A man in today's society in the UK is ........... someone fiercely independent, tough, capable, making their way in the world, has a facade, working to be successful, never has a problem, never needs help, do to others first before they do to you, get ahead, be a winner, no time for losers, you can do anything if you work or try hard enough, love is only shown to your wife and family.
God says "Men life is tough enough as it is. I want you to get together, pray together, trust each other, remove the facade, share, love others, admit your weaknesses, have time for people, help others, put people ahead of yourself, give me the glory - not you"
The bible says "You shall be known by your love for one another". This implies we are to be different. It is something to work towards. It's does not say "we are known by our love for one another". It's "You Shall". Do we want that? If we work together, network together then we are so much stronger. We can help each other. We need this in life.
Change your perspective of what a man is. If you want a man who was tough then look at Jesus. He took the worst beating in history. Re programme your thinking of what a real man is. Jesus is not only a Real Man, but he was Real with others.
I have recently picked up various brochures for New Age practices when I have been out and about. Sometimes in coffee shops, sometimes on holiday. It seems really easy to find some kind of spiritual way to happiness. I tried to look up a definition of what New Age is. Did you know it is a lot harder to find a concise meaning for "New Age" than you might think. As a Christian I would be defined as "A follower of Jesus Christ". New Age seems to be a whole mixed bag of crystals, yoga, horoscopes, meditation, buddhism, pagan beliefs and also the occult and many other alternatives. It's funny because most of these are not new at all. Like Christianity they have all been around for a long time. I guess by mixing them all up something new has been created.
So why would you engage or look into these activities? Firstly, because you are a spiritual being. You are made up of mind, body and spirit. You have lots of questions that science just can't answer. Like "Why am I here?". "What is the point to life?". Secondly, you are searching because you were made to have a relationship with God and this will give your life meaning and purpose. Thirdly, you might be wondering where am I going when I die? Or who created this beautiful world I live in? No other belief or faith properly addresses these questions and gives you real answers.
"New Age doesn't provide answers for where your going when you reach Old Age"
If you are thinking of engaging in any belief system or religion or New Age alternative it's important to check out the fruit in the followers lives. The bible (God's word) says the fruit of God's spirit is joy, peace, patience, love, kindness and self control. Sometimes people can display this, but does it flow into all areas of their life? Many claim to have peace, but do they have peace with God? or the peace that Jesus promises his followers. It's especially important to look at the lives of the leaders of these practices. In Christianity this is Jesus and he is the head of the church. If you want a role model or a guide in life to follow try studying him in the Bible. Believe me there is no greater alternative.
Some New Age practices will astonish and astound you. They will tell you things that no one else could, or be very accurate about the past or future events. You have to ask yourself what force is at work behind this? It may start off innocently, like reading your daily horoscopes, but this can lead you into all sorts of dodgy practices. Contacting the dead and devil worshiping can be at the more extreme end of the spectrum.
Some of you may be looking in all sorts of places and never thought about the church. Or maybe you went like me when you were young but it didn't mean that much to you. Please take a fresh look at the Bible for yourself. Read about this Jesus. He really is quite a man (as well as God). Do you have any Christian friends who are really "on fire for God"? Ask them about what they believe. Pray to this Jesus. No one gets to God except through him. Ask him into your life instead of New Age alternatives.
Take a fresh look at Jesus and Christianity. There really is nothing like it.
