Men, The Ascent begins September 14. This is our next 40-day challenge, and we are going up the mountain with Jesus. For 40 days, we are walking through the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus’ clearest teaching on what life in the Kingdom actually looks like. This is not just another Bible study. This is formation. Jesus steps onto the mountain and confronts everything we chase, fear, worship, hide, and call strength. He flips our view of the Kingdom upside down. Blessed are the poor in spirit. Blessed are the meek. Blessed are the merciful. Blessed are the pure in heart. Love your enemies. Pray in secret. Fast without performing. Do not store up treasures on earth. Do not be anxious. Seek first the Kingdom. That is the road we are walking for The Ascent. And we are not meant to walk it alone. So here is the charge: Start building your fire team now. Who are the two to four men you know, like, and trust? Who are your ride or dies? Who are the men you want beside you as you follow Jesus? Who are the men you are willing to open Scripture with, pray with, tell the truth with, and surrender with? Start there. Forge Tribe is not trying to administratively manufacture brotherhood. We are not saying, “Come join our friend group.” The invitation is not just to enter our brotherhood. The invitation is to bring the gospel into yours. If The Crucible meant something to you, do not just consume what God gave you. Steward it. Invite somebody. And do not just invite men who will participate. Invite men who will invite men. Invite men who can gather their own two to four guys and bring the gospel into their brotherhood too. That is the heart of this. 2 Corinthians says, “For the love of Christ controls us.” It says we are ambassadors for Christ, God making His appeal through us. That is not abstract. That is not just for pastors or missionaries. That is your actual life. Your friends. Your brothers. Your roommates. Your coworkers. Your unit. Your golf group. The men God has already placed near you.

We had a strong first session with Dr. Dave Ruth this morning. The conversation centered on biblical forgiveness, the danger of passivity, and the difference between simply avoiding pain and actually dealing with it before God. A few of the biggest takeaways: Forgiveness is not pretending the hurt did not happen. It is refusing to let that hurt continue to control your heart. Passivity can look like strength. Ignoring conflict, compartmentalizing pain, or convincing ourselves we have “moved on” may actually be a way of avoiding what God is asking us to face. Biblical strength is not hardness or control. It is power submitted to God. We also spent time clarifying the difference between forgiveness and reconciliation. Forgiveness can begin in your own heart. Reconciliation takes two people and may not always be possible, even when it remains the goal. This was an honest, direct conversation rooted in Scripture, and next week Dave will begin moving more specifically into the process of forgiveness. We meet again Saturday, August 8, at 0700 ET on Google Meet. The link is on the Skool calendar. You do not need to have attended the first session to join us. Bring your Bible, come ready to engage, and invite another man who may need this conversation.

Most men live from the public place. Their energy comes from recognition. Their confidence rises and falls with performance. Their identity is shaped by what others can see. Jesus points in the opposite direction. “But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.”— Matthew 6:6 (ESV) The secret place is not primarily a location. It is a reality of communion with God that exists beyond visibility, applause, and productivity. This is where false selves die. In the secret place, there is no audience to impress. No platform to build. No reputation to manage. Only a man and his Father. That is precisely why many avoid it. The flesh can survive on activity. It cannot survive on intimacy. A man may lead a team, serve at church, provide for his family, and still be spiritually malnourished if his life is fueled by public obedience without private surrender. The secret place exposes what the noise conceals. It reveals whether you love God’s presence or merely His benefits. Whether you seek Christ Himself or simply the outcomes He provides. Whether your obedience flows from communion or from duty alone. Throughout Scripture, God forms His servants in hidden places before He uses them in visible ones. Moses in the wilderness. David among sheep. Elijah by the brook. Jesus in the desert. God does some of His deepest work where nobody is watching. The world measures impact by visibility. The Kingdom measures it by faithfulness. Reflection What would remain of your walk with Christ if every visible expression of it disappeared tomorrow. No title. No beautiful family. No control. No audience. Would there still be a man meeting with God? The secret place is not preparation for the Christian life. It is the Christian life. Everything else flows from there. Prayer Father, Strip away every desire to be seen, admired, or validated. Teach me to seek You when there is no reward except Your presence. Expose the places where I have substituted activity for intimacy. Form in me a life that is rooted in what is hidden rather than what is visible.

Brothers, our next 6-week Fire Team study starts the week of June 7 and runs through July 18. We’ll be walking through Joby Martin’s book, Stand Firm and Act Like Men: Becoming the Man You Were Created to Be Instead of Who the World Says You Are. This is not a book club. It is not a classroom. It is a Fire Team. Each week, we’ll read one chapter, do the “Doing the Stuff” challenge, meet with 3–5 men, and talk honestly about what happened in real life. The goal is simple: transformation over information, obedience over knowledge, honesty over image management, and brotherhood over isolation. Here’s how it works: - Join a Fire Team of 3–5 men. - Read only the assigned chapter each week. - Do the weekly challenge. Joby calls it “Doing the Stuff.” - Meet weekly with your Fire Team. Here is the link to the guide: https://www.skool.com/forgetribe/classroom/d4c7860c Tell the truth and help your brothers obey Jesus. If you want in, comment below with: 1. “I’m in” 2. Best days/times you can meet 3. Whether you’re willing to lead a Fire Team Check out the attached video. If God is stirring something in you, step in. Ready, break!

Every man has been wounded. Every man has wounded others. And every man eventually has to decide what he’ll do with both. Forgiveness isn’t pretending the offense never happened. It isn’t excusing sin or ignoring justice. It’s releasing our right to vengeance and trusting God with what only He can carry. Over four Saturday mornings, Dr. Dave Ruth will lead us through what Scripture teaches about forgiveness, grace, strength, and freedom in Christ. If you’re carrying resentment, anger, shame, or unresolved hurt, I believe this study will challenge you and help you take the next step toward freedom. We’ll meet virtually on Google Meet at 0700 ET each Saturday: - Saturday, August 1 - Saturday, August 8 - Saturday, August 15 - Saturday, August 22 Whether you’ve been with Forge Tribe for years or this is your first time joining us, you’re welcome. Bring your Bible, a notebook, and come ready to engage. The Google Meet link is available on the Skool calendar. If you’re joining us, respond to the poll below, so we know to expect you. And if there’s another man who could benefit from this study, invite him to join you. Freedom is rarely found alone.