Men Don't "Need" Christ

from Pat Morley

Volume 213
January 15, 2007

There is a basic flaw in how many of us go about reaching men. This flaw is based upon the presupposition: “Men need Christ.”

When we assume “men need Christ” we just can’t understand why they don’t respond. You’ve had that bewildered feeling, right? Maybe you’ve even been angry about it!

Of course, men do have a “real” need for Christ more than for anything else. But men don’t need Christ in the way they need food, water, gasoline, a haircut, or a paycheck. Those things are necessities for sustaining life. However, a man can live quite comfortably without Christ.

There are times, though, when men do “feel” the need for “Something” or “Someone” (they may or may not know it’s for Christ). When are these times? They are the major turning points and crises of their lives. For example:

• Searching for a purpose
• Searching for an identity
• A lack of meaning
• Loneliness
• Emptiness
• Marriage
• Divorce
• Out of wedlock pregnancy
• Birth of a child
• Loss of a child
• First job
• Fired
• Business failure
• Financial crisis
• Moral failure
• Midlife crisis
• Loss of physical strength
• Declining physical appearance
• Sense of mortality
• Empty nest
• Health crisis
• Aging parents
• Loss of parents

It may be more useful to say, “Men feel their real need for Christ during their critical moments.”

If that’s true, we may be able to increase our ministry effectiveness by adjusting our approach to “be there” for men when they feel the need. Market to what men want, not what they don’t really care about. The more we touch on their wants, the more sticky our ministries will be.

For example, design your ministry to address the turning points and crises men face. Then, enlist your strong disciples to be part of a “system” to reach out to hurting men.

For the glory of Christ and no other reason,

Pat Morley, Ph.D.