Born to Run God’s Path.

I’ve been reading a book lately that has made me think about my walk with God,Born to Runby Christopher McDougall. I say it made me think about my walk with God, but it took a round about way of doing it. You see, the book is about The Tarahumara tribe who live in the Copper Canyon region of the Sierra Madres. To make a long story short (one that I recommend to anyone who wants an interesting story about amazing athleticism), McDougall tells his reader that every one of us was born to be a runner, and he tells us why.

I’m not going to go more into the book, or even why I like it, but I will go into my rambling thoughts that started on the pages of a book and have now led to an entirely different kind of exercise; the exercise of following God’s path. You see, the Tarahumara are ultraendurance runners. There are legends of these guys running more than 400 miles in a single run, and there are records of them doing over 300 in 48hrs(and that’s not counting the elevation changes of running over 3000 ft mountains)! These men and women recognize how they were created, and they have embraced it. I’m betting a few of you are starting down the same rabbit hole that I went down on reading about these amazing human beings. If they can harness their bodies in this amazing way, why do I sometimes feel like I’m in the longest endurance race ever conceived of when I set out the door to do God’s work, to be God’s man?

As a believer, I know that we were created to follow God. Everyone of us, every one, is shown His glory and given a chance to be His disciple, but most turn away for the lies that our culture and world offers. So why is it so hard for those of us who have made the choice to accept His son to follow Him? Why do some of us hit walls at every turn and face seemingly insurmountable obstacles in the path God has placed us on? I’m asking these questions, not because I have the answers, but because I often feel like I’ve entered a race that I don’t know how to finish.  That’s the thing, Jesus tells us, it doesn’t end. He also tells us that we will be hated. We will be persecuted. We will run into obstacles and we will fight for every inch, but when we get to the place He has prepared for us, we will be given the greater reward, God’s reward.

All of this makes me ask, why do we do it? Most runners (at least the ones I think are sane) will tell you that when they started running, it wasn’t because they liked running, it was because they wanted to like running. That’s the stage I’m in as a runner, I hate going out the door to run, but I want to like it! Now what about walking (or running) with God? Almost every believer I talk to says they love being on His path, but then when I look, they are only really following on Sundays and major religious holidays. I actually have had believers tell me that they are following God by living as the world around them lives (even to the extent of getting drunk and living in debauchery). I don’t think most people love following Jesus, at first. It’s hard. It calls for a transformation. It means giving up freedom and control to God. This is that stage I feel is most difficult for the new believer. I’m not doubting salvation here, I’m questioning conviction, mine as much as anyone else’s.  It’s only after you’ve made the sacrifices and become sold out for God that you start finding true joy in following His path. I’m somewhere at the beginning of that joy phase. I do truly feel joy at running His path for me, but it still hurts sometimes. I still stub my toe at times and I still stumble and scrape my knee. But He gives me taller, steeper hills to climb. He gives me seemingly impassable terrain, and then gives me the ability to pass it (with Him carrying me most of the way)! He gives me the endurance to do what He built me to do.

Thinking on this, I think it’s time to start running that road again. Who’s with me?

Until the Whole World Knows,

Paul

Another Option for Men

In my web prowling, I found a group that I thought I would share with you. These guys are doing exactly what we are sharing with you here. They are Third Option Men. I hope to get these guys over here to share about thier vision, their site, the books they have published, and the mission trips they are leading. To give you a taste today, I have a link to share for an ebook they are giving away.

Men’s Books

I am currently reading a variety of books.  I re-reading Wild at Heart by John Eldridge with an older man I meet with.  In my weekly Men’s Group we are reading through Soar by Kenny Luck and with another friend I am reading Risk by Kenny Luck.  This got me to thinking about what others might read.  I am interested to know what other books or authors you our readers would recommend.  I’ve read so many books around it, but by far the following stand out for me –

Robert Lewis – Men’s Fraternity and How to Raise a Modern Day Knight

John Ashcroft – Lessons From a Father to his Son

John Eldridge – Wild at Heart, The Way of the Wild Heart

Donald Miller – To Own A Dragon

Gordon Dalby – Healing the Masculine Soul

Kenny Luck – Soar, Risk

Patrick Morley – The Man in the Mirror

Emerson Eggerich – Love and Respect

 

What books have you heard of or read that challenged you in the way you operate as a Godly man.  What has impacted you as a man, husband and father?

No More Christian Nice Guy: A Review

I recently finished No More  Christian Nice Guy by Paul Coughlin. This is an excellent book for the modern Christian man. Coughlin’s book has a forward by Dr. Laura Schlessinger. For those of you who aren’t familiar with Dr. Laura, she’s a radio talkshow psych who pushes tough love and esposes many of the viewpoints that we talk about here. The thing that made me pay attention to her is the fact that she is Jewish, and she gave a great forward for a book written to Christian Men.

In No More Christian Nice Guy, Coughlin uses a systematic approach to the “Nice Guy” problem. In 13 chapters and just over 220 pages, Coughlin first shows the damage that the Church is causing by raising boys to be Christian Nice Guys (CNGs) and a way to reverse this damage. By examining the causes of this phenomenon, Coughlin helps the reader to understand the mistakes in the ways Christian boys are raised. One of the chapters which stood out to me quickly was “We’re Men, Not Eunuchs.” Overall, the message of this book is that Christian Men have been warped and twisted from the image that Jesus shows us in scripture into weak echoes of what God intends. We as men must stand up and reverse this trend.

Reading this book helped me to better understand the hurdles that I face as a man in the Church today. THere are two main types of men in the Church today, the weak CNGs, and the manipulative ones that aren’t so easy to identify. As we teach our boys to avoid conflict and run from confrontation, the manipulators move in to take over. The CNGs overwhelming need to avoid problems and be nice means that they won’t stand up for themselves, thier families, or thier beliefs. You and I both know the feeling, and I’ve been the CNG. It’s the reason I left the Church. I returned because I learned the Jesus was not the bearded woman that I was taught about as a kid, but that Jesus is The Man that I want to follow. Paul Coughlin tackles this very subject. He gives guidance on how to escape the CNG mold and become the powerful and assertive man of God that you were created to be.

Coughlin’s in depth exploration of the subject helps shed light on the subject that many have avoided. I encourage No More Christian Nice Guy to anyone who battles with being a Christian Nice Guy or anyone who wants to help break the mold.

http://www.amazon.com/No-More-Christian-Nice-Guy/dp/B0013L4DP8

Some resources…

This morning I was thinking about where I get my ideas for my posts and what inspires this eternal quest to be the Strong Christian Man. I thought I would put together a list of a few of my resources and inspirations for you. I’m going to try to give a little info on each, but I may just give the resource on some.

The Bible- The first resource is definately scripture. I have several bibles that I refer to regularly. One that many people don’t like that I love is the 1984 NIV. I actually use a Life Application Study Bible-NIV that was printed in 2009 and I do see updates from the 2005 version that I have on the shelf, but the main reason I use it is the references that it has throughout. On every page you can find references to supporting scriptures, notes on meaning, and other helpful pieces of information. I also use the NET Bible. Many of the translators are professors from Dallas Theological Seminary and have my respect. Where I find some inssues is that it is a very literal word for word translation that seems to have a few mistakes caused by changes in word meaning. I solve this easily though, as Net Bible gives me the ability to compare it with other translations. My most recent addition to my collection of bibles is The Ryrie Study Bible – NASB. This was a gift from a man who I greatly respect who is a pastor in an underground church in China.

With all of these copies of the Bible, you would think that it would be the only resource I need, but I have been taught my whole life that Christian Men should be the humble, timid, weak men that so many men in the Church embody, and that’s where my next resource comes in:

Risk by Kenny Luck: Risk is an amazing book for men. I’d never recommend it for a woman to understand men, as only a man can truly understand what Kenny is talking about in his book. Kenny challenges the image of Christian that so many of us have been raised with. Kenny actually looks into how men’s natural tendencies are in some cases not only ok, but are biblically justified. Any man who sees the need for something more in themselves and in the men of the Church needs to read this book. Kenny also has 3 other books that follow behind Risk, they are Dream, Fight, and Soar. In each of these, Kenny attacks the misconceptions which are taught by the Church and gives biblical evidence for masculinity.

Why Men Hate Going to Church by David Murrow: This is a great resource. If you are a church leader and you are disastisfied with the feminine church of today, read this book. David Murrow may go a little bit too far to the ultra-masculine, but he has some good points here. These points are ones that we must recognize if we want to reverse the trend of migration away from the Church by the world’s men and their families. I have also picked up Murrow’s second book, The Map, which I understand reverses a few of his views, recognizing that men must have emotional significance to be truly masculine. I hope to be able to read this soon.

No More Christian Nice Guy by Paul Coughlin: Coughlin does much the same as we do here at Hardcore Christian Man. Coughlin shows the error of many in the church and then shows how to correct this error. He is not finger poining, at least not at anyone else. He points at himself, admitting his own failures, and in this admission, he reminds the reader of the readers own failures. The primary thing that Coughlin tackles is the passive agressive, anti-conflict, weaking that is embodied by the men of the church and many leaders in the church. I have drawn more from this book in recent times than any other book except the Bible.

Now for a few websites that I enjoy, some are christian, some are not, but all help to remind me what a man is.

The Art of Manliness – This is a great site which captures much of the essence of manhood, if not the spiritual side. When I think man, I do think of the men of the early 20th century. THey were tough and sacrificed for thier families and the world. Th one caution I have is that not everything here is Christian, and we muct measure everything against scripture. So take this site with a grain of salt, but enjoy it just the same.

Other Blogs – I follow a ton of great bloggers on twitter. Reading the things that others are talking about and the things that God has laid on their hearts has helped me to get a grasp on some topics, and sent me back to scripture on others. Of course I recommend that you read Chris’s and Jared’s, but theres a few others I read regularly (actually a lot, but a few I’ll list). Tony J. Alicea has some great wisdom over at http://www.tonyjalicea.com/ and then you have http://twistedchristian.ca/, another great resource. Just take a look through the bloggers that I follow and you’ll get an idea.

Literature – Moby Dick, Treasure Island, King Solomon’s Mines, Time Machine, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and countless others. Shakespeare. Beowulfe. Lord of the Rings andThe Chronicles of Narnia.  God can be found by reading deeper into many literary works, but Masculinity can be seen in them as well. The good of man is often seen right next to the bad. Lets find the best of man and bring it out in ourselves, our brothers and our sons.

 

These are just a few of the countless and growing list of resources I use. If you have something you would recommend, let me know, either here or at my email paul@hardcore-christian.com

Until the Whole World Knows,

Paul

A Frank Discussion on Porn and Christianity

I just finished reading Porn-Again Christian by Mark Driscoll.  It is the most frank and condemning discussion on pornography that I have ever read. I believe that all leaders should read this. If I could put a copy in the hands of every man I met, I would.

Mark gives a clear examination of the effects of the porn industry on the Christian man, American culture, and women. He opens the booklet with an introduction to the problem of lust in our modern culture. He also explains that this booklet is for men. I have to agree with this. The booklet is not appropriate for a woman to read. Parts of it can be shared, but most should only be shared in discussion with other men.

Throughout the booklet, Mark examines different causes, excuses, and effects of pornography. This examination includes an interview that Dr James Dobson did of Ted Bundy. This is an interview which will shake a porn addict, and many of the rest of us as well. Bundy attributes porn as a major contributor to crime.

The last section of the booklet is an appendix by Justin Holcomb. This appendix looks at sexual slavery, the military, and the human trafficking associated with pornography and prostitution. Please read this even if you don’t read the rest of the booklet. This will change the way to evaluate pornography. The way that these criminals bend these girls into subservience is sickening. This is an amazing view into a world that we hope to never see, but is supported by pornography.

Driscoll makes available knowledge in a straightforward way so that the addict, the leader, and the friend can understand and start the progress toward recovery.

This booklet is available for free through electronic download at http://theresurgence.com/2008/09/28/porn-again-christian-a-free-e-book