~ How Are You Doing? ~
A Man of Prayer, Praise,
& Thanksgiving
~ “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in
everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18).
A Man Who Knows the
Bible
~ “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as
a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the Word of
truth” (2 Timothy 2:15).
A Man after God’s
Heart
~ David is described in Scripture as a “man after God’s heart” (Acts 13:22).
Like David we should find our greatest joy in intimacy with God and then He
will put the right desires in our hearts. “Delight
yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart” (Psalm 37:4).
A Man of His Word ~ We should be
straightforward and honest in all our communication. “Above
all, my brothers, do not swear—not by heaven or by earth or by anything else.
Let your ‘Yes’ be yes, and your ‘No,’ no, or you will be condemned” (James 5:12).
A Man of Integrity ~ “Don't fool yourself into thinking that you are a listener
when you are anything but, letting the Word go in one ear and out the other.
Act on what you hear!” (James 1:22). In
other words you must obey or you will decay. “But also for this very reason,
giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to
self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness,
and to brotherly kindness love. For if these things are yours and abound, you
will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus
Christ” (2 Peter 1:5-8).
A Man of Love for
Others
~ Love will characterize every aspect of a Godly man’s life.
(A)
Deep love for all mankind. (Sees them
as ones for who Christ died.) “If I could speak all
the languages of earth and of angels, but didn't love others, I would only be a
noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. … Three things will last forever—faith, hope,
and love—and the greatest of these is love” (1 Corinthians 13:1, 13).
(B)
Deeper love for his brethren. Jesus said, “A
new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you,
that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are My
disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:34-35).
(C)
Deepest love and strong guidance for his
wife and children. “And these words which I
command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to
your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk
by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up” (Deuteronomy 6:6-7). “Husbands, love your wives, just
as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy,
cleansing her by the washing with water
through the word” (Ephesians 5:25-26).
An Authentic Man ~ “Be agreeable,
be sympathetic, be loving, be compassionate, be humble. That goes for all of
you, no exceptions. No retaliation. No sharp-tongued sarcasm. Instead, bless—that's
your job, to bless. You'll be a blessing and also get a blessing. Whoever wants
to embrace life and see the day fill up with good, Here's what you do: Say
nothing evil or hurtful; Snub evil and cultivate good; run after peace for all
you're worth. God looks on all this with approval, listening and responding
well to what he's asked; But He turns his back on those who do evil things” (1
Peter 3:8-12, The Message).
Summary ~ “But concerning
brotherly love you have no need that I should write to you, for you yourselves
are taught by God to love one another; and indeed you do so toward all the brethren
who are in all Macedonia. But we urge you, brethren, that you increase more and
more; that you also aspire to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business, and
to work with your own hands, as we commanded you, that you may walk properly
toward those who are outside, and that you may lack nothing” (1 Thessalonians
4:9-12).
“You're
blessed when you meet Lady Wisdom, when you make friends with Madame Insight. She's
worth far more than money in the bank; her friendship is better than a big
salary. Her value exceeds all the trappings of wealth; nothing you could wish
for holds a candle to her. With one hand she gives long life, with the other
she confers recognition. Her manner is beautiful, her life wonderfully
complete. She's the very Tree of Life to those who embrace her.
Hold
her tight — and be blessed!” (Proverbs
3:13-18, The Message).
“Summing it all up, friends, I'd say you'll do best by filling your
minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling,
gracious—the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to
praise, not things to curse. Put into practice what you learned from me, what
you heard and saw and realized. Do that, and God, who makes everything work
together, will work you into his most excellent harmonies” (Philippians 4:8-9, The Message).
~ Robert Lloyd Russell, ABUNDANT LIFE NOW
