love of Christ is and then are given a practical way to show it to the people in their churches who desperately need it, they do it.
One concern I have about this survey is the small percentage of recent churches with men’s team ministries. This reflects my change to online ministry and the huge amount of time and effort it has taken to get it up and running. My online promotional campaign began two months ago, so this is a critical time for the ministry.?
If online ministry is effective, it means men’s team ministries can easily start in thousands of churches around the world. If it doesn’t work, then it’s back to men’s conference workshops for me.
Keep praying.
This post first appeared in NewCommandment.org.
If you haven’t responded to the questionnaire, you can still do so here.
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Learn how to form teams of men for every widow, single mom
and fatherless child in your church at NewCommandment.org.
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