It's difficult to know where to start this because I keep seeing God's hand of preparation earlier and earlier in this process of imparting what God has given us to men and young men.
I'm sitting on an airplane waiting on the thunderstorms in Dallas to let up so we can take off from Detroit. Yet all I can see is these seven young men from 13 to 19 answering Yes and Yes Sir to the key questions from Dr Chuck Stecker's book, "Men of Honor, Women of Virtue." Are you willing to make a covenant commitment in the following area's as you begin this journey of spiritual maturity into adulthood? Purity, Submission to Authority, Preparing your mind, Self-Control, Trusting, Setting and example.
What a powerful time of God's presence in men and young men as they sought to hear from the Father.
See, I have known for over twenty years of being involved in ministry to men that we were missing something for the young men. We had a great word for men from Dr Edwin Louis Cole and his Majoring in Men curriculum. We even had three of his books that we recommended using with the young men, Courage, Sexual Integrity and The Power of Potential( based on the life of Joseph) but we didn't have a process or the Rites of Passage, so to speak, for the young men to begin this journey.
Dr Cole taught that everything God does is according to a pattern and based on a principle in the Kingdom of God. And that every principle on the face of this earth is based on a Kingdom principle. God is the creator. All Satan can do is take a Kingdom principle and pervert it get us to use it on and for ourselves. So when there is a physical principle that we are seeing or experiencing in our lives or bodies, it is a reflexion of a kingdom principle in the spirit.
When Dr Stecker states the beginning of the physical change that we all experience in our bodies as what we call puberty then there is a matching spiritual change that should be taking place at the same time. Your body begins to change and mature, your spirit should begin to change and mature.
But when we don't introduce and teach the spiritual principles that God teaches us through His word, then our kids go through the biological change in their bodies and don't understand the physical responsibility they have or the spiritual responsibility that goes along with it. The book reveals the cop-out that many parents and church's have succumbed to in labeling them teenagers, adolescence, or just plain kids. Rather than addressing them as young men and young women. They can procreate, thus the necessity for understanding their responsibility now. 
Just order the book from us and you will see what I'm talking about.
Now on with what I wanted to share from this weekend.
Friday was this young man's thirteenth birthday. His dad asked the pastor if he thought it would be ok to bring his son to the men's retreat as a acknowledgment or recognition of him entering 'manhood.'
The pastor said sure.
Little did they know that God had spoke to my heart in April to begin to teach on the rites of passage and make sure every man that attended understood the importance and the " missing link" that i felt I had found with Dr Stecker's book.
When the father began to hear the subject matter for the weekend, tears began to run down his face as he realized, God had designed this entire weekend for him and his son.
On Sunday as we gathered for the morning service, I asked the father and the mother and the young man(13 now) to come forward and tell what God had done. First the Dad began to share with a brokenness how special it was for he and his son, then the son said, "I found my father loves me and that he will never leave me or forsake me and my Father in heaven has a plan for my life, His plans are good." Then the mother said, "I sent my boy with his father and got back a young man and a better husband when they returned home."Hallelujah!
The entire church applauded God's faithfulness.
This is exactly what I sensed God would do, but it takes every man, knowing what God has in store for young men , then imparting that to them.
I can't say this enough and will keep saying this until Jesus returns. Get the book!
It's absolutely essential for every young man and young woman in our world today. What a great ministry to begin or endeavor. To tell of God's great plan for every one of these young people and then to be a small part of their lives as we watch them grow and mature into what God created them to be.
Thanks for reading this,
Jack
bro. jack
my son will be 17 on sept.21 and we will be giving him a copy of max man and the workbook in hopes he will complete it by his 18th. when we will release him in full to his fathers hand. i pray for you daily and really like your new blogs.
inHISgrip,
chris from Lifeworx
Posted by: chris McCarthy | September 06, 2006 at 03:18 PM