Men Are Bums

No, this isn't the ranting website of your local suburban femi-Nazi...

Modern American culture defines men as people who drink beer, watch football, enjoy the occasional use of power tools and fart when and where they please. However, the book I've been reading has really opened my eyes to see that we're pretty pathetic if that's how we define manhood.

Every other week I get together with 5 or 6 other guys and we discuss The Christian Husband by Bob Lepine. It has really challenged us to look at what we think it means to "be a man". I've always known that God calls men to be much more then what our culture tells us, but reading this book has been a humbling experience. The book addresses all the things you would expect: Bible study, prayer, meditation and memorization. But in the second part of the book, Bob challenges the reader to consider the real role of a man in the family. The real role model for manhood is Jesus Christ. According to the Calvin, Jesus fulfills his role as the head of his church by serving as the prophet, priest and King. If we (as men) are to be the head of our wives and families as Christ is the head of his church, then as Bob Lepine suggests, we must then understand the, "...prophetic, priestly and kingly roles we are to fulfill."

That sounds all nice and doctrine-ey, but when Bob lays out the reality of those roles, it humbles you to the core. Bob then begins to describe the responsibilities of each role as prophet, priest and King. It's not just prayer, it's leading your family in regular worship and being an intercessor for your family. It's not just trying to listen to the voice of God, it's hearing him speak, building the families doctrinal foundation, proclaiming the truth of God in your home every day, confronting sin and encouraging through the truth and love of God.

And it doesn't stop there. I stop there because I don't want a 20-page post on my blog. We've got this life all wrong as men. We're not here to be served, watch football and gain weight around our middles. We're called to be leaders. Don't be fooled, this is hard stuff. We need to put the remote control away and stop pretending we can lead a wife and a family from the recliner. The next time you're tempted to plop down in the armchair and turn on the TV, go pray with your wife instead. The next time you want to fiddle around in the garage on nothing in particular, go lead your children in worship. When you commute to work, turn off the radio and intercede for your family. The time we have on Earth isn't me time, it's lead time. I just pray I can accept my own challenge.