It is my turn to lead the men’s leadership course on Sunday nights. The topic for this eight week course is biblical manhood and womanhood in singleness, marriage and parenting.
These guys in the leadership track have been meeting together for several months now. But this time the wives are joining them.
I want the class to be filled with open and helpful discussion. We had all read two articles on the marks of mature manhood (one by Al Mohler and one by Stuart Scott). To prime the pump for great discussion and help everyone get going I started around the room with an easy question.
What is your favorite ice cream?
At least, it seems like an easy question. Until you consider… what does a man’s answer to that question reveal about his maturity in Christian manhood?
I don’t wish to disparage my brothers here on the blog.
But I cannot resist sharing a few of the results along with my comments.
Fred S. – Chocolate, dipped in chocolate on a waffle cone that was dipped in chocolate.
Good answer: direct, specific, and decisive.
Roger C. answered for many men with the following sentence. “If it is ice cream, it is my favorite.”
Bad answer: Though this answer conveys a strong measure of enthusiasm for ice cream — one of the marks of mature manhood is decisiveness. Clearly Rog has made no decision here so the answer is insufficient.
Doug K – Strawberry.
Does this answer convey mature Christ manhood? What do you say? Let’s think it through together… Con: It is pink. In most cultures that does not register as manly. Yet color preference is a just that – a cultural preference – not a biblical creation ordinance. So that leaves us with no con but a very strong point on the pro side. Pro: What is a strawberry? Remember that the strawberry is a fruit from the garden. God created the man to cultivate the garden and enjoy its fruits. Therefore, give Doug high marks on his answer.