Man Up

   I have been feeling absolutely convicted by the idea of wanting to be a man of God. I think I may be mature for my age, but that doesn't make me a man. So I kind of wanted to share my vision of God's man, and seek input on how to achieve that based on experience, or scripture, or additional ideas. I prayed for wisdom and fire in this post, asking the ghost writer to take over.

    I consider a few things to be unconditional of manhood, that would be integrity, responsibility, respect, and leadership working with submission. If I can't be who I say I am, then I am no man. If I am unwilling to be responsible for my own actions, and at times the actions of others- I am no man. If I am unable to respect peers, superiors, my girlfriend, and my Lord, then how am I a man at all? And if I can't lead those who follow me with all of the above factors, and I refuse to submit to elders and Christ himself- there is no man here. Those are some of my basic principles that I have gathered from Scripture and those  leading me.

    There are some things that I (we) as a man (men) struggle with by nature. Those would be pride, lust, and more pride. Pride, I have heard, is the opposite of God. Not hate, but pride. That is because pride is an act that puts you on the throne of your life, and pride is the root of every sin. Making myself more important than God is why I sin; every time. There is no exception, pride is the root of sin. Pride is saying, "My plan is superior, I am in control, and I know what is best or feels best." Pride is what I'll focus on first. (seems fitting that pride goes first).

   There are sooooo many different kinds of pride, and that is one reason why it is so hard to seek out. Another reason it is so well camouflaged is because pride is like putting a cover over your eyes, and it doesn't want to be found out. Pride definitely has a vicious personality. Pride, as I've seen often in myself and others, can come in the form of cynicism, legalism, pride in abilities, possessional pride, and some form of sexual pride. My most prideful areas are definitely the first two. I tend to doubt things quickly and discredit people for seemingly no reason. I also like to to be a smart...mouth, and correct people when you understood what they meant. I just have to get a word in. Also, I hate being corrected. That fact is potentially devastating to my faith. If I think I have the "spiritual gift of rebuke," I better have the spiritual gift of receiving rebuke with an open heart. I struggle with pride and found it hard to see. An area of pride I don't struggle with is pride in my abilities. That is because I literally don't have any abilities now, that I had before I found Jesus. Unfortunately, there are a lot of men (boys?) who struggle with this kind of pride. Quick advice for these folks: keep your mouth shut on the court/field and remain silent about your performance. That example is specific to sports, because our life is sports...we gotta win everything.
   Possessional pride, or pride in your stuff, is another beast. Your $200 headphones, $150 kicks, numerous flat bills, and sound system doesn't make you a man. A lot of guys hide behind those things. Lecrae said, "Whatever you own, that you can't give away, actually owns you." That is hard, painful truth. I don't have too much stuff that I take pride in, but I know that there is stuff that I have been unwilling to give away. Hear this: do not tie yourself down with worldly things. It is comfortable, and steals your heart. The last pride I want to address is this sexual kind of pride. I'm not talking sexual endeavors, but I'm talking about your "game." Game is a bunch of garbage. Game translates to "how many hearts can I capture and break before I have to be tied down to one for good." Game makes me sick, and it is harmful to you, your exploits, and God. Don't you know you are grieving the Holy Spirit? (Eph. 4:30). I propose that a guy who is content on dating around for fun, is no man at all. Cut that crap out.

   The interesting thing about pride is that you despise people who are prideful over similar things. Proud people hate proud people more than humble people hate proud people. I think you will notice it too if you think about it.

Now let's get real, and a little uncomfortable. Women, this part is awkward for you...probably. Guys, there is probably some doubt or question in your mind about the "m" word. Why is masturbation such a bad thing? While reading Every Young Man's Battle, I found the author asking the same, very awkward question. He thought that it may not be so bad, if you do it without lust, but he didn't recommend. With time and reading the Bible, I disagree. Nothing in the Bible suggests that it is okay. Suppose you actually control your mind and have no sexual motive behind doing it. It is still wrong (I think) for a few reasons. Paul's advice to the very sexual culture of Corinth is in disagreement with masturbation. 1 Corinthians 6:19 calls our body the "temple of the Holy Spirit." I should not dare desecrate the dwelling place of the Holy God. We are disgracing our body. Sin? I think so, but my knowledge is limited. 1 Cor. 9:27 says, "No, I beat my body and make it slave..." Denying ourselves is important. We are making ourselves slaves to urges. Do you think that the desire to do such a thing is a result of the fall? I do. God doesn't want us to be slaves to anything. After all "No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other." (Matt. 6:24)

   Finally, a bit about leadership. I believe that men are in a natural place of leadership and have a lot of impact and influence on people. If that is the case, why are we half-way doing things? Our language, our work, our time is all lackadaisical. Since when are the words "douche bag, fag, dick, queer, and homo" alright? You think Jesus would have been taken seriously if he had said foolish junk like that? James 3 tells of the power of the tongue. It can ruin our witness, or strengthen it. How is it okay to be lazy at work (Col. 3:23-24), or treat homework like a task rather than an act of worship? I'm not working hard to serve others, I'm working hard for a stinking grade...Also, why do we offer so little time... Some guys won't even get out of bed for church. It's not a part of your grade, so go back to sleep. I won't even begin on how wrong that is. What if we gave the standard tithe of 10% of our time to God. Two hours a day would be a large burden for most of us. We are lucky if we give 30 minutes, outside of church, to God. (Going to Bible College doesn't earn us extra credit by the way.)

This is a long post, but I'm sick of half-way doing it and living a pseudomanhood. Let's start something here, taking a stand for decency. Being a man is tough work! I am not there yet, and that is why this post isn't a rebuke, but rather a battle cry. Guys, we have the ultimate model, but we reject him for the Kobe's and the Tom Brady's. Manhood means so much more than we are giving attention to. Let's man up and lead the world from our following of Jesus Christ. I'm with you.