Page 2 - Managing Manhood

Therefore every man must accept shared responsibility for the disorder that may
exist in our present society. This is the first lesson of manhood: “ Men are the
fathers of their environment”.

To successfully alter the course of our present social disorder will require men to
answer the call of Godliness. Christian men across our country must respond to
the call of taking spiritual authority over their families. Unsaved men must
become the target of evangelization.
We cannot expect the conditions of our present generation to change without
effectively reaching our existing male population. Over the years our society and
the church have catered to the specific needs of every genre except for the male
population. The general assumption is that if a man has a problem, he’ll get over
it.
Most men are reluctant to openly seek advice on how to love a wife or how to be
a successful father and raise a strong family. Somehow men are supposed to
figure these things out for themselves. These are questions that go un-answered
primarily in our western culture. However, there are ethnic cultures that place
immense focus on the needs of understanding manhood.
African, Indian and Eastern cultures host traditional celebrations honoring the
transition from boyhood to manhood. In some of these ethnic cultures young
boys engaged in initiation rites to test their courage, endurance and strength.
Tribal fathers or community elders taught them to understand their heritage and
acceptable social values they were expected to live by.
This tutelage prepared them for fatherhood and leadership in their community. It
is obvious that cultures such as these recognize the impact that the male will
have on their society and the significance to furnish him with the necessary tools
to make him a success. In these cultures boys do not become men because
they are male but because they have been prepared and proven.
The bible also addresses the need for transitioning young males from boyhood to
manhood. There is a biblical pattern in Jewish life when fathers gather sons
together to pass on to them their inheritance and spiritual counsel or prophecy to
prepare them for the future. (Genesis chapter 49) Our western culture has not
quite captured the wisdom and examples of these biblical or ethnic cultures.
Many men, as a result, enter into adulthood unprepared to accept the roles of
fatherhood and leadership thrust upon them. The purpose of this book is to
expose men to God’s principles for for manhood and prepare Godly men for
spiritual leadership.

Chapter One
Man’s Genesis
So God created man....
Genesis 1:28

To understand how to manage what we are now, it is best to go back to our
“Genesis” and understand where we came from. If we, as men, need to make