Your church has great opportunities for your men’s ministry to partner with other men’s groups from other churches in your community.
Partnering with other churches does three important things:
- It shows the community that there is unity amongst the churches. This is important because a constant criticism against the Church is the perceived disunity and competition amongst churches.
- It creates momentum for individual ministry as the guys interact with the broader Church and realize there are “more of us than we thought.”
- It fosters collaboration, often leading to greater ministry opportunities. When one guy connects with another guy from another church, you never know where the Holy Spirit will take that.
Aside from these three benefits, there is also the prayer that Jesus prayed in John 17:21: that “they may all be one, so that the world may believe that you have sent me.” We desire to reflect that prayer in our community.
So…here are four easy ways you can partner with other men’s ministries in other churches in your community:
- Get together to pray. Prayer is an excellent unifier because it doesn’t require much planning and preparation. You can easily invite other church’s men’s groups to participate with you. You can host it in a neutral or different location. It can be weekly or monthly or even for a set time geared to men (e.g. Father’s Day week). This could be a morning coffee and prayer time before the guys head to work. It doesn’t need to be “official.” Gathering to pray with men from other churches can be powerful.
- Build a personal network of churches in your area. If you want to partner with men’s groups from other churches, find the names of their group leaders and make a simple contact. Just let them know who you are, what church you’re from, and why you want to connect (use the above reasons if you need some). Keep their contact info in your phone and even create a group email or text thread that you can use to communicate. Remember, this is not a “gossip line” or a platform for you to talk about the things you want to talk about. Respect this network you’re creating and use it as a source of encouragement and interaction.
- Share what’s going on in your ministry, and attend what is happening in others. If you have meetings, breakfasts, or events, share that with the other men’s groups in your community. Invite them to join you. You can also attend their events. If they’re hosting a workshop or prayer time, show up and bring the men in your church with you. Put these events in your calendar and leave plenty of time to invite other churches (don’t wait until the last minute!).
- Collaborate on a project. This really is the ultimate sign of church partnership, when two or more churches can collaborate on something. I wouldn’t start here. I would start with the above steps and build relationships. However, once you get comfortable with each other, you can begin to collaborate on projects. It could be a workshop or a men’s conference/camp. It could be a special event like a breakfast, men’s night, or an event for dads and their kids. It could even be an outreach like a golf tournament, “serve day,” or block party. To collaborate on a project, you must have a clear outcome (“What are we hoping will happen?”) and then share clearly defined responsibilities. You will need clear communication, and make sure to celebrate one another!
Partnering with men’s groups from other churches is a great way to create visibility and momentum in your community. How can you connect and work with the other men’s groups in your area?
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