Here’s a book you’ll want to get and read. Trust me. It’s a fast and easy read, but it packs an important message. The book is Man Alive and it’s written by my friend and mentor Patrick Morley.

I first “met” Pat reading his groundbreaking book, Man in the Mirror, when it came out in 1989. It explored the 24 challenges men face in a fresh and authentic way. Quickly, it became a best-seller and I circulated my copy to many of the guys I hung out with at the time. Since that time, I’ve read every one of Pat’s books and I’ve had the pleasure to meet and work alongside him as part of the National Coalition of Ministries to Men, an organization that he co-founded and led for over a decade. In fact, you might say I’m weakly following in his footsteps having recently assumed the role of President of that organization.

So naturally, when he asked me to preview his latest book, I was more than delighted to do so and also to write an endorsement appearing in its pages. In my opinion, Man Alive is just the kind of book, like his first, that you’ll want to read and pass along to others that you know.

In it, Pat rightly observes that “most men know only enough about God to be disappointed with Him.” And so, it’s an invitation to rediscover a God who wants to satisfy their “seven primal needs,” as Pat puts it. These are: to know we are not alone; to know that God cares for us personally; to believe there’s a purpose for our lives; to break free from destructive behavior; to satisfy our thirst for awe; to love without reservation; and, to make a the world a better place. As his is style, Pat explores each need in compelling and practical ways, combining story with biblical truth that makes it easy for us guys to take in.

If you’re looking for something to revive your spirit and to share with other guys you care about, pick it up and take in for yourself. It goes on sale today at your favorite bookseller. Check out the book website for more info and for fun, watch a trailer of Pat navigating his Porsche at high speed.

What books have you found yourself sharing most often with others?

NOTE: I receive no compensation for this endorsement.

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Pastor Roger Thompson of Berean Baptist Church and I have been writing a book we’re calling Steering through the Potholes: Navigating Life’s Adversities. It’s a book about the challenges we face and how to navigate through them. Like potholes we hit in the road, adversity is unavoidable and often leaves lasting damage. If you’ve ever asked of God, “Why is this happening to me?” then you’ve hit a pothole and this book is being written for you.

I say “is being written” because we are literally in the middle of writing it and we would like your help. We want to do something a bit unusual and invite you into the writing process. Beginning Sunday, September 26th, for eight consecutive evenings, Roger and I will be teaching from the material in the book and leaving behind, each week, a draft chapter for you to chew on. We will ask you to react to the material as you experience it live and also as you read the chapter the following the session. Your feedback will be invaluable to us as we continue to develop this project.

That’s it. That’s the journey we’re on and, if this topic is of interest to you, we invite you to be a part of it Sunday evenings at Berean Baptist Church, Room 114 from 5:30-6:45 p.m. Click for directions.

I hope to see you there!

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It is right to wait expectantly on God when we pray. So often, however, our prayers can secretly have a cynical cast; “I want you to do this for me God, but I’m not holding my breath.” And so, having said a perfunctory prayer, we trudge on, trying to make the best of a situation absent of any real faith that God will be any part of the solution. After some time, we may cease praying about our situation altogether. Our challenge becomes just one of the many we have to attend to by ourselves. Or, out of our anxiety or a demanding spirit, we turn to others in hope for rescue. Yet, something remarkable happens when we pray expectantly, as David did in the Psalms. When we truly believe that God desires to answer our prayer, we become sensitized to His presence in our lives. Things we may not have otherwise noticed become pronounced. Joy within us grows as we begin to see Him working in and through us bring about His answer, though not necessarily as we might have conceived it when we asked. And that’s the remarkable part, for God delights to reveal Himself to those who earnestly seek Him (Heb 11:6). Prayer without expectation of a deeper relationship with God is nothing more than making a shopping list, without concern for who gives us what we want.

Your thoughts? Are you praying with that kind of expectancy today?

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I have to admit, although I’m not a big fan of television series in general, I’m hooked on ABC’s Lost. Apparently, I’m not the only one. Sixteen million “Lostaways” tune in every week to follow the unusual saga of an eclectic cast of characters stranded on an a mysterious island somewhere in the South Pacific. Through the use of flash-backs, flash-forwards, and “flash-sideways,” each episode surrenders a few more facts about the cast-aways and their peculiar island, while generating a whole new crop of intriguing questions. In many ways, the series mirrors life. All of us have challenges that simply can’t be resolved in a sixty-minute episode. They can be every bit as perplexing and elusive as being stranded on a supernatural island. Yet, the more willing we are to explore the questions, without anxiously pressing for a solution, the more insight we gain about ourselves and the world around us. Earlier this week, as I listened to a friend tell me about his “island mysteries,” I realized how much I longed to help him find a tidy solution to his challenges within our sixty-minutes together. I risked alienating him by giving him a cheap and unsatisfactory episodic solution rather than joining with him in living with the mysterious questions. When it comes to exploring the mysteries of our lives, the infamous line from Lost is apropos, “Live together or die alone.”

Your thoughts? Are you often tempted to offer quick solutions to your friend’s challenges?

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When you hear someone complain about their situation, have you ever found yourself tempted to say, “You think you’ve got it bad…”? One person’s devastating trial can be another’s inconvenient paper cut. Yet, few of us can top the trials the apostle Paul endured during his lifetime. On more than one occasion he was beaten, shipwrecked, imprisoned, persecuted, robbed, and left naked, cold and hungry (2 Cor 11:24-27). That’s enough to drive anyone to despair. Yet, even in the midst of all this pressure, he was not crushed. Even though he was as perplexed as we often are, he didn’t despair. Like him, we may not know all the “whys,” but we can know the “Who”—and that’s enough to get us through any challenge.

Your thoughts? How have you seen God get you through your challenges?

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Conquering a challenge can be very exhilarating. Whether climbing a mountain, getting into shape, or honing a new skill, an appropriate challenge can bring out your personal best. But it takes more than the eye of the tiger to rise up to a challenge. A brother can help. This 30-minute presentation explores the three types of challenges we face and how we can issue the kind of challenge that inspires others to achieve their personal best. From the IronWorks series, “8 Things Every Man Can Give.”

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In my previous post, Did you just hit a pothole?, we explored what turns a pothole experience into a debilitating sinkhole.  It happens when our focus is on unearthing answers to the question ‘why?’  Asking that question, as if something were wrong with either God or us, leads into the sinkholes of inaction and despair.

Having hit more than a few potholes of his own, the Apostle Paul penned these words:

“We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.”  (2 Corinthians 4:8-9)

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