The Ministry of…

by David Chipp-Smith

Two men riding in a car on their way to a Fellowship of Christian Athletes banquet in Pueblo, Colorado. During the conversation, they spoke about how to help men lead biblical, fulfilled lives. Through that conversation and subsequent prayer meetings, Bill McCartney, Dave Wardell and a core group of men came up with the 7 Promises of a Promise Keeper. Through those meetings and using the promises as their core values, Promise Keepers was formed. The organization began to take shape and grew into a national phenomenon. The impact of the Promise Keepers men's movement began to be felt worldwide. So much so that in 1995, Promise Keepers Canada was formed.

Promise Keepers Canada (PKC) continued the tradition of the U.S. based Promise Keepers (PK) organization by focusing on major events held in large venues. As they continued, they realized that they were not fulfilling their mandate. Canadian men were not being touched in the way that the U.S. men were. The simple fact was that Canadian men were different than the U.S men - they were tired of being pumped up once a year and waiting anxiously for the next big event. Through the process, PKC re-invented itself. They began concentrating on the grass-roots. They introduced small seminars that are more of an intentional teach, train and develop environment around key topics like Building Men of Integrity, Building Men of Purity, Building Marriages of Integrity, Dad's Coaching clinic, etc. These seminars began to develop men in their walk with God and touches sensitive and important issues facing men today. PKC doesn't just enter a community and puts on a good show. Requests for these seminars come in on a regular basis from churches interested in investing in the lives of the men in their communities. 'We will not go into a community and put on a seminar uninvited' explains Ron Hannah, PKC's COO, 'the churches in the community must be involved before we consider putting on an event.' Through this philosophy, PKC has put on events in Nunavut and has even ventured across the border into the U.S. due to the fact that PK in the U.S. does not host these types of seminars.

"We also developed a monthly resource program called WiseChoices to help equip men in their daily faith walk" states Hannah. WiseChoices consists of a devotional called Men of Integrity, a copy of New Man Magazine, and a bi-monthly audio message on CD or cassette that motivates men. Not only does PKC provide this for a nominal cost to approximately 8000 men, but they also supply over 4000 men who, for any number of reasons, cannot afford to purchase them. They also have a program called the Joseph Project which is designed to financially support charities in communities that host PKC events. All proceeds generated over the event budget go to a local charity. "Last year we were able to give over $30,000 back to the designated charities" explains Mr. Hannah, "It's our way of sowing back into the community." Honouring Jesus Christ and sowing into the lives of men throughout Canada through these programs has enabled PKC to become a strong organization that continues to grow and be blessed. God continues to use PKC to salvage misguided men, repair broken homes and restore relationships.

PKC has been dedicated to igniting, uniting and equipping men to become passionate followers of Jesus Christ through the effective communication of the Seven Promises of a Promise Keeper. To do this, they utilize hundreds of dedicated volunteers that reach out into local communities to support small men's groups and to assist in any way possible to ensure that all Canadian men have the opportunity to discover the incredible life quest they can experience as a follower of Christ (which happens to be part of their Vision Statement). They are continuing this Vision through a state of the art web site, giving them the ability to touch men through daily devotional emails and regular e-newsletters as well as on-line articles and a news area on what PKC is doing.

Through what began as a conversation during a road trip, PKC has taken the original dream of a small group of men in the U.S. and have been a strong and uplifting force for Canadian men. Touching many lives through the years, PKC continues to follow God's lead as they aim to challenge every Canadian man. For more information on PKC, check out their web site at www.promisekeepers.ca.