A Man After God’s Heart: True Masculinity
“To act justly and to love mercy (kindness), and to walk humbly with your God.” Micah 6:8
This devotion was developed from two inspiring books. ‘Season of Life’ by Jeffery Marx (a book on the life of Joe Ehrmann, professional football player, and high school coach) and ‘The True Measure of a Man’ by Richard Simmons. These are two incredible books that have had a big impact on me as they relate to manhood. I highly recommend them if you have not read them in the past.
Google’s Dictionary (Oxford Languages) defines “masculinity” as qualities or attributes regarded as characteristic of men or boys; "handsome, muscled, and driven, he's a prime example of masculinity”. Contrarily, Joe Ehrmann termed “false masculinity” as athletic ability, sexual conquest, and economic success. He identifies it as the cultural progression from ballfield to bedroom to billfold. What a picture of what the world tells us is a “successful” man.
So, what is “True Masculinity”?
Micah 6:8 clearly states what God requires of us as men: “To act justly and to love mercy (kindness), and to walk humbly with your God.”
In the book, Ehrmann says, “Masculinity, first and foremost, should be defined in terms of relationships. Secondly, the only other criteria for masculinity is that all of us should have some kind of cause, some kind of purpose in our lives that’s bigger than our hopes, dreams, wants, and desires. At the end of life, we ought to be able to look back over it from our deathbed and know that somehow the world was a better place because we lived, we loved, we were other-centered other focused.”
As men, what are we putting our “Identity” in? In his book, Richard Simmons says, “Men so often define themselves by what they do, who they know, or what they own. And when they do so, they unwittingly set themselves up for great confusion and failure in their personal lives, particularly when an economic storm arises”.
“‘But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness. ‘ ‘Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses.’”
I see “True Masculinity” when a man is the Spiritual Leader of his family and is in alignment with Christ with that covering (Christ>Man>Family). A man that prays to God and prays over his wife and children, daily. A man who is putting his Identity in Christ. The challenge of this in the world we live in is staying in that alignment. How do we do that? For me, I am always in better alignment when I am consistently pursuing Christ, in my quiet time (in His word, in prayer, and worship), and when in community with other Christian men. After all, isn’t the ultimate example of “True Masculinity”, Jesus Christ himself?!
“Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong. Let all you do be done in love.”
Socrates famously said, “The unexamined life is not worth living.” So as a man, I want to challenge you to examine your life. Are you investing in true and deep relationships with family members? With other men? With Christ? Do you have a purpose or cause bigger than yourself, your next business deal, or personal accomplishment? If not, how can you begin pursuing those things?
Please know that many are praying for you leading up to the Warrior Men’s Retreat. That no obstacles will get in the way of you attending, and that you will have a supernatural encounter with God while there.
Devotional written by: Tom Milldrum, Triumph of Hope Volunteer
The past few years, the Lord has led me on a journey of uncovering the treasures hidden in the name of Jesus, and it has been a glorious experience. It has been an honor not only to unveil the mystery behind this powerful name but also to witness its transformative power.