Looking back, it's clear that God was preparing me for Standing Men long before I knew it existed.
 
For nearly twenty years, I served in the fire service, where I experienced firsthand the power of brotherhood, leadership, shared mission, and answering the call. I served in a variety of roles, including firefighter, paramedic, instructor, company officer, and training captain. Throughout those years, I learned how strong cultures are built, how leaders are developed, and how ordinary men accomplish extraordinary things when they share a common purpose.
 
Later, as a business owner, I discovered another passion: building healthy organizations. I learned that great cultures don't happen by accident. They require intentional leadership, clear structure, effective communication, and leaders who are empowered to take ownership.
 
As my faith deepened, God began to show me that these same principles could strengthen the local church.
 
When I had the opportunity to help build a men's ministry at our church, I saw what happens when men are given clarity, brotherhood, responsibility, and a meaningful mission. Men who had simply attended church began taking ownership. Leaders emerged. Brother relationships deepened. The ministry became something the men of the church helped build, not something they simply attended.
 
As other churches began asking how we were reaching and engaging men, I realized something important. Many of the lessons we had learned weren't unique to our church. They were practical leadership principles that could be shared, adapted, and applied in churches everywhere.
 
Around the same time, while studying the history of the early Church, I came across a description that deeply impacted me. Early Christians often stood during prayer as a sign of reverence before the risen King and as a posture of readiness and obedience to His call.
 
That image stayed with me.
 
I thought, the Church needs more standing men.
 
Not men who simply attend church.
Men who stand in faith.
Men who stand in leadership.
Men who stand in service.
Men who stand together to build the Church Jesus established.
 
Standing Men was born from that conviction.
 
Today, our mission is simple: to strengthen local churches by helping them build thriving men's ministries that are owned, led, and sustained by the men of their church.
 
My hope is that every church becomes a place where men discover authentic brotherhood, embrace their God-given calling, and actively participate in building God's Kingdom.
 
Because when men stand together, the Church is strengthened.