I was hit with a challenge today in a Mark Driscoll sermon I listened to.
To many of us Christian guys are cowards. I see this as being a deep struggle in my own journey, and I think I agree with Driscoll in it's widespread nature; a plague of lethargy and fear that has swept over the men of our churches leaving a bunch of timid boys in its wake.
The smallest demographic in the North American church today is 20 something males; men who should be stepping up to the task--embracing ministries, forming families, doing our job of sharing the Great Commission, and spreading the Kingdom of Heaven. Instead we embrace adolescence for 10+ years of our life and refuse to become the spiritual leaders God calls us to be. We live as consumers rather than producers. We'd rather fight battles through Xbox then fight spiritual ones.
In Driscoll's words, we are evangelly fish with no spiritual back bones. We look for the path of least resistance rather then the path that brings God the most glory.
There are many areas in life where I continue to cling to adolescence--area's where I haven't "became a man and put childish ways behind me" as Paul puts it.
The truth is that as Christians, we should be the most bold, the most honorable, the most manly guys engaging the culture we live in--transforming the kingdom's of this world from the inside out; spreading the eternal kingdom, vanquishing the disease of self and living to reflect his glory.
here are some verses that have challenged me to man up.
"He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God."--Micah 6:8
"For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline."--2 Timothy 1:7
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