Building Men of Action

by Alan Perry

Guest Writer

It is my pleasure to invite my husband to be a guest writer to this blog and bring his creative talent of writing and publishing a book written through Him from our Father In Heaven. I invite you to enjoy the journey he will take you on with how God led him through this process and discover the adventures He may be inviting you to take with him.

How it Came to Be

My wife and I were involved in a marriage focused Sunday school class some years ago. While in that class, I suggested to a few guys that we set up and email exchange and go through a book study together. I figured we could study some good guy’s book and glean what we can from each other and from it. I would read through a section or chapter and then compose an email that reflected my thoughts on the topic. A couple of the guys would respond and there would be some discussion.

I already new of a growing need for men to be mentored and, while I didn’t view myself as a mentor of men, I saw this email list as an opportunity for this group of men to learn and grow so that we could become mentors to those who were coming behind us. The email exchange grew in number and began to look more like a morning devotional that came from whatever book we were studying at the time. We wrapped up the most recent book and I put to the group that we either choose a new book to study or begin to write one of our own. They encouraged me to step out and begin the writing process.

So, here it is, many years later. The book has been written several times, to be honest. I can see how God has matured many of the thoughts and opinions contained in the book to better reflect His. Ideas He had planted in me early on as I was emailing the guys bloomed into something that, as I read it, I am more certain that He wrote through me. I am still learning from what He wrote in this book and I am pleasantly surprised at what He birthed through it.

Why it Came to Be

I work in public schools. I’ve been in the profession long enough that my youngest child who wasn’t born when I started teaching now teaches in the classroom next to mine (and has for 4 years at the time of this writing). I’m not old, but I have been around long enough to see a disturbing trend that has developed in our young men. In our efforts to promote and encourage young women to excel in all that they desire to do, we have inadvertently (maybe with purpose in some arenas) hindered young men in growing to do the same. We have few programs that promote young men and encourage them to do or pursue any specific careers or educational pursuits. Young men are being diminished in authority and expectations. Young men are overlooked and left out of the discussions as we seek ways to encourage our young ladies to dream big and blow away the old expectations of what a woman is to be in this world.

I have seen marked changes in our young men as we have, some say, progressed. The young ladies lead the schools in academic performance, college acceptance, test scores, scholarships, and are gaining in and nearly ready to overtake guys, in sports and athleticism.

READ THIS: I am not against the advancement of women. I am not against promoting women and encouraging young ladies to excel in all that they do. I do think that we need to be encouraging ALL young people to excel in whatever God has given them to do in lieu of promoting one sex over another. Men and women are different. There is no sense in arguing about that point. Biology settles it. Being different biologically does not mean that we need to differ academically, professionally, spiritually, or what-have-you as it comes to the call God has put on our life and living it out with excellence.

We have a generation of men who have not had adequate training in how to be Godly men, how to lead with integrity, how to encourage growth in families, and, most importantly, how to develop their identity in God. This book is written for them. This book is an action plan to see these things come into fruition.

About the Book

The book is around 140 pages in 9 chapters. I’m told by some that it is a quick read, and I am thankful for that, but I do hope that, should you choose to read it, you would take time to process the message and develop through the action steps to see the changes He wants to make in you through the work. I re-present what He has to say to men about developing their identities in Him and building an intimate fellowship with Him so that they can be the men they need to be in their homes, churches, and communities. There is no new and shocking revelation in the text. There are no secret keys to manhood or kingdom living that can only be found in reading this book. This is an honest presentation of what He has shared with us in His word and how He has revealed it to me in practice throughout my life, including my failures and my successes.

Chapter 1: How we got here.

This chapter briefly outlines how we came to place of such need. It isn’t something on which we spend a great deal of time. We review enough to get the gist of what happened so that we can agree in the need to move forward with something new.

Chapter 2: Resting in identity

This and the following three chapters are truly the meat of the book. This chapter deals specifically with developing our identity in the Father. It is only through a healthy understanding of who we are in Him that we can move forward in any degree of healthy expression of His will in our lives. This chapter sets a framework for that work to begin and for His Spirit to further our development.

Chapter 3: Building a life of prayer

Prayer is more than pouring out our list of concerns. Prayer is an intimate conversation with God, who loves you and wants to commune with you in a healthy relationship. You can’t foster relationship without proper communication, and one way talking is not communication. Strategies are discussed here that will help you deepen your [prayer life and make it a much more rich and intimate experience with God.

Chapter 4: Building into the call

God’s call on each of us requires His provision and guidance. His call on us is much greater than we can live out on our own and we can only do it with and through Him. This chapter is written to more clearly define what He has called you to do and illustrate our dependence on Him to see it come to pass.

Chapter 5: Building a marriage

Marriage is a sacramental institution created by God that is between a man and a woman with their hearts focused on God who makes all things possible. In marriage, the man has a specific call to love his wife as Christ loves the church so we examine the parallels of those relationships to see how we are to be Christlike with our wives.

Chapter 6: Building a family

God gave us family to point us to Him. Some of our families have brought us to Him through desperation. This chapter outlines ideas and principles from scripture that will help you raise a family in a Godly fashion so that each one of those entrusted to you will grow into their God given call and flourish in the gifts and talents He has placed in each of them.

Chapter 7: Building an ecclesia

His church is to be an expression of Him in this world. He is building His church. This chapter outlines principles and strategies we can use as we learn to partner with Him in what He seeks to accomplish in the world through us as His body.

Chapter 8: Building a community

We are called to be more than just an influencer in our local church. WE are called to be in the community. We are called to be salt and light in the world around us to see His kingdom expand through us. This chapter will help you develop a vision to move beyond the four walls of a church and reach into the community for His kingdom advancement.

Chapter 9: Building up those who follow

We need mentors. WE need to be monitoring those who come behind us. This chapter will show the needs and develop techniques for mentoring a handful of very close relationships so that all that you learn can be poured into the next generation and their influence can outlast and expand on yours.

Please take the time and dive into the text. Take time to investigate what was written and see what applies to you and how He can use it to grow you and help you develop into the man He destined you to become. Take the time and commune with Him in deep fellowship and allow Him to grow you into someone more like Christ.

The book can found on Amazon and on Barnes and Noble, as well as other booksellers.

My reflection

I have to be totally honest, as my husband went through all the steps of writing and going through this process, I never saw any of it until it was published. Which is quite unusual as I was one of his chief proofreaders when he was in school, reading every research paper. It was to my complete surprise to open the pages of a published manuscript and view it for the very first time. I had no prior peak or insight into what it would contain and my husband even stated, "I might be bored since it was written for men." However, nothing was further from the truth. I was pleasantly surprised how much I enjoyed reading this book about men of action and in fact a friend from our life group who is also a woman made the same statement. It is written for men by a man, but it is a book for all.

I can very honestly tell you, it was written by God through the voice and personality of my husband much like those of the servants in the Bible were inspired and written by various authors, but with the flare of each individual's unique identity in Him and personal voice. In a nutshell, this book has the voice and breath of God all through it, with some of my husband's personal stories and experiences. God will walk each person through the chapters to highlight what He wants to say to you if you will open your heart for the Holy Spirit's leading and voice.

If this is of interest to you to take this journey, I would encourage you to obtain a copy for yourself, if your not sure, what is holding you back? You might be prompted or feel a tug to share this with a friend or family member, but I know God wants to speak to us about how He would like to see our men leading and how He would like our families restored to His highest heart's desire.

In His Love,

Melanie Perry