Oriented Men

Nothing To Hide

Nothing To Fear

Nothing To Prove

It’s amazing how these three phrases rally the hearts of men. I have had the honor and privilege of being in front of several hundred men the past couple months for The Heart of a Warrior Gatherings and witnessed men's posture, their eyes, their heads nodding in approval when I say these lines. Usually these meetings of men are around the promotion of The Heart of a Warrior book or I am meeting with men who have stepped into one of the HW EXPEDITION Small Group DVD groups. Either setting, early morning or in the evening, men connect with this description… this invitation of what it looks like to be an Oriented Man.

That tells us something.

It tells us that men have it in them, the desire and longing… the DNA for more. Their collective response gives the majority of men away. Not all men, mind you. "It" is in there, deep in their hearts, it’s in there—the need and desire to be that kind of man.

We are just 4 weeks shy of a conference that is much about this orientation… The Heart of a Warrior Weekend. We invite you to pray with us for these next crucial weeks of inviting. So many things happen in our lives because we we are invited. Sure, invitations can lead to compromise, but invitations can also lead to glorious and wonderful things. Jesus invites again and again, Come.

Let’s pray for the Spirit to push into the hearts of the thousands of invitations that have been sent out to men. 350 will make a way… which 350 will it be?

One of my favorite moments in all the conference is that first 15 seconds when I have the honor of looking out over the men who made it.

Let’s pray…

Dear God, Holy Trinity, we praise your name and proclaim your glory in all the earth. You are magnificent in all your ways. You made the heavens and earth, the moon, stars and sun. You have made all things, and you rule sovereignly over all things. We thank you for making each and every one of us. How wildly and wonderfully we have been made. We declare we were made for you and our hearts find their home with you, and you, alone. Thank you for loving us and inviting us into a love relationship with you. We acknowledge and confess, we struggle to know and experience your love. This fallen place combined with wounded hearts and broken souls has taken a toll on us all. You came to redeem it all. You came to win us to yourself. Hooray and Praise be your name. We cheer your name; Savior, Shepherd, and King.

Father, we pray for the invitations that have gone out to men. Email inboxes, announcements at church, cards and fliers that have been handed out… all inviting a man to get away with you. We know this is opposed. Ever since we lost the garden we find ourselves lost at times. We confess the words "busy" and "fine" take up way too many of our responses in how we are doing. We acknowledge this is not the kind of life you afforded us, not the kind of life for which you died that we might have, and not the kind of life that is best attuned to you.

Come Jesus, come. Pave a way for men to get away. Pull, nudge, woo, and summon men to get away with you and learn the ways of the Kingdom and the Orientation in which you invite us to live. We pray against fear, hiding, and proving, Jesus—all things that have us weighted down and living under the spell of darkness. Deliver men from the spell and the ways of organizing or orchestrating life without you. We confess, again, it won't work.

Holy Spirit, we receive you again to counsel, guide, and comfort men to time away. Bring your Beloved Sons, bring your Warriors-in-training… bring your men to a place for Healing, Restoration, Training, and Freedom… The Life and Love meant for each of us in you, through you, and by you. We praise your name Father, Son, and Spirit. You have made a way—give men the strength and courage to take a step into your way… a first step or a next step but always a step in which you will meet them deeply for the more.

Dear God, bless the inviters, give them strength and initiative to ask again. Dear God, provide the financial resources for the men who are lacking and in need. Rally your men, bring them home to you so they can go home and step into their roles in the Larger Story

Amen and AMEN.