Becoming a MAN - Update

So awhile ago I posted on what it means to be a man, and I briefly mentioned my desire to become an extraordinary man among guys.

Well, shortly thereafter, I began to pursue this desire. I received a book from my parents for Christmas, The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership by John Maxwell. It's basically an entry level (cliff-notes style) book on being a leader. It was awesome, and I highly recommend it.

In this effort, I decided that it would be a good idea to meet with some influential, strong leaders that I knew personally. So, I came up with a list of 3 name of men who I felt exhibited strong leadership qualities... men of character and influence. Each of them agreed to meet with me, and so I got together separately with each one in Jan. It was a success, and I felt like I was headed down the right path.

Above all, it was certainly apparent that in order for me to become someone who didn't just have a leadership position, but lead by influence, and did so with strength of character and integrity; I would need to get right with Jesus Christ.

Now, I don't mean that in the Christian-ese manner of speak... it's a legit expression. I've spoken AT God for about 7 years, and have neglected listening. Sure, God is bigger than even my ability to ignore Him, and in truth, I have heard Him speak to me within these past years... but certainly it wasn't due to anything on my part.

So, with that little back-story, here's where I'm at:

I'm still pretty on fire to learn to be a great man of leadership and influence. I just recently started meeting with David Arellano on a semi-regular basis for men's growth and accountability, and soon we will mark the first time that we also include Jason McClure and Troy Souther. It won't take the place of just the two of us getting together to talk one on one, but it will be nice to extend that brotherhood. We're learning to be open, vulnerable, and completely real with each other. I'm excited to see where this goes.

My own relationship with Jesus is improving... slowly, but still... improving. I’ve been struggling to start a habit of reading scripture. It's been chaotic so far. I had about 2 weeks of awesomeness, but since then it's been a struggle. I'm still working toward it though. Additionally, I'm working to peel away those things that stand in the way of following Him fully. That's part of what meeting with the guys is about too... generally it's about getting straight with God as a first major step to being that extraordinary man or character, leadership, and influence. I'm tired of the "christian-ese" style of living and talking. I'm working on either living and being it, or not.

I went to church 2 weeks in a row... that's pretty good considering. It felt good to be back at church (though this week I'll be in Sin City). As you know as readers of this blog, I've been getting into new Christian music too! It's always been a passion of mine anyway, though I hadn't searched for new material in quite awhile. My big sister, Laurel, once told me about how her mother-in-law always has Christian music playing somewhere in the house, to fill her home with the God's spirit and word. I like the idea, and though I probably won't have it on all the time, I plan on surrounding myself with words that glorify Him.


In short - I have a long way to go. I haven't seen much success from a leadership element of things, but I have seen movement back toward Christ, and I'm happy to see where He takes me.