We train men who know they were created to leave a legacy, and they’re not backing down from that mandate. The statistics are overwhelming: Northwest Arkansas has one of the highest divorce rates in the country, which leads to broken families, broken homes, and extremely difficult circumstances for the children.
At Sharpening Ministries, we know that families were created for more. We know that men, touched by the Gospel in a significant way, can leave a different legacy. A legacy of faith, discipleship, and love for Jesus.
So that’s what we do. We work like the Apostle Paul. We’ll do everything we can to help the men of Northwest Arkansas become mature in their faith — living out their relationship with Christ in every area of their lives.
We want to see men locking shields to advance God’s Kingdom. Men who won’t quit on one another when life gets hard. Men who will pull us up and call us to be better men.
We want to see men living in obedience to God and reflecting His love to others. Men who love their wives, their families, and their co-workers. People who will go the extra mile to care for the hurting.
We want to see men rejecting passivity, accepting responsibility, living courageously, and investing eternally. Men who make a difference in the world through their leadership. Men who aren’t scared to be who God has created them to be.
We want to see men move from “activity” to “productivity.” Men who make a difference in the world through their leadership. Men who aren’t scared to be who God has created them to be.
We are looking for Christ followers who have the heart, vision and know-how who will intentionally seek out the lost, wandering, and disenfranchised man.
You can read more about it in our outlined strategy, but we believe the best way to reach someone far from Christ is to teach faithful followers of Christ how to reach them.
We believe these faithful followers of Christ are the ones who have the heart to follow God, the vision to reach the world, and the know-how (or the desire to have the know-how) to be a skilled master builder.
And we believe in being a space that men who are lost, wandering, and disenfranchised men can come back to God or come to God for the very first time.
It’s okay to have questions and it’s okay to push back on some of the ways the church and God are portrayed in the world. If you feel out of place in the church because of your questions and concerns, we want to talk.
We want to see men walk with God for a lifetime and we equip them to follow Jesus and mobilize them to reproduce Christ… but how do we do it?
We start by helping believers know and embrace who they are.
First, we help them understand what it means to be a disciple of Jesus. As a disciple of Jesus we are also called His ambassador or representative. (2 Corinthians 5:17-21)
Next, we help believers understand that they are 100% responsible for helping accomplish the Great Commission. God has given us the ministry of reconciliation. Meaning, Jesus reconciled us to Himself, now we have the responsibility of teaching others how to be reconciled to Him as well.
This is the message of the Gospel and we spend a lot of time helping people catch the vision of being responsible for reaching the world.
Finally, we don’t just stop at knowing these things. We help believers understand they are responsible for actually teaching, modeling, and training other Christ followers to do the things they’ve learned above.
The entire time we’re teaching them how to actually do this.
There is one living, sovereign God who exist eternally in and through the Trinity: God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. (See Rev. 1:8; Is. 43:10-11; Deut. 6:4)
Jesus was sent by God the Father to live on the earth. He was both fully God and Fully man and yet without sin. (See Luke 1:31-35; 1 Cor. 15:3; 2 Cor. 5:21)
The Holy Spirit was sent by God after Jesus ascended to heaven to minister and empower the Christ follower and to convict the world of their sin. He lives in every believer as the Helper, Teacher, and Guide. (See John 14:16-17)
God created mankind in His image. (See Gen. 1:26-27; Gen. 5:1-2)
All people are sinners and need God's forgiveness. (Rom. 3:23; Rom. 6:23)
Those people who confess and repent from their sin, put their trust in Jesus as their Lord and Savior will be saved by grace through faith and become children of God, with the promise of eternal life. (See John 3:16; Gal. 3:26)
Jesus Christ is the head of the Church, and all believers are members of His Church. (See Eph. 4:15-16)
The Bible is the inspired Word of God and is the supreme authority in all matters of faith and conduct. (See 2 Tim. 3:16-17)
Jesus will return and there will be a final judgment. (See Matthew 24: 44)
I remember the moment everything changed in me. I was sitting with a group of men around a table when the idea for Men Sharpening Men took root. These men, who were and still are my closest friends in the world said to me, “Larry, go start this. We believe in you and we’ll support you.”
I’ll never forget those early days. Raising support, discipling men, seeing life change.
By God’s grace that work has continued for nearly two decades and we’re still going strong today. Men who were discipled in those early days are now leaders and ambassadors in God’s Kingdom all throughout the world.
Alongside most men is a great woman who loves God and others extremely well. Gwen and I met in college and were married in 1986. A true gift from God Himself. He blessed us with three great kids and now four grandkids. It took me a minute to get my brain around someone calling me Poppaw, but I love it now.
I started out as a P.E. major at the University of Arkansas, worked at Christian athletic camp named Kanakuk Kamps in the summer months, and then ended up being a youth pastor for two different churches.
Then God "repositioned" me into the world of medical sales as a sales consultant. He did that to build confidence, courage, and show me I had credibility. I ended up working in surgery sales over the next several years for orthopedic surgeons, general surgeons, cardiologists and neurosurgeons.
While working and living in Columbia, MO. I met a man named Larry Glabe. Larry worked for the Navigators, a ministry that focused on discipling business and professionals.
For the first time in my life someone took me under their wing and trained me to Know Christ deeply, Reflect Christ authentically, Share Christ faithfully and Reproduce Christ intentionally. He basically said, “Come follow me as I follow Jesus.” He modeled and taught me what it looked like to engage my faith, be an effective husband and a strategic dad. All the while he showed me the reason I was still breathing — to advance the Gospel message by faithfully sharing Jesus with people who don’t know Him.
Over a decade ago, I started a non-profit called Men Sharpening Men, which has become Sharpening Ministries. The ministry focused on equipping and training men to be effective in the critical roles they have as entrusted leaders in both their personal and professional lives. One statement I’ll make often is, “Our compromise today will set the next generation’s standards.” It’s this thought that drives me to me come alongside others to equip them to live with intentionally a life by design and not by default.
If you’re a man in Northwest Arkansas and you want to connect to a men’s ministry, please email me. Men need marriage help, career help, and help in their relationships with Christ. I want to come alongside you and help you be a standard bearer for the generation following you.
Sharpening Ministries hosts events, groups, and training workshops to help you get connected, inspired, and equipped for your life's work: serving the Lord in every aspect of your life. If you're not sure where to start, just reach out to us!
Our annual events include conferenes such as the 4G Summit, which focuses on disciplemaking, and What I Wish I Knew (WIWIK), where you can learn from older generations who have wisdom to share.
These 6-week training events are designed to prepare you to be intentional husbands and strategic dads, offering guidance for shepherding your marriage and family.
Our disciplemaking groups operate under Man U, which provides content for the Christian walk — from the moment of salvation to reproducing disciples. Our groups meet across Northwest Arkansas.
Our business leadership groups and training events are designed to help professionals from managers to the C-suite discover how to be godly leaders and stewards in the workplace.