JBMW: Are today's men's ministries accurately diagnosing the problems/failures of manhood in the evangelical church? Are they providing biblically informed solutions?
Paige Patterson: Within the past several years, there has been some improvement. However, the general failure to reach and equip men is obvious when one notes the preponderance of female church attendees on any given Sunday in almost any community and the overwhelming majority of females in attendance among some ethnic groups. While there were many things I liked about the book ,em>Wild at Heart, I found that its proposals written by someone who is hardly involved in church at all and whose proposals were often of questionable holiness constituted an effort to heal the problem by creating a new one. At least some of our churches must revitalize ministries specifically to men. Church services themselves will have to be more thoughtful, challenging, and adventuresome and less of a ministry to service feelings than presently is the case. Furthermore, pastors will have to spend more time directly addressing the responsibilities of men in leadership and challenging their men to take those responsibilities. One of the most helpful areas for soliciting the participation of men is in mission efforts, especially those that involve some level of physical challenge. Men will respond to calls for holiness of life and evangelistic and missionary involvement, but what exactly they are being asked to do must be clear.
Randy Stinson: Over the last decade men's ministry has received much attention. The ministry of Promise Keepers went a long way in encouraging men to be leaders in the home and to establish some sort of ministry of accountability in their local churches. It also offered encouragement to men by the sheer numbers that it attracted to worship and to be exhorted by God's Word together. In the wake of this waning movement, there are probably more men's ministry programs and more activities geared toward men in the local church than ever before. Things like men's conferences, wild game banquets, and weekend golf getaways, have aided in providing various training and evangelistic opportunities.
However, it seems to me that, in addition to these rallying points, men's ministry needs to experience a maturation process that takes the church from exclusively having a ministry to men, to developing a ministry by men. Discipleship programs are, of course, important. Men need to be challenged from the Scriptures to be better husbands, better fathers, and better churchman. But men clearly need to have places of leadership where they can serve the body of Christ as they develop the biblical inclinations of leadership, provision, and protection.
With the large number of single moms, widows, fatherless boys, and elderly people that fill our churches, there is no end to the service-oriented, hands-on work that men can and should do. Let's bring back the biblical language of dominion from Genesis 1-2 and teach men how to exercise it. As part of the created order, although marred by sin, men still inherently want to be challenged. Men want to be a part of something that is bigger than themselves. Men like to see results from their work and want to be involved in meaningful activity.
In addition to these things, churches should make sure that they are not inadvertently creating a climate in their church that would be repulsive to men. In a culture that is increasingly feminized, the church has had a tendency to follow suit. Sometimes our music introduces romantic overtones ("I want to fall in love with you, Jesus; Hold me close and never let me go," etc.) that not only make men uncomfortable, but follow unbiblical themes and language. Sometimes our language ("care groups," "share groups") does not resonate with otherwise normal masculine speech.
Pastors would do well to make sure that the leadership of the church lives out a compelling, robust, challenging, and gutsy vision of manhood. Take mission trips to dangerous places. Encourage men to do things no one else will do. Give them responsibilities that require hard work and sacrifice. Hold them accountable for leading their families. Then, I believe that men's ministry would move in the direction of maturity, action, and service that would most honor God's call and requirements of men who name the name of Christ.
