Men of Refuge Fall 2025
Fall 2025 Men’s Gathering (August)
Men of Refuge
What is a man? What constitutes one becoming a man? How should we live as men? How does a Christian man live in 2025?
->Men GET TO do hard things for the glory of God:
-Lead their wives by serving them in a way that points to Jesus
-Lead their Children by sharing the Gospel with them (not exasperating them)
-Serve their community by displaying Jesus in how they live and work
-Love their Church where they make much of Jesus there and see others do the same
-Live in a broken world, as image bearers of Jesus
-Be friends with other men who are also trying to do the same
->Every man needs a Gospel Partner.. someone who KNOWS them, pray for them, prays with them, and ask them tough questions about life, faith, marriage, friendship, holiness, spiritual disciplines, family, church, etc…
“You can either be impressive or be known, but you cannot be both.” - Ray Ortlund
~What is a man?
*1 Timothy 2:8 (ESV)
“I desires then that in every place the men should pray, lifting up holy hands without anger or quarreling;”
*1 Corinthians 16:13
“Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, acts like men, be strong.”
*Ephesians 5 & 6 - Husbands & Fathers
Get up. Get up early. Either go before or prepare to go before your family to meet with the Lord. Establish a life that prioritizes rising early to met with the Lord and even one day going before the Lord on behalf of your family, just as fathers in the Bible did before us. Men like Elijah, Abraham and David and so on.. (Psalm 119:147)
Love and honor your wife as the Bible describes. Be kind, gentle, pray for her, serve, her, pray with her, seek oneness with her, treat her as the Lord’s gift to you, as a precious jewel or treasure that you have been given to care for. (Ephesians 5)
Be KNOWN. Nothing hidden, fully known, confessed and repented in front of others. Sin, temptations, time, taxes & home exposed to others (Genesis 2:18)
Single men: when you find a girl don’t wait, don’t burn with lust, honor her family, don’t live together before marriage, seek holiness and purse marriage. This is a gift, it honors God and brings the Lord’s blessing into your life. (1 Corinthians 7)
Married men: your wife is your best friend and should be, she is your closest companion, your counselor, your advocate and your your biggest cheerleader. Walk with your wife, be known by your wife, love your wife, enjoy your wife. The more we know and are known by our wives the better our marriage and life is. Pray with your wife!
Go HOME. Be HOME. Stay HOME. Eat at HOME. Work from HOME. Build a HOME. Rest at HOME. Build a that you love to be in and be a part of. Ask the Lord to help you build this sort of home. (Psalm 127)
BE HOLY. Pure. Godly. Righteous. Seek to be holy, rid yourselves of things that keep you from being holy. Do you NEED social media, smart phones, YouTube, TV, unfiltered/unaccountable internet access? Very few men can handle the temptation that comes with these things. Consider shutting it off at times. Consider not bringing tech into your bedroom. Consider deleting it all. How far are you willing to go to remain HOLY? (Matthew 5:8, 5:29 & 30)
Read good books. Books of theology and doctrine, that stir your soul towards God, biographies of those you can learn from. Read to your families. Read instead of only watching and scrolling.
Lift heavy things, walk, run, move, play ball, sweat. Move for health, mental and physical. (Proverbs 16:27)
Go to Church. Prioritize the Gathering. Sunday church, is a Saturday night decision. Model and lead your family in this. (Hebrews 10:25)
Serve. Serve at home, server your wife, serve your kids, serve at church, serve your neighbors. The greatest leaders, lead through serving. We look most like Jesus when we are washing dirty feet. (John 13)
Kill lions and be quiet. This is a way we say, do great things for the Lord and tell no one. Let God get the glory. This is what Jesus told us to do in Matthew 6, don’t let your right hand know what your left hand is doing. Look for God’s blessing in what you do, not man’s approval or attention. (Matthew 6)
Family Values: Safe. Fun. Together. Church. Model them, live them out, put them out for all to see who are in your family. (Psalm 126)
Don’t buck against what God builds around. God gives us safeguards, proverbs and commands that are to keep us safe and hold. Where God/God’s Word says no, says stop, says another way, says submit - honor God’s Word. (Psalm 19:12-14)
Share the Gospel. If Jesus is good, and has been good to you, tell others, with words. Have something to share with others, have a way and a plan so when God presents the opportunity you are ready. (Matthew 28:16-20)
Love your neighbor. Means you have to know your neighbor. Means you have be outside, be kind, open your garage. Help them paint, fix their mower, or walk over dessert. Jesus told us to. (Matthew 22)
Loved God more than money. Be generous, be a good stewards, give and seek first the Kingdom of God, not more money. Money is not the root of all evil, but the love of money leads us away from God. (Matthew 6)
Sabbath. Rest. Pull away, take naps, say no. We trust the Lord as men when we walk away from something after working hard, looking to God for results. (Exodus 20:8-11)
If married, have sex with your wife. Please her, honor her, respect her, and find mutual satisfaction in one another. Where your unable, still be kind to your wife, resist the temptation to shut down/grow resentful. Pursue a God honoring, health sex life with your wife. If you need help, seek it. Start with prayer. (1 Corinthians 7)
Give your life to a Kingdom purpose. Ministry, take the Gospel overseas (missions,) disaster relief, foster care/adoption, widows ministry, feeding the hungry, building homes for those without, etc.. Be passionate, lead, give, and bring others along. GO not Grow! (Matthew 28)
Men of Refuge
What is a man? What constitutes one becoming a man? How should we live as men? How does a Christian man live in 2025?
->Men GET TO do hard things for the glory of God:
-Lead their wives by serving them in a way that points to Jesus
-Lead their Children by sharing the Gospel with them (not exasperating them)
-Serve their community by displaying Jesus in how they live and work
-Love their Church where they make much of Jesus there and see others do the same
-Live in a broken world, as image bearers of Jesus
-Be friends with other men who are also trying to do the same
->Every man needs a Gospel Partner.. someone who KNOWS them, pray for them, prays with them, and ask them tough questions about life, faith, marriage, friendship, holiness, spiritual disciplines, family, church, etc…
“You can either be impressive or be known, but you cannot be both.” - Ray Ortlund
~What is a man?
*1 Timothy 2:8 (ESV)
“I desires then that in every place the men should pray, lifting up holy hands without anger or quarreling;”
*1 Corinthians 16:13
“Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, acts like men, be strong.”
*Ephesians 5 & 6 - Husbands & Fathers
Get up. Get up early. Either go before or prepare to go before your family to meet with the Lord. Establish a life that prioritizes rising early to met with the Lord and even one day going before the Lord on behalf of your family, just as fathers in the Bible did before us. Men like Elijah, Abraham and David and so on.. (Psalm 119:147)
Love and honor your wife as the Bible describes. Be kind, gentle, pray for her, serve, her, pray with her, seek oneness with her, treat her as the Lord’s gift to you, as a precious jewel or treasure that you have been given to care for. (Ephesians 5)
Be KNOWN. Nothing hidden, fully known, confessed and repented in front of others. Sin, temptations, time, taxes & home exposed to others (Genesis 2:18)
Single men: when you find a girl don’t wait, don’t burn with lust, honor her family, don’t live together before marriage, seek holiness and purse marriage. This is a gift, it honors God and brings the Lord’s blessing into your life. (1 Corinthians 7)
Married men: your wife is your best friend and should be, she is your closest companion, your counselor, your advocate and your your biggest cheerleader. Walk with your wife, be known by your wife, love your wife, enjoy your wife. The more we know and are known by our wives the better our marriage and life is. Pray with your wife!
Go HOME. Be HOME. Stay HOME. Eat at HOME. Work from HOME. Build a HOME. Rest at HOME. Build a that you love to be in and be a part of. Ask the Lord to help you build this sort of home. (Psalm 127)
BE HOLY. Pure. Godly. Righteous. Seek to be holy, rid yourselves of things that keep you from being holy. Do you NEED social media, smart phones, YouTube, TV, unfiltered/unaccountable internet access? Very few men can handle the temptation that comes with these things. Consider shutting it off at times. Consider not bringing tech into your bedroom. Consider deleting it all. How far are you willing to go to remain HOLY? (Matthew 5:8, 5:29 & 30)
Read good books. Books of theology and doctrine, that stir your soul towards God, biographies of those you can learn from. Read to your families. Read instead of only watching and scrolling.
Lift heavy things, walk, run, move, play ball, sweat. Move for health, mental and physical. (Proverbs 16:27)
Go to Church. Prioritize the Gathering. Sunday church, is a Saturday night decision. Model and lead your family in this. (Hebrews 10:25)
Serve. Serve at home, server your wife, serve your kids, serve at church, serve your neighbors. The greatest leaders, lead through serving. We look most like Jesus when we are washing dirty feet. (John 13)
Kill lions and be quiet. This is a way we say, do great things for the Lord and tell no one. Let God get the glory. This is what Jesus told us to do in Matthew 6, don’t let your right hand know what your left hand is doing. Look for God’s blessing in what you do, not man’s approval or attention. (Matthew 6)
Family Values: Safe. Fun. Together. Church. Model them, live them out, put them out for all to see who are in your family. (Psalm 126)
Don’t buck against what God builds around. God gives us safeguards, proverbs and commands that are to keep us safe and hold. Where God/God’s Word says no, says stop, says another way, says submit - honor God’s Word. (Psalm 19:12-14)
Share the Gospel. If Jesus is good, and has been good to you, tell others, with words. Have something to share with others, have a way and a plan so when God presents the opportunity you are ready. (Matthew 28:16-20)
Love your neighbor. Means you have to know your neighbor. Means you have be outside, be kind, open your garage. Help them paint, fix their mower, or walk over dessert. Jesus told us to. (Matthew 22)
Loved God more than money. Be generous, be a good stewards, give and seek first the Kingdom of God, not more money. Money is not the root of all evil, but the love of money leads us away from God. (Matthew 6)
Sabbath. Rest. Pull away, take naps, say no. We trust the Lord as men when we walk away from something after working hard, looking to God for results. (Exodus 20:8-11)
If married, have sex with your wife. Please her, honor her, respect her, and find mutual satisfaction in one another. Where your unable, still be kind to your wife, resist the temptation to shut down/grow resentful. Pursue a God honoring, health sex life with your wife. If you need help, seek it. Start with prayer. (1 Corinthians 7)
Give your life to a Kingdom purpose. Ministry, take the Gospel overseas (missions,) disaster relief, foster care/adoption, widows ministry, feeding the hungry, building homes for those without, etc.. Be passionate, lead, give, and bring others along. GO not Grow! (Matthew 28)
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