From Disciple of Crime to
Disciple of Christ

By Roberta Caponey

It's hard to find a more dramatic personal testimony than that of Will Fox, Director of Discipleship of Honorbound, a ministry devoted to men's evangelism and discipleship training.

Thirty years ago, Will's life was a mess. He was working the night shift at Xerox. He was mixed up with organized crime, his family was dysfunctional and his health was wrecked from alcohol and prescription drugs. On the verge of a nervous breakdown, Will finally got down on his knees and prayed the sinner's prayer, accepting Christ into his heart. Coincidentally (or perhaps not so coincidentally!) at 6:30 a.m. that same morning, a Christian co-worker came by his desk and asked if he'd like to attend a breakfast with Full Gospel Businessmen, Int'l. Will went, and a man whose heart had become so hardened he'd been unable to shed tears at his grandmother's funeral, wept openly as the men sang "The Lord's Prayer."

Six months after accepting Christ, Will heard the testimony of Ralph Marinacci, who picked Will out of a crowd of 500 men and told him the Lord was going to bring him into a position where he'd affect the spiritual lives of thousands of men. The very next morning, Will heard Robert Thom speak on his book The New Wine is Better - his testimony of being freed from addictions to drugs and alcohol. Again, Will was singled out, "God wants to speak to you . . ." Thom said, and gave Will the identical message he'd heard the day before.

That evening, Will felt God's healing touch on his stomach, which had been ravaged by stomach ulcers. A subsequent medical examination showed no sign of ulcers or telltale scar tissue.

Will continued to be faced with personal challenges, including a divorce. "I went on a three-year pity party," is how he describes it. He drifted away from the Lord for a time. But God was faithful. "God began to remind me that He was still there. He'd been at my side all along, but I wasn't reaching out for Him." Will started going back to church, re-married and eventually became affiliated with Honorbound, whose mission, says Fox, is to give men a credible offer of Christ, tools to grow in the Lord and a blueprint for men's ministry in the church.

Then Will's pastor asked him to start a men's ministry at his church. He'd been involved with Promise Keepers, but noted that although PK was great at leading men to Jesus, they had no resources on training men to be disciples. Will had read Pat Morley's book Man in the Mirror and his friend Ted Tinker introduced him to Man in the Mirror's seminars Success that Matters and Seven Seasons of a Man's Life- both of which have a strong discipleship message.

Will has repeatedly mined MIM for resources to help him in his ministry to men. Most recently, he's found MIM's Second Wind for the Second Half to be especially helpful in reaching out to men over 40. He has also directed Honorbound reps and his executive council to attend the seminar Building a Sustainable Men's Ministry now known as No Man Left Behind Conference.

"I believe in Man in the Mirror and I will continue to develop a closer relationship with this organization," says Will. His recommendation to men who are searching? "Pick out a man you believe exemplifies the type of relationship with God that you want, then ask them to be an active part of your spiritual life."