Yesterday a group of men from church went along to a men’s meeting in Barnsley to find out more about the ministry of CVM (Christian Vision for Men), a group which aims to connect men with Jesus and the church.
It’s a fact that women are often happy to meet together and just chat, but men tend to bond with each other more when they are actually doing something; in the words of J. John, they are ‘like arctic rivers: frozen at the mouth!’ CVM has an aim of introducing men to Jesus and the church to men, organising activity-based meetings with the ultimate aim of reaching a million men in this country with the good news of the gospel. If you win a child to Christ, there is a 3.5% chance the whole family will come to Christ. If you win a woman to Christ, there is about a 17% chance the family will follow, but if you win a man to Christ, there is a 93% chance the whole family will come to Christ. Whilst 50% of men would feel comfortable in a ladies’ underwear shop (hopefully buying lovely presents for their wives!), only 33% of men say they would feel comfortable in church. CVM uses various events (such as curry clubs, BBQs, mission trips and men’s gathering like the one taking place in Swindon on 24-26 June – see here for more details) to bridge the gap and show that church is not just for ‘women and wimps’!
We need to be imaginative and innovative in how we present the gospel to all people; hopefully, this meeting will have triggered thoughts about how to reach out to the many men in our communities who don’t yet know Jesus.