T.D. Jakes Speaks To Men

Greetings,

I have made a commitment to read a minimum of five books in 2007. My first one is T.D. Jakes Speaks To Men. Now, you may not be a T.D. Jake's fan but he does have some good stuff to say. During the next few blogs I will share some insight from his book.

Chapter One talks about the Apostle Paul's statement to the Corinthian church: "When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things." (1 Corinthians 13:11)

o I spoke as a child. We all need to be able to communicate our thoughts and express how we feel. Many young men have lost the ability to communicate, depending on how they were brought up. Some were raised in good, sound homes and taught how to respond to criticizm, treat women, respect elders, etc. But others were raised in broken homes or homes where parents did not take the time to "train up a child in the way they should go." As a result, they are influenced by what they see today.

o I understood as a child. Our understanding is the stage in which we come to a resolve and draw conclusions. Paul said that when he was a child he understood as a child. If as adults our understanding is still childish and elementary, we may
come to immature conclusions. Childish wisdom can be the most dangerous of all -- especially in the mind of a wounded adult.

o I thought as a child. Never in history have we been so afraid of our own children. Grown men are afraid to walk through crowds of pre-teen and young teenage boys in the city. Young men have become so angry that adult men are intimidated by them. And the story goes on and on and on.

The mind of a child should not be stressed with harsh issues like molestation, abuse, or domestic violence. Many young men have followed their fathers' footsteps into promiscuity, thinking it natural to define their masculinity by extreme sexuality. "Isn't that what dad did?"

The above thoughts are from T.D. Jakes Speaks To Men. Get the book. It will open your eyes to some pretty obvious reasons why young boys and young men are living the lives they are.

Next blog we will share more from T.D. Jakes' book.

'Til the storm passes,

Pastor Gary