20 Jul More Like Him

The first two decades of my life were filled with insecurity, poor role models, and a lack of identity. Culturally, masculinity was directly linked to athleticism, how many girls liked you, and having machismo.

Yet Jesus defied the traditional perception of manhood. Through his selflessness and sacrifice, He lived a life that embodied true masculinity. I believe that defining manhood outside of Christ-centered community pulls us away from God’s original intent.

In his letter to Timothy, Apostle Paul exhorts him by saying, “But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness.” -1 Timothy 6:11

In the same way that Paul encouraged Timothy to flee from false doctrine, I would like to urge all of our men to flee from the world’s standard of masculinity. Instead, together we can run towards Christ’s example and become image bearers of the one true God. Obviously, embracing true manhood comes with its cost. It requires us to take advantage of opportunities to be around other godly men. It also means sacrificing comfort, control, and convenience.

So to all of the Mosaic Men, I want to ask you to take advantage of an awesome opportunity to be surrounded by other men of faith by registering for this year’s men’s retreat (if you haven’t already), happening September 14 – 15 at T Bar M. Not just because there will be fun activities like floating the river, sports tournaments, and amazing messages from Pastor Russ Austin (who is a powerful communicator). And not simply because T Bar M is one of the nicest retreat facilities in a 75-mile radius.

My hope is that you will come to experience the presence of the Lord! My prayer is that God will reveal the ways in which He wants to shape you into the man He’s called you to be as we draw near to Him together.

And to all of my Mosaic Women, I encourage you to make space for your brothers in Christ to take advantage of this opportunity to connect with other men and more importantly to meet with Jesus. Plotting, no conspiring….I mean partnering with other wonderful sisters in our body to help send a male friend to the retreat is permissible (just saying). This goes for all of the wives too…I ask that you do everything in your power to help support your man…boo thang…stud muffin in being part of this awesome weekend. If you sign your husband up without him knowing, I won’t judge…as a matter of fact, just tell him Pastor Morgan did it….(whoops, can’t take that back!) 😉

Click here for the registration link, which has all the details for the retreat. For a $5 discount, use code: EARLYBIRD5. Looking forward to seeing all the men there!

Barnabas