Time flies

Ephesians 5:15-16: (ESV) 15Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, 16making the best use of the time, because the days are evil.

Psalm 90:12(ESV): 12So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom.

Wow. Where did the summer go? Tomorrow is the first day of August and in just a few weeks kids will be returning to school. My oldest son Seth just got back from being gone all summer and now he will be starting college. Gulp.

I turn 50 this November and it is really starting to hit me. Time flies and kids grow up fast.  I had the privilege of teaching Sunday school this weekend and got to see how my 2 youngest have grown in their understanding of the scriptures and the good news of Jesus Christ.

Which brings me to our first and most important ministry we have as men: we are called to be spiritual leaders of our marriage and family. 1 Timothy 3 lists the qualifications of spiritual leaders (vs 1-7 cover pastor/overseer/elder and vs 8-13 cover deacon). Defining these 2 roles is a topic for another day, but a key trait that shows up in both is the requirement to manage one’s household well: to be a faithful, devoted leader to one’s wife and children. And this is not a hands off, dictatorship kind of management where we as the man dictate this is how things are going to be and are not personally vested in the relationships (for bigger picture see Ephesians 5-6). We are called to be like Christ and to be servant leaders of our home, where every area of our life points our wives and kids to Christ. That is a challenge that we can only live up to by seeking & beholding Christ, through the grace of God and the power of the Holy Spirit. We can not point our families to the Lord if we are not personally seeking and living for the Lord in every area of our life.. And our wives and children cannot see the Lord in us if we are not personally devoted to intentionally spending time with them and being involved with them. We are called to make disciples and this starts at home with our families.

So I share what the Lord convicted me on this weekend: prayerfully evaluate your relationship with your wife and with your children. And prayerfully evaluate your priorities and your schedule. Ask for wisdom to be intentional, devoted and loving in spending quality time with them individually and as a family. Put your wife and children as top priorities and not just fill in around all the busyness and bustle of life. If you don’t plan your life it will plan you. Our culture here in the U.S. keeps pressing us to be faster and busier. Go make memories with what matters and the time you have. Nobody looks back on their life and goes wow I wish I would have spent more time working/golfing/watching baseball/etc & less time with my family. Time flies guys, go make the most of it by being the most awesome husband, dad, and friend you can be by the grace, wisdom and power of God.

No Excuse for Any of Us

Pastors, it’s your day. You’re perfectly suited to say exactly what’s needed today. 

Gentlemen, we have no excuse to feel that we can’t be used by God. Here’s the short list (you may have seen it before):  

Noah was a drunk

Abraham was too old

Jacob was a liar

Joseph was abused

Moses had a stuttering problem

Gideon was afraid

Samson had long hair and was a womanizer

Jeremiah was too young

David was an adulterer (not to mention a murderer)

Elijah was suicidal

Isaiah preached naked

Jonah ran from God

Job went bankrupt

Andrew lived in the shadow of his big brother

Peter denied Christ

Zaccheus was too small

Paul was a Christian-killer

I’m not seeing much on here that we can compete with. Be ready when God calls, men. 

Have a great week in the trenches. Be exceptional at being you. 

No Excuses, you’re ready and prepared. 

Love,

Yancey

Listen and Teach

Job 6:24
24 “Teach me, and I will be quiet; show me where I have been wrong.

Psalm 25:9

9 He guides the humble in what is right and teaches them his way.

Good Morning,
I hope this finds you well. Some parts of the country got rain that they severely needed so we can be thankful for that. 

One of the best things about the Manly Message is that we can all learn from each other, good, bad or otherwise. It takes a strong person to be willing to listen and to learn from our mistakes. In my opinion, an intelligent person learns from others, good or otherwise. 

Make an effort to learn this week. Make an effort to listen this week. Learn from men, learn from God, but be ready for both. With all of my deficiencies, it is still my hope and pray that I can provide something to enhance you each weekend. The true beauty of that is if I can do it, so can you. All of you have a great story to share. All of you have something to teach us or others you come into contact with. 

Be ready to share and be ready to learn. Be exceptional at being you. Have a great week in the trenches. 
Love,

Yancey

Family Friday 7/28: A Prayer Request

Good morning, men!

Two days ago a brother on the message reached out to me and asked for prayer. He told me that he and his wife were beginning counseling, as he felt like his marriage may not survive. Really, there are two reasons I want to share this with you (which was ok with him, in case you wondered):

1. We are family here and the most powerful thing we can do is pray for each other and support each other through trials. 

Matthew 18:20 says, “For where two or three are gathered in my name, there I am among them.” 

We may not physically be near each other, but we can gather in prayer.

2. I wanted to publicly, yet anonymously, commend this brother for stepping up and seeking Christian guidance for his marriage. SO MANY men these days, when presented with marital issues, just give up or have an attitude that “counseling is for wusses.” In 2013 Sarah and I attended a few months of counseling that saved our marriage. We have continued to meet with our pastoral staff occasionally to seek biblical guidance in our marriage. Tonight at VBS we taught about Adam sitting idly by as he allowed the serpent to creep in and cause a divide between him and his wife. We need to FIGHT for our marriages, and I am proud of this man for stepping up and doing just that.

So, let’s all pray for his marriage and our marriages as a whole. Let’s pray that we will be courageous in our walks with God as leaders of our families. Thank you all for your support and being a group who is willing to listen to and support those in need.

Have a blessed day!

M.I.T.T. ~ Runyan

Salt of the earth

I might as well keep the 5 senses kick rolling, the last two Thursdays have been sight and smell, today I want to dive into taste.  As I started my research there are multiple refererances  to the taste of God, in the Bible.  But, this is what hit me the most:

““You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.”
‭‭Matthew‬ ‭5:13‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Salt has two major functions when it comes to putting it on our food. The first thing it does is enhance flavor.  The second thing it does is preserve.  We, as disciples are the salt of the earth we help to enhance the flavor, meaning we try to make people understand through our testimony how great our God is.  We also, as disciples, are called to live in a way that will preserve what is good, and what God wants for all of us.  If we lose that saltiness, what are we good for? We would only be part of the regular world that’s ruled by the enemy.  That’s not who we are.  My prayer today for all of us is that we do not lose our saltiness, and we continue to strive to enhance and preseve the world we now love in.  We can only do this with the help of God.

“Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.”
‭‭Psalm‬ ‭34:8‬ ‭NIV‬‬

M.I.T.T.

dlp

 

The Prodigal Whiff

Good morning, men!

Today I want us to look at the famous parable of the Prodigal Son. If you are unfamiliar, please take the time to read Luke 15:11-32. Once you read the passage (or if you recall it from memory) you will hear of two sons. The first squanders his fortune, lives a hedonistic life, and even eats with pigs at one point. The other honors his father, never disobeying and working hard.

My entire life, until a few years ago, I read this story as:

Don’t be like the brother who lives out of control. Yes, we are forgiven, but it’s better to be like the other brother.

As I got older and “lived more”, I realized the story was just as much about the brother who did not squander his money. His self righteousness and pride produce a jealousy that manifests in a “LIFE’S NOT FAIR” moment…..and it’s a bad look. 

I can honestly say, men, that I have been both of these brothers. I have been lost, and come in rags to the feet of the Father pleading for forgiveness. I have also shaken my fist at God and asked him “Why me?” at times when I have wanted my actions to be properly rewarded. 

The bottom line is, neither brother is sinless. None of us are. Wether we are lying with the pigs or standing high on our mountain, looking down at others……we still need a Savior who forgives our worst transgressions. We have that every day in Jesus, and that is something to be FIRED UP about!

Have a blessed day, men!

M.I.T.T. ~ Runyan

Immeasurable

Good morning men. I don’t really have a scripture per say to go off of this morning, but I did see a quote last week that I found very moving. 

“Jesus knows your failures and flaws more than anyone else in the world and yet he still loves you more than anyone else can.”

Wow. To me, that just resonated. He knows we are broken. Yet he loves us more than anyone possibly could. That is just an overwhelming feeling. This is a great message to share with people who think that Christ couldn’t love them because of how they are or their past. There are tons of scripture to back this up as well. Show them the proof by showing them the love. Have a blessed day men. 

M.I.T.T.

Everything we need

Some people try to make Christianity very complicated. I believe it best to go by the KISS principle: Keep It Simple, Stupid or when using it with your kids: Keep It Simple, Silly! To put it simply is that Christianity is a relationship, not a religion.

I encourage you to read the first 2 verses of this passage slowly. Soak it in. Meditate on it. It explains all that God has done for us through our relationship. The rest of the passage is about how we should respond and grow in this relationship.

2 Peter 1:3-11 (ESV) 3 His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to (or by) his own glory and excellence, 4 by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire. 5 For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, 6 and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, 7 and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. 8 For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins. 10 Therefore, brothers,^g be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall. 11 For in this way there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

God has provided us everything we need. For Life and Godliness. Through a relationship with Him, who called us by His own glory and excellence. God’s divine power provided everything through His Son, Jesus Christ and called us to relationship with Him. He has given us His very great and precious promises (His Word) so that we can be partakers of His divine nature. Meditate on that. We can be partakers of His divine nature. He called us, He adopted us in Christ to be in His Kingdom and His Kingdom plans – we can experience that now here on earth as we follow Him and live for Him. To quote a slogan from the Navigator ministry: To Know Christ and Make Him Known. And it is only through Christ and what he did on the cross and His resurrection that we have redemption. That we escaped the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.

Thanks be to God for this amazing truth. Help us Lord to live in it daily, to grow in our relationship with you, helping others know you, confirming your calling and election of us and looking forward to the day when Jesus comes back establishing your eternal kingdom!

 

Your Story Will Inspire

Colossians 2:6

6 So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in Him,

Pastors … how about it today? It’s your chance for Jesus to shine through you. What an immense opportunity. Make it happen. 

I had a lot of time on the road yesterday and I was listening to the FM radio (no XM for this guy unless it is a free preview week). That means I switched stations a lot. I was thrilled to find several different Christian stations along the way. 

Let me back up a tiny bit. When I was younger, I really liked Jim Carrey’s movies. Since then, Hollywood has become a place for Scientology and atheists. That’s what we are up against, people who are famous that influence people the wrong way. It’s pretty sad.

Back to Jim Carrey, he recently went to a prison a talked about his Christian faith with the inmates. I was thrilled! One of my childhood favorites is a Christian. He shared some of his sufferings and told them that they had the same choice he did. He also told them that suffering lead him to salvation. 

I say all that to say this, share your story. Share with us or with anyone how you got to this point in Christ. People need to know and hear that we aren’t perfect, that we don’t perceive ourselves to be perfect, but everything about God is. That’s how we can walk with him. 

Have a great week in the trenches and be exceptional at being you. 

Love,

Yancey