Starting a new men's group requires just a few things. First, two to four men who want to see it happen. Second, a pastor who supports the idea enthusiastically. Third, a mutually-accepted statement of purpose defining the goals for your men's ministry. Fourth, specific plans to involve others in the dream.

If you have a friend who shares your vision for men encouraging other men as disciples of Christ, you are ready to begin. Approach your pastor for guidance and counsel. Consider the General Wesleyan Men statement of purpose printed above as an example to pattern your own ministry after.

Now, you are ready to go public—to involve others in the dream. Make specific plans for an activity to launch your men's group. Here are some ideas to prime your creative pump.

Reserve a nearby conference center, retreat facility, church campground, or other relaxing setting. Plan a schedule of group sports, games, meals, and special interest activities—such as a survival skills demonstration or a men's hobby exhibition.

Conduct a Friday evening "Friendship Celebration," featuring a little singing, a male quartet, and a personal life testimony by the most outstanding guest speaker you can get who will appeal to men (for ideas, contact your local Fellowship of Christian Athletes chapter, a Christian politician from your area, a well-known media personality, a respected local Christian businessman, etc.).

The next morning, include time for a pre-lunch organizational meeting to elect officers to plan a permanent men's ministry. Remind men that one way to guarantee future opportunities like the retreat they have just enjoyed, will be to support and actively participate in this new group.

Work with your pastor to plan a morning or evening worship service focused on men in ministry. Invite two or three Christian men from your community to share five-minute testimonies about the church's relevance in their lives and their involvement in a personal ministry. Include music and congregational songs that will have a special appeal to men. Ask your pastor or a guest speaker to talk for 15-20 minutes on a topic directed toward male spirituality. Close the rally with an invitation for men to meet with you afterwards to organize a new task force on men's ministry in your church. Assign this group responsibility for planning a monthly men's activity.

A Lay Witness Mission is a weekend invasion of your church by lay persons from other churches in your state or region. They conduct Friday and Saturday night rallies featuring music and testimonies shared by the visiting team members; small group discussions to help attendees express their own spiritual needs and experiences; Saturday morning coffees in church members' living rooms; separate luncheons for men, women, and youth; and a lay-led Sunday morning worship service. Ask a successful men's ministry leader from a church in your district or area to organize an all-male team of volunteers to visit your church and conduct a similar event just for men. Begin with a Friday night rally, a Saturday morning prayer breakfast, a Saturday noon luncheon, and close with a Saturday night rally. Build on the positive results of this event to elect local men's ministry leaders charged with continuing the spiritual development of men in your church.

One of the best ways to bond men together into a force for ministry is to complete a hands-on project together. The shared experiences form a basis for planning future projects; they also open doors for deeper relationships in which spiritual openness and trust develop. These are the building blocks for starting an on-going local men's ministry chapter. Call your district superintendent, district WM president, or the General Office of Wesleyan Men (317/570-5125), for the locations of churches needing volunteer labor for a construction or evangelistic outreach project. It may be a small church nearby, a new church in a neighboring district, or even an overseas missionary setting. Recruit interested men to pay their own way to participate in a work team that will undertake the project together. After the project, invite team members to report their experiences to the church. Organize a committee to plan future teams and use them as a nucleus for a new men's group.

An annual Wesleyan Men Week celebration in your church can generate tremendous enthusiasm and response for your men's group. Make Wesleyan Men Week the focus of your most ambitious planning. It ought to be the biggest blow-out of the year for your men's program—something that develops a reputation for being the best thing your church men do together.

Wesleyan Men Week is one of the most natural opportunities you can find for involving new men in planning, leadership and activities that will contribute to your church's growth. Avoid the temptation to do everything yourself, give others the chance to be planners and doers. It will strengthen their sense of belonging and reinforce the value of your men's group to them personally.