Act Like a Man

Sometimes I consider the reasons I love my husband. I love to look in the mirror at him as I'm brushing my teeth, because I can see him in front of his mirror. And this makes it so that I can see him from behind and from the front at the same time. Which is a little overwhelming, I must say, but I just love his manliness. And it's not that he's insensitive, and he doesn't refuse to share his feelings. He's just not prancing around crying about this and that and whining about the guy who hurt his feelings at work for taking his green tea latte. Okay. I know I probably offended some people with that, but you know by now that I just don't care. My man is a man.

All this came to my mind as I completed 1 Corinthians this morning.

"Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong. Let all that you do be done in love." -1 Corinthians 16:13-14

This "act like men" stuff is common throughout the Old Testament in encouraging people, especially soldiers, to be courageous and strong, obedient to the Lord and trusting his power (see Deut. 31:6-23; Josh. 1:6-9; 10:25; 1 Chron. 28:20).

I wanted to find out if my feelings on this issue were shared. And I thought maybe I could get a man's perspective on this whole idea. I stumbled upon a new blog, which I added to my links, by a "dude" named Erik Raymond. Read the entire blog entry here.

"Since most of you who read this blog are dudes, here is my exhortation to be dudely which does not automatically mean you are godly, but if your wife is your leader than you are ungodly. You don’t have to ask God if you can lead your family, you already do. The only question is how well.

It may be easy if you are blessed with an assertive and competent wife to just let her go run the show while you sit back and spill chips on your shirt, watch the game and your belly grow. This is not what you’ve been called to do.

You and I are to lead our wife. To tirelessly work to present her as spotless and blameless before Jesus, the ultimate husband (Eph. 5.23,25-27). Don’t sit back like a chump, but step up and be a man, like Jesus, even laying down your life and interests for the sanctification and protection of your wife. I fear that too many men are comfortable acting like women and women like men."

John doesn't have me in a back corner with a doily on my head. If you know us, you certainly know that is absolutely not the case! But John empowers me to do so, so much.

I couldn't do it all without you, Johnniebear. I love you. And THANK YOU for acting like a man!