Sept. 7, 2001

Dear Financial Partners,

Thank you for your gifts to support the ministry of Real Men. The Aug. 21^st workshop by Ken Tucker of Gallup called "Creating a Great Work Place" was well received. There was great small group interaction along with question and answer.

David Worland of the National Christian Foundation will be leading an exploratory meeting Sept. 24^th. He will present information and answer questions for a group of couples concerning the development of Christian Community Foundations around the country and the possibility of starting one in Lincoln. Please pray for this gathering.

Karen and I are planning a marital intimacy class on nine Fri. nights beginning later this month. If are interested or know someone, who might be, let us know by calling 474-7325.

Real Men is a co-sponsor for a George Barna workshop in Omaha Oct. 9^th with seminar sessions on re-churching the un-churched; building effective lay leadership teams, growing true disciples of Jesus, and evaluating your church's ministry. If you are interested, let me know and I can send you more information. The following is in the introduction to the "Journey to Make God's Story Ours."

Discipleship in Disarray

The present methods of evangelism and discipleship are not working. Statistics by Christian researcher George Barna have indicated no increase in the proportion of born-again American adults in the last 15 years despite $500 billion spent on domestic ministry during that time. When Christian adults were asked to identify their most important goal for their life, not a single person said it was to be a committed follower of Jesus Christ, or to make disciples of Christ.

According to Barna, most believers stated their church does little to help them grow as a true disciple. "Few believers said that their church lacked programs, but most Christians complained that little is done to effectively motivate and facilitate their development as genuine, fervent followers of Christ."

Barna acknowledged that most churches have many programs and classes that represent the discipleship effort. "Offering programs is not the issue. We discovered that surprisingly few churches have a well-conceived model of discipleship that they implement. The result is that churches feel they have fulfilled their obligation if they provide a broad menu of courses, events, and other experiences, but such a well-intentioned but disjointed approach leaves people confused and imbalanced."

Recent studies by Barna show that a minority of adult and teen believers contends that absolute moral truth exists. When given thirteen basic teachings from the Bible, only 1% of adult believers firmly embraced all 13 as being biblical.

The apostle Paul told Timothy:

You’re going to find that there will be times when people will have no stomach for solid teaching, but will fill up on spiritual junk food—catchy opinions that tickle their fancy. They’ll turn their backs on truth and chase mirages (2 Tim. 4:3-4, The Message).

Studies by Barna show believers spend seven times as much time on entertainment as they do on spiritual activities. Less than 1% of all believers perceived a connection between their efforts to worship God and development as disciples of Jesus.

Hunger for Reality

In the midst of bad news, there is good news. According to Barna, the proportion of adults who read the Bible during a typical week has risen from 34% in 1996 to 40% in 2000. Among adult lay leaders, more than nine out of ten prioritize their faith in their life goals.

Today, people question their significance and whether their actions will make any difference in the grand scheme of things. People wonder whether there is a master plan. They are concerned about many areas of their lives that include but are not limited to marriage, friendship and finances. They search for meaningful work and ponder how to invest their time to get the most out of their talents.

Barna has found that half of all unchurched and non-Christian adults admit that they are seeking meaning and purpose in their life - providing a meaningful point for sharing the good news of Christ.

We appreciate partnering in the gospel with you.

Sincerely in Christ,

Mark Pomeroy