I’m Just a Guy: Who’s Overwhelmedનમૂનો

Strength in Community

I’ve experienced firsthand that isolation is the enemy of excellence.

The surprising part is that some of the deepest isolation I’ve felt happened inside the church. Looking back, I can see clearly why: the enemy loves to target the body of Christ. What better place for him to sow division and invisibility? At the time, it made no sense. I was regularly attending, teaching in several areas, even serving as a Deacon—yet I felt unseen, as if I didn’t matter.

Something had to shift. Acting on a nudge from the Lord (which, by the way, is always the best advice to follow), I decided to reach out to a few guys and start a small discipleship group. We kept it to about ten men, but really just a handful showed up consistently.

And God did something special in that little circle. A few of us had walked through the grief of losing a child. Others were carrying the scars of failed marriages. There was plenty of pain and anger in the room. But as we leaned in and began to truly share and care for one another, something remarkable happened: we found genuine love and compassion—something I had never fully experienced sitting in a pew.

If you’ve never felt that kind of brotherhood, it’s hard to describe. Too often, “men’s groups” stay at the surface—more like fellowship clubs than discipleship communities. Don’t get me wrong, I like a sausage biscuit as much as the next guy, but biscuits don’t sharpen iron.

Discipleship requires a deeper level of vulnerability. It means admitting struggles most men would rather hide: confessing you’ve been looking at content that dishonors your wife, acknowledging that your financial habits reveal worship of self, or laying bare the areas of your life that make you squirm. It’s about looking honestly in the mirror and offering an unfiltered report of your heart to trusted brothers in Christ.

Sound intimidating? Absolutely. And that’s why many men bail out. But if you pursue these kinds of relationships, I promise they will encourage you and strengthen your faith more than a thousand surface-level conversations ever could.

It takes vulnerability. It takes authenticity. It takes intentionality. If you don’t have this kind of community in your life, don’t settle for playing the victim. Start small. Take initiative. Be the kind of man others want to lock arms with. And then watch how God shows up and shows off when His sons choose to lean in, carry each other’s burdens, and discover true strength in community.

Reflection Questions:

1. How are you carrying burdens alone that should be shared?
2. Who can you invite into authentic discipleship with you today?