Men's Koinonia
If you know me well, you have likely heard me speak of the six (6) F’s that I use to structure my life.
When asked why, I often describe transitioning from a single life to being married and then having children, only to realize I had lost all control of my existence; I was simply existing, not thriving. A pursuit to recalibrate led me to this personal formula for life. The 6 F’s is how I keep things in perspective. It is how I ensure fulfillment in every field of human endeavor. The 6 F’s is a personal tool that keeps me focused on what is most important, in a specific order. They are:
Faith- my relationship with God, my maker, guiding me through life
Fitness- my relationship with myself, my body, and my mind; knowing it’s needed to achieve any task
Family- my relationship with my spouse, children, and extended family; they are my first assignment
Focus- my relationship with my God-given-purpose at the time, my calling; what I give back in gratitude
Finance- my relationship with the resource I am fortunate to manage; saving it, growing it, & passing it on
Friends/Fellowship- my relationship with the people I have been asked/or chosen to do life with.
It will be advisable to consider these in the order presented, where faith is the core, the innermost layer of an onion ring, and fellowship is the outermost. With these six guiding principles and a focus (in this season) to encourage like-minded men, Lyfe On Purpose, my not-for-profit foundation, was officially registered in 2021 (after 3-4 years of sporadically blogging with minimal structure). In 2021, a vision was given for a retreat, and on Friday, November 11, 2022, 18 other men and I checked in to a 10+ acre ranch in Springtown, Texas (about an hour west of Fort Worth). For the next 2 nights, with a peak of 21 men ranging from ages 24 to 44, we broke bread, played games, listened to one another, and learned about faith, family, and finance.
The Men’s Koinonia 2022 retreat was the inaugural retreat for like-minded men of faith to fellowship with one another. Hope you caught that faith (the foundation) leads to fellowship (the outermost layer).
On Friday night, Pastor Shegz had a session on faith, focusing on Godly men trusting in God and resting in him, for his yoke is easy and his burden light (Matthew 11:28-30).
On Saturday, a few brave men went on a 3-mile run, with the first session on Finance; a discussion ensued on the foundational principles of frugality, from income to capital, capital to enterprise, enterprise to profit, and profits to investments (credit to Victor Lofinmakin).
The second session on Saturday focused on Family and demystifying some cultural dogma most men have, especially those of African descent. Praise Fowowe spoke powerfully on engineering your family for success, where accountability across the board includes oneself.
Golf, chess, fishing, and napping were permitted for the Saturday afternoon session, with an end-of-day wrap-up to watch Black Panther 2 (as a group), which premiered the same weekend.
A survey of all men in attendance showed that 100% intend to return for the next “Men’s Koinonia”, tentatively scheduled for the Labor Day weekend in 2023.
FYI, google describes Koinonia as a Christian fellowship or body of believers. Here is the takeaway, like-minded men of faith should actively do life together in fellowship. Find your circle/fellowship; you are certainly welcome to join ours.
PS- Share this post with men in your circle that you believe could benefit from a fellowship of brothers seeking fulfillment in all areas of life.
Best wishes,
L.B.