Training4Manhood

Things I Wish I Had Known Then...

Things I know now that I wish I had known then…

 

1. Importance of godly mentors

 

2. Importance of reading - you will draw from the books that you’ve read years later…

 

3. You learn more from failing than succeeding - so try new things…

 

4. Understand the power of commitment

 

5. People matter

 

T4M guys - just a reminder that Training4Manhood is a non-profit, 501(c)(3) ministry and you can make donations either via Zelle (info@training4manhood.com) or by visiting the Training4Manhood website.

Huge thank you to Jared Wood for allowing T4M to use his music in our intro and outro selections.

Demo Day - Embracing Change in Your Life

Best part of a new project - demo day

 

Bible calls this sanctification - to set apart, make holy - consecrate (with force to make sacred)

 

Tear up the carpeting

1. NO going back!
2. You see all the EXTRA work that you didn’t know you had before…
3. It’s Worth it!

 

I want to be a better man, a better husband, a better dad, a better employer/ee, a better friend, a better…

 

Biblical principles of change…

1. Romans 12 - God is in the business of change - don’t conform to the old patterns, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind…
2. Ephesians 4 - put off the old self, put on the new self…
3. Colossians 3 - put to death what is earthly - put on as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you must also forgive…And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.
4. God is prepared for us to move in a new direction - Deuteronomy 17 - the laws concerning Israel’s kings - they didn’t even have a king…
5. God’s principles are timeless - He doesn’t change - the real change we need in our lives is the constant transformation of our old selves into the image of Jesus…

 

5 Things to Help You Change

1. Read more - you become a more reflective person, less thrown about why the winds and wilds of the day…
2. Deepen solid relationships with people who challenge you to be better…
3. Honest assessment of your situation, life, attitude, circumstances - the carpeting is old, it needs to be torn up and tossed out…
4. Don’t be afraid to ask for help - Biblical counseling, mature Christian friend, God’s Word as a light unto your feet and a lamp unto your path…
5. It’s Worth it - it will cost you, but it’s worth it…

 

T4M guys - just a reminder that Training4Manhood is a non-profit, 501(c)(3) ministry and you can make donations either via Zelle (info@training4manhood.com) or by visiting the Training4Manhood website.

Huge thank you to Jared Wood for allowing T4M to use his music in our intro and outro selections.

The Importance of Connection

Guest: Michael Lee Stallard

 

I was first introduced to Mike Stallard as the author of Fired Up or Burned Out: How to Reignite Your Team’s Passion, Creativity, and Productivity. He then turned his passion and research to the power of connectivity and wrote Connection Culture: The Competitive Advantage of Shared Identity, Empathy, and Understanding at Work where he shared the importance of vision, voice and value for a connected work environment.

 

Mike is a wonderful resource not only from his books, but also as a speaker for businesses looking to create that unified and connected work culture. You can find out more about Mike and his vision to help leaders create connected cultures on his website MichaelLeeStallard.com.

 

Prior to founding E Pluribus Partners, Michael was a managing director on Wall Street. Earlier in his career he worked in the technology sector. Michael is married to Katharine Stallard. They have two grown daughters.

 

T4M guys - just a reminder that Training4Manhood is a non-profit, 501(c)(3) ministry and you can make donations either via Zelle (info@training4manhood.com) or by visiting the Training4Manhood website.

Huge thank you to Jared Wood for allowing T4M to use his music in our intro and outro selections.

Next Steps: Faithful and Fruitful

 

Abide in Christ - Andrew Murray

Vine - plant that is only for the fruit

• How can you tell the vine that has the most fruit?
  • It hangs the lowest - humility is the key…

 

Self-assessment

• Be quick to listen
  • Not listen quickly…then move on…
• If you want a different song, stop playing the same notes
  • Change is hard, but there are times when it’s necessary…

 

Take the next right step

• Don’t complicate things
• Don’t make excuses - do the will of your father

 

Jesus our example

• Didn’t make excuses
• Did the will of his father

 

Consecrate yourself

• Sacred - set apart - choose to live differently, other-worldly…
• I’m so busy - those are decisions you’re making - your choices
• You’ll reap what you sow…
• Your decisions demonstrate your priorities

 

T4M guys - just a reminder that Training4Manhood is a non-profit, 501(c)(3) ministry and you can make donations either via Zelle (info@training4manhood.com) or by visiting the Training4Manhood website.

Huge thank you to Jared Wood for allowing T4M to use his music in our intro and outro selections.

Next Steps: Learning to Listen to Godly Wisdom

Guests: Harrison Leak and Parker Panetti

 

How do you decide what to do, where to go…what’s that process look like for a young man who is trying to honor the Lord?

 

Great resource: Just Do Something: A Liberating Approach to Finding God’s Will by Kevin DeYoung

 

Money shouldn’t be the primary motivator for what position you take - there are other things that are more important. A great resource in helping you balance those concepts is Your Life…Well Spent: The Eternal Rewards of Investing Yourself and Your Money in Your Family by Russ Crosson

 

When considering the concept of “success,” think about the line from CS Lewis that humility isn’t thinking less of yourself, it’s thinking of yourself less. Along that same line, Tim Keller has an outstanding resource titled The Freedom of Self-Forgetfulness: The Path to True Christian Joy.

 

T4M guys - just a reminder that Training4Manhood is a non-profit, 501(c)(3) ministry and you can make donations either via Zelle (info@training4manhood.com) or by visiting the Training4Manhood website.

Huge thank you to Jared Wood for allowing T4M to use his music in our intro and outro selections.

Five Lies of Our Anti-Christian Age by Rosaria Butterfield (Session 4 of 4)

Guests: Dr. Jason Snyder and Dr. Jonathan Teague

 

Excerpts from the conversation:

 

Lie #4: Transgenderism is normal.

• Scripture does not support transgender ideology/belief/actions as normal, healthy, or to be supported or endorsed.
• In today’s culture, “love” has been redefined as acceptance and endorsement as I am and you are not allowed to say anything in opposition to my beliefs.
• And since God is “love,” when culture redefines love, it redefines the very nature of God to fit its own desires. This redefined god is not the God of the Bible. How to address this concept - go back and learn about the God of the Bible.
• Read Rosaria’s article entitled, “Why I no longer use Transgender Pronouns - and Why You shouldn’t either.”
• WPATH: The truth about “gender affirming healthcare”

 

Lie #5: Modesty is an outdated burden that serves male dominance and holds women back.

• Guys, the issue of modesty isn’t just a woman’s issue - as men, dads, we need to address this issue in our homes…and lead by example. We don’t need to buy into the “modest is hottest” false narrative, we need to understand that modesty is the desire to be holy and honor God with our bodies.
• Men, if the pornographic culture is shaping the way that you view women, you will not understand the importance and value of modesty.
• The issue of modesty is less about “protecting men” and more about presenting women as daughters of the living God who are more than mere physical beings - ladies, you are body, soul, and spirit - don’t allow the culture to elevate your physical attributes over the other important aspects of who you are!

 

T4M guys - just a reminder that Training4Manhood is a non-profit, 501(c)(3) ministry and you can make donations either via Zelle (info@training4manhood.com) or by visiting the Training4Manhood website.

 

Huge thank you to Jared Wood for allowing T4M to use his music in our intro and outro selections.

Next Steps: Preparing Now for Your Future

Happy Memorial Day!

 

The word graduation comes from the concept of “steps” - taking the next step. What is the next step in your life - college, work, marriage, family? What are you doing now to prepare yourself for those next steps?

 

Some good questions to ask yourself on your journey:

• What has God been teaching you recently?

• How are you feeding the spiritual man?
  • Word of God
  • Words of wisdom - godly people and good books
  • Work
  • Fellowship - we are relational beings
  • Rest
  • Luke 2:52 - Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and with man…
• How are you feeding your flesh?
  • Pride, envy, lust, disobedience, impatience, anger
  • Romans - be killing sin or sin will be killing you

• How are you feeding others?
  • Service and sacrifice
  • Titus 2 - older men train up the younger men - urge the younger men to be self-controlled…
  • Friendship - a plant of slow growth

 

T4M guys - just a reminder that Training4Manhood is a non-profit, 501(c)(3) ministry and you can make donations either via Zelle (info@training4manhood.com) or by visiting the Training4Manhood website.

Huge thank you to Jared Wood for allowing T4M to use his music in our intro and outro selections.

Five Lies of Our Anti-Christian Age by Rosaria Butterfield (Session 3 of 4)

Guests: Dr. Jason Snyder and Dr. Jonathan Teague

 

Excerpts from the conversation:

 

Lie #2 - Being a spiritual person is kinder than being a Christian.

 

The Gospel doesn’t just make us nicer versions of ourselves. The Gospel gives us a new nature and the power to live for the glory of God.

 

What is your working definition of “good”? If your definition of good is absent of absolute truth, then it is subjective and lacking. For a Christian, “good” is defined by the nature of God and is not held captive by “the spirit of the age” or what is defined as good or popular during this particular day.

 

Make sure that you have an eternal, unchangeable standard for the foundation of your worldview and definitions.

 

Lie #3 - Feminism is good for the world and for the church.

 

Most individuals that we know who are supportive of “feminism” as a worldview have specific, individual negative experiences in their own lives from a man who abused his position of power and authority.

 

Feminism attacks God’s design for gender and sexuality, the family, and culture at large. Feminism is incompatible with Biblical personhood because it contradicts the creation ordinance.

 

T4M guys - just a reminder that Training4Manhood is a non-profit, 501(c)(3) ministry and you can make donations either via Zelle (info@training4manhood.com) or by visiting the Training4Manhood website.

Huge thank you to Jared Wood for allowing T4M to use his music in our intro and outro selections.

Five Practical "Cs" for Building Altars in Your Life

Genesis 26:25 - Building Altars, Pitching Tents, Digging Wells

 

Five Practical Steps for Building Altars

Commitment

• Building family habits of spiritual consistency…takes commitment to say no to lesser things to advance the more important…
• Prioritize spiritual things - don’t let select sports, etc. take top place

 

Contentment

• Beware of the sin of envy and comparison, the thief of joy…
• Use money to buy more time with your family, not more things
• You have been blessed to be a blessing…
• Haggai 1 - be careful of paneled houses when the house of God isn’t finished!
• Raising Spiritual Champions by George Barna
  • Only 8% of young people believe that wealth is given by God to manage for the advancement of God’s kingdom on Earth - they are far more likely to believe that they have earned what they possess and are free to use their wealth as they see fit without regard to spiritual principles or God’s expectations
  • Deut. 8:18 - But remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth…

 

Consistency

• Thomas Watson - we call a thing by what it generally is
• David - a man after God’s own heart - massive sin, massive repentance

 

Communicate

• Listening is more important than talking…learn to listen and hear what is being communicated…
  • 2 Samuel 11:3 - And David sent and inquired about the woman. And ONE SAID, “Is not this Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite?”
  • Learn to listen to things we don’t want to hear…

 

Care/Compassion

• Love well - care about the well-being of those around you…
• Do the little things to make their situation better
• Don’t settle for the shortcuts - JFK, we go to the moon because it is hard

T4M guys - just a reminder that Training4Manhood is a non-profit, 501(c)(3) ministry and you can make donations either via Zelle (info@training4manhood.com) or by visiting the Training4Manhood website.

Huge thank you to Jared Wood for allowing T4M to use his music in our intro and outro selections.

Five Lies of Our Anti-Christian Age by Rosaria Butterfield (Session 2 of 4)

Guests: Dr. Jason Snyder and Dr. Jonathan Teague

 

Excerpts from the book:

 

Lie #1: Homosexuality is Normal

 

I lamented male-female relationships that called for a woman’s submission, even if voluntary. My feminist worldview/religion declared any male-female sexual relationship that rejected sameness (the idea that men and women are interchangeable) and called for a wife’s submission to her husband foundational to rape culture.

 

The order of creation made the point: the sexes are equal in essence and different in social roles.

 

It was utterly and completely shocking to realize that my lesbianism was truly a sin.

 

Godly womanhood does not erase a woman’s strength or identity; rather, it applies God’s grace to me.

 

Biblical sexuality is natural, God-blessed, and procreative. In contrast, homosexuality is unnatural, sinful, and barren.

 

What if it feels right?

That sin nature is why homosexuality can feel normal and natural to some people.

 

The Bible is truer than our feelings.

 

WORDS matter. And Jesus is still the Word made flesh.

 

T4M guys - just a reminder that Training4Manhood is a non-profit, 501(c)(3) ministry and you can make donations either via Zelle (info@training4manhood.com) or by visiting the Training4Manhood website.

Huge thank you to Jared Wood for allowing T4M to use his music in our intro and outro selections.