Men’s Easter Breakfast

Brothers,

I hope you already know about our 64th annual Men’s Easter Breakfast and are planning to attend. But just in case you haven’t yet decided, please let me formally invite and encourage you to join us this Saturday, at 8am, in the Family Life Center for a wonderful Southside tradition.

This is such a meaningful event for me. For almost 13 years I have enjoyed a great morning of food and fellowship with my father and my sons, as well as the other men of our church and community. Each year I see many generations of men gathering for this grand tradition. What a great legacy the men of our church left to us 64 years ago.

Please plan on coming and bring your son(s), father, grandfather, uncle, nephew, co-worker, neighbor, best friends, and anyone else who would enjoy this special time. In addition to the food and fellowship, we will also enjoy some singing (manly songs) as well as a great message by Rev. Mike Hudson of Ortega United Methodist Church.

So, to recap:

• This Saturday (March 30th)
• Southside UMC’s Family Life Center
• 8:00 – 10:00am

Please plan on coming as we prepare to celebrate the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Stand Firm,
Dale

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Pursuing Godly Manhood

Welcome to Pursuing Godly Manhood. Thanks for taking the time to stop by and check out my blog. I hope it will bless you.

• Pursuing – Striving to gain; seeking to attain or accomplish; carrying on; continuing
• Godly – Pious; devout; characterizing a Godward attitude; doing that which pleases God; indicating reverence manifested in actions
• Manhood – No one seems to know! Well, that’s a bit of an exaggeration, but it’s not far from the truth. My desire with this blog is to help move us all forward in coming to a better understanding of such an important subject as “manhood.”

Why Focus on Manhood?

While I serve my present ministry appointment in a variety of ways (related to discipleship), ministering to men has been a special focus and passion of mine for over a decade now. I can still remember when the light bulb went off for me regarding the importance of ministering specifically to men. The avalanche of statistics as well as my own ministerial observations began to sink in. I finally realized that what I had read dozens of times was actually true. My little epiphany could best be summarized by the words that I once heard pastor and writer, Tony Evans, preach…

• As the man goes, so goes the family
• As the family goes, so goes the church
• As the church goes, so goes the community
• As the community goes, so goes the city
• As the city goes, so goes the state, then nation, and finally the world.

That’s how we will change the world for Christ… by extending God’s kingdom into every sphere of life… beginning first with ourselves and then working outward in what we might  think of as concentric circles or spheres of influence.

Of course, nothing is ever that simple. However, virtually every statistic I’ve come across – secular and Christian – has stressed that the positive influence of a man in the home is non-negotiable for health and vitality in that home, as well as for society. Therefore, I came to embrace the wisdom of, as well as to put into practice, an intentional focus on ministering to men. Additionally, as a father of three sons, I also realized that the best time to influence men is before they’re men… that is… when they’re still young men and boys.

Purpose of this Blog

My purpose and calling is to love and glorify God by helping men become all that God has created, redeemed, and called them to be in every sphere and circumstance of their lives.  (I go into more detail of what this “purpose statement” means on my “Vocation” page). It ought to go without saying, though I dare not go without saying it, that this is not a “self-help” blog. My fundamental premise is that no man, woman, or child can become godly until they first respond in faith to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Only then can God’s Spirit and Word renew minds, renovate hearts, and transform lives.

My emphasis for this blog is pretty wide. I will focus on what I call the seven spheres of godly manhood: Worldview, Holiness, Family, Vocation, Culture, Witness, and Leadership. You will find out more about each of those spheres by visiting those pages on the blog. Those are broad and far-reaching themes to be sure, but I believe that they represent those areas of our lives that either relate to the spheres that influence us or those spheres where we have opportunity to influence others for Christ and his Kingdom.

Let me finish up with this “4 Sakes Prayer” that I found at the end of Jack Graham’s book, A Man of God:

For the sake of the Kingdom, For the sake of my family, For the sake of God’s Church, And for the sake of our nation, I will become a man of God.

Grace and Truth,
Dale Tedder

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Kingdom Man with Tony Evans

Looks good…

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What’s Your Reputation? (Men’s Midweek Devotional)

He must also have a good reputation with outsiders, so that he will not fall into disgrace and into the devil’s trap. (1 Timothy 3:7)

You have probably heard the definition of character as “who you are when no one is looking.” You could also say that character is who you are when those who know you best are looking.

In this second chapter of The Measure of a Man, Gene Getz looks at what it takes to build a good reputation. This is rather a tricky area because some folks may enjoy a good reputation superficially because they’re able to reasonably fake it before people they don’t know well and with whom they associate only on an occasional basis. But living a life that builds a good reputation is hard to fake on a regular basis with those who know you best… such as the members of your family who know you most intimately.

Let me hasten to add that the expectation here is not that you’re expected to walk on water. As one person I recently read put it, the idea here is direction, not perfection. The question is: Are you moving in a godly, Christlike direction in your life?

In the Scripture at the top of the devotion, Paul is telling Timothy that the kind of person he should be looking for to exercise leadership in the church needs to have a good reputation. Christians are charged with hypocrisy enough as it is. And even if the charge isn’t always accurate, the mere perception can derail a life or a ministry. Worse still, we don’t want to misrepresent our Lord before a watching world.

Getz suggests that Timothy was such a person… a man with a good reputation. He highlights these three indicators…

1. People were saying positive things about Timothy.
2. More than one person was saying these positive things about Timothy.
3. People in more than one location were saying these positive things about Timothy.

It seems that wherever Timothy was and whomever he was with, he was a godly man living above reproach. Thus, he enjoyed a good reputation.

Ask Someone

Getz recommends that if you want to really know your reputation (as it relates to your genuine character) ask someone who knows you best. This might sting a little, but it’s a good way to get to the truth of who you are… and to serve you in becoming the godly man you want to become.

Ask Yourself

Just as important, we occasionally need to conduct a personal assessment of who we are and what we’re about, etc. Getz suggests asking yourself the following questions (these are great questions, by the way)…

1. Do more and more people select me as a person to share their lives with me?

2. Do people trust me with confidential information?

3. Do my relationships with people grow deeper and more significant the longer they know me and the closer they get to me? Or do my friendships grow strained and shallow as people learn to know what I am really like?

4. Does my circle of friends grow continually wider and larger? Do an increasing number of people trust me?

5. Do people recommend me for significant or difficult tasks without fear of my letting them down?

The point in all of this is not to build a reputation by duplicity and manipulation. To be sure, there are plenty of people doing that. Instead, our goal should be that as we grow in godliness, the authenticity of our increasingly Christlike character will be made evident to all. And that’s how we can represent our Lord well in this world.

Have a great rest of the week.

Your Brother in Christ,
Dale

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Southside Men’s Midweek Devotional: Becoming Faithful Men

I just started reading Gene Getz’s book, The Measure of a Man: 20 Attributes of A Godly Man. I immediately thought that this is something I would love to share with the men of our church family (and a few extras as well). As book after book (as well as human experience) seem to remind us, boys are rapidly growing up in this world without learning what it means to be a man… even fewer understand what it means to be a godly man. Too many are having to make it up on the fly… with disasterous results.

Therefore, I thought I would share some of the insights that I’m gleaning from the book and pass them on to you, with a few extra items that I hope will be a blessing to you. If your email box is already too full  as it is, you can opt out of this weekly devotion by clicking the link at the bottom of this email.

Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. (Philippians 3:12)

The first chapter of the book is a broad overview of everything that Getz will be looking at throughout the rest of the book. The chapter is entitled, “Becoming Faithful Men.”  That’s a key topic as well as an important title. You see, we aren’t born faithful. Just the opposite, in fact. We are born fallen in sin, broken, and far from God. If we’re blessed to be born and raised in a Christian family, we may come to know God earlier in our lives. However, regardless of our background, growing in our faith is a lifelong pursuit. As you can imagine, if our goal is “Christ-likeness,” then we all have a LONG way to go! So I like the word “becoming”, because it highlights the idea of process… not product. We are works in progress (superintended by God himself (Philippians 1:6), and our goal is to continue moving in a Christward direction throughout the course of our entire life.

The word becoming also emphasizes focus and intentionality. No one grows into a godly man by accident. It happens on purpose or it doesn’t happen at all. The Scripture above from Philippians 3:12 captures this idea. The Apostle Paul is laboring and straining to reach the goal of maturity in Christ (i.e., godliness or holiness). It’s an everyday and “on purpose” process that requires nothing less than God’s Spirit working in and through us to give us the will, the strength, and the direction to grow in grace. We won’t grow in our faith apart from the Holy Spirit’s work in our lives, and yet, the Holy Spirit won’t do the work for us. We have to participate in the process.

Finally, Getz uses the word “Faithful” to describe the kind of man he has in mind. Then, borrowing from 1 Timothy and Titus, Getz puts together a list of what we might call the marks of spiritually mature (godly) manhood. Here’s his list…

• a good reputation
• maintaining moral purity
• balance in words and actions
• being wise and humble
• serving as a good role model
• demonstrating unselfishness and generosity
• communicating sensitively in a non-threatening and non-defensive manner
• not being addicted to substances
• not being a self-centered and controlling personality
• void of anger that becomes sinful
• not an abusive person
• non-argumentative and non-divisive
• a sensitive, loving and kind person
• non-materialistic
• a good husband and father
• a good testimony to unbelievers
• pursuing godly activities
• wise, discerning, non-prejudiced, and fair
• holy and righteous
• not a new Christian

Can anyone say they’ve already arrived? Anyone doing perfectly with this list?

Over the weeks to come I hope to look at each one of these headings and offer some thoughts and reflections from Scripture regarding what these characteristics might look like in our lives and how we might, in Paul’s words, “obtain them.”

I’d like to share this closing prayer from Ken Boa…

Faithful Father, as I reflect on the redemptive history recorded in the narratives and oracles of Scripture, I see so many surprising setbacks and breakthroughs. The wisdom of Your Word invites me to view events and circumstances with a long-term perspective. When I only look at the short-term, I get muddled, confused and doubtful, because I allow my immediate circumstances to shape my understanding. But when I contextualize the events of my life in the long-term, I can see that You are indeed causing all things to work together for good to those who love You and are called according to Your purpose. Teach me to affirm that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to Your children in Christ.

I hope this “midweek pick-me-up” has been a blessing to you. Have a great rest of your week.

Your Brother in Christ,
Dale

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Spiritual Formation for Men

If you minister to men, you may want to check out this upcoming webinar from United Methodist Men…

Meeting Name: Spiritual Formation for Men Webinar

Summary: This webinar will introduce men to the basic elements of Christian Spiritual Formation, using the Bible and the Wesleyan Tradition. Participants will learn how the journey to spiritual maturity begins with the experience of the new birth because Jesus told us, we all need to be born again. Then we will learn how to grow in our understanding and experience of God, moving from the milk to the meat and toward spiritual maturity where we are able to teach others also. Using the bible, we will see how we can go from being babies to children who can walk and talk with God, then young men able to serve God and neighbor, and on to becoming spiritual fathers and grandfathers. No one is too young and no man is too old to benefit with this discussion with Tom Albin, the Dean of The Upper Room Ministries.

Invited By: Joshua Eidson (jeidson@gcumm.org)

When: Thursday 11 October, 07:00 PM – 09:00 PM

Time Zone: (GMT-06:00) Central Time (US and Canada)

To join the meeting: http://umc.adobeconnect.com/spiritualformation/

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No Man Left Behind: A Model, A Method, and A Mindset

from the good folks at Man in the Mirror Ministries…

No Man Left Behind is being used by more and more churches that want to make men’s discipleship a priority, and want a process to follow. We’ll look at three different perspectives on No Man Left Behind over the next three Briefings: as a model, a method and a mindset.

• A Model — A pattern to follow that results in building something that looks like the picture.
• A Method — How do you make it happen? The Create-Capture-Sustain process gives you a method for helping men find and follow Christ.
• A Mindset — The all-inclusive mindset means we break out of conventional “men’s ministry” thinking, and instead begin to think about how we can reach EVERY man that interacts with our church in any way.

Click here to read the whole post.

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