Recently a man was given the opportunity to "pitch" the men in his church on becoming part of a weekly men's group. He asked for suggestions, and here's what I told him:

You can speak about 300 words in two minutes. That's only enough time to make one point. Anything more than that will clutter men's minds and lose their attention.

"Start from the end"-ask yourself, "What can I say that will inspire these men to want what I'm offering?" The most powerful motivator is always a changed life-your own is best.

Suggestions for the two minutes:

1. "Open" by praising your pastor for his ministry in your life and encouraging you to start a weekly Men's group. 20 seconds, about 50 words.

2. "Arrest their attention" with one heart-stopping sentence, like "Statistically, 40% of us in this sanctuary will end up divorced...but it doesn't have to be that way." 10 seconds.

3. Next, for the "body," tell them from your heart how a weekly Men's group has impacted your life. Tie this back to your attention arresting sentence. For example, "Listening to the men in my small group gave me the desire to love my wife biblically, equipped me with practical ideas, and held me accountable to make it happen." Give one concrete example, like "Now we go on a date once a week and we've never been better," or "Now I pray with and for her every day, and I'm in puppy love." You will only have time for one example, so you can say something like "and I have 5 other examples I could give you if we had the time." 75 seconds

4. For the close say, "Small groups change lives. I know. I'm one. I'm here to invite you to become one too. We're starting a new men's group next Sunday night. We only have room for ___ men, so let me know ASAP if you want more information or to sign up." 15 seconds

By the way, everything I said to him adds up to exactly 300 words if you want to use it as a benchmark.

Yours for changed lives,

Patrick Morley, PhD

"The Journey to Biblical Manhood" -Coming Soon!
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