Into His Image - Part 1 - Manly Words

Now that you have turned to the Lord, the transformation begins!

When we have been trapped in habitual sin for so long, it is not just an internal thing. For we may have taken on the look, the feel, the sound of it too. Let me explain: In scripture, we are shown that women are not just small men. Men and women are different; that is, their physical appearance is different. They sound differently, think differently, cut their hair differently, dress differently and have different roles both in church and in the household. They relate to each other differently and were created for different purposes.

That is just one example of scripture explaining a distinction betweeen the two. Without my going into all the rest of the scriptures, I hope that you will begin to understand these differences are there by God's design, and consider with me for a moment about the possibility that it is time to change some of the ways that you act and appear, toward a more manly outlook - you might say, "more like Christ."

Today - I encourage you to start with just a small step... changing the way you write about events and about others:

When we talk about another man, most men do not use descriptive words at all. They just say, "a guy." There is no reason to describe him. But women do. Most women do description very well. In fact, women generally use about 5 times as many words as men do to make the same point. So, toward a more masculine approach, you might want to watch how you express yourself in your comments in the lesson-answers.

Example: If you are talking about a fall, or a temptation or some social encounter with another man, make it brief, and leave out the detail. You need to put in enough so that your mentor can understand what happened. But avoid long discourses, especially those with descriptions of human anatomy or sexual activity. Do you see the point? It would be a beginning, right?

Watch this-----> I lusted today, staring inappropriately at another man. And then I fantacized.

Do you see how a person could expand on that by giving lots of detail, and get himself right back into the same, lustful situation? I intentionally did not give you the expanded version which would have carried with it an unnecessary word picture.

In the same way - long discussions of our troubles are not only unhealthy and cause you to re-live the events, but they too are more feminine. No kidding! Now, don't lose all of your sensitivity. We're not trying get you to do that. Jesus had great sensitivity. But I promise that when my wife reads a lengthy discourse from a student who is whining about all of the bad things in his life - how his wife treats him - how others regard him - this thing - that thing... she says, "He sounds like woman!" And she is right.

I'm not suggesting that you attempt to express yourself like John Wayne or Arnold Schwarzenegger ...using one-liners. It's just that men generally do not go into great detail. And we suggest that you limit your descriptions, if for no other reason than just so you will not re-create the situation in your mind and re-live it while you are writing about it. Do you see how that might be dangerous?

Therefore - toward changing into His image - consider using fewer words and fewer descriptive adjectives. This is not a law to burden you. It is for you to seriously reflect on.

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