How to Disagree Agreeably

“A man’s got to know his limitations.” -Det. Harry Callahan – a/k/a Dirty Harry There are times in a man’s life when he cannot remain silent.  It may be on behalf of someone else, or you may have to stand up for yourself, but when the time comes, voicing your objection in the right way […]

Authenticity: To Be Rather Than To Seem

Esse Quam Videri — To Be Rather Than To Seem — State Motto of North Carolina As the father of sons born in the ’90’s here’s what I see:  If there’s one word that seems to epitomize the values of the Millennial cohort it is authenticity.  In contrast to the Generation X and Baby Boom cohorts, […]

What Are You Doing Here? – Discover Your Purpose

“Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.”  – Howard Thurman (1900-1981) In the movie Boyhood, the young protagonist asks his father what it all means.  Their conversation goes like this: Mason: So what’s the point? Dad: […]

Four Reasons Why Sex Is Such a Big Deal

“I could never take a chance Of losing love to find romance In the mysterious distance Between a man and a woman.”    -U2 As the saying goes, men think about sex roughly every seven seconds.  Sometimes it can seem like more frequently than that!  Whether that is the reason or not, our entertainment, our […]

Isolation vs. Solitude

“Whoever isolates himself seeks his own desire; he breaks out against all sound judgment.” … Proverbs 18:1 Let’s start with this premise: time alone is a mixed blessing.  On one hand, having a set time and place to be alone with one’s thoughts can be wonderfully restorative.  Conversely, too much time alone can lead to self-absorption and […]

The Role of Hardship in Shaping Character

“Endure hardship as discipline…”   – Hebrews 12:7 I never liked the word discipline. It always made me think of punishment — and I didn’t care for punishment.  Losing privileges, being sent to my room, having my allowance docked — I never liked any of it.  The worst, however, was corporal punishment — the dreaded […]

Decide to Live a LIfe of Consequence – Part I

Happy New Year!  I hope your 2015 will be one of significant growth and progress toward becoming the man you were created to be. Around this time, many people make resolutions for the new year.  Some of these are vague — so nebulous as to be useless — such as, “I’m gonna get in shape.” […]