This past weekend was the Men’s 1613 Conference held at the church. We had 31 men take time out of their busy schedules to listen to the following men challenge us to Stand Firm and Act Like Men from 1 Corinthians 16:13: John Stonestreet, Jeff Tiegs, Kris Paranto, Joby Martin, Matt Everson, Joel Salatin, Nick Freites, Massy Campos, Anthony Munez, Brian Dawkins, Rich Franklin, Dr. Daniel Huerta, Brad Geary, David Gibbs and John Lovell. If you don’t know who any of these men are, I encourage you to follow them on social media or subscribe to their podcasts.
If you weren’t able to make it, here are some of the key takeaways I had from a few of them:
John Stonestreet
-Paul said to “Count it all joy” while he was writing from prison.
-Peter says Hope defines life even in persecution or bad circumstances (Jeff’s summary). Do you have the strength to stand against negative peer pressure and to stand for your faith in Christ when it is challenged?
-“God has called you to be a man of God in this time and place. Are you fulfilling your calling for this?”.
Jeff Tiegs
-He talked about masculinity and how society today is trying to feminize men and make women more masculine. Do you have a brotherhood and mission in your life?
-We are all fighting “dragons” – lust, lying, greed, envy, etc. Do you have brothers in your life who will stand with you to help fight these “dragons”?
-This is my plug for his book “Where have all the heroes gone?” that I am currently reading.
Kris Paranto
-Is church a core component of your life?
-You can learn more from failures than successes when you are looking for God’s plan in your life.
-Unfortunately, I was unable to hear much of this session.
Joby Martin
-Joby talked about Mark 2:1-12 with the paralyzed man whose 4 friends carried him to see Jesus on a mat and lowered him through the ceiling for healing. Then asked the question, “Do you have mat carriers in your life?” For the Men’s Ministry of Cascades, this is what we desire to see happen in our church. Having at least one person in your life you can be accountable to.
-As men, we are to be a provider, protector, prophet, priest and king. The enemy wants to take away all of these, especially the protector. 1 Peter 5 – verse 6, humble yourselves because the enemy uses pride to try to defeat you. Humility is a posture, not an attitude and comes through Worship. Verse 8, you are being hunted by the enemy. Verse 9, you need to resist.
-FLEE sexual immorality. It is not something you can fight, you must turn and run away from it.
-Are you praying with your wife/fiancé/girlfriend?
Matt Everson
-Selfless service. Doing what needs to be done regardless of what the circumstances are.
Nick Freites
-Take your faith seriously!
-God is the source of objective truth and objective morality.
-5 areas in your life to be aware of:
1. Spiritual – based on Christ and the teachings of the Bible and not just an emotional response. You need to have a relationship with the living God.
2. Emotional – sarcasm and anger are the most popular ways men show emotion because they don’t want to show fear or weakness. Don’t be afraid to be vulnerable.
3. Intellectual – be the source of wisdom for your children. Make Spirit-filled decisions. Be in the Word of God. Learn critical thinking. Be a teacher to your children.
4. Physical – protect your family. Stay healthy for the physical needs of your marriage.
5. Professional – have marketable skill sets. Take pleasure in your work unto the Lord.
-Argue with your spouse lovingly with unity. Be your son’s hero. Show your daughter how to be loved.
Massey Campos
-Do you look for opportunities to tell others about Christ?
-God uses broken vessels and those who don’t feel adequate to further His Kingdom.
-Romans 8, we have the same power that raised Jesus from the dead in us when we are followers of Christ. Do you believe that?
-Are you being discipled or discipling someone else? If not, why not?
Brad Geary
-Own the night (darkness, sin) by magnifying the light (Jesus and His word)
-“Press checking” in the military is constantly making sure your weapon is loaded and ready for action. Are you “press checking” your Bible to know scripture so that you are loaded and ready for action?
-Suffering is not happening to you, but for you. In order for muscles and bone to be built strong, they have to be broken down first. Suffering is how we can be broken down to be built back strong.
John Lovell
-Do you have a brotherhood in your life? You can do more with a group than you can by yourself. Your brothers in Christ need to be your brotherhood.
-There is nothing wrong with masculinity. Are the men of your church masculine?
There is a 12-week Bible Study that we are going to be starting based on 1 Corinthians 16:13 in the next couple of weeks. If you would be interested in joining one, talk to me, Jordan Hampton, Lee Miles or Tim Barsuhn. It doesn’t matter if you weren’t able to make it to the weekend conference, you are still welcome to join the Bible Study. The question is, do you want to grow more in your faith and be able to “Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong. Let all that you do be done in love.”?
Written By: Jeff Abner
