NEWPORT BEACH, CA (ANS) -- The Christian Men's Network (CMN), a global men's movement which has trained over 1 million men in more than 100 nations, this weekend celebrated 35 years of ministry, while commemorating the 10-year mark since the passing of its founder and father of the Christian Men's Movement, Dr. Edwin Louis Cole, and the 30th anniversary of his landmark book, “Maximized Manhood,” considered a Christian classic among many.

Dr. Edwin Louis Cole

According to a news release from Kristin Cole of A. Larry Ross Communications (www.alarryross.com), leaders around the globe gathered this weekend for the “Meet Me at the Jetty” celebration in Newport Beach, Calif.

The event included messages by Christian statesmen such as James O. Davis, founder of the Billion Soul Network with more than 400,000 churches worldwide; Robert Barriger of Camino de Vida in Lima, Peru; and Doug Stringer, founder of Somebody Cares International.

“The principles of Ed Cole are not just defined by the length of his life, but they continue to impact the world today,” said Dr. Glenn Burris, president of the Foursquare Church International, who joined other Christian leaders in Newport Beach. “He was an effective influencer and his teaching spoke to every area of life.”

The Newport Beach Jetty

The Newport Beach ocean jetty was the location where Dr. Cole walked, prayed and launched the vision of the Christian Men's Network. During the three-day commemoration, attending supporters and friends of Dr. Cole followed in his footsteps by praying for men around the world each morning at the jetty.

“Dr. Cole brought people out of the darkness and into the light because of what he said,” Bishop Dale Bronner, pastor of Word of Faith Family Worship Cathedral in Atlanta, GA, said at the gathering. “The greatest gift a father can give his children is not his own wealth, but to help them recognize the wealth that resides in the child.”

Paul Cole

Christian Men's Network, led today by Dr. Cole's son, Paul Cole, has facilitated and witnessed significant changes in men's ministry over the past three decades, and has remained the expert on ministering to and building up men. Major denominations and church fellowships embrace the discipling resources of Christian Men's Network.

“Christian Men's Network is not a ministry, it's a discipling movement,” said Eddy Leo, pastor of the 250,000-member Abbalove Church in Jakarta, who brought his leaders from Indonesia to the commemoration. “When we mentor the next generation as fathers, we will see major change happen.”
As part of the commemoration, the ministry also celebrated the completion of a six-year project to compile more than 3,000 of Dr. Cole's personal and ministry notes, sermons, DVDs and books into one compendium called “The Collection.”

“No person is dead as long as their name is mentioned and their story is being told,” Dr. Jim Garlow, senior pastor of Skyline Church in La Mesa, Calif., said of Dr. Cole's legacy at the anniversary banquet. “Dr. Cole has been and is still far ahead of our time.”

The Christian Men's Network is a thriving global men's ministry that has trained over 1 million leaders in more than 100 nations. The world-renowned “Majoring in Men” curriculum stems from the ministry and has become the most successful men's mentoring material of its kind, adopted by two major denominations for their international men's ministry, and endorsed by over 8 million men. For more information on Christian Men's Network, visit http://www.christianmensnetwork.com.

NOTE TO EDITORS: For an interview with Paul Cole, president of Christian Men's Network, and more information on Christian Men's Network, please visit www.alrcnewskitchen.com/cmn or contact Kristin Cole at Kristin@alarryross.com or 972.267.1111.

Dan Wooding, 71, who was born in Nigeria of British missionary parents, is an award winning British journalist now living in Southern California with his wife Norma, to whom he has been married for 49 years. They have two sons, Andrew and Peter, and six grandchildren who all live in the UK. He is the founder and international director of ASSIST (Aid to Special Saints in Strategic Times) and the ASSIST News Service (ANS) and he hosts the weekly “Front Page Radio” show on the KWVE Radio Network in Southern California and which is also carried throughout the United States and around the world. Besides this, Wooding is a host for His Channel Live, which is carried via the Internet to some 192 countries. Dan recently received two top media awards -- the “Passion for the Persecuted” award from Open Doors US, and as one of the top “Newsmakers of 2011” from Plain Truth magazine. He is the author of some 45 books, the latest of which is “Caped Crusader: Rick Wakeman in the 1970s.” To order a copy, go to: http://www.amazon.com/CAPED-CRUSADER-Rick-Wakeman-1970s/dp/1908728302/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1335474883&sr=1-1 .