Tips & Resources
God uses healthy relationships between men to provide healing and to initiate positive changes in the world. When a man is alone, he’s vulnerable—when he’s part of a band of brothers, he gains spiritual strength, confidence and success.
All of our K21 materials are created to help men build a support team that they can rely on in the future. Each of our books and DVD study programs include discussion questions after each lesson or chapter. We use the word campfire to describe this small group discussion time. During this time, men can personalize and apply information they gained from a lesson as they encourage each other to talk about their thoughts or topics that challenge them. Campfire discussions encourage men to verbalize and clarify their goals and provide the encouragement they need to make positive changes in their life.
Men need God in order to improve themselves in significant, life-changing ways. God uses campfire members as His representatives who support and encourage each other in this transforming experience.
Campfire discussions should aim to accomplish the following:
- Reduce a man’s sense of loneliness—as he spends time with other men, he’ll recognize that many of his thoughts and feelings are similar to what others experience.
- Provide opportunities for men to initiate their own personal growth by contributing positively to the lives of others—through giving, listening and serving.
- Inspire men through demonstrating the reality that it is possible for them to change and that past struggles or failures don’t have to lead to defeat.
- Teach men about their God-given design and how to apply God’s Word to their life.
- Encourage men to redefine and resolve the past experiences that previously limited their manhood.
- Support men—their choice to isolate themselves from others will be challenged as they learn to practice interpersonal skills.
- Show men how to learn from the example of others who experience life differently.
- Create a sense of belonging as, together, men work toward a purpose beyond what each of them can accomplish individually.
- Challenge men to integrate God’s principles and power into their lives by developing accountability relationships.
- Help men relax—the stress of life can be relieved through laughter, fun, talking about concerns, feeling the support of others and a growing sense of trust.
- Provide feedback as men talk about their plans and start to understand each other’s personalities, tendencies and challenges.
- Reveal a man’s limitations and the changes he needs to make in order to better reflect God’s purpose for his life.
Click the buttons below to view or download the following leadership guides:
The campfire experience of a K21 gathering is the most important personal growth element of any manhood journey. This guide will help you and your leadership team guide your men to a successful and growth-producing campfire experience.
Use this pamphlet as a guideline for your Campfire meetings. Its “10 Sparks of a Campfire” will help each man in your group experience the support, attention and growth he needs.
1. Each campfire group should consist of 6 to 8 men.
2. If your group draws from a large geographical area, consider putting men together who live in a similar location.
3. There are advantages and disadvantages to having both similarity and diversity among the participants of any group process. Decide whether or not you want to group men by age or stage of life (e.g., married, unmarried, age of children) so that the men can better relate to each other.
4. Appoint a group facilitator. Good group facilitators are essential to sustaining strong campfire groups. A good group facilitator:
- Follows the Facilitator Guide provided with the Squire material.
- Encourages the men in his group.
- Creates a group experience that causes each man to want to come back each week and encourages new members to join.
- Is a team player.
- Is energetic, fun to be with and focused on the success of others.
- Creates a safe environment where everyone is comfortable sharing their thoughts and feelings.
- Believes in Jesus Christ and is led by the Spirit of God to love and lead the men in his group well.
- Meets periodically with other group facilitators to discuss ideas and talk about the campfire process.
- Makes sure his group consists of both spiritually strong and spiritually weak men who can learn from each other.
- If assigned to lead younger participants, must be able to understand their perspective and guide their youthful energy.
- Makes an effort to get to know every member of his group. He does everything he can to help the men in his group bond with each other and develop lasting friendships.
This group promise can be read by different group members each week at the start of the group, or once before your very first Campfire meeting. It orients the men to the hard work of opening up to each other.
We gather this day, as men committed to strengthening each other’s manhood. We agree to set aside life’s many distractions, as well as our own avoidance of the hard work that personal growth demands. We will discuss the material that is presented and openly share our manhood journey. We will answer honestly, listen intently and challenge each other when necessary. Each of us will work to apply the ideas that are found in each lesson. Individually, we will decide where we should or should not change. One man’s needs will not dominate, as each person is provided specific encouragement. We will respect our individual differences, especially in the area of faith, and never pressure someone to share beyond their level of comfort. We will assist each other’s faithfulness to their manhood journey by sharing our Knighthood Plans; we will graduate together and leave no man behind. Our awareness of the sacredness of this moment will help us as we consider God’s voice throughout this process and attempt to represent God’s presence in other men’s lives. Let the joy and laughter found in these moments of our brotherhood journey refresh our busy lives, deepen our self-understanding and positively influence our relationships.
Let this campfire begin!
New Commandment Men’s Ministries: https://newcommandment.org/.
Why Men Need to Talk
4:00 | “Men will be most effective in life when they build strong relationships with other men who will hold them accountable and encourage them not to walk alone.” Dr. Roy Smith (author & founder of K21), Keith Walker (K21 presenter) and other strong men’s leaders gather around a campfire to talk about the dangers of isolation and how we can fight against it.
Video Resources
Setting Up Campfire Groups
11:00 | After viewing each K21 lesson, we encourage groups to break out into smaller groups of 6 to 8 men to discuss the lesson and life in general. Dr. Roy Smith talks about the importance of these Campfires, how to facilitate them and the ways they benefit relationships between men.
Building Your Manhood Team
6:10 | Life isn’t easy. Through its trials and challenges, we need encouragement and support. At K21, our goal is to create programs that build strong, supportive relationships between men. In this video, Dr. Roy Smith exemplifies the importance of these relationships.