Tuesday, August 7, 2012
Sunday, February 12, 2012
“The Twenty-First Century Male” by William J. Green
I get the opportunity to speak with men from the ages of 20 to 60 on a regular basis. I am always amazed that at some point in our lives, we have been disoriented by the fact that we may or may not have had a father figure present. With that said, men are discombobulated about many things. In this article, I will narrow down some of those issues and focus on the issue of fear, which some deem as “False Evidence Appearing Real.”
Fear comes in many forms for the twenty-first century male: The fear of being a father; fear of being a husband; fear of prayer; and the fear of being accepted by his peers. I'm sure that there are more that I have not listed, but these are a few to think about. Often prayer is the last tool that we think about using, but it is the best tool for men to utilize. Most of us really don't understand how much we need to pray for our family and how important it is to lead in prayer. When a man prays for a woman, it is like a security blanket to her. In other words, prayer to a woman is like respect to a man.
When I was younger, I would often see my dad pray but I never experienced my father, or my grandfather, praying with his family. I really cannot explain why the men in my life didn't pray but I found myself repeating the same behavior. I also found out that the more you practice the model prayer, the Lord’s Prayer, the more it becomes a part of your lifestyle.
Men have no idea what comes with being a leader of a family. Providing and protecting is natural for men. As men, those two things we do without thinking. I know ladies, no matter what the man displayed, providing and protecting IS a part of his DNA. He just hasn’t displayed that character trait, which is inside of him. I have two daughters, Whitney and Danielle. I love them both with all my heart. I love being a father. As matter of fact, the doctor allowed me to be the first person on earth to touch Danielle. That's right. For three hours, I played “Dr. Green” during my youngest daughter’s birth.
Twenty-first century males are having a hard time taking on the responsibility of being a father. Some display the same behavior as their own father, not showing up in their children’s lives. Statistics show that when men don’t reside in the same house or don't have a relationship with their children, the children have a higher percent risk of going to jail, being on drugs, and the list goes on. I hear men say that they don’t want to mess up their children’s lives. They desire wisdom from other men that understand fatherhood. The thought of being a father overwhelms some men. Some men believe that their spouses or former spouses hinder their roles as a father by trying to dictate the way in which they should be a father. The list goes on and on.
Twenty-first century fathers, grandfathers, surrogate father, the world needs for us to stand up. We need to stand, not only for our children, but also for children and youth we see everyday that may simply need encouraging words. You will be amazed by the number of children out there waiting on you to ask them a question, not in a controlling manner, but in a way that shows you are concerned about their life and well-being. I pray that God will bring answers to men’s hearts that are operating in fear.
Part of the Lord’s Prayer that I keep close to my heart at all times is the scripture that tells us to, “Live on earth as it is in heaven.” (Matthew 6:9-13 NKJV) Paint your own picture of heaven! Peace, joy, happiness, gold, no more pain, no more broken hearts. Twenty-first century men, let’s bring heaven to earth like it is in heaven. You have been given dominion over the earth. Take advantage of your gift and quit waiting to die in order to live.
Fear comes in many forms for the twenty-first century male: The fear of being a father; fear of being a husband; fear of prayer; and the fear of being accepted by his peers. I'm sure that there are more that I have not listed, but these are a few to think about. Often prayer is the last tool that we think about using, but it is the best tool for men to utilize. Most of us really don't understand how much we need to pray for our family and how important it is to lead in prayer. When a man prays for a woman, it is like a security blanket to her. In other words, prayer to a woman is like respect to a man.
When I was younger, I would often see my dad pray but I never experienced my father, or my grandfather, praying with his family. I really cannot explain why the men in my life didn't pray but I found myself repeating the same behavior. I also found out that the more you practice the model prayer, the Lord’s Prayer, the more it becomes a part of your lifestyle.
Men have no idea what comes with being a leader of a family. Providing and protecting is natural for men. As men, those two things we do without thinking. I know ladies, no matter what the man displayed, providing and protecting IS a part of his DNA. He just hasn’t displayed that character trait, which is inside of him. I have two daughters, Whitney and Danielle. I love them both with all my heart. I love being a father. As matter of fact, the doctor allowed me to be the first person on earth to touch Danielle. That's right. For three hours, I played “Dr. Green” during my youngest daughter’s birth.
Twenty-first century males are having a hard time taking on the responsibility of being a father. Some display the same behavior as their own father, not showing up in their children’s lives. Statistics show that when men don’t reside in the same house or don't have a relationship with their children, the children have a higher percent risk of going to jail, being on drugs, and the list goes on. I hear men say that they don’t want to mess up their children’s lives. They desire wisdom from other men that understand fatherhood. The thought of being a father overwhelms some men. Some men believe that their spouses or former spouses hinder their roles as a father by trying to dictate the way in which they should be a father. The list goes on and on.
Twenty-first century fathers, grandfathers, surrogate father, the world needs for us to stand up. We need to stand, not only for our children, but also for children and youth we see everyday that may simply need encouraging words. You will be amazed by the number of children out there waiting on you to ask them a question, not in a controlling manner, but in a way that shows you are concerned about their life and well-being. I pray that God will bring answers to men’s hearts that are operating in fear.
Part of the Lord’s Prayer that I keep close to my heart at all times is the scripture that tells us to, “Live on earth as it is in heaven.” (Matthew 6:9-13 NKJV) Paint your own picture of heaven! Peace, joy, happiness, gold, no more pain, no more broken hearts. Twenty-first century men, let’s bring heaven to earth like it is in heaven. You have been given dominion over the earth. Take advantage of your gift and quit waiting to die in order to live.
Sunday, January 8, 2012
Vision for today
Without a vision of the future , life loses its meaning. An absence of meaning then leads to a lack of hope. Vision is the key to life because where there's a dream, there's hope, and where there's hope, there's faith - and faith is the substance , or the fulfillment , of what you are hoping for.
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