Men's Ministry at Autumn Ridge Church

It's Time for a Change!

- As many as 90 percent of the boys who arebeing raised in church will abandon it bytheir 20th birthday. Many of these boys willnever return.

- More than 90 percent of American menbelieve in God, and five out of six call themselves Christians. But only two out of six attend church on a given Sunday.

- The average man accepts the reality of JesusChrist, but fails to see any value in going tochurch.

- A significant number of churchgoing menattend out of habit, unaffected by what theyhear.

- Quite a few men go to church simply tokeep their wives/mothers/girlfriends happy.

- The majority of men who attend church donothing during the week to grow their faith.

The Benefit's of Small Groups for Men

1. They Are a Place to Be Encouraged
“And let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another, and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” – Hebrews 10:24-25
Men today need encouragement. They need a place of refuge and safety where they can be themselves. They need to be encouraged when they say ‘no’ to sin or when they take a step of faith. They need to know that they don’t have to walk through the valley of shadow of death alone.

2. They Are a Place to Be Held Accountable
“As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.” – Proverbs 27:17
Men are like icebergs. We only see one tenth of our lives! Below the surface is where much of life takes place, and there are lots of jagged edges that need to be smoothed out. Emphasis is on individualism today. Men need someone in their lives asking them the tough questions – they need accountability. Those rough edges can be smoothed out in the environment of a small group. That is where Christ can work on our character flaws.

3. They Are a Place to Grow in Christ-likeness
“We proclaim him, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone perfect in Christ.” – Colossians 1:28
The bottom line is that we want to become more and more like Christ. In small groups, we can study His Word and pray for one another. We can look at how the Word applies to work, family, recreation, and community life. We can study the Master’s life and learn from Jesus.

4. They Are a Place to Function
“A new command I give you; Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” – John 13:34-35
With over 120 ‘one another’ injunctions in the Bible, where do you start? Accept; forgive; pray for; bear burdens; build up; confess sins, etc. These can only take place in the context of a small group. Our faith can be lived out in a small group setting as we love and encourage one another.