Outside of his personal devotion to Christ—I can think of no greater priority for men than their families. However, we’ve created a culture (even in the church) that steals men away from their God-given mission at home. Families are struggling because men are struggling…with priorities–with sin. My friend, Pat Morley writes, “No amount of success at work will compensate for failure at home. Yet, men often struggle in giving proper priority to their families.”
I understand the struggle. The men I work with believe that a “good Christian” man is to be “great” at everything…to include his business, his church leadership, his personal walk with Christ, his civic responsibilities, his personal fitness, his pursuit of healthy recreation, as well as, being a great family man (husband and dad)…and still find time to sleep!!
It is impossible to “do it all,” yet Christian men often feel like this is how a “good” man should live!
As Christian men consider how they should navigate their God-given responsibilities—it is important to remember that there are God-given priorities…and these include the changing seasons in a man’s life. For example, most men launch a career and a family about the same time…and they both compete for one of man’s most precious resources—his time. Can a man have both? …and have them now? Does one take a priority over the other (especially in the early phase of life)?
These are just a few questions that YBL Huntsville is seeking to answer as we focus on…”A Man and His Family” in 2018. We started the year hosting Dr. Larry Little, a Christian family counselor—who is currently working as an Executive Team Coach. Larry’s passion to help men love and serve their wives was encouraging and challenging as men were exhorted to love their wives sacrificially–as Christ loves the Church!
On April 19th YBL Huntsville will have Coach Gene Chizik speaking at our Spring Luncheon. We asked Coach to join us, not because he won a National Football Championship, but because he decided to lay coaching aside for a season so that he could invest his time in his children while they were still at home!
Helping men think through the changing seasons of their lives—and how that affects their God given responsibilities is not a simple 1, 2, 3 step process—but with Godly counsel, His Word, and the leading of God’s Spirit—we know that men are able to make wise decisions about how to navigate the waters of life. It is our privilege to be in the fight with them!