Arrows Out

Good morning, men!

To sort of add to what Justin wrote yesterday, about today’s world being all about “me, me, me”….I wanted to dig in this morning on what it means to be “arrows” for Christ. We hear this analogy in regards to our children in Psalm 127:4:

“Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are children born in one’s youth.”

This Saturday, Locker 10:34 (an organization Murray Watts helped me form) will host its third annual Kids Camp and Coaches Clinic. Put on for free through donations from local businesses, we will give baseball instruction to the young and old….but we will spend a lot of time talking about:

+ Leading young men to Jesus

+ Being a good teammate and a good listener

+ Putting others before yourself

+ Thanking and giving credit to God for our unique gifts

Wether it is coaching, teaching, being a dad, helping mentor….we, as men, have an amazing opportunity to influence the next generation in a positive way. The picture above shows my high school coach, Bruce Hunt, speaking to a group of 6 year olds about hard work and being a good listener. Bruce has impacted thousands of men over the years in a positive way and had used his platform to develop boys into men.

I pray that each of us will find a way to use our talents to bless and lead the young men of this generation. Too many of them make it to 18 with no clue how to serve Christ and be a true man. Find a way to plug in to this kids and help lead them towards Jesus!

Have a blessed day!

M.I.T.T. ~ Runyan

Me, Me, Me

Good morning men. This is the day in which we live. Me, myself and I. What can I do for me? What can I do to make myself look better? Now don’t get me wrong, there are some things we need to do for ourselves which makes us better people (beating an addiction, becoming more physically fit, becoming more spiritually fit) but it is the intention in which we are doing this. God knows within our heart why we are doing something. That is where he looks. Not how the world perceives what we are doing but from within.

When we are doing anything, we should be doing it to bring glory and attention to God. As men in the trenches, he is who we are. Our actions need to let people know that He is what we are about because that is how we start to change hearts. “When they see me let them see You.”

Psalm 115:1 Not to us, LORD, not to us but to your name be the glory, because of your love and faithfulness.

Have a great day in the trenches men and make are we make it about Him.

How beautiful are the feet…

…of those who preach the good news. (Romans 10:15)

Men I write to you today because someone many years ago heeded the call of God to preach to me the good news of Jesus Christ. That is what gospel means: good news. The good news is that the God of the universe who created and rules over everything, created you and I to have a relationship with Him. This relationship is meant to be forever and God sent His one and only son Jesus to make it happen. And calling it good news is actually selling it short, because it is the greatest news one can hear. Thanks be to God my Uncle Tom shared with me what he heard from Billy Graham. I wouldn’t be a believer today if God hadn’t worked through Billy Graham’s humble, faithful, and powerful preaching of the gospel of Jesus Christ. I am not about putting another man on a pedestal, but I am about giving credit where credit is due. Thank you Lord for Billy Graham, thank you for my Uncle Tom, and thank you for calling me to you through your Word and the great news of Jesus Christ. I taught Sunday school yesterday and the curriculum spelled out the gospel as follows:

God rules. God created everything, and He is in charge of everything. (Genesis 1:1, Revelation 4:11, and Colossians 1:16-17)

We sinned. Since the time of Adam and Eve, everyone has chosen to disobey God. (Romans 3:23) The Bible calls this sin. Because God is holy, God cannot be around sin. Sin separates us from God and deserves God’s punishment of death. (Romans 6:23)

God provided. The greatest gift that could be given. (Romans 6:23, John 3:16). God sent His Son, Jesus, the perfect solution to our sin problem, to rescue us from the punishment we deserve. It’s something we, as sinners, could never earn on our own. Jesus alone saves us. (Ephesians 2:8-9).

Jesus gives. Jesus lived a perfect life, died on the cross for our sins, and rose again. Because Jesus gave up His life for us, we can be welcomed into God’s family for eternity. This is the best gift ever! (Romans 5:8; 2 Corinthians 5:21; 1 Peter 3:18).

We respond. We can respond to Jesus. (Romans 10:9-10,13). And these are the aspects of our response: Believe in your heart that Jesus alone saves you through what He’s already done on the cross. Repent, turning from self and sin to Jesus. Tell God and others that your faith is in Jesus.
Romans 10:9-17: 9 because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. 11 For the Scripture says, “Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.” 12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him. 13 For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

14 How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? 15 And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!” 16 But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?” 17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.

SO AS MEN IN THE TRENCHES OF THE KINGDOM OF GOD, LET US BE THE ONE WHO SHARES THE GOOD NEWS WITH THOSE IN OUR LIVES GOD HAS DRAWN US TO.

Keep God First

Matthew 10:37-38

37 “Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. 38 Whoever does not take up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me.

Pastors, speak the message God has put inside you to share this week.

Men, God must be first. The older I get the more I see situations from myself and others where keeping Him first would alleviate problems.

How often do you talk to God? How often do you thank Him and praise Him? I had a recent situation that enhanced my awareness of waking up in the morning and being thankful for the day.

Be diligent about keeping him first. This message helps to ensure that you spend at least some time with Him. Be thankful for something you take for granted today.

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

Love,

Yancey

P.S. How cool were the statistics that Dustin shared about the reach of the Manly Message? It is a true blessing.

Walk by the Spirit

Galatians 5:16

16 So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.

The sermon last Sunday was about the end of days. One point our pastor made during the sermon was that the disciples thought that things were bad then and that Christ would return in their lifetime.

People in today’s time feel like things are bad and Christ will return in their lifetime. I would be willing to bet that people in the 1850s thought things were bad enough that Christ would return in their lifetime. I’m sure you see the point here.

Why does everyone feel like the end is near? Obviously because of the tragedies, but it is also written in 2 Timothy that people’s love of self and love of earthly items will be abundant. We can see that in a lot of places.

The best part of the sermon was essentially the counteraction to that. Walk by the spirit and those desires won’t be gratified. Doesn’t say we won’t have those urges, but remember 2 Corinthians 12:9, But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.

Nothing worth having comes easy, and walking by the spirit is in that category. Pray for each other. Pray for your friends, acquaintances, coworkers, strangers, all of them. Pray for the men on this message. We aren’t perfect and we all fall at times.

Wherever you may be reading this, make it a great day in the trenches. Be exceptional at being you.

Love,

Yancey

Family Friday 2/23: Family in Christ

Good morning, men!

For the majority of my life, I have lived with a ton of skin deep “friendships”, very few true friends, and a ton of dependence on myself and my own will. All of this changed four years ago when I submitted to Jesus and became involved in a church family.

This week I have watched my church family feed a family of 12 who was grieving the loss of a loved one, help a brother move his entire house in one day after a 6 am text, send prayers and well wishes for people facing major life decisions……the list goes on and on.

I want you all to know that I love my biological family intensely. Dustin mentioned my dad yesterday. He would have done anything for me and my mom and my sister are still the same way. Men, if we only learn to lean on flesh and blood, we are missing a greater purpose. A true, loving church family can move mountains in your life, and when you are involved, you can do the same for someone else.

My prayer for us all is that we each find ways to plug in, dig deeper, and grow our family.

Have a blessed day, men!

M.I.T.T. ~ Runyan

Impact

We passed a milestone in the life of the Manly Message on February 16th.  It was the 2nd birthday for the message. It’s amazing how God has and continues to work through this message.  Last year at this time I called and interviewed Pip Runyan, the  father of Andy, and discussed many things with him.  I remember how moved I was by his great attitude, humility, and that he was a Manly Message reader who looked forward to getting them daily!

This past year Coach Runyan went to be with the Lord and I will never forget the impact his death had on The Manly Message.  The day after his dying, it was Andy’s turn to write. He text me the night before and said he was still going to write and even predicted that he had something special (https://manlymessage.wordpress.com/2017/08/25/family-friday-825-they-know/).  The message was amazing and so was the number of people who read it.  We watched as it continued to climb 1,000, 2,500…. all the way to 4,500! The message was read in 4 different countries worldwide!

So, as I was thinking about my talk with Pip, his death and our daily message; I started to think about Jesus.  He was on the earth over 2,000 years ago and His Message is still as important now as it was then! Jesus, told His disciples that He had to leave so that we could receive the Holy Spirit.  His death was a message of hope, an act of love, His death was a sacrifice for us, His death still touches the lives of people over 2,000 years later, His death is a VICTORY! No one had ever touched so many lives as Jesus has.  There is no competition and I promise you I’m not comparing Pip Runyan to Jesus. I just started thinking about the impact of what death can do, and no ones death has impacted more lives than the day they nailed our Saviour to a tree. But, I’ll never forget the impact Pip Runyan had on our ability to spread the word of God through his passing! It just blows me away!

The Manly Message is a call to action in helping men feel the love and hope of Jesus. There has been many joys and many sorrows over the last year.  The year to come will be no different.  The prayer is that The Manly Message can continue to provide you with a way to seek God’s word daily and help you understand you are not alone.  Let’s continue to make this thing grow.  Thank you so much to everyone involved! It feels like a brotherhood. I love each and everyone one of you.

I AM A MAN IN THE TRENCHES FOR THE KINGDOM

dlp

Find Your Passion

Good morning, men!

This morning, at 6:25, I opened the door to my bedroom and heard our Amazon Echo saying, “….playing a sample of ‘Who Let The Dogs Out.'” As I turned the corner, I heard the speaker blaring and saw my 5 year old in his PJ’s dancing his little off-beat, Caucasian heart out. Sarah and I just kind of smiled, looked at each other in amazement/ shock, and went on about our morning.

I know this may seem like a pointless story about my crazy kid, but I swear I will get there. That song is awful. EVERYONE got tired of it years ago. On top of that, Jase has played it every day for a week now….multiple times. And you know what, he doesn’t care one bit what the world says about the Baha Men.

I hope that is the same joy and passion we have about being missionary servants. Hopefully, all of us here have some type of passion/ gift that we have found to use for the kingdom. What happens when the world tells us its corny? What happens when the majority says it’s old school?

My hope is, men, that you stand firmly in your underwear and dance away……figuratively speaking, of course!

Have a blessed day, men!

M.I.T.T. ~ Runyan

Leaders

2 Corinthians 8:21 “For we are taking pains to do what is right, not only in the eyes of the Lord but also in the eyes of man.”

Good morning men. This continues the message and thing we have been talking about this last week. With the world and everything that’s going on, there needs be people to shine bright and shine the light of the Lord. With the events in Florida and hearing of all the layoffs, I pray that everyone has a light shining for them in their time of need. We are hear to build one another and lift one another up. Have a blessed day men and be the light.