What is The Fight?
A sixteen week series like nothing you've ever experienced. Sound a little strong? We do an anonymous survey of the men who attend - here is all you really need to know (see the full survey results):
- Has your involvement with this had a positive impact on your life? Yes - 100% No - 0%
- Comparing now vs. prior to attending the Fight, How has this changed your personal outlook for the future? Better - 100% Same - 0% Worse - 0%
- Would you recommend going through this to other men you know? Yes - 100% No - 0%
Today's typical Sermons and Bible studies are good, but, for various reason, it seems that they aren't enough for men. They want something more authentic and to experience real fellowship. Often, Bible studies are geared toward women or they are in-depth theological discussions that lack practicality. As one man recently said "There's nothing wrong with studying theological stuff but how does a study of the end times help me when I'm in a big fight with my wife or my kid is asking about sex?" Oh, there are some who argue with that - saying any and all scripture is good for learning, and etc. If that's you, then save yourself some time and spend your time doing something else rather than reading any further on this site. If not, here are some points that our research has shown:
Today, there are some tough realities in the contemporary, western church:
- Christian teaching isn't addressing most of the real difficulties men are facing at home and in the marketplace.
- For a number of reasons, there is no environment where men can be authentic.
- It seems like its always the same men participating in men's ministries.
- Most men still long to go deeper.
This absolutely will be nothing like any of the typical pre conceived notions guys have about a Bible study a workshop or self-help thing. It's a group of men that want truthful, real answers to questions like: How can I be a good father? Why do i seem to be so out of balance all the time? Why don't I like church? Do I have what it takes to lead my family? How did my childhood experiences affect my manhood? Am I really a man? Can a man really make a difference? Was Jesus a real man? Is God my real Father? And more.
A key point to consider - We aren't pastors or counselors and we don't do this for a living so we don't need people to show up so we can get paid or promote our "programs". This is just something that we have been through ourselves - along with hundreds of other men - and we all found it to be life changing - for real.
The Fight for Manhood evolved from a small group of men who got together for lunch one day. For some reason they began talking about real issues like: "Did I marry the wrong woman? Does anyone else feel like they just suck and its not going to change? I think that God is probably disappointed in me. Why should I expect God's blessings with all the bad stuff I've done? Do you feel like you have a lot of friends but don't have any friends? Does the Bible really address real world issues? And the list goes on. It really was then that Fight Like a Man ministries began.
One of the men said, "hey, let's start meeting every week and talk about this stuff". Soon, they had been meeting for about a year and found out they weren't alone, that the Bible did have answers, and that fellowship with other men was priceless. They even went in together to rent a small office space to meet in. And because they spoke about it so much to others they knew, a waiting list began of those that wanted to be a part of the group. The men knew if someone just showed up cold, they might get lost with the things that were talked about. These men had spent over a year of trial and error, prayer, and discussion to finally "get" some of these things. They decided to take the guys on the list through a process to intentionally learn about some of the core issues they believed were critical.
After making room at the small office for about 8 men to come the first week, 45 showed up instead. Cars were parked up and down the street at the office complex, in the grass, and double parked in the parking lot. That's when they knew that something was going on. The next spring, by word of mouth, another 45 men showed up. The next fall, almost 60 men showed up. They rented to two offices next door, tore out the walls and expanded to 2400 square feet instead of 800. Then 75, 80, 90, 100 men came until soon it was obvious that this needed to be offered at multiple locations. There just wasn't any more room at their offices. During this time, after having men offer to give money to the cause, they formed a 501c3 called Fight Like a Man ministries. And the growth has continued ever since. The founder of the ministry soon sold his business, became a minister, and works without pay at the ministry where close to 50 or 60 men volunteer to fill roles. Currently, this growth has occurred without paid staff.
For more detailed insight see "What is a Ministry to Men" - a publication by the ministry which gives a good overview and insight into the who, what, when, where, and how of what we do.