Net Work Ministries, Inc.

relationship with Jesus Christ and to help them use the power of this relationship to become the men God intended them to be. This ministry helps men deal with issues that affect their everyday lives. It is a faith ministry that depends entirely on the Lord for resources and does not charge for its services. It is a fully accredited 501c3 I.R.S. Net Work Ministries was begun 1991 by a group of men who knew Buck Reese's giftedness in the areas of pastoral counseling and resource networking. Buck, who is a native of Atlanta, has been in ministry since 1975 and is an ordained minister. He was responsible for starting the Young Life high school ministry in Cobb County in 1977 and served as Area Director for 12 years. Buck was the Director of Church Relations for Rapha, Inc., a Christian counseling program, as well as serving as a pastoral counseling intern at Wesley Woods Geriatric Center. For 20 years Buck served as chaplain and assistant coach of the Marietta High School football team. Buck was selected to be a member of the 1998 class of Leadership Cobb and the 1999 class of the Honorary Commanders, programs of the Cobb County Chamber of Commerce. Buck's full-time commitment is to Net Work Ministries. Every day he is in contact with men of all ages and walks of life. A typical daily routine would include: leading a group of men in a breakfast Bible study, having lunch with a businessman to offer counsel and encouragement, and planning and organizing retreats for various groups of men to strengthen their commitment to Christ and to enjoy each other's fellowship and support. In all these situations, Buck offers a listening ear and a caring heart and shares Scripture and wisdom given by the Holy Spirit. The goal in all of this activity is to bring those who do not know Christ into a saving relationship with Him. To those who are committed to Christ, but are dealing with issues of day-to-day living, he gives loving and effective counsel, encouragement and support. The Concept of Net Work Ministries

From Henri Nouwen’s book “Gracias”:

“It is a privilege to have the time to practice this simple ministry of presence. Still, it is not as simple as it seems. My own desire to be useful, to do something significant, or to be part of some impressive project is so strong that soon my time is taken up by meetings, conferences, study groups, and workshops that prevent me from walking the streets. It is difficult not to have plans, not to organize people around an urgent cause, and not to feel that you are working directly for social progress. But I wonder more and more if the first thing shouldn’t be to know people by name, to eat and drink with them, to listen to their stories and tell your own, and to let them know with words, handshakes, and hugs that you do not simply like them, but truly love them. From "The Hole In Our Gospel" by Richard Stearns, President of World Vision:

It is rare that a simple recitation of the gospel will cause people to instantly change their minds. It usually takes much more than that. Our own narrative typically involves a journey of discovery marked by relationships with respected friends and loved ones, reading, discussions, learning about the basis for Christian faith, seeing the difference faith made in the lives of people we know, and witnessing genuine faith demonstrated through acts of love and kindness towards others. I Stand At The Door - My Calling To Men's Ministry

I Stand at the Door

By Sam Shoemaker (from the Oxford Group)


I stand by the door. I neither go to far in, nor stay to far out. The door is the most important door in the world -
It is the door through which men walk when they find God. There is no use my going way inside and staying there,
When so many are still outside and they, as much as I,
Crave to know where the door is. And all that so many ever find
Is only the wall where the door ought to be. They creep along the wall like blind men,
With outstretched, groping hands,
Feeling for a door, knowing there must be a door,
Yet they never find it. So I stand by the door. The most tremendous thing in the world
Is for men to find that door - the door to God. The most important thing that any man can do
Is to take hold of one of those blind, groping hands
And put it on the latch - the latch that only clicks
And opens to the man's own touch. Men die outside the door, as starving beggars die
On cold nights in cruel cities in the dead of winter. Die for want of what is within their grasp. They live on the other side of it - live because they have not found it. Nothing else matters compared to helping them find it,
And open it, and walk in, and find Him. Go in great saints; go all the way in -
Go way down into the cavernous cellars,
And way up into the spacious attics. It is a vast, roomy house, this house where God is. Go into the deepest of hidden casements,
Of withdrawal, of silence, of sainthood. Some must inhabit those inner rooms
And know the depths and heights of God,
And call outside to the rest of us how wonderful it is. Sometimes I take a deeper look in. Sometimes venture in a little farther,
But my place seems closer to the opening. There is another reason why I stand there. Some people get part way in and become afraid
Lest God and the zeal of His house devour them;
For God is so very great and asks all of us. And these people feel a cosmic claustrophobia
And want to get out. 'Let me out!' they cry. And the people way inside only terrify them more. Somebody must be by the door to tell them that they are spoiled. For the old life, they have seen too much:
One taste of God and nothing but God will do any more. Somebody must be watching for the frightened
Who seek to sneak out just where they came in,
To tell them how much better it is inside. The people too far in do not see how near these are
To leaving - preoccupied with the wonder of it all. Somebody must watch for those who have entered the door
But would like to run away. So for them too,
I stand by the door. I admire the people who go way in. But I wish they would not forget how it was
Before they got in. Then they would be able to help
The people who have not yet even found the door. Or the people who want to run away again from God. You can go in too deeply and stay in too long
And forget the people outside the door. As for me, I shall take my old accustomed place,
Near enough to God to hear Him and know He is there,
But not so far from men as not to hear them,
And remember they are there too. Where? Outside the door -
Thousands of them. Millions of them. But - more important for me -
One of them, two of them, ten of them. Whose hands I am intended to put on the latch. So I shall stand by the door and wait
For those who seek it.

'I had rather be a door-keeper
So I stand by the door. About Me

My Photo
Buck Reese
Marietta, Georgia, United States
Buck is a native of Atlanta. He graduated from Georgia State University with a business degree. He spent 10 years in the restaurant business prior to going into the ministry in 1976. He is an ordained minister. Buck has been married to Peggy for 46 years. He has two married daughters and seven grandchildren ranging in age from ten months to nineteen years old . Peggy and Buck have lived in West Cobb for thirty-four years.