The Men Are Awake At Central

By Tom Cox

In spite of appearances -lots of family vacation trips, picnics and parties-the men at Central have been busier than ever this summer. It's no surprise that it started with Promise Keepers once again!

This year the PK Conference was held at the USAir Arena in Landover on July 12 and 13. But the organizing at Central started right after Easter, as Bob Carman led a sign-up effort for two full months. The result was 24 men that joined together for the two-day conference, including staying together overnight at a nearby motel.

Of course, the Conference was spectacular! What a sight to see 10,000 Christian men gathered for prayer, singing and listening as message after message struck home. This year the emphasis was on the role that men must take as mentors in bringing teenagers and younger men along in their walk with Christ. Bill McCartney, founder of Promise Keepers, laid down a challenge for each man in attendance to identify, serve, and then invite six new men to next year's Conference in Baltimore (Ravens Stadium?). PK plans to focus on fewer, bigger stadium gatherings similar to the early years of the movement. You can bet that Central will have a big role to play if the main PK Conference for the Mid-Atlantic region is in Baltimore in 2003.

But the most moving event of this year's conference occurred at the very end. Joe White, whose personal testimony of overcoming adversity through faith has made him a national legend, invited men to step forward and recommit themselves, not as Christians, but as men crucified for Christ! Thousands of men flowed onto the Arena floor! Many of our guys joined the throng in making a personal reaffirmation, too. There was no doubt that this was the start of something very big in their lives.

Central's Men's Ministry is growing bigger, too. Immediately after PK, Bob Carman and Ken Zeigler began a multi-week Sunday program at 10:00 am, For Men Only. The first few sessions were devoted to "Every Man's Battle," an excellent Christian discourse on sexual temptation and the need to control it. Future sessions are being considered on a wide variety of topics, including: Marriage; Fathering; Ethics in the Workplace; Witnessing to Men You Know; What to Tell Your Teenager; etc. The plan is to keep moving from topic to topic right into the fall season, encouraging interactive discussion all the time.

There's a Holy Spirit fire burning in the heart of every man. The purpose of Central's Men's Ministry is to fan it into action, not to control it. Bob Carman, Tom Cox, Ken Zeigler, Steve Simms, and many others are stepping up their involvement in different programs, but each remains committed to their other ministries, as well. Except for Bob. This is becoming Bob's number one ministry effort, Praise God. But every man at Central should make a point to stop by on Sunday morning and help fan the flames.