FUQUAY, Va. –– Charlie Gray, 52, owner of Carolina Trucking Academy and president of the Raleigh District United Methodist Men, has been certified as a United Methodist men’s ministry specialist to help area churches expand their ministries to and with men in the North Carolina Annual Conference.
Gray also serves as president of UM Men of Fuquay-Varina UMC where he leads M.E.T.S. (Men Eager to Serve), a “down-and-dirty-speak-your-mind group founded upon a covenant of total confidentiality. The 1,700-member congregation has two groups of men that hold monthly breakfasts with an average attendance of 60.
Gray also facilitates DISCIPLE Bible classes and teaches an adult Sunday school class that explores contemporary issues.
Men want adventure
“Men want adventure; they want activity,” said Gray. “The days of standing in a circle holding hands and singing Kumbaya are gone.
“Men want excitement, challenge, wind in their faces; they want to fix things; they want to rescue people; and most of all they want relationships built on trusts with other men.”
The trucking academy owner has taken 15 trips to the Biloxi, Miss., area to deliver goods following Hurricane Katrina and he has raised $75,000 for relief efforts.
“Our most recent project was the building of four 880-square-foot cabins at Camp Rockfish, a UM children’s camp,” said Gray. “The men’s group at our church built the first cabin and our efforts spilled over into our Raleigh District with over 15 different churches participating in the building of the final three cabins.”
Challenge for men
“The number one problem men face today is loneliness,” said Gray. “While we think we have many friends, when the going gets tough somehow no one is there. Without strong Christian masculine fellowship, men will find solace in alcohol, drugs, porn, extramarital affairs or bury their time and life in their work.
“Our wives need strong husbands to provide leadership in the home,” he said. “Our children need strong role-model dads. Our communities need strong men of faith to hold public office and take a stand for what is right and just in our world. That is our challenge as United Methodist Men.