Joshua’s Men – Developing Future Leaders

In January 2026 Joshua’s Men will begin its 39^th year—a journey that began with God’s call and has shaped generations of leaders.

The Story:

In a distinct and memorable moment in the Fall of 1986, God called me to raise up new and emerging leaders in a way I had never done before.

In 1987, I launched the pilot group of seven men, with no idea that nearly forty years later, hundreds of churches and thousands of men would have participated in the program. Today, hundreds of churches continue to lead Joshua’s Men Groups, carrying forward what God began.

It’s a blessing to be part of something God has chosen to place His favor upon–and continues to bless. My part was small. I simply said yes to God when He prompted me to start the first group. (It is always good to say yes to God.)

There’s nothing new under the sun, but God stirred a spark within me, a calling shared by many of you, to develop next generation leaders. At the time, I was serving on staff at Skyline Church in San Diego under Pastor John Maxwell. He was already doing remarkable work in developing the leaders who were then serving, while also mentoring me to raise up others.

Thanks to the generosity of 12Stone Church, the complete updated curriculum for Joshua’s Men is available to you at no cost. You can access the full curriculum and coaching notes for those who lead the groups here.

You will find all the depth and detail needed in the material but let me offer you a brief overview here.

The Big Idea:

When your church’s vision is so big and bold that it’s impossible to accomplish alone or without God, raising up more and stronger leaders becomes essential.

The Bible is full of stories about leaders, (good and bad.) I’m currently reading through I & II Kings, and there are good kings and bad kings throughout. When God gives a vision, we need Godly leaders to carry it out.

Without more leaders, leaders who love God and lead effectively, you’ll never fully reach your vision or fulfill the God-given potential of your church.

Joshua’s Men is an intensive one-year leadership development resource. It’s a transformational process that results in more and stronger leaders in your church. You can access this free resource here.

The vision is simple and clear – to invest in and develop more spiritual leaders of strong character.

The Nature of the Process:

For decades now, churches have chosen to use Joshua’s Men to develop both new and potential leaders, and those who are currently leading.

Even though the material is biblically based and deepens each person’s spiritual walk, it’s not solely a discipleship group, it is a process to develop spiritual leaders.

It includes a wide variety of topics and projects such as a three day fast in January to various elements of understanding what servant leadership is truly about from marriage to money. Joshua’s Men is a well-rounded growth plan for leaders.

The practice of developing leaders is not one of “let’s get a big crowd.” It’s not like a church service where we pray to see every chair filled, or a vision to see every soul saved. Leaders are prayerfully selected one at a time.

Jesus demonstrated a selection process when He chose the twelve. Select a small group of men who are hungry and have obvious potential. If you serve in a large church, maybe begin with two or three groups — but start small. Most churches start with one group.

Selecting and developing new leaders is not a “let’s get a big crowd” process. It is prayerful, personal, and deliberate. It takes time and requires intentional investment.

The Practical Elements:

Here are a few of the practical elements, there is much more in the curriculum.

• Each group meets once a month for four hours and engages a different topic each month, each with a leadership bias. Topics such as spiritual life, communication, your personal life purpose and marriage and family.
• There is a different book each month, practical projects, study guides and how the prayer partner system works. 
• There are two retreats – January and June. In those two months the retreat takes the place of the regular meeting. 
  
  The retreat in January is highly relational and focuses on foundational principles of leadership.
  
  The communication retreat in June is always a highlight! Each man delivers an 18-minute sermon, and they are encouraged and coached by the rest of the group! It’s a fantastic experience.
  
  All leaders must learn to communicate better, and what better way than to practice than by communicating God’s Word. The men can translate those skills into business and ministry as well.
• Joshua’s Men is designed for married men, ideally ages 25-40. However, that’s a guideline not a hard and fast rule.

• You can start a Joshua’s Men group any month you like, but I recommend January. If you plan to lead a group in January, begin now by thinking about who you would invite and try to have the group selected by Thanksgiving. Then have your kick-off retreat in January.

• The “feel” of each meeting is highly relational, including both care and challenge, and follows the prompts of the Holy Spirit. Meaning, the material is very important, but the goal isn’t to fill in every blank and answer every question in the study guides. The objective is to find where the group is and where God wants to take them.

Great leadership development is practical, intentional, purposeful, measurable, and the investment is always for the good of the person and the organization.

I highly encourage you to review all the material before you select and invite even the first guy.

I wish we had time to sit down over a cup of coffee so I could tell you stories about the guys I know who have gone through “J-Men”. There is so much life change!

The bottom-line requirement for Kingdom-based life change is intentional investment. Investment that yields eternal results.

And equally as encouraging, are stories about the men who lead groups, across the country and in other countries. Whenever you connect a catalytic leader, with a group of hungry guys (men who have potential and want to be there), and add the presence and power of the Holy Spirit to the mix, I’ve never seen it not work. Lives are changed for good!

One of my favorite things is hearing the stories wives share about how their husbands have changed as leaders in their home, at work and in the church!

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I want to give a heartfelt shout-out to the group leaders of Joshua’s Men at 12Stone Church. You are shaping eternal history, one life at a time. (Includes current and former leaders.)

Steve Poe, Corey Baker, David McNeill, Mike Mauk, Jason Bonds, Robert Mallon, Brandon McClain, Pastor Trey Hildebrant, Pastor Jason Berry and Pastor Mark Eiken–(Director). And formerly on staff: Pastor Kevin Queen and Pastor Matt Piland.

Thank you!!