Real Men

Last night we had "Man Church" at Hilldale. Knowing it was coming up, I did some thinking about what a real man is.

Society has many ideas that I won't bother to list here.

They say men identify themselves by what they do. I build houses. I sing in the choir. I drive a truck. I do this _____

I happen to think a man is defined by who he IS not just by what he does, but for this particular post I'll go with what a real man does. I suppose though that who he is will be seen by what he does, so maybe it's OK...

This is certainly not an exhaustive list - just things off the top of my head.

A Real Man takes care of himself physically.

Most men don't like to go to the doctor. "I'm not sick!"

To be honest, the things they do to you aren't exactly comfortable things a lot of the time. But a real man will go to the doctor because he knows he needs to be around to care for his wife and children and grandchildren. So...

A real man goes to the doctor.

A real man has a colonoscopy (so his wife doesn't have to watch him die an unnecessary slow painful death. I've seen this way too many times over the years.)

A real man lets his doctor do a prostate exam. (I know ladies read this too. Sorry. But prostate cancer is one of the leading killers of men and to be honest... - well never mind. You guys can just talk to me about it privately if you need to. hahaha.)
A real man exercises so his heart is healthy.
A real man keeps his weight in check so he will live longer and healthier.
(Do I need to keep going?)

A Real Man takes care of his family.

He hugs his kids and kisses his wife (in front of the kids so they see that a real man loves his wife.)
He says "I love you."
He doesn't take cheap shots at his wife or kids - he's not a bully.
He provides for his family's material needs but doesn't become a workaholic because he knows they need him at home too.
He doesn't just watch sports. If his wife wants to see a "chick flick" he watches it with her.
He supports his son when he wants to play in the band instead of going out for the football team.

Last but certainly not least.
A Real Man takes care of himself spiritually.

He reads his Bible every day.
He let's God's Spirit work in his life to make him more like Christ.
He leads his family in going to worship and Bible study and in service.
He is a follower of Jesus.

I'm thankful that I know a lot of men like this! I certainly haven't arrived and the guys I know who are "real men" haven't either, but we're striving to honor God, our families and ourselves as we work on doing what is right.