{"id":3263,"date":"2012-11-08T08:30:47","date_gmt":"2012-11-08T08:30:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/?p=3263"},"modified":"2015-02-16T10:57:30","modified_gmt":"2015-02-16T10:57:30","slug":"man-sunday","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cvm.org.uk\/blog\/50plus\/man-sunday\/","title":{"rendered":"Man Sunday"},"content":{"rendered":"

Level Four evangelism \u2013 \u201cman-friendly church\u201d was once a far-off, lofty place we only aspired to one day reach. In the meantime, there was a whole stack of work to be shifted in getting Levels One and Two off the ground. (To the uninitiated, in CVM\u2019s Four-Level Evangelism Strategy<\/a>, these are \u2018content\u2019-free socials, and food plus speaker events, respectively). At Dawlish Christian Fellowship, in South Devon, we grew tired of waiting for Level One to ever give us a leg-up to Level Four, so we decided to turn the whole thing on its head and start working on Level Four right now. Not that we\u2019ve stopped meeting new guys out in the community, but if we don\u2019t sort this, our men\u2019s ministry will only ever be a waiting room for men who are all dressed up with nowhere to go, at least not on a Sunday morning. Nothing frustrates men leading men in church like \u2018invitophobia<\/em>\u2019 \u2013 the inherent fear of bringing unchurched men into church because we are either, a) not sure what it will be like on that particular Sunday, or worse, b) knowing all too well what it will be like.<\/p>\n

So, what does Level Four look like for us? Well, firstly, I\u2019m going to openly admit that we\u2019re not there yet. Our d\u00e9cor, our worship, and our coffee might fail to inspire Dave Murrow<\/a> – we\u2019re \u2018on a journey\u2019 as the post-modern clich\u00e9 goes. More significant than where we currently are, is where we are currently heading, and our compass is set to \u201cman-friendly\u201d. Here are four values that I believe are essential, in addition to the blatantly obvious fact of being a Bible-based, Gospel-driven, Spirit-led church, if we are to retain the men we reach. In no particular order, as they say\u2026<\/p>\n

1. Spontaneous humour.<\/strong>
\nMen have a caricature of Christianity in their heads that is dull and party-pooping, as if you get handed a long list of \u2018can\u2019t do\u2019s\u2019 on the way in through the door. Genuine humour has real power to very quickly dismantle this preconception. We find that spontaneous \u2018off-the-cuff\u2019 material goes down even better than telling well-rehearsed jokes, good as that can be. Spontaneity seems real, because it is, and it makes the church look like a place where anything could happen in the next half hour. To pull this off needs quick-witted, vulnerable service leaders who are ready to seize the moment. It doesn\u2019t always come off, but it\u2019s so worth the risk. One young woman in our congregation recently quipped \u2018I love it when church goes wrong\u2019, and she meant it as a real positive, which shows we\u2019re helping the women, too. Humour turns an awkward silence into an opportunity for an authentic connection.<\/p>\n

2. Top quality.<\/strong>
\nNo-one wants a fake, plastic church; everyone\u2019s these days in sick-to-death of being sold something. And yet, I\u2019d equally hate to put pressure on any church leader to have to do every little thing to the \u2018nth\u2019 degree just to keep the men happy – the last thing we\u2019re to be is people pleasers. But we won\u2019t reach men with a rubbish sound system and weak tea. Men just vote with their feet if it\u2019s rubbish. Let\u2019s get the basics solid and reliable so we can make space for a spontaneous and genuine church experience that men will love. They might not be impressed by the things they take for granted, but neither will they complain and leave. Make it good. Not perfect, but good, and a maybe a little rough at the edges to breed confidence that it is real.<\/p>\n

3. Brutal honesty.<\/strong>
\nIn preaching, don\u2019t hold back; give the message like it is. Men love and appreciate honesty as we\u2019re mostly very poor at second-guessing and working out hidden meanings. \u2018Since we have such a hope, we are very bold\u2019, so let\u2019s be very bold. And do not be afraid of the old ladies; when I preach like this the most encouraging comments I get are often from old ladies. They don\u2019t look very radical, but they often are on the inside. Give all the glory to Jesus and set the bar reachable, but high. Challenge the men to stand up and take a step \u2013 if they think they\u2019ve got what it takes. The key is that every man secretly wants to believe this of themselves \u2013 \u201cYou cut the mustard\u201d, \u201cYou da\u2019 man\u201d. OK, we all know Jesus is really \u201cda\u2019 man\u201d, but you get the point \u2013 if our identity is hidden in Christ, we are what He makes us. Therein lies the challenge to men to be godly activists.<\/p>\n

4. Real simplicity.<\/strong>
\nAs well as a blunt message, men also like blunt, direct language that tells it like it is. We need an everyday theology that connects the Word into the real world \u2013 after all, we should to be whole-life disciple-makers<\/a> who value the spiritual significance of the daily work that most men do, paid or voluntary. Major on using the most ordinary, mundane illustrations you can in your preaching and illustrate almost everything to add colour and life to the message. Avoid all forms of theological language, including use of the word theological (oops!). Find another way to say it, a clearer way, a better way. Imagine you\u2019re talking to a 25-year old labourer who has no church background and no Bible knowledge. The objective is to \u201cde-pigeonhole\u201d the Christian faith, dismantle the caricature and reveal the real thing. KISS<\/strong><\/p>\n

Keep it simple stupid!<\/strong><\/h3>\n

5. Raw edginess.<\/strong>
\nMen often recommend things to other men based on perceived \u201cedginess\u201d. Edginess is a man\u2019s way of discerning goodness. If there\u2019s some form of kudos involved in doing it, using it or visiting it, men will happily \u2018sell\u2019 it without even being asked. Church was always meant to be dangerous and costly and not for the faint-hearted. How did we manage to turn it into a ladies\u2019 knitting circle? Maybe it started when we saw fit to segregate discipleship from mission and made what\u2019s really one thing into two things. So let\u2019s reunite hearing the Word and doing it, and let\u2019s offer a church experience for men that presents opportunities for direct action, positively subversive behaviour, and a measure of risk and danger. Sounds like the early church to me. Or is it the suffering church. Same difference, eh?<\/p>\n

Mark Jones<\/strong><\/p>\n

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