What do You Believe?

Recently, I attended an excellent service at a church that is serving the Lorton community. The name of the church is the Grace Bible Church. Although in its beginning stages, It has, in my opinion, begun to serve its flock biblical staples of "knowing what you believe and why you believe it..." It is doing this through a series called "Core Values". At the service I attended, the Pastor's sermon included a summary of the core values taught to date. They were:
• Biblical Teaching (the Bible as the foundation)
• Fellowship
• Worship
• Prayer
• Community
• Outreach
At first, I thought this is basic food for the Christian... Ho Hum... But as I contemplated on the lesson, the Holy Sprit pointed out to me the intricate aroma, texture and taste of this gourmet meal... My Christianity must consist of two basic relationships: First, my relationship with God and secondly, and almost as equally important; My relationship with my fellow man. My Christianity is as much about "community" as it is "spirituality"...

Good Men

Last week, I spent the 4th of July with my Son and Daughter-in-Law. It was very enjoyable. One of the activities we participated in was to watch and discuss Tyler Perry's "The House of Payne". This is not a critique of the show; so let me get to the point of the blog post. On the show there are three main adult male characters: (1) Lavan Davis - Curtis Payne (head of the House); (2)Lance Gross- Calvin Payne (Curtis' son); and (3) Allen Payne - CJ Payne (Curtis' nephew ( and to me the most complicate and tragic figure thus far)). Later, as I mused over my visit, I could not help but think about the situations of these three men, their individual issues and their interactions/relationship with each other. A question that nagged the back relms of my mind was; Are these "good" men? This leads be to the point of this blog... How does the Bible define a good man?

One book of the Bible that defines elements of a good man is Proverbs. It not only states what are major components of a "good" man, it devotes more than half of its pages telling us how to attain and maintain these components through respect for God, wisdom, understanding, and obedience. I am interested in your interpretation of what God tells us about being good men.

Obey you call

This blog is, in part, a reflection of my attempts to come to grips with my procrastination to accept the “Great Commission”. Maybe my thoughts will stimulate you to activate that latent dynamic energy inherent within you.
As I started blogging this article, I came to the realization that I had issues… I was struck by the phrase, “spending time with the Master”. Now I know that this is the base of any foundation of Christianity and it seems almost a “no-brainer”. Yet, if honest, most of us must confess that we do not spend much time with the Master. Now why is this? We men have a basic problem – the very concept of having a Master is anathema to most men. It suggests subservience and yielding to domination. Now, my sisters, don’t feel too superior; you probably have this issue also. OK, what’s the point, David?
We all have bought into the current “Culture of Self”. What do I mean? I mean that we are inundated with subtle (sometimes not so subtle) concepts that indicate that we are must always be in control of our activities.
Think back to your high school English class. Can you remember any of your favorite poems? I remember one of mine…“Invictus” by William Ernest Henley. The line that I loved best is; “I am the master of my fate. I am the captain of my sole.” Really good manly stuff, right…? Wrong… Yes, God gave us free will, but we have, as mankind, chosen poorly. Submission to the Lord and obedience to His will are manly characteristics – (not wimpy or moist) Need a practical example of misplaced understanding… How about the fact that Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh left the Victorian poem “Invictus” as his last message to the world before he was executed.

The Disciple's Cross

A major focus of our travel toward discipleship and self improvement as men is an instrument for visualizing and understanding our opportunities and responsibilities is called the Disciples Cross.
The Disciples Cross is based on six principles aimed at focusing our development of a deeper relationship with Jesus. They are:

1. Spend Time with the Master
2. Live in the Word
3. Pray in Faith
4. Fellowship with Believers
5. Witness to the World
6. Minister to Others

What does it mean to be a disciple? During our journey, this is one of the things we want to discover. One vision is that a disciple of Christ is a person who makes Christ the Lord of his or her life. A disciple’s primary commitment is to deny yourself. What…! No, it does not mean to reject your identity – It means to renounce the self-centered life. To do this we must learn to follow the six disciplines listed above. During our journey, we will examine each of these principles.

Introducing The Anvil

This blog is dedicated to building strong men of Faith. It is based on the Masterlife series of instruction: Masterlife 1: The Disciples Cross, Masterlife 2: The Disciples Personality, Masterlife 3: The Disciples Victory, and Masterlife 4: The Disciples Mission. We will address an element discussed in one of the book series. However, we will also look to our natural welfare with “Daniel’s Table”. The Ram’s Horn will notify us of upcoming Men’s Ministry events in the area. Everyone is invited to comment in The Shepherd’s Corner. Finally, The Layman’s Witness will provide a forum for the lay members of various churches to contribute to our growth in Christ.