Tag Archives: Man

Chapter-a-Day

Real Men Weep

9 Comments
from destinme via Flickr
from destinme via Flickr

Then Joseph hurried from the room because he was overcome with emotion for his brother. He went into his private room, where he broke down and wept. Genesis 43:30 (NLT)

“Big boys don’t cry,” many of us were told when we were young. Boys are supposed to be strong and fearless. We’re supposed to hold our emotions in check. At least, I know that has been the generalized sentiment I’ve both experienced and witnessed. I’m not even sure that it’s a conscious and overt message for many. It’s just the message our culture has sent and believed. I can still remember seeing my dad cry for the first time. It made such an impression on me I can recall almost every detail of the moment.

I find it interesting that Joseph hurried from the room each time he became emotional. Of course, he did not want to tip his hand and reveal himself to his brothers before he had a chance to work his plan. Nevertheless, I would tend to believe that the culture of Egypt was not that much different than our own in that regard. It would likely be seen as a sign of weakness.

The further I get on life’s road and the the deeper I grow in my relationship with Jesus, the more I feel, identify and express my emotions. When I was younger I would brood and act out in all sorts of ways, completely unaware of the emotions that were seeping to the surface in my words and actions. I can recall going through a period of time in my thirties when I literally experienced Ezekiel 36:26:

I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.

God took me through a stretch of the journey in which there was an uncorking of emotions that I’d been stuffing my whole life. I learned to feel, identify and express things like anger, disappointment, fear, joy, contentment, and satisfaction in meaningful and healthy ways. In the midst of it, I learned to weep and to experience the healing of spirit, soul and body that comes when you can feel strong emotion and let the tears roll.

I’ve come to embrace the truth of Ecclesiastes 3, that there is a time for everything. I believe for all men there is a time and place for utilizing our God given bent towards controlling emotions in order to accomplish a difficult task and persevere through certain circumstances. But this does not mean that it’s necessary or particularly healthy to dam up our emotions all of the time. There is time for controlling emotion, and there is a time for expressing them. Maturity comes with the wisdom to know the difference.

Do a keyword search for the word “wept” in God’s Message and you’ll find a long list of manly men throughout antiquity who wept openly as Joseph did in today’s chapter. Jesus Himself is among them. I’ve come to learn in this life: Real men weep.

Related articles
Chapter-a-Day

Chapter-a-Day Psalm 17

1 Comment
Isenheimer
Isenheimer (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Because I am righteous, I will see you.
    When I awake, I will see you face to face and be satisfied.
Psalm 17:15 (NLT)

This morning as I read David’s lyric that he would “see [God] face to face” I was struck by the notion. In fact, what seems to be a simple thought seemed to be an audacious statement. In all my journeys through God’s Message, I’ve come to understand that seeing God “face to face” is a momentous deal. Few people in the recorded histories of God’s Message actually saw God face-to-face and those who did reacted to the experience – most commonly falling face down to the ground in awe and righteous fear. In fact, whether they knew it or not, their encounter with seeing God’s face was a life threatening experience from which they were graciously spared. God told Moses directly: “No one may see me and live.” (Exodus 33:20)

If you’re interested in a little extra-credit research, here is a short list of a few who saw God face-to-face and their experiences:

  • Abram (Genesis 17)
  • Jacob (Genesis 32)
  • Moses (Exodus 3)
  • Isaiah (Isaiah 6)
  • Peter, James & John (Luke 9:28ff)
  • Saul (Acts 9)

Today, I’m reminded that I serve Jesus who, God’s Message says, is the risen and glorified Creator of the universe. I trust His promise that I will someday see Him face-to-face and will dwell with Him in His glory. I’m equally reminded that my finite human mind cannot comprehend the enormity of it.

Video

I Know It’s the Boy In Me….

2 Comments

… but sometimes it’s kind of fun just to see things blow up!

What can I say? Wild at heart.

Chapter-a-Day

Chapter-a-Day Proverbs 30

1 Comment

There are three things that amaze me—
      no, four things that I don’t understand: 
      how an eagle glides through the sky,
      how a snake slithers on a rock,
      how a ship navigates the ocean,
      how a man loves a woman.
Proverbs 30:18-19 (NLT)

Tomorrow is St. Valentine’s Day, and how fitting that we run into wise King Agur’s contemplation of romantic love in today’s chapter. I don’t claim to understand it anymore than he did, and perhaps my life journey and my own plethora of questions only serve to prove that I understand it far less. Nevertheless, the ladies in my life will tell you (at the risk of losing my man card) that my heart has some pretty large soft spots. I’m a sucker for a little romance.

Scholars will tell you that the ancient Greeks had three basic words for the one English word “love.” Agape is a pure, spiritual love. Phileo is a fond, brotherly love. Eros is the love of sensual appetite. I happen to love all three varieties in life giving measure.

Today, I’m grateful for the mystery of love between a man and a woman. I’m thankful for my wife with whom I can experience a fullness of agape love, phileo love, and eros love. And, I’m looking forward to the dinner we have planned together tomorrow night 🙂

Enhanced by Zemanta
Chapter-a-Day

Chapter-a-Day Deuteronomy 24

3 Comments

When a man takes a new wife, he is not to go out with the army or be given any business or work duties. He gets one year off simply to be at home making his wife happy. Deuteronomy 24:5 (MSG)

Having been through a long-suffering marriage that ended divorce and having walked beside friends in their own marital struggles, I’ve found that the issues which plague a marriage are often present at the very beginning of a relationship. I’ve both experienced and heard many others say they could look back and see the problems which eventually grew to choke the relationship surfaced in the honeymoon and quickly spread through the early years of the marriage.

The first steps are critical to the success of the marital journey. The relational roles and patterns which are formed in those initial months very often set the course for the direction the relationship will take and the destination to which it will eventually arrive. This is not to say that couples can never overcome a rocky start to the marriage, but the truth of the matter is that they often do not.

How fascinating that God’s direction, given in ancient days, was for the groom to take a year off of work or war to spend at home with his bride. God makes it clear that time and proximity are crucial ingredients for the success of any relationship, especially that of marriage. Women are complex creatures in which men find eternal mystery. Unlocking that mystery requires our own God given sense focus, strength, and tenacity. If we go AWOL at the beginning of the relationship, it is very likely we will have lost the keys forever in our flight from responsibility.

It is said: “happy wife, happy life.” We men would do well to remember (and by that I mean we need constant reminder) that a woman’s happiness begins with a partner who is present, engaged and attentive. These ingredients do not guarantee the success of the relationship, but without them the odds of failure become a sure bet.

Chapter-a-Day

Chapter-a-Day Isaiah 57

Leave a comment

A Message from the high and towering God, who lives in Eternity, whose name is Holy:
"I live in the high and holy places, but also with the low-spirited, the spirit-crushed, And what I do is put new spirit in them, get them up and on their feet again." Isaiah 57:15-16 (MSG)

Incarnation is the word we use to describe the God of the universe inhabiting human form in the person of Jesus. It's a powerful truth. God becomes man. God lives as a man. God suffers as a man. God dies as a man. God descends into hell.

Much of the time I picture God and worship God as "high and towering." I worship the God of the universe who is greater than the universe and, therefore, a bit too big for my mind to fathom. God of the universe is awesome, but easily seems distant in light of my petty, miniscule problems. With the incarnation, God chooses to draw near to me. Jesus experienced life on Earth. Jesus experienced family. Jesus experience hunger. Jesus experienced powerful human emotions. Jesus experienced grief. Jesus experienced weariness. Jesus experienced betrayal. Jesus experienced rejection. Jesus experienced spirit crushing events.

God not only lives in the high and holy places, but chose to come near to lowly, low-spirited, spirit crushing human existence. Just like me. When I come to the God of the universe with my everyday struggles, he says "Dude, I've been there. I know."