002 Teach Me What to Do

Good Monday Morning!

Cool New Feature Alert: Now you can also listen to the newsletter. Look up to the right of the newsletter title & click “Listen Online”. I love reading but this is a great addition if you’re short on time ⏱️, at work ⚒️ or in the car 🚗

Verse of the Week: Then Manoah prayed to the Lord and said, “O Lord, please let the man of God whom you sent come again to us and teach us what we are to do with the child who will be born.” Judges 13:8

Man of the Week: Not Noah the guy in the flood. But, Manoah, not as well known to us but that is significant in his own way. From the few times Manoah is mentioned [Judges 13 & 14], we know his wife couldn’t have children but by growing in obedience he eventually becomes a father. So he is pretty much a regular guy yet how he navigates a challenging situation can teach us a thing or 2 about ourselves.

What Would You Do? [Read Judges 13] Manoah’s wife tells him a man told her she was going to have a child and then gave very specific instruction on how to raise the child. They had know idea this stranger was actually “the angel of the Lord” (Jesus in the Old Testament). What would your 1st reaction be? How do you respond to what is different than what you think or expect? How do you respond when you don’t know how to respond?

I was raised that as a man I am always supposed to have an answer, always know what to do or how to respond. So I’d have complicated my life by jumping in with a quick answer like, You know what the doctor said or You know we can’t have children…My 1st response would be to respond - from within me.

Manoah’s 1st response to his wife was to pray to God. More than that he prayed, is what he prayed - Lord teach us what to do…

Many a time I have complicated my life by giving quick logical answers that were wrong. Here’s how Manoah’s response has blessed me:

1. Pressure Off: Many times as men we pretend to know what we don’t. A man in Christ doesn’t have to know or even pretend to have all the answers. We have a Savior and He knows what we don’t. Manoah’s response shows we can shed the pretend and say Lord, teach me what to do. By praying to the Lord before saying a word to his wife, he takes off all the pressure of having to know what he doesn’t know. 

2. Pray Before You Speak: By making prayer his 1st response he gains a measured response from God rather than a quick wrong response from himself. Pray before you speak. Let’s reprogram our thoughts to say, “Lord I know what I want to say, but in this moment teach me how to respond to this”. Ask God to help you, measure your responses and words in prayer. “Lord teach me what to say…”

3. Wisdom of God: Wiser than Google and more trustworthy than a trusted friend, when he asked, God taught Manoah what to do next. He only had knew what to do because he asked God and God gave Him God’s wisdom. I would’ve messed this whole thing up 🤣 

4. Side by Side: This works in any and all relationships/situations. But, specifically, Manoah’s response allowed him to walk side by side with his wife because he was taught by the Lord what to do. How much peace is missed by jumping in with a quick answer? Lord, teach me to walk in peace with people at work, home and in life as I pray to you and you teach me how to respond…

5. Connected: As men there are people connected to us. From Manoah the regular guy comes Samson the strongest man that lived. Movies, books, plays are written about Samson. Samson became what he became because Manoah and his wife followed the direction of God. As us regular guys lean into being taught what to do by God it impacts those connected to us. From kids, wives, friends, co-workers, strangers, etc…God hears our prayers, sees our heart and uses us in the lives of those connected to us.

Think Like a Man 💁🏽‍♂️: The doctor said that’s not possible. Who is this man speaking to my wife? This is what we need to do. It is what it is

Think Like a Christ Centered Man 😇: Lord, teach us what to do

Thanks for sharing the newsletter last week, do you know a guy that would benefit from this week’s newsletter? Let’s reach more men for Christ, please share.

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Grow in Grace

Edward,

Next Week: But Grow in Grace and Knowledge of Christ. 2 Peter 3:18