Pat Morley and Man in the Mirror
ministry are celebrating their 25th anniversary this year. They are
to be congratulated for outstanding contributions to the lives of many
people—including me—and for advancing the kingdom of God.
I’ve known and admired
Pat since the late 1970s when he was an up-and-coming real estate mogul in
Central Florida. He was well on his way to making his Morley Properties as big
as Trammel Crowe in Dallas, which was his goal.
Pat was always known as
a strong Christian. He even started a prayer breakfast in Winter Park, Fla.,
where Charisma began. It has changed and flourished and influenced many.
Pat was among those who persuaded Campus Crusade and other major evangelical
ministries to relocate their headquarters to Central Florida.
But he was also
interested in discipling men. So in March 1986, several years before anyone
heard of Promise Keepers, he started a men’s Bible study that met every Friday
and called it TGIF. In 25 years it has impacted thousands of men—some of who
testified at a nice anniversary banquet last week that my wife and I and some
friends attended.
The material from the
group prompted Pat to write his first and best-known book Man in the Mirror.
Back then he gave an advance copy to some Christian leaders, including me. He
asked me to read it. I could see it was a powerful book and gave him a strong
endorsement. Later I attended a big book-launch reception at one of his steel
and glass office buildings in a prestigious office complex. I had no idea it
would sell 3.25 million books and spawn a ministry that would have as its
mission: “Saving Families and Transforming Lives by Helping Every Church Disciple
Every Man.”
Praise
God for what Man in the Mirror has done in 2-1/2 decades. It has:
- Distributed more than 9 million books worldwide
- Ministered to more than 125,000 men who have attended
events over the years
- Shared the weekly Bible study with more than 10,000
around the world through Web streaming and provided online resources that have
been downloaded more than 700,000 times
- Provided more than 700 free resources for leaders on maninthemirror.org
- Trained more than 10,000 leaders in 3,000 churches
- Partnered with nearly every major denomination
- Provided leadership to the overall men’s movement by
founding the National Coalition of Ministries to Men, which in my opinion
brought stability and encouragement during a decade when Promise Keepers’
decline created questions about the future of men’s ministries
I could go on, but you
can find out more about Man in the Mirror and even support the cause if you
want to by clicking here.
At the fund-raising
banquet, author Bruce Wilkinson said that Man in the Mirror has a “kairos
moment” to grow its ministry exponentially. He challenged Pat, the board and
President David Delk to believe God for 330 men to work through Man in the
Mirror to take the message of discipling every man to every congregation in
America.
On a personal note, I
have gotten to know Pat well by being in a small group of executives with him
for several years. I’ve been to his home; he’s been to mine. When I was a young
Christian businessman he served as a role model at a critical time in my life.
I have appreciated his heart for God and the consistency of his life. I praise
God for all he’s accomplished.
Only eternity will know
the extent of all he’s accomplished through his life and ministry. And it’s
much more than just building a real estate empire.
Stephen Strang 
