Texas Christian Summit Wants More Strong Men Like Chuck Norris
Over the last 30 years, the Christian Men's Network (CMN) has trained tens of thousands of leaders and reached millions of men worldwide, training them to become godly men and showing them how vital their role is in their churches and families.
This weekend, Nov. 3-5, hundreds of Christian delegates from around the world will gather in Grand Prairie, Texas, for CMN's Lions Roar 2011, a global men's summit that will focus on the strategy of reaching and disciplining men.
"I think the world has an issue right now defining what a real man is,” said the Rev. Paul Louis Cole, president of CMN, in an interview with The Christian Post last week. “With the Bible there is no issue, a real man looks like Jesus Christ. Manhood and Christ-likeness are synonymous.”
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The theme of this year's conference is “Rescue: Last Man Out – A Call to Courageous Manhood: Faith – Honor – Valor!” Cole said the theme is based around the idea that the world needs men who are courageous, who are brave enough to “take a bullet” for their family and are willing to help rescue the next generation of young people.
Before his death in 2002, Edwin Louis Cole, Paul's father, played a significant role in the Christian men's movement as the founder of CMN and author of the book, Maximized Manhood. In addition to the millions of people that have been reached through his ministry, Cole is also known for having personally made an impact on the life of Hollywood star and all-around man's man, Chuck Norris.
Norris and his wife, Gina, were going through a rough patch in their marriage when he approached Edwin Cole for help.
"Even though I was a 'TV tough guy,' Ed challenged me to be a real man," Norris wrote in his book, Black Belt Patriotism. "What I know, I owe to him."
But there's a big problem facing today's congregations, said Paul Cole, because strong men are lacking and many churches have become feminized. These churches have spent a significant amount of time ministering to specific children, youth, and other demographics but have sadly neglected to spend time reaching out to men.
Many men are weak on the inside – spiritually, mentally, emotionally – and feel the need to prove their strength on the outside by being harsh or domineering toward their wife and children, Cole said. Christ, on the other hand, is the perfect example for men to follow, because his inward strength allowed him to be outwardly compassionate.
Though Lions Roar 2011 will focus primarily on how to reach men, women are also invited to the conference and will even have their own separate sessions where speakers will address practical issues that are applicable to the lives of women today.
“We believe that strong men actually empower strong women, and that as joint-heirs in Christ we both have specific, powerful roles in seeing the world won to Christ,” said Cole. He said that CMN and other men's movements help men to appreciate their wife, and also teach pastors to equip and encourage the women in their churches.
Cole described this weekend's conference as a “strategic action summit” because it isn't just a learning opportunity, it's a call for leaders everywhere to reach out and disciple men.
Approximately 300-350 delegates representing about 75 nations and about 200,000 churches worldwide are expected to attend the event this weekend. Among those delegates will be pastors, lay ministers and leaders of organizations from a variety of different denominations and backgrounds.
Cole further illustrated the need for godly men in churches by telling of a conversation he recently had with a wealthy young businessman who works for a prestigious company. When asked why he doesn't attend church anymore, the businessman man said it was because the people he met in church weren't “all in.”
Cole said he doesn't want to create men who are just interested in “playing church,” but hopes the message of manhood would impact them on a much deeper level.
"We don't want to just create believers, we want to create disciples. We want to see men who aren't just hearers, but doers of the Word," he said.
More information on Lions Roar 2011 and the Christian Men's Network can be found at www.lionsroar2011.com.
