by Adam McCune on Nov 22nd, 2011 at 12:00 am
We all know, as Christians, that we should be thankful people. Yet, even though we know we are to be thankful, value is often overlooked even while we claim to know we are to show thanks.
There are many passages on thankfulness and gratefulness, but a good one to consider this year is Philippians 4:6. The text calls us to be thankful, but it is, interestingly enough, the situation into which Paul commands such thankfulness that we find its importance in our lives.
Paul manages to command thankfulness even though he is writing from a prison cell (and he’s not in the kind of prison where the inmate is guaranteed meals, showers, and secure environment). He is also writing to a group of believers who are struggling through some internal arguments (see earlier in the chapter). The recipients of his letter have many reasons to be concerned, and yet Paul tells them to marinate their prayers with the trained and active posture of thankfulness to God. Read More…
by Adam McCune on Oct 12th, 2011 at 12:36 pm
Yesterday, I wrote about three issues that serve as potholes to our development as men of God. Growing up is not easy, and it is certainly mixed with its share of dangers, but God has not left us on our own in our journey. Today, I’d like to mention just three of many provisions we have from God to stay true to the path to manhood. I call these provisions, linchpins, because they keep us fastened and aligned to our journey much like a linchpin keeps the wheel of a car connected to the axle. Again, there are many provisions, the most powerful one being the Holy Spirit, but because living under the power of the Holy Spirit is one of the twelve major themes of this site, I thought that I would focus on others in this post.
Linchpin #1 – Godly Friends
Real men need godly friends in their lives who could just as easily kick us in the butt when we are being stupid as they would walk with us through the fires and tragedies of life. When we have friends who truly care about honoring God with their own lives, we are able to walk together and strengthen one another as needed.
God-honoring friendship is no joke. In fact, I would go so far as to say that it is vital for a male who wants to become a man. These men provide us examples to follow, motivation to continue when life and faithfulness is tough, and when the relationship is truly friendly, they are companions every step of our way. Males long for this sense of camaraderie whether they admit it or not. Even gangs leverage this desire for their own ends to keep their numbers strong. God meant friendships to serves as anchors in a storm or linchpins on the road of life. Read More…
by Adam McCune on Oct 10th, 2011 at 10:25 pm
Becoming a man is a risky quest even in cultures where manhood is actively cultivated, celebrated, and expected. Trying to earn the status of a man in our passive, conviction-less, and aimless culture is even more dangerous and difficult. As someone who has ministered to over 1,000 young men during the crucial teen/tween stages, I have seen three major obstacles that, more than any other issues, seem to derail or divert males from progressing into manhood as they should. I would like to state those obvious potholes today and then write about three linchpins God provides us to keep us on our necessary course tomorrow. Read More…
by Adam McCune on Oct 7th, 2011 at 12:54 am
Yesterday, we looked at one of the rewards for manhood. Two more follow today:
2. Honor & Admiration
When a man honors God and his neighbor with his manhood over time, he begins to receive a really cool and perceptible reward: honor. He is considered as one who brings credit to other men, his family, his church, his country, and his God. People treat him differently.
My grandfather worked honestly and consistently just to provide a home for us, and as that provider, I honored him by allowing him to always have the first choice in where to sit, what to watch, what to talk about, and what to eat. Though not the poster-child for honor, I did my best to show him how important he was to me. He had earned the first choice whereas I had not.
Just as men will do crazy things to earn respect, they will also do amazing things to honor the men they respect. David’s warriors went on a brash special operations mission, penetrating behind the enemy lines in Bethlehem just to bring their honored king a cup of water from his favorite well (2 Samuel 23:13-17). Urriah refused to enjoy the well-deserved pleasures of marital sex with his wife because he wanted to honor the other men in his culture who were fighting for theirs (2 Samuel 11:6-13). Read More…
by Adam McCune on Oct 6th, 2011 at 12:26 am
Over the past few years, I have read many books and articles that have given attention to the lack of manhood in our culture. Shame is often the method employed by the authors to get males to step up and be men in a day that sorely needs them.
I do not believe in shaming a person up to something. There is a place, privately, for shame, but I want to call males up to become men. I have discovered more males waiting for someone to give them something worth fighting for more than I have found guys wasting their lives because it was their great ambition to do so.
So, in an effort to call us up, I thought it would be useful to at least consider the rewards for pursuing God-honoring manhood. That God, as Maker, expects it of us, the made, should be enough in the way of motive, but He is so good that He combines the longings of our masculine hearts with the aims of His divine plan. Here is just a taste test of what a real man can enjoy as he fights to be God’s man: Read More…
by Adam McCune on Sep 9th, 2011 at 12:15 am
Book: Prophetic Untimeliness: A Challenge to the Idol of Relevance
Author: Os Guinness
Publisher: Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 2003; 119 pages
“After two hundred years of earnest dedication to reinventing the faith and the church and to being more relevant in the world, we are confronted by an embarrassing fact: Never have Christians pursued relevance more strenuously; never have Christians been more irrelevant.” p. 12
“The fact is that nothing is finally relevant except in relation to the truth and the eternal.” p. 106
When Os Guinness writes, I read slowly. He has earned this careful pace because his arguments are built on the accumulation of facts, examples, Scripture, and void of excessive stories, shock words, and the latest jargon. The fact that Prophetic Untimeliness was published in 2003 yet it reads as clearly as it does today, should be strong proof that he is on to something in his thinking. Read More…
by Adam McCune on Sep 8th, 2011 at 1:05 am
America is still a nation of devout men. Hundreds of thousands still gather every Sunday, especially in the fall and early winter, to worship and celebrate the object of their heart’s affection. They enter brilliantly designed and tremendously expensive cathedrals in many of the country’s major cities, and now the country’s schools allow for the construction of smaller, but still glorious chapels for worship on a smaller or more local scale. We might even argue that America has increased its devotion to gathering for worship. Instead of the old church format of Sunday morning, Sunday night, and Wednesday night services, we take an entire weekend to complete the process: youth services are held on Friday nights, college groups gather all throughout Saturday, the adults have three services on Sunday, and all of this culminates in a Monday night service.
Yes, the football season has arrived. Read More…
by Adam McCune on Sep 6th, 2011 at 11:46 pm
I’m not sure why I’m starting the 2011-12 blogging season with thoughts on death, but perhaps it’s because I have been forced to live in its shadow this summer.
On July 10, just one day before my 20th spiritual birthday, my grandpa Otis died. He had been suffering slowly and painfully for fourteen years. As each year progressed, and his health regressed, his longing for heaven increased. His faith in Jesus was rewarded that day, but this was a man who rivaled giants in my mind.
Then, a month later, my other grandpa Joe died. Though his health was not good this year, the speed of his passing was unexpected. I preached his funeral on my 31st physical birthday, August 27. Read More…
by Adam McCune on Jun 1st, 2011 at 10:14 pm
Leadership can be a lonely undertaking. If you ever decide to demonstrate leadership in a given situation, you can quickly find yourself feeling like you are exposed, vulnerable, or just alone in your responsibilities, even if you are constantly surrounded by crowds.
Loneliness is not inherently evil, but it can be a difficult feeling to manage. Some people surrender to it and quit prematurely. Others fight it and become paranoid. The leader who thrives in the midst of the loneliness does not surrender to it or fight. He leverages it to make him a better leader.
How can a man of God leverage the loneliness of leadership to better see to his responsibilities? He practices Godward solitude. Withdrawal from all people is not wise if it becomes a leaders modus operandi. However, there is value in strategically carving out moments, hours, days, and even the occasional prolonged period of solitude for the purpose of resting and communing with God. I call this Godward solitude because it is not isolation for isolation’s sake. It is uninterrupted time between you and God. Read More…
by Adam McCune on Jun 1st, 2011 at 11:55 am
Lesson #1 - Leadership is LONELY, and by “Lonely,” I mean it is easy to feel ALL ALONE!
Of the five lessons I wish I learned, this is the one I thought I had successfully learned prior to taking on leadership positions. The leaders I studied did not hide the fact that leadership is lonely, but what I could not figure out at the time was why the loneliness was something that leaders inevitably would have to endure.
There are several reasons why leaders feel lonely in their positions of responsibility:
First, leaders ultimately bear the full weight of responsibility for the group/organization/mission. Let me use a common example to explain this symptom. Let’s assume that there are four teens riding in a car to the park to play sand volleyball. While every person in the car is responsible to at least not impede the driver’s ability to safely operate the vehicle, the three passengers can enjoy the luxury of being distracted all along the journey. In this scenario, it is the driver who is in a leadership position and he/she must pay attention to the conditions of the road, vehicle, and oncoming traffic. There is no rest for him/her even if the other passengers are goofing off, sleeping, or staring at their feet. While driving might not make a person feel utterly alone, my point is to show how a leadership position, even in the smallest of situations, compels the leader to remain vigilant when others don’t have to. This can, over time, make the leader feel isolated. Read More…
