Saturday, April 30, is the Men's NetWork WORK DAY. As we receive project ideas from participating men's groups, we're encouraging them to ask friends and family members to join in the work. There are plenty of guys out there who dig doing hands-on projects, especially when they know they can put their skills and energy into helping others. And often all they're waiting for is for someone to ask them.
And like the saying goes, "You don't know if you don't ask."
There's a powerful dynamic that takes place in these invitations too. If the person you're inviting isn't a church "regular" or perhaps doesn't attend church at all, their involvement in your WORK DAY project is a chance for them to see the church in a fresh and exciting way. They'll observe believers (ordinary men and women) who are out in the community, making people's lives better, and living out—in a practical way—Jesus' message of showing love to our brothers and sisters.
In case you're stumped for project ideas or how to get your men's group in gear for this year's WORK DAY, here's a comment to inspire you and your group. It's from Morris Weyers, director of elders at Prince of Peace Lutheran Church in Cameron, Missouri. This was his men's group's strategy to reach out and help others.
First, they started with church members to see if they could offer some assistance on spring clean-up projects:
"We contacted the home bound, elderly, disabled, and others that just needed some help. We used the Sunday morning announcements, church newsletters, bulletin inserts, and personal contacts to make members aware of the opportunity for help on their 'clean-up' project. In one case we were able to get Thrivent Action Team funds to put in an access ramp to the house of a home-bound member."
Then they went beyond the church to see who could use their help:
"The second component of our work days was to the immediate neighborhood surrounding the church. Each year we hand delivered about 50 fliers that announced the availability of our crew to help with spring clean-up projects at no charge. Most of the jobs we got were quick and easy, and a crew of two or three could do a couple of them on the Saturday morning that was our WORK DAY. We did have one job that took a little more effort. An elderly, single person had five old, dead trees in their back yard that needed removal. One of our small crews started on the job, while others tended to the other tasks on the list. When the smaller tasks were finished everyone gathered at the tree removal site. It took a while past noon, but before the day was over the trees were felled, cut up, hauled away, and the yard cleaned up.
"We got a very nice note from the person that commended us for our 'Herculean' efforts—along with a check to help with our program. We attempted to return the check with the reminder that the fliers stipulated there were no charges for the help. They would not accept our excuses and suggested that a group like ours could find a good use for the funds. The Men's NetWork program, along with the WORK DAY, have been a helpful stimulant to our congregation getting more active in the men's Bible study and fellowship."
Now that's what we like to hear.
To find out more about this year's WORK DAY—and to register—click here for all the details.
Registration is easy. It's done by one person from the group, with each member included in the group receiving a Men's NetWork cap to wear the day of the event.