We recently received a note from a friend who said, “Praying the seeds of your ministries are firmly rooted and will bear much fruit.”

That is always the goal, of course, but it is much more obvious at a time like we are in now. Though travel and new conferences are on hold, thousands of men around the world have already received the MOV messages from God’s Word, resulting in growing roots and the fruit of changing behavior.

Men of Valor International is not about one-time conferences; it is about discipleship – putting down roots to bear fruit – something that far surpasses the immediate energetic jumpstart events.

Malawi team leader Charles Mwase reported that over 150 men have come to Christ through MOV discipleship groups, and families and communities are changing!

Here is what happened:

The men of Dedza and Nathenje are doing well in reaching men for Jesus. They have started many MOV Bible studies and have seen many men come to church. They did it from something they learned in our conferences ‒ reaching out to men in the community.

Here in Malawi we have a famous game, Bawo, that is mostly played by men. The pastors are using this game to meet the men in their community. They have bought bawos and placed them in their respective homes (not church), and they invite men in the community to come two afternoons a week to play.

To make the events more attractive, the pastors have created a competition between themselves and the men. The pastors even contribute money so the team that wins receives a reward. Before the game starts, the pastors open with the word of prayer and share a short sermon. They don’t invite men to receive Jesus right away, but they give men the opportunity to ask questions or meet with them after the game is over.

Because of the fun and fierce competition, many more men come to watch than even play the game.

This is how these groups are successful. Many men have become converted. These men are taken to men’s Bible study groups where they use the MOV notebook to study the Bible. Then the men slowly become church members.

The families of these men are very affected when they see the difference of how these men behaved before and after. I talked to a few women who said their husbands could not provide much for their families because they would go to bars and take beer the whole night and come home empty-handed.

But since the coming of Men of Valor’s discipleship groups, they have noticed changes.

The men are looking after their families well and are encouraged to work hard to provide for them. Communities are changing. Even some chiefs where these groups are active said these men are giving a good example to the community. The chiefs have urged the men not to stop attending the discipleship groups.

Please keep all the pastors and men around the world who have heard these messages in your prayers that they would continue to put down roots and bear much fruit for the glory of God and the changing of their communities!