A real man

The natural inclination of an emotionally healthy man is to be tender and merciful. The man possessed by a healthy sense of personal identity by nature is protective and compassionate. God has made us protectors, he has made us defenders of life. A man who is a predator, an abuser or an oppressor is living a deformed life, outside of his true nature.

The man who has the heart of God and the healthy masculinity of God is a life saver. He covers, defends, stands in front of danger and provides for his own, and blesses them. He takes the food out of his mouth to give it to his wife, to his children. That is a healthy and masculine man. He is not the one who goes around like a male pimp sowing sons left and right, or aggressively imposing his masculinity in the bosom of the home. That is what the world teaches us. But the truly healthy man is merciful and compassionate. Bless the weak; it is thrown on top of the helpless to cover it from the next projectile. That is a healthy man, and that is the nature of Jesus.

We have to be fiercely loyal parents to our children, our wives, our homes, our neighborhoods. We have to mentor others and mentor others. You may not be a biological father today, but God wants you to be someone's spiritual father anyway, to cover them with your healthy and strong masculinity. God has a purpose for your life, and that is to discover and protect life. God wants you to be a channel of his grace here on earth, to embody the tender and compassionate nature of Jesus Christ, his balanced masculinity.

God wants parents like that, who are covers, protectors of someone, of something. The world needs that example, and if we behave like this God is going to bless us, he is going to prosper us, he is going to strengthen us. It will give us a vigorous, lucid, joyful old age, because what we sow in our youth then blesses us later, and that divine blessing will continue to reverberate through future generations.

There is a blessing for us men when we choose tenderness over imposition and brute force. When we choose the meek and tender character of Jesus, the strength and power of Jesus also become part of our personal makeup.

For the sake of our society, and for ourselves, let us choose a generous masculinity. Let us be tender and generous parents, caring and loving husbands, mentors always ready to share our time and talents with someone in need. God will never tire of blessing and renewing us so that we have even more to share.