Show Notes

To review from Part One: Barna recently polled men on how important their faith is to them in their daily lives. The believing men showed that 8 of 10 said it was central to their life. Nonbelieving men was just over 3 of 10 said faith was central to their life. Of those same men that were polled, only 30% of Christian men as satisfied in their relationships, while 27% of nonbelieving men are satisfied in their relationships. More than one third of Christian men and nearly as much for nonbelievers report that report feeling lonely in the last month, and the percentage of men under 35 report significantly higher numbers still.

We say one statistic from a few years ago that indicated 95% of men in general indicated they do not have a close personal friend. You know the saying is, who would you call if you or your family needed help at two in the morning. The situation is real, and it is dire: men have not traditionally done well at making space in their schedule or opened themselves up to close relationships until they are in some kind of trouble and need help.

We know from Ecclesiastes 4:9–10 that “Two are better than one because they have a good reward for their toil, for if one falls, the other will lift him up. But woe to him who is alone when he falls and has no another to lift him up… and though a man might prevail against one who is alone, two will withstand him — a cord of three strands is not easily broken.” We add to it from Proverbs 27:17 says, “Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another.” These verses provide the directional pursuit that God had intended for us as men.

This is part two of a two-part series on men and male friendships. In the first podcast of this two part series, we spoke to men and their emotions. We walked thru a list of 8 reasons why a man could be struggling as it comes to dealing with his own emotions. If you have not yet listened to #18 about emotions — please take 20 minutes and do so. Go to mensministrycatalyst.org and under the podcast tab you will find the previous podcast. This podcast will speak to the need for men to have strong male friendships that helps us be better and do better, referring to the verses we listed at the top of the program.

In the podcast today we discuss three areas: 1) We discuss Five Myths we have observed about why men do not have a close personal friend. 2) What is the progressive nature for those who are struggling at having a close personal male friend — focused on what happens when we ignore or keep stuffing our emotions. 3) We will highlight some steps you can take that will build a good path to building a close friendship with another man.

Personal Reflection Questions:

Who has come to your mind when it comes to developing a deep friendship?
What is one step you can take to begin this journey?

Remember God created you to enjoy healthy relationships and to move towards wholeness. His Holy Spirit is wanting to strengthen you as you move forward.

Highlighted Resource

Overcoming Barriers Men Face, by Jim Grassi

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About Wendell Morton

Rev. Morton graduated from Western Evangelical Seminary with a BA in Religious Education and a Master of Counseling Psychology, Rev. Morton was in full-time ministry for 17 years with both small and large churches. He spent four of those ministry years with Promise Keepers. He was the the US representative to PK Canada – serving on the PK Canada Board.

Wendell also spent 23 years in Corporate America. He built and led sales teams that worked with very small businesses and other groups that worked with Fortune 500 companies. He is gifted at helping identifying the next generation of leaders as well as helping those around him being successful.

Rev. Morton has a passion to help pastors and church leaders build growing churches. Having men come alongside the vision of the pastor, build a dynamic team, create a plan, and execute the model of “each one brings one” has been proven effective for more than 2,000 years. This approach is a great way for every local church in North America to grow while helping men better understand biblical manhood.