Application Step 2

Godly Heroes for Fatherless Boys

Today’s fatherless boys are America’s future pastors, providers, and protectors.

Men have an ordained purpose. Women suffer when there aren’t Godly men around them. Masculinity is a good thing — and it is great thing when it is Godly. Fatherhood wisdom falls on the shoulders of the men. They are the future warriors of the Kingdom. If boys are destroyed we’ve destroyed a nation and the prospect of a spiritual revival in America. Healthy Godly men are needed on the front lines of the great commission but they need to be rescued as fatherless boys first.

This is why we are so laser focused.

Men without God are barbarians. God is the only one who has elevated the value of women over the course of history, and Godly men must protect them today.

Why is the fatherless boy so damaged?

The father-son relationship is the foundation of this world. Our God sent his only begotten son to die on the cross to restore a spiritual lifeline between the father and his children. When that relationship is broken it creates a deep soul wound. If not healed, it will fester and manifest itself in dangerous and destructive ways. Without a lifeline and a tether of forgiveness and healing, Satan will have his way.

Laws do not stop evil men – good men stop evil men. Where are all the good Godly men? Satan is picking them off through fatherlessness.

Jesus gives us a glimpse of how painful it is to be without our father when he was on the cross and he cried out, “Father, Father, why have you forsaken me?”

God our father has given us a great promise when he says I will never leave or forsake you. Forsakenness that these boys feel is a deep, penetrating, seemingly inescapable soul wound.

We are rescuing the Fatherless by providing freedom from the anger and bitterness of the father wound, of being left behind and forsaken.

Every fatherless boy believes that their abandonment is their fault, but we talk to the boys frankly and directly about the lies they’ve been told. We tell them, “What your dad did was terribly wrong and will matter greatly in your life, but by the power of Christ you can be the man you were intended to be. There is nothing wrong with you, you’re not a mistake, and you’re not the problem. This doesn’t mean you won’t have scars or walk with an emotional limp, but the wound won’t be festering and will not control your life.”

When I talk to fatherless boys their eyes light up because they know I understand their deep soul wound, and because I give them hope for a path to healing.”

– John Smithbaker

Impacting the Fatherless Boy

The fatherless boy learns biblical truths that challenge what the wounds that being abandoned have taught him. Through the intentionality and the commitments made and kept by his Mentor Father and the supporting church, a new narrative can blossom in the boy’s life. He is shown and not just told that he is time-worthy, valuable, capable, important, powerful, special to the Lord and others, and can overcome what has been done to him by no fault of his own.

Impacting the Boy’s Friends and Family Network

Because of the healing power of the Holy Spirit and the love demonstrated by his Mentor Father and local church, the fatherless boy’s life often takes a significant turn that is inspiring to others among his friends and family. It is not uncommon for family members to accompany the boy to church. When the boy’s protective walls are broken down and he learns how to forgive his earthly father, the fatherless boy can become the helper to others who suffer from the pain of abandonment and worthlessness.

Community Impact

Boys who are confident, spiritually-connected and made whole by the love of the Heavenly Father are more empathetic and less troublesome within their communities. Set on a new path of self-worth, they pursue more productive lifestyles. These boys then draw less upon the corrective resources in the community in the form of subsidies, law enforcement, and counseling, and can become contributing members of their community.

Godly Masculinity

The Lord places a special charge of leadership in the lives of men. As the crippling wounds of fatherless boys are addressed in their adolescent years, they become free to develop and grow into their full potential in adulthood. Instead of producing weak and soul-fragmented men, we add to our nation’s resource pool of strong spiritual soldiers.

When a father is taken out of the life of a boy at a young age before their masculinity is developed, it throws everything into confusion. Without the resident male figure to imprint lessons of Christian manhood, fatherless boys are raised instead with a largely feminine perspective, which can lead to gender confusion, passivity, and homosexuality.

America desperately needs more leading men and who will give sacrificially of themselves to the greater good of our nation and share the love of Christ with all God’s people. It will take brave and righteous Christian men to raise the future generations who will rescue America from the captivity of Satan’s plan.

Without question, America is uniquely exceptional. Our beloved country is one of a kind and we give all glory to God Almighty.

Freedom in not man’s idea. Bondage is man’s idea.

The American ideal of freedom comes only by upholding God’s righteous laws, rigorously promoted and defended within the nations’ founding documents.

God Almighty is sovereign and worked mightily through His followers in the formation of America. He created a beacon on the hill that has helped spread the Gospel to the isolated, lost, and the oppressed people groups and countries around the world.
When disciples of Christ do not hide their shining light under a bushel of wheat, but rather join together to bring glory to their Creator by honoring and following His decrees in its organizing documents – it (America) cannot help but become a bright beacon for the world that millions will see and become drawn to.

That is why we pause and celebrate her ideals.

AMERICA THE FAITHFUL

What a privilege it is to be part of God’s great rescue mission of the lost, and to live in a country where we can openly and freely learn about our Heavenly Father.

Where we can own property and create wealth to spur on and support missions around the world.
Where families can raise children in the admonition of the Lord without hiding in basements.
Where we can assemble in freedom as a church body to worship Jesus in His Truths and in His name.
Where we can proclaim His righteousness and Truths without persecution.
Where we can hold up the Bible as the Holy Word of God in public.
Where we can acknowledge there is no other King but Jesus and not be murdered.

Each of us has much to be grateful for and to give thanks in our prayers and patriotic celebrations and anthems.

IS AMERICA UNIQUE?

Other countries could also be beacons on a hill, but it would require courage, sacrifice, and resolve by the country’s organizers or citizens to follow Him and His wisdom as the defining law of the land. Or, perhaps the Lord intended for America to uniquely occupy this global role.

To date, no other nation is even close in holding up God Almighty in its foundational declarations. Not one other. America stands alone.

Ultimately it is these God-inspired ideals, memorialized in America’s defining documents, that makes the nation unique and allows it to be exceptional. Our democracy is neither compromised by the rule of a majority mob or is an anti-god socialist government ruled by elitists. Rather, America was forged to be a Constitutional Republic governed by God’s laws, where our individual rights are bestowed by the Divine Creator. How we should live, treat our neighbors, uphold justice, and exercise our freedom and individual rights has been prescribed by God – not a sinful man or a government.

As such, these rights cannot also be taken away at the whim of man.

OUR CALL TO DEFEND HER EXCEPTIONALISM

The founding fathers and many others sacrificed their lives, their families, their homes, and their wealth by signing the originating constitutional documents that made clear that the Heavenly Father alone is Creator and all powerful. They affirmed His laws as righteous, proclaiming that America’s people are not and will not be subjects to any type of government, tyrant, or king.

It is the obligation of its citizens then and now to defend these precious God-given rights against foreign and domestic threats.

America’s citizens, Christians, who do not clearly understand why the nation is uniquely exceptional run the risk of standing idly by while others with a sinister agenda erode America’s greatness and attempt to re-write its history. Still others are being blinded or are overlooking the purpose for these blessings – so that we can live fruitfully, faithfully, and share the Good News to the end of the earth.

Much is required of us because of this mighty blessing. Blinded ungratefulness is sin and a scheme of the Evil One.

A MISSION FOR AMERICA

Because of what they uphold, America’s ideals are worthy of celebrating, honoring, and protecting as a nation and as citizens – even unto death. Countless men, women, families and neighboring citizens have given the full measure of sacrifice with their lives here and around the world. Many God-honoring missionaries have been raised and supported to give up the comforts of our special freedoms to bring the Good News of the Gospel to distant and oppressed lands.

In order to continue answering God’s call to fulfill the purpose of the unique exceptionalism He’s granted America, we must boldly and immediately tend to the defense of these ideals.

May we resolve again and acknowledge our special heritage as One Nation Under God and help bring restoration to our besieged freedoms and this shining beacon on the hill.

Our Great American Rescue Mission is on the frontline of battling for the souls of our country, our families, and our children. May the Lord lead the way as Fathers in the Field charges forward for His glory and bring a revival to our land.

Thank you, God Almighty, for your ideals for America, for faithful and courageous souls and for allowing us, in a time as this, to be part of seeing your mission accomplished. May you continue to bless your creation.

“Defend the cause of the fatherless...” Isaiah 1:17

Fathers in the Field is a non-profit, non para-Church ministry that trains and equips the local Church to “Call” and raise godly men to intentionally mentor the fatherless in their own community.

Our mission is to rekindle and establish the spirit of boys who have been abandoned by their fathers; mentoring them one-on-one in live skills through outdoor activities, and by sharing a Christian understanding of our Heavenly Father’s love and sacrifice.

The objective of this Great American Rescue Mission™ is to heal the deep, anger-filled soul wound that an abandoned boy suffers from and carries with him; thereby stopping the cycle of destruction and fatherlessness. Through advocacy and becoming a leading voice for the cause of the fatherless in America, Fathers in the Field will help ignite a revival of the local church as a cultural change agent in their communities.

Fathers in the Field works to achieve 3 important goals that are biblically founded:

Faith: Share and demonstrate to boys that they have a Father in heaven who created, loves and cares for them, and will never forsake them. Joshua 1:5
Fatherhood: Demonstrate fatherly love and commitment to repair broken spirits and prepare the foundation for future fatherhood. Deuteronomy 6:6-9
Forgiveness: Share the need for boys to forgive the failings of their earthly fathers, as our Heavenly Father forgives His children in Christ. Mark 11:25

Combining Faith, Fatherhood, and Forgiveness with the kind of blood pumping, outdoor fun that no videogame can match, Father in the Field works through local churches across America.

A Powerful Outreach to Fatherless Boys – Working Through the Local Church

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Anointed Pairing with Profound Impact

Spiritually mature men in local churches are empowered and resourced to reach out to fatherless boys in their communities and introduce them to a Father who will never leave or forsake them – God Himself.

Training and Equipping Local Churches: Fathers in the Field is a complete turnkey ministry that provides all the instructions, tools and resources churches need to host this vital outreach to fatherless boys in their community. Regional Field Missionaries connect with local churches to provide methodology, materials, training and coaching, and encouragement to engage the church staff and congregation, and to reach out to fatherless boys.

Stakeholders within the ministry and the church partner to be a Voice for the Fatherless and advocates for the cause of broken families.

This powerful ministry sparks a grassroots revival of church service to the community. The intentional investment of time with the fatherless boy opens the door to pre-disciplining by building a bridge of trust that is developed when they keep their commitments to the wounded and skeptical fatherless boy.

Field Buddies: Fatherless boys ages 7-17 can participate in Fathers in the Field.

Mentor Fathers: Men from varied backgrounds and experiences open themselves to be used by the Lord to fill a gap in a boy’s life that stunts emotional growth and prevents him from fully experiencing the love, acceptance, and forgiveness of God the Father.

Single Moms: Father in the Field reaches fatherless boys through single mothers who want their sons to have a mature Christian male role model. All ministry expense is spared the single mother due the generosity of God’s Givers.

Widows and Elderly: Community service projects are an integral part of the Fathers in the Field ministry, giving boys an opportunity to serve widows in the community and in doing so, gain a sense of accomplishment, helpfulness, and self-worth.

Church Body: A Church Champion becomes the liaison between Fathers in the Field and the church, working with the Pastor and men’s groups to identify Mentor Fathers and make an anointed pairing with fatherless boys. Church Elders and Deacons identify widows and the elderly in the community whom boys can serve as volunteers. Women’s groups engage single moms with support. Peers welcome and engage the fatherless boy in youth groups. The family of the fatherless boy and non-churched members of the community are often drawn to the church as result of the boy’s attendance and participation. Church pastors become advocates for the fatherless and broken families, raising awareness and encouraging the church body to support them through prayer, donations, godly witness, and modeling healthy Christian family life.

“Field Missionaries are the tip of the sword. They are battling in our own mission field in our own country, against an ill-equipped or apathetic church to address the #1 cultural issue – fatherlessness.”

“We send missionaries into the fields of the fatherless. This is a high calling. Their job is to confront the Pharisees and Sadducees of our day. They minister to pastors one-on-one because they have to inspire or if needed, convict pastors to defend the cause of the fatherless in their own communities.

“We are living in the mission field where the harvest is great, but the workers are few. The Field Missionary’s role is not a job, it’s a calling.

“They are the voice in the wilderness at this point. They depend on God’s Givers to remain in ministry full time to coach pastors, inspire men, to reach those left behind, and the broken families in the local church’s community. The spiritual attack on these men and their families, once they commit to serve, IS real. The earnest support of God’s Givers and coverage of prayer warriors provide the needed resources and protection to carry out their sacred and honorable calling.

“This is where the hope of healing begins: When a faithful man commits his life to full-time ministry and answers God’s call on his life by saying ‘send me, Lord.’

“Their bravery and heart light a fire of biblical courage to respond to the command of God to defend the cause of the fatherless and widows in their community.

“Field Missionaries respond to the cries of the fatherless and pleas of the single mom by mobilizing the local church to restore the spiritual heritage and the God-ordained role of fatherhood in America. Their pivotal role in the Great American Rescue Mission has a lasting impact on families today and tomorrow.

“Single moms and fatherless boys are desperately thankful to know that the cavalry is coming, and someone is battling on their behalf as a Voice for the Fatherless.

“They help crack the challenge of the unchurched right in their reach. They breach the door. They break the wall and inspire the church’s men to search for fatherless kids in their community as if they were their own.

“We’d do it all if it meant only rescuing one boy. But fortunately, men, churches, and God’s Givers are responding and that allows us to reach many more. And as we extend the Great American Rescue Mission across the country and deploy a Field Missionary in every state, we’ll establish lifelines to fatherless boys through their local churches. Every fatherless boy is within the reach of a local church.”
– John Smithbaker

Spiritual Fire Starters

Called by the Lord to full-time Kingdom work, Field Missionaries apply their unique relational skills and gifting to engage the local church. Part of that assignment includes challenging the church to fulfill its responsibility as leaders, healers, and proclaimers of the Good News to fatherless boys and their broken families. Field Missionaries see the Holy Spirit take their effort and use it to transform hearts. They are spiritual fire starters.

A Family Called to Serve

Missionary life is a family affair. The spouses and children of Field Missionaries also connect with the cause and can become ambassadors within their friends and family network. As they ‘share’ their spouse or dad with the ministry, a family’s sacrifice and investment deepens their own faith and dedication to the Great Commission. In an age where “the harvest is plentiful but the workers are few” Matthew 9:37 (NIV), the impact of passing along the heart of ministry service to future generations cannot be understated.

Kingdom Ambassadors

When God’s people give their lives to ministry work they become beacons of the Holy Spirit’s light all around them. From direct interaction with the local church body to conversations in the community where they are asked, “what do you do?” Field Missionaries raise awareness of the fatherless challenges among Christians and non-Christians alike wherever they go. They are ambassadors and a voice of the fatherless who share their critical needs to those who can help.

From Church to Community to National

Each Field Missionary may be in contact with as many as 100 churches in their network. By extension, these churches have from dozens to thousands of people in their church body that can be involved in the support of fatherless boys through Fathers in the Field. We see a day where dozens, even hundreds of Field Missionaries are reaching out one-by-one to provide every church in America with the opportunity to adopt this effective ministry platform as its own. As demanded in scripture, churches can lead the nation in widespread revival by turning their attention and resources to building the faith its most vulnerable people.

Real Restoration

“There’s baggage and hurt in all of our stories.”
— David McCormick, Fathers in the Field alumni and new missionary

THE GENERATIONAL GIFT

David McCormick first began his experience with Fathers in the Field later than most, at age seventeen. Like so many fatherless boys, his feelings of abandonment and deep father wounds were manifest not only in his broken home, but his broken life.

“I was in a teenage sexual relationship, doing drugs and drinking, and was addicted to pornography. I was seeking love and acceptance anywhere else because of the void of that earlier in life.”

“I’d decided that I don’t need anyone but myself and my drive. But my drive was powered by my rage and it led me down a path of frustration, depression, and confusion. I was just going with it and it was destroying me. Even my successes were wrongly motivated. I tried to play sports well for the affirmation of the coach. I worked out incessantly and created an image in order to get attention from girls. But ultimately, I was a threat to myself and everyone around me, my friends and my family, promoting bad behavior and taking others down with me.”

But the Lord and his single mother had a different idea for David.

“My mother saw the importance of having a Godly influence in my life and got me involved in Fathers in the Field through our church. Even though I was older, there was a part of me that recognized the need, despite being rebellious and fighting God.”

Paired with Mike, his Mentor Father, David began a three- year process of learning about his Heavenly Father, learning about himself, learning about what it means to be a man and a father, and learning about forgiveness. But healing took time.

“I didn’t have very high expectations, initially. I was rebellious, rude, and mean. I had a chip on my shoulder and wasn’t going to take anything from anyone. I was so angry and bitter and I didn’t take the counsel of Mike. It took a while to trust my mentor father because I felt un-helpable.”

Eventually, David’s anguish drove him to the hair trigger of suicide. “I just wanted the pain to stop.”

But through their commitment to each other and the process of Fathers in the Field, David and Mike stuck at it, together.

“Mike was there for me in good times and bad, and that’s why I came to trust him. It’s not an easy process, but in order to heal it is what God must do for your life.”

“When I was a kid, ‘father’ to me meant anger; it meant disappointment”

But I know what a real father is now and it’s because we have a Father God. As I get closer to Him, I’m learning what it means to be a father one day. Something Mike always told me was that it’s not the hand you are dealt, it’s how you play your hand that defines who you will become. If you seek God to fulfill you, you’ll come up with a flush. Through my experience with Mike, I’ve learned how to be a good dad, how to trust, have fellowship, how to communicate without judgment, and about unconditional love. Even now I’m realizing the full impact and importance of the blessing he put on my life.”

Even far down the adolescent path of self-destruction, there is hope for the fatherless.

With the patient commitment of his Mentor Father and the effective curriculum of Fathers in the Field, the solid mentorship of a Christian man, the love of the Heavenly Father, and the peace that comes through forgiveness – the terminal cycle of anger of this fatherless boy has been broken.

At the end of their three-year ministry journey together, at David’s request, Mike had the honor of baptizing him in the cool Colorado river that they first shed together.

“Now, as a committed believer, I’m changed. Today I’m a threat to Satan and the evil forces of this world that are trying to tear me and other people down. I’m responding to the call to be strong, be committed, and encouraging others in righteousness. I’m fighting the wickedness that’s going on around me and standing up for what I believe in. There are still times when I am afraid, but I can have faith and trust God. It’s a never-ending process.”

As a young adult, David is now part of a second generation of Fathers in the Field missionaries, paying forward the lessons of his new reality by becoming the first ministry alumni to join the cause and serve in kingdom work.

With the support of his mentor father, after successfully completing high school David received intensive missionary training abroad before being commissioned to serve the fatherless in South Africa, ministering to orphans, building orphanages, reaching out to the local community and sharing the love of Jesus to people in a foreign county. Soon he’ll be returning to the United States with experience and an expanded worldview that will surely equip him to continue passing along the lessons of self-worth and God’s grace that he learned through Fathers in the Field to other at-risk fatherless boys.

“It is an honor to share the truth about our Heavenly Father’s love and to serve others who are shattered from the devastation of broken families. Here I am, send me Lord.”

God's Givers: Fathers in the Field's Financial Supporters

Fathers in the Field is a 501C3 non-profit ministry that relies upon the generosity of donors to fuel ministry work. Supporters can sponsor a specific Field Missionary as well as contribute to the general operations and cause advocacy work of the ministry.

Being a good steward of the resources entrusted to us by the Lord means empowering kingdom work that is cost-efficient and effective. Fathers in the Field provides the opportunity for Christians to confidently invest where there is a demonstrable impact on all the stakeholders that are involved in the ministry’s dynamic ecosystem. This is an answer to prayer for supporters.

Rallying to the Cause

In addition to supporting the local church through tithing, many Christians give to other charitable causes. As they do, they become an important part of that organization and the cause takes on special relevance to the donor. They closely follow the outcomes and challenges of the work, and regularly advocate for the mission to friends and family. As iron sharpens iron, donor’s endorsement recruits additional support, encouraging others to serve and charitably give.

Together We Rescue – Together We Rise

Thriving communities invest in their health. They must be acutely aware of the interconnectedness of its members and be motivated to courageously step-up to help those who are underprivileged, hurt, or have been left behind. Donors to Fathers in the Field have the unique chance to simultaneously support the spreading of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, enhance the effectiveness of the local church in the community, and act as a first responder to the wounds of the next generation of men. Investing in fatherless boys contributes to the future success of families and communities.

The National Impact of Giving

Americans are a generous people. The United States ranks as a top world philanthropic nation per capita, and are cheerful givers, embracing as a major tenant to “love they neighbor as yourself,” Leviticus 19:18 (NIV)

Despite the enemy’s work to disrupt and divide us by attacking the family and God’s design for biblical marriage and parenting, faithful Americans have shown a dedication to lend a hand and give of their wealth when they understand the need and the scope of a crisis.

When we give, we follow in Christ’s footsteps and live out our faith. Only through selflessness can the nation be transformed. Fathers in the Field provides Americans a clear understanding of the crisis of fatherlessness, and to help revitalize the church as a unifying force across the country.

As the person commissioned with the spiritual care of members of a church, the Pastor performs a vital role for the Kingdom of Christ.

Fathers in the Field works with the Pastor to establish and execute the ministry outreach at his church with the goal of sharpening the tip of the spear in the battle for the hearts and souls of fatherless boys. But that is just the beginning. Pastors are a primary target of ministry through Fathers in the Field as well.

Serving the Servant – Leading the Leader

The Pastor, then, would represent the ‘heart of our Lord’ in the local church. It is here that significant impact is achieved with the pastor himself. In love and with respect, Fathers in the Field challenges the pastor to become better educated to the cause of fatherless boys and the related perils facing our nation. We come alongside the pastor to lead his flock in developing a committed and practical outreach that his church owns and manages. Fathers in the Field will support pastors as they become an advocate to speak, teach, and take up the cause of the fatherless. More than a gatekeeper of permission and church resources, the pastor is a primary ministry partner that we will also “never leave, and never forsake.”

Most pastors are stretched thin. They are burdened with a multitude of problems and do not receive enough assistance in serving the church body and community. Fathers in the Field understands the weight of leadership and role of mentorship that the pastor occupies. We support the pastor so that he can better personally respond to the biblical call of Isaiah 1:17 and help his church do the same.

Grassroots Church Revival to Rescue the Fatherless

Whether leading a small local church or shepherding a larger audience with extended reach due to related media broadcasts, pastors have influence that can spread far beyond the local church’s reach. They inspire and teach people that then carry those messages all over the country. Pastors are also very influential to other pastors. They compare notes about how effectively their church is impacting the community. Pastors work together to coordinate how faithful people in the American Church are approaching both parts to the Great Commission – sharing the Gospel and making disciples here at home, as well as around the world. We believe that as more pastors catch the vision of Fathers in the Field and implement the ministry successfully, others will be motivated to follow and a groundswell of participation will sweep across the nation.

Local church pastors are key to the bold vision of connecting and equipping people of faith across the nation in The Great American Rescue Mission. The next step in breaking the chain of generational fatherlessness is raising up and deploying more Field Missionaries in regional territories to cover the entire country, and engaging pastors of local churches so they may reach and rescue the fatherless boys in their communities.

Becoming a Mentor Father to a fatherless boy is a unique privilege and sacred assignment. Men from varied backgrounds and experiences open themselves to be used by the Lord to fill a gap in a boy’s life that stunts emotional growth and prevents him from fully experiencing the love, acceptance, and forgiveness of God the Father.

The fatherless boy is the primary focus of the Father in the Field ministry. However, through their obedience and faithfulness the Mentor Father is blessed and impacted nearly as much as the boy. When we give, we receive. When we believe, we can be believed. And, when we serve, we teach others to serve. Putting faith and love into action impacts the Mentor Father deeply. It allows him to share his story and articulate his faith with someone whom the Lord had made a divine connection. Sometimes, the experience of becoming a Mentor Father is also a part of the process of healing from his own past father wounds.

Impacting Mentor Father’s Friends and Family Network

Spouses and children of men who pledge to a three-year term of being a Mentor Father are also making a significant commitment to the ministry and are sharing dad with a fatherless boy. They learn about the needs of others, about the core societal problem that challenges stability in our communities, and are directly involved in the Fathers in the Field outreach. Families may have the fatherless boy over to their home for social events and attend church together. Mentor Fathers’ family gain admiration and respect for him as his compassion for others is not limited to those of blood relationship. Sometimes the fatherless boy and Mentor Father continue their relationship after the ministry term completion, and he becomes an extended family member.

Community Outreach

Mentor Fathers and their Field Buddy share time together in and outside of church. They share fellowship out in the field and in the community doing everyday activities, as well as special events and service programs. When Mentor Fathers enthusiastically share with others about their ministry participation, they’re raising awareness of the plights of the fatherless and can inspire others to selflessly serve others.

Mentor Fathers Can Impact the Nation

The participation of Mentor Fathers is particularly important because it bucks a disturbing trend. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, volunteering in America is in a ten-year decline, year after year^{. (1)} Some suggest this is attributed to a paradigm shift in people living and “connecting” online. Others reason that insufficient resourcing of the nonprofit sector depletes the capacity to effectively engage volunteers. Another explanation is more convicting; That generation after generation we are seeing less volunteerism because we’ve failed to teach the next generations to volunteer and we are growing more insular in our worldview. The church must be an antidote to this moral threat by hosting ministry efforts like Fathers in the Field that provide an outlet for volunteerism in the congregation and community.

⁽¹⁾ https://www.bls.gov/news.release/volun.htm

Listening to the heart of God

We believe in one God, Creator and Lord of the Universe, the co-eternal Trinity; Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
We believe that Jesus Christ, God’s Son, was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, lived a sinless life, died a substitutionary atoning death on the cross, rose bodily from the dead and ascended to heaven where, as truly God and indeed man, He is the only mediator between God and man.
We believe that the Bible is God’s authoritative and inspired Word. It is without error in all its teachings, including creation, history, its own origins, and salvation. Christians must submit to its divine authority, both individually and corporately, in all matters of belief and conduct, which is demonstrated by authentic righteous living.
We believe that all people are lost sinners and cannot see the Kingdom of God except through the new birth. Justification is by grace through faith in Christ alone.
We believe in one holy, universal, and apostolic Church. Its calling is to worship God and witness concerning its Head, Jesus Christ, preaching the Gospel among all nations and demonstrating its commitment by compassionate service to the needs of human beings and promoting righteousness and justice.
We believe in the necessity of the work of the Holy Spirit for the individual’s new birth and growth to maturity, and for the Church’s constant renewal in truth, wisdom, faith, holiness, love, power, and mission.
We believe in the bodily resurrection of both the just and unjust. The unjust to judgment and eternal conscious punishment in Hell. The just to eternal blessedness in the presence of Him who sits on the throne and of the Lamb.
We believe that Jesus Christ will personally and visibly return in glory to raise the dead and bring salvation and judgment to completion. God will fully manifest His kingdom when He establishes a new heaven and new earth, in which He will be glorified forever and exclude all evil, suffering, and death.

Missional Biblical Distinctives

Fatherlessness actively subverts God’s plan for humanity because men are uniquely designed by God to be the Pastor, Provider, and Protector of the family.

Men lead the family, the little Church, into a correct understanding of God and salvation through Christ. God designed them to stand firm for the Gospel of Christ and to lovingly lead their wives and children in the ways of the Lord.
It is their responsibility to provide for the bodily and spiritual needs of the family.
Their presence gives security and sanctuary to the home, providing a place of safety.

Fatherlessness strikes at the heart of the Gospel (Isaiah 1:17: James 1:27), the position of Jesus within the Church (Ephesians 5:22-33), and the image of the divine and God-ordained family structure (Genesis 2:18, 20-26). Children are gifts from God that a father and a mother are privileged to raise.

The Local Church

God’s design is that every Believer is part of the Church through participation in a local Church. The local Church serves as the primary environment for experiencing the Biblical community and carrying out the mission He has given us.

The local church is a family of families. (1 Corinthians 12:20-26; Ephesians 2:19, 4:11-14; 1 Timothy 3:5; Titus 2:1-8; Hebrews 10:23-24).
The vehicle for reaching our community, our nation, as well as the world, with the Gospel as shown in Scripture is through the multiplication of local churches. (Matthew 16:13-18, 28:18-20; Acts 1:8, 2:41-43, 8:1-3, 11:22-26, 13:1-3, 14:21-28, 15:2-4, 22-36, 18:22, 20:17, 28,32,21:18-19; Philippians 1:27; 2:12-16).
We believe in the autonomy of each local Church under the headship of Christ to decide and govern its affairs, and this applies when the Pastor / Church decides and agrees to implement the Fathers in the Field Ministry.

Complementary Design and Purpose of Men and Women

God created men and women as equal image-bearers of God, yet with differing but complementary roles that are to be celebrated. Because of the sinfulness of mankind, God’s design has been perverted throughout history. The Church should be a place where the wonder of His plan is put on full display. God’s design is articulated in the second chapter of Genesis before the fall. This passage is used to support all other references to the roles of men and women in the family and the Church, indicating that these roles were pre-Fall and, therefore, not cultural or time-sensitive.

God has created men and women wonderfully different as complements, of equal value, and with differing functions for the good of all mankind. (Genesis 2:7-25; 1 Corinthians 11:1-16; Ephesians 5:21-23; 1 Timothy 2:2-15; Galatians 3:23-29; 1 Peter 3:1-6).
This distinct and complementary design is seen fundamentally in the marriage relationship where the husband is called to sacrificial leadership as head of the home, as the wife is graciously called to follow her husband’s leadership. (Genesis 2:7-25; 3:1-19; 1 Corinthians 11;1-16; 14;34-35; Ephesians 5:21-33; Colossians 3:18-19; Titus 2:4-5; 1 Peter 3:1-7)
God’s perfect design is to be also modeled in the Church Body dynamic. Some governing and teaching roles within the Church are restricted to men (1 Corinthians 11:2-16; 1 Timothy 2:11-15). According to these and other verses, the Pastor/Shephard/Elder is the exclusive role of a man within the Church.

Sinful culture is out to destroy and warp these beautiful and divinely created Biblical institutions. When they are removed or dismissed, all people suffer the effects.

Fathers in the Field is committed to upholding our Heavenly Father’s Truths by combating our sinful culture and holding firm to the Gospel.

We pray we can battle for the fatherless alongside you in our mission to bring Christ glory. We strive daily, in our reach and rescue mission, to become a Voice for the orphan and widows of our time, in their distress and pleas for help.

Elders, Deacons, and Church Administration

The local church is a family and a team. Leadership within the church has an important role in the execution of the Fathers in the Field ministry. Not only do they coordinate resources, but they carry forward the heart connection and commitment of the pastor. Elders, Deacons, and other administrative staff help manage the efforts of the Church Champion, the men’s and women’s groups, and serve as a liaison with the community to identify service projects and potential participant families.

A Front Row Seat to the Holy Spirit’s Work

To effectively launch Father in the Field at their church, Church Elders and Deacons are educated on the issues surrounding the broken families in their communities. They become connectors with men and women in the church who are available to serve. They get a front row seat to the life-changing work of the Holy Spirit that is accomplished with fatherless boys and are themselves encouraged and inspired. Friends and family of church leadership also become more aware of and sensitive to the needs of broken families and cast a wider net of outreach in the community.

Mobilizing the Local Church

Local churches have the challenge and responsibility of shepherding limited resources. By adopting a fully-developed ministry like Fathers in the Field, Elders and Deacons secure for the church a practical blueprint for impacting single mothers and fatherless boys. Additionally, they bless widows and the elderly through service projects offered by Mentor Father and his Field Buddy. Not only does church leadership then become advocates for fatherless boys, but they help promote the importance and purpose of the local church to the community it serves.

Fathers in Field trains and equips Elders and Deacon to mobilize the church and the church body to go out into the community and intentionally engage the broken family.

Church Elders and Deacons are part of national networks of Christian leaders who work together to make the Church a more effective entity in bringing our nation’s people to the Lord. They help their local church meet basic human needs. They look to use new tools and ministry models as they come available. And, as leaders of the local expression of the body of Christ, church leadership are faced with emerging social trends that threaten to separate us from the Lord and weaken our country. Fathers in the Field provides these faithful leaders with an exciting platform to match opportunity with capacity and need with compassionate service.

Providing a Turn-Key Solution for Ministry to the Fatherless

Fathers in the Field seeks to reach, connect, empower, and support fatherless boys because they are dysfunctional and not yet reaching their full God-given potential. The same can be said of the Church in America. As a non-para-church ministry, our role is to equip the local church to call upon godly men to mentor the fatherless in their own community.

Sadly, local churches are not always the healthiest of organizations. Though full of Christ-following and well-intended people, our sinful nature can sap a church’s spiritual power with unbecoming internal politics, struggles over resources, conflicting vision, and theological struggles. These distractions can erode a church’s ability to clearly recognize and mobilize to meet the needs of those within their reach. This is one reason many churches fail to have a specific ministry to the fatherless. Another reason is they lack a clear methodology to recruit, train, and activate Mentor Father volunteers in their church with fatherless boys. By providing a turn-key ministry and helping the local church to communicate the scope of the needs of the broken family to the church body, Fathers in the Field empowers the local church to be more effective and obedient to the Lord’s command:

“Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed. Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow.”
– Isaiah 1:17 (NIV)

Reaching the Unchurched in Their Community

A primary function of the local church is to impact the whole community – both its members and others. Fathers in the Field provides the local church a bridge to fatherless boys and broken families who are unchurched and draw them to the sheepfold.

Local churches have a tremendous influence on one another and contribute to important movements of the Church. To manage limited resources, local churches often follow one another in who and how they approach service missions, such as sending missionaries overseas to preach the gospel or coordinating with local food banks. All good works, but this approach can meet some ongoing needs and leave important others, such as healing the heart wounds of fatherless boys, underserved or unmet.

Fathers in the Field helps the local church expand its outreach horizon while focusing on a critical need – the broken family – right here at home. That’s why we thematically call our ministry Mission Home Front. The local church can lend its voice to the Great American Rescue Mission™ – a national narrative that identifies the Christian mentorship of fatherless boys as being a lynchpin to the health and success of future families and our nation.

“But someone will say, ‘You have faith; I have deeds.’ Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds.”
– James 2:18 (NIV)

Advocacy: A National Voice For The Fatherless

“The most dangerous societal issue in America is the ever-increasing epidemic of fatherless boys. And if godly men won’t invest in their lives… who will?”
– John Smithbaker

Advocacy

Since its inception, the Fathers in the Field message has been shared with millions through exceptional national and local media attention.

Exposure on national broadcasting networks: The Outdoor Channel, Trinity Broadcasting Network, Focus on the Family, Salem Radio Network, Family Talk, USA Radio Network, American Family Radio, Associated Press Radio, United News and Information, and others.
Coverage in national magazines: Time, New Man, Real Hunting, On Target, Significant Living, Peaks and Plains, World Magazine, and ByFaith.
National ministry growth and expansion into more than 30 states.
National recognition and awards affirming the effectiveness of the Fathers in the Field mission.

Not only is John Smithbaker the ministry’s founder, but he is a living example of overcoming the wounds of fatherlessness through a combination of forgiving his earthly father and acceptance of the grace and love of the Heavenly Father. Today, John carries the burning torch of truth and conviction to Americans both inside and outside the Church.

Education

Educating the public about the nature of this crisis will begin a conversation that can inspire action and begin a national movement. John and Fathers in the Field are stepping up to the next level of activism and faithful service. In the coming years, Fathers in the Field will set out to ignite a fire of righteous indignation through advocacy on a national scale for the plight of America’s fatherless boys.

Using digital and social communication platforms, the press and major media outlets, partnerships with churches and Christian organizations, and collaborations with compassionate relief organizations, Fathers in the Field will increase the awareness of millions of Americans to this fundamental epidemic that erodes national and spiritual health. With its growing family of participants, volunteers, and supporters, the ministry will equip hundreds more churches to become to be the hands and feet of Jesus for fatherless boys and their broken families.

Fathers in the Field provides an exciting and significant opportunity for supporters and charitable foundations to fuel this critical mission work. Our plan and prayer is to raise and place at least one missionary in every state.

Resources invested wisely to commission missionaries, for ministry operations, to empower and sharpen the church through its community impacting outreach, and to educate, advocate, and motivate a national movement in support of the fatherless.

The Epidemic of Fatherlessness

Fatherlessness is an epidemic in America that has a direct influence on an overwhelming majority of societal problems.

The statistics are irrefutable and chilling. Prisons, hospitals, social services and welfare offices, rehabs, unemployment offices, and the streets are full of men who were abandoned by their earthly father. Increasingly, rehabilitation organizations have not been able to keep up with growing demand. Jails are overflowing, spilling mentally and socially ill boy-men back into society.

Addressing the Source, Not Just the Symptom of the Problem

Welfare systems are overloaded and burdened by adults who are socially or emotionally unable to cope with life, who have failed at home, failed at work, and who are miserable and addicted. Adult dependency on handouts and welfare systems is commonplace. It is even becoming tolerable in our culture for able-bodied adults to intentionally “milk the system,” even if that includes dishonesty, cheating, moral compromise, and lawlessness.

Fatherlessness Fuels Dependence

Poverty – Children in father-absent homes are almost four times more likely to be poor.
Drug and Alcohol Abuse – There is significantly more drug use among children who do not live with their mother and father.
Physical and Emotional Health – Children of single-parent homes are more than twice as likely to commit suicide.
Educational Achievement – Children living with their married biological father tested at a significantly higher level than those living with a non-biological father.
Crime – Compared to peers in intact families, adolescents in single-parent families and stepfamilies were more likely to engage in delinquency.
Sexual Activity and Teen Pregnancy – Adolescents in father-absence homes were more likely to report being sexually active compared to adolescents living with their fathers.

* Source: National Center for Fathering

Social services and law enforcement are intended to serve the minority issues of society, the aberrant behavior and situations, not to correct a culture-wide moral decline that stems from the breakdown of the family. Our emergency response teams need help! We believe the local church plays a critical role in reaching the overflow that social services and law enforcement will never be able to effectively handle.

We must come alongside social workers, law enforcement, and the federal government to fix some of the escalating problems at the source – the broken heart of fatherless boys.

Fathers in the Field calls out culture warrior men in churches and points out the front lines in their community. Through the church, it recruits men to start speaking up and acting up for the next generation of faithful leadership-capable men in America.

The harvest is great, but the workers are few. The Bible tells us we need to start our own Jerusalem. The home front is our Jerusalem. Fathers in the Field is a Mission Home Front outreach. We see our work as being part of a national emergency response team. We must recruit, train and send warrior men – field missionaries to stand in the gap for our boys.

When God Calls You

“Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.” – 1 Corinthians 15:58 (NIV)

A career is something you choose; a calling is something you receive. A career is something you do for yourself; a calling is something you do for God. A career promises status, money, and power; a calling generally promises difficulty, suffering, and the opportunity to be used by God. A career may end with retirement and lots of toys; a calling doesn’t end until you die.

A career can be disrupted by any number of events, but God enables you to fulfill your calling even in the most difficult circumstances. For some people in Scripture obeying the call of God meant living in slavery, being captured and sent into exile, or being put to death. Their career trajectories didn’t look promising, yet they fulfilled their calling in extraordinary ways.

Chuck Colson had one of the highest profile careers in America. He had access to power and influence in the Nixon White House, yet he landed in prison. His career was over, but his calling was just beginning. He was called to reach others just like himself. He reflects: “The real legacy of my life was my biggest failure—that I was an ex-convict. My great humiliation—being sent to prison—was the beginning of God’s greatest use of my life; He chose the one experience in which I couldn’t glory [and used it] for His glory.”

In the providence of God, the end of your career can be the beginning of your calling. So whatever God has called you to do, the Bible says, “Give yourselves fully to the work…because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.”

The word vocation comes from the Latin word for “voice.” Discovering your calling involves listening very carefully. If you close your ears and pursue something you’re neither called nor equipped to do, you’ll end up living with anxiety that whispers, “You’re trying to do something God didn’t tell you to do.” The courage to acknowledge what you’re not brings great freedom; the lack of it imprisons you. Parker Palmer writes, “You cannot choose your calling; you must let your life speak.”

“What we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will reveal to us later.”
– Romans 8:18 NLT

Sometimes we view the call of God on our lives through rose-colored glasses. But hearing His call isn’t the same thing as falling into your dream career. When God called Jeremiah to preach to a people who refused to listen, he cried so much he became known as “the weeping prophet.” Our first response to a God-sized assignment is generally—fear.

Henry Blackaby writes: “Some people say, ‘God will never ask me to do something I can’t do.’ I’ve come to the place in my life that if the assignment I sense God giving me is something I know I can handle, I know it’s probably not from God. The kind of assignments God gives in the Bible are always God-sized. They’re beyond what people can do, because He wants to demonstrate His nature, His strength…and His kindness…to a watching world.” It is not a general stirring, but a clear direction.

There are two parts to one’s calling. One is the inward call that an individual receives and “believes.” The other is the external call that one receives by the verification of that call by others. There should always be a seeking of advice and counsel of others who know you well and simply won’t be a “rubber stamp” on your internal call; those who will be honest and truthful. This requires a close walk with other believers in fellowship and worship on a regular basis. Many who have entered into ministry solely based on their internal call, when it has been evident to others that that call doesn’t match their apparent gifting. But through the continuous seeking of God’s face and the counsel of others, one can hear and align both calls.

That is not to say that God doesn’t grow us into His calling and equip us as we continually and humbly submit to His refining fire. We enter our calling through our weaknesses, not our strengths; not our natural abilities, but with supernatural equipping.

Saying yes to God’s call often means putting in hours of effort when you’d rather not. And it doesn’t always reward you with the kind of recognition you’d hoped for. People may disapprove of what you’re doing and try to block you. For sure, it’ll involve trial and error and some false starts.

And natural talent alone isn’t enough to honor your calling; you’ll need ideas, strength, and creativity beyond your own resources to do what God requires of you. Paul says, “We are laborers together with God” (1Co 3:9), because in order to succeed it has to be God and you doing it together. He doesn’t just call you to work for Him; He calls you to work with Him!

And, one day we can look forward to the commendation: “Well done…good and faithful servant” that God promised to those who hear His call, accept it, and devote their lives to fulfilling it.

By Dillon Smith and with additions from Fathers in the Field Ministry

A boy without a father in the home often does not deeply understand or accept the love of his Heavenly Father. He is denied healthy modeling about how to navigate, grow in relationship, and stay true to the marital covenant. He doesn’t understand that the blessing of children is a sacred, God-given responsibility that includes being the head of household in a two-parent nuclear family. He can be influenced by a culture that has taken a cavalier attitude towards marriage. He may come to believe that marriage is unnecessary or undesirable; something wholly unhinged from fathering children. Therefore, the cycle of fatherlessness continues.

Nearing the Tipping Point

Future families then carry forward the dysfunctional and broken model, with each generation drifting further away from having firsthand examples of strong biblical marriages and Godly parenting. What comes next? The tipping point for marriage slides downhill when most marriages fail, and eventually, most boys will lack their father in the home. Friends and families will have to scramble to help raise children who lack both parents, diluting their ability to invest time and energy in their own children.

Communities across America are reeling from the impact of broken families today. The lack of stability of the family spreads like a sickness that manifests in a myriad of social ills. Increase in illegal activities, lower high school and college graduation rates, dependence on welfare and government assistance programs, an explosion of sexual and violent crimes, and an erosion of morality and ethical behavior can all be traced to the breakdown of the family. When communities become unsafe, they will be destroyed. Instead of future families being the foundation of healthy communities, they become its undoing.

Ultimately, a thriving nation is simply a connection between successful communities. When future families fail because today’s fatherless boys do not learn how to be Godly family men and parents, our nation will surely follow suit. Historically among the world’s most generous and philanthropic nation, America’s ability to help others around the world will die out when it must feed a broken family system with its every resource. Therefore, the very potential of future families and America’s long-term position of strength is directly connected to the plight of the fatherless today.

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