There are numerous ways to create multiple entry points to get men involved in the Men’s Ministry of a local church. One of those ways is by inviting men to attend a men’s conference your church plan to attend. But why would a man want to attend a men’s conference? To answer that question one needs to understand the purpose of a men’s conference and the types of conferences available.
All conferences are designed to encourage men to be men God created them to be; but, not all men’s conferences are created equal. Conferences are designed from many different perspectives. Some are designed as an evangelistic conference or a conference that focuses on a particular interest of men. Some conferences attract the younger generation and some conferences are more suited for the older generation. Some conferences focus on a particular interest of the man such as a man who likes to be an outdoorsman. Then some conferences are built around the keynote speaker.
There are many different styles and types of conferences men can choose to attend. Most will only attract those men who are interested in the speaker, subject, or focus of the conference, limiting the number of men who would be interested to attend. However, there is one type of conference that can connect with every man in your church and that is an Equipping Conference.
An Equipping Conference does not limit itself to a particular subject or is it built around a keynote speaker, though there is usually one or two. An Equipping Conference is designed for men of all ages and walks of life to hear from men’s leaders speaking on a variety of subjects. Subjects that can help them to spiritually grow and speak into their family’s lives or into other men’s lives. Men have the opportunity to attend Breakout Sessions to hear experts in their field speak on subjects such as discipling; husband, fatherhood, and grandfather tune-ups; developing a men’s ministry in your church; how to minister to men with addictions; how to be involved in mission projects; how to continue ministry beyond retirement, and many other subjects. The list could be extensive.
An Equipping Conference allows men to discover the many resources available to help churches reach the men of their respective churches and community and connects you with the leaders. Men will have opportunities to actually speak and ask questions of these leaders developing a relationship. One of the areas I struggled with greatly when I became the men’s leader at my church was finding resources and discovering experts in the men’s ministry field to help and mentor. I had no idea of the amount of material available. Through an Equipping Conference, you can discover these resources.
So as you plan your next conference experience be sure to give consideration to the type of conference that would best benefit your men. Which experience would benefit your men the most and provide resources and connections that will continue for months even years to come.
Together in the adventure and challenge to disciple men – Mike
Cape Fear Men - a Men's Ministry Coalition Blog 