This coming Friday we are launching the start of a new venture in our Men's Ministry At Christian Challenge. The "Tribe" is based off the principles describe and laid out in Nate Larkin's book, "Samson and the Pirate Monks."
The Tribe is basically going to be a large group accountability/support group for men being men. Everyone has issues that they deal with and these issues have the potential, when left unchecked, to lead to destructive behaviors and lifestyles. If we're going to be really serious about growing in obedience to Jesus and coming to progressively know Him more intimately(Phil 3:10 AMP) then we need to be realistic and upfront with the sin in our lives. The truth is that guys struggle with masturbation and watching porn. They struggle with alcoholism, homosexual lifestyle, gambling, sexual addiction and more. The list of destructive lifestyle decisions goes on and on. But rather than choosing to continue to be in denial about our failures and keeping the things we struggle with in the dark, we can choose to bring our weaknesses to light where they are exposed to the Truth of the gospel within the context of loving Christian Community.
The past semester I've been prayerfully examining and considering the students I work with at Challenge, learning their stories, discovering the areas that they've struggled with in the past and more importantly the areas of sin in their life they've had victory as the result of their relationship with Jesus Christ. This past semester I've been trying to identify key student leaders who would be honest and upfront with their weaknesses and able to lead other people through the process of breaking free from bondage to specific habitual sin. I've been trying to train and equip these students the best I know how in doing discipleship and mentoring by taking them through the mentoring/discipling process myself.
This Friday, is now the start of unleashing these students to do what God has commanded them to do, which is to enter into relationships with people teaching them to grow in obedience to Jesus. Needless to say...this is really exciting but also very scary for me. This is the very first one that we are having and I wanted to have as many student leaders as possible share with the broadest scope of struggles as possible so that no matter who comes to the "Tribe" will be able to identify with a student leader and enter into a discipleship group.
Already before the event has happened we've already run into some road blocks. Some of the student leaders I work with won't be able to make it to the set time of the meeting, so that makes it hard for them to engage in relationships with the visitors and young men we have. Personally, I am hesitant to be in a position of influence with this venture because I recently made a mistake that I feel impairs my integrity and ability to be a credible person to these young men. I've been trying to work through the issue all this week and have been reminded consistently and frequently about God's redemptive purpose, especially shown and culminating in Jesus atoning sacrifice on the cross for the sins of His people.
So concrete prayer requests...
1. That people will come
2. All of our men student leaders will be able to attend
3. The younger students and visitors will identify with our discipleship leaders
4. The younger students and visitors will desire and commit to be in a discipleship group
The Tribe is basically going to be a large group accountability/support group for men being men. Everyone has issues that they deal with and these issues have the potential, when left unchecked, to lead to destructive behaviors and lifestyles. If we're going to be really serious about growing in obedience to Jesus and coming to progressively know Him more intimately(Phil 3:10 AMP) then we need to be realistic and upfront with the sin in our lives. The truth is that guys struggle with masturbation and watching porn. They struggle with alcoholism, homosexual lifestyle, gambling, sexual addiction and more. The list of destructive lifestyle decisions goes on and on. But rather than choosing to continue to be in denial about our failures and keeping the things we struggle with in the dark, we can choose to bring our weaknesses to light where they are exposed to the Truth of the gospel within the context of loving Christian Community.
The past semester I've been prayerfully examining and considering the students I work with at Challenge, learning their stories, discovering the areas that they've struggled with in the past and more importantly the areas of sin in their life they've had victory as the result of their relationship with Jesus Christ. This past semester I've been trying to identify key student leaders who would be honest and upfront with their weaknesses and able to lead other people through the process of breaking free from bondage to specific habitual sin. I've been trying to train and equip these students the best I know how in doing discipleship and mentoring by taking them through the mentoring/discipling process myself.
This Friday, is now the start of unleashing these students to do what God has commanded them to do, which is to enter into relationships with people teaching them to grow in obedience to Jesus. Needless to say...this is really exciting but also very scary for me. This is the very first one that we are having and I wanted to have as many student leaders as possible share with the broadest scope of struggles as possible so that no matter who comes to the "Tribe" will be able to identify with a student leader and enter into a discipleship group.
Already before the event has happened we've already run into some road blocks. Some of the student leaders I work with won't be able to make it to the set time of the meeting, so that makes it hard for them to engage in relationships with the visitors and young men we have. Personally, I am hesitant to be in a position of influence with this venture because I recently made a mistake that I feel impairs my integrity and ability to be a credible person to these young men. I've been trying to work through the issue all this week and have been reminded consistently and frequently about God's redemptive purpose, especially shown and culminating in Jesus atoning sacrifice on the cross for the sins of His people.
So concrete prayer requests...
1. That people will come
2. All of our men student leaders will be able to attend
3. The younger students and visitors will identify with our discipleship leaders
4. The younger students and visitors will desire and commit to be in a discipleship group
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