Now, perhaps I am the only one but I have become uncomfortable with some the rhetoric that happens within men’s ministry. I believe that for the most part men’s ministry is on to something. We are different than woman, we do desire adventure, we are often more hands on…
However I am often very disappointed when it comes to application. We are encouraged to become men like the men our society wishes to create.
There seems to be two warring concepts that seek define men in our world. One is that men should be like women. The other is that men should be warriors like William Wallace (from the movie Brave Heart). Men should be hunters, protectors and strong.
Too often it feels like men’s ministry in the church has completely embraced the second concept. They declare that they are being counter cultural. But how counter cultural are you when your role models come from blockbuster movies like Brave Heart and Gladiator.
And because men’s ministry has embraced the society’s picture of men their applications are too often weak - at best. I have been at a retreat where we were challenged to ride a zip line to prove we were real men. Seriously, this is what it means being the man God created me to be?
I don’t think the bible calls men to be females. But I also don’t believe the bible calls for us to walk around saying, “I’m a man hear me roar.” We are called to a radical life of following Jesus (not William Wallace). We are called to surrender everything, give up everything and follow Yahweh.
Men’s ministry has some good theology and good points but so often it is lacking in real life application.
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