Life didn’t go quite as planned for Shawn Hess. When he graduated from Cedarville in 1990 with a degree in business, he never expected to earn a master’s degree in ministry from a seminary just seven years later.

Complicating matters for Shawn was the fact that he was the odd one out at seminary. He was the business guy who hung out with a rougher crowd than his Bible-major seminary peers.

But it was during a conversation with his seminary classmates that Shawn opened up. He allowed himself to be vulnerable and share his past with a group of men who likely didn’t struggle in the same ways.

That vulnerability led to something Shawn never anticipated. Men started opening up to one another, sharing their hearts and struggles. The facades started to break away, and Shawn began experiencing genuine community with the men.

And that’s when he realized men need help. Men need encouragement, which he wasn’t finding in the local church. After a lengthy ministry as a senior pastor in Ohio, Shawn stepped away from the pulpit to begin Time 2 Man Up, which focuses on helping men pursue Christ and leadership.

This ministry has launched a podcast, and hits at Shawn’s passion – to help men grow into the leaders the Lord intends them to be.

Listen to Shawn share his story on the Cedarville Stories Podcast.