Christmas 2023 Designed Purpose

I started The Emerging Man journey way back in 2009 after dropping my oldest son off at college… and on the quiet drive home having a heavy feeling and thought that, “I am not a man.”

As I researched that feeling it became obvious that many other men have the same feeling… as evidenced by the “manliness industry” that has come into being since 2009.

Through my research and reading it was also obvious that we… men… and women… are so individually unique that trying to find; fit; and belong to a “manly” club where we can see ourselves in those around us is quite difficult.

I couldn’t find a group that resonated with what I was feeling.

So… I tried a few philosophies on for size.

For instance, the main one most gravitate to is THE ALPHA… it seems to me they are all angry, a tad anti social; and even if they don’t admit it to themselves, they use violent intimidation to get their point across, using their ALPHA presence to instill fear.

I thought that was a bunch of BS!

Then there is the BOOMER generation to look at. “Old School”don’t say much, if anything, and seemingly have no idea they have feelings, much less know how to work through them in a positive manner. Their motto could be, “… ” who am I kidding, silence, absolute silence is their motto.

And younger generations are so confused about “what being a man” is all about that we had this manliness industry pop up with guys like Joe Rogan, Jordan Peterson, Jocko, C.T. Fletcher, and the “man of the hour” Mr David Goggins coming to the forefront of said industry.

The one who I thought came close to my personal position was Mr Goggins. But not where he ended up… where he started out from… and the reason I feel that way is because of the book he wrote.

There is no B.S… no frills… no sugar coating where he came from.

That resonated with me.

BUT… I’m not any of those guys, even though I’ve learned a few things from them.

So… on my journey, trying to answer the age old question of, “Who are you?” I closed my eyes and tried to picture what kind of man I thought I was.

All I could see was.. a lot of “fog” which I call “battle smoke”… and me EMERGING from that battle smoke, making my own way along, taking stock of my “injuries” and learning how to heal myself as I work through this perplexity of thought that I have.

“Who are you? Are you a man?”

This fall I was able to make some strides in my mental healing by learning and implementing some meditation practices.

Going deep into my perceived past to try and identify what it is that I’m missing.

This truth surfaced… I never hung out with men during my formative years.

Meaning… I didn’t hang out with my dad and other men. The only time I did was the handful of times I went deer hunting with my dad and uncles… one or two days a year.

Then the next truth surfaced… I did hang out with my mom. We would work around the house together; she had me work in the garden; would ask me to do yard work; and here is the kicker… she would actually sit and talk with me… and understood I liked art; reading; and would tell me stories of how, when I was 2 years old, would sit and listen to the radio very intently, to the old radio shows… The Shadow Knows, The Lone Ranger and Tarzan.

Then an even deeper truth… which may have been evident to my mom because of the attention she gave me… I was a sensitive and thoughtful child… still am I guess.

Which goes against the “old school” and “alpha” mindsets and role models.

With this new information I asked the question in a different way to try and determine my PURPOSE… maybe I could find my manhood if I could determine my designed purpose.

“How was I designed? What is the purpose of that design?”

And when I thought about, “the design of things” I thought, “you should be able to easily tell the purpose, by the design, like with… a hammer.”

Hammers, clubs, rocks, and other blunt force trauma objects, have been around since the creation of creation, and to my experience you do not need anyone to show or teach you how to pick one of those objects up… and in an overhead, swinging motion… BASH something with it!

To me that was as simple a designed purpose as was ever conceived.

In fact, it is such a simple designed purpose that the website statista.com has hammers and other blunt force trauma instruments listed at #4 for murder weapons in 2022.

I know that’s a little out of left field for a Christmas article but I’m getting there.

Going forward though I have to ask, “Do you believe in the God of the christian bible, and the man named Jesus of Nazareth?”

If “No” you may not want to read on.

If “Yes” you may not want to read on.

If you have chosen to “read on” I want to declare my position, especially for this article, that I believe in the God of the christian bible and the man named Jesus of Nazareth… and with that belief, this belief… “We, and the world, and everything in it… are to complex a design not to have been designed by Him.”

We are not made up of “evolutionary building blocks”.

We… and lions… and polar bears… and leaf cutter ants, are so uniquely designed we can not all come from the same primordial ooze!

So… I’m biologically a man, my DNA says so, but in my heart… not so certain.

So… if God made me, designed me, and used “our image” as the template… then there has to be a PURPOSE to that design.

So… “What do the instructions say?”

“Bring my sons from afar
    and my daughters from the ends of the earth—
⁷ everyone who is called by my name,
    whom I created for my glory, (that’s our purpose)
    whom I formed and made.” Isaiah 43:7

The wild animals honor me,
    the jackals and the owls,
because I provide water in the wilderness
    and streams in the wasteland,
to give drink to my people, my chosen,
²¹     the people I formed for myself
    that they may proclaim my praise. (to me this the “how”) Isaiah 43:21

Look at the word “purpose”, I propose we have lost the idea of knowing our “proper function for which something exists,” and how that pertains to human beings.

c. 1300, (purpose) purpus, “intention, aim, goal; object to be kept in view; proper function for which something exists,” from Anglo-French purpos, Old French porpos “an aim, intention” (12c.), from porposer “to put forth,” from por- “forth” (from a variant of Latin pro- “forth;” see pur-) + Old French poser “to put, place” (see pose (v.1)). Etymology Online dictionary

How do we give glory to God? Or reflect the glory of Jesus Christ “back” to God?

Look at “the instructions”… look at Abraham.

¹⁹ Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead—since he was about a hundred years old—and that Sarah’s womb was also dead. ²⁰ Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, ²¹ being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised.

Persuaded.

Proper function.

Built by using an intentional “image” or “design” in mind.

Genesis 1:27

“So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.”

Romans 8:29

“For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.”

Colossians 1:15

“The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.”

Of the three he is the only one with an “image” we could possibly comprehend.

Jesus was flesh and blood and from the beginning.

And through learning and applying the word of God we become and start to reflect the glory that is his Son… as He looked upon Jesus in the beginning so will he look upon him… and us in the end… the glory of any father is his first born, and we with “unveiled faces” reflect that visage of a son or daughter if we come to abide in Jesus… as his word would have us do… and if we “do that” we bring all honor and glory to the Father through the Spirit by the Son.

ARE WE… “being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised. “

Do we even know what his promises are?

Do we know what our “proper function for which something exists,” is?

My 3 yr old granddaughter was given some toy tools, kiddy safety goggles, and a plastic tool box.

She only asked her dad what the safety goggles were.

He showed her what they do.

She pulled them on, opened the tool box, placed most of the tools inside the tool box, and proceeded to take the small plastic hammer in her tiny little hand and started “hammering” with it… and used it to test her safety goggles also… it was cute.

She knew right away what the design and purpose of a hammer was for.

How have we lost the knowledge of what our design and purpose are?

If we abide in Christ we get closer and closer to our original designed purpose… glorifying God.

Which in simple terms means we learn how to lay down our lives for others, reflecting His love back to Him.

Which can be little things or big things… you won’t know the difference most times, but those you help will.

This Christmas take a look at yourself, stop and think, about this, “If I was a hammer, am I building things up [for the glory of God] am I just tearing things down, or am I just laying around in the tool box?”

Jesus was a carpenter, and on December 25th he’s recognized world wide… and “the carpenters hammer”, the old “claw” hammer… is the most recognized type of hammer world wide… designed with a purpose.

Just like you are.

And I am.

As far as my design as a man… like that old claw hammer I can do multiple tasks… that show I am a man.

I wonder if that hammer ever has a moment where he doesn’t “feel” like a hammer?

Maybe those thoughts and feelings are what make us human.

Merry Christmas 2023 from THE EMERGING MAN.

Writing to ENCOURAGE, EQUIP & ENGAGE!

And Offering Positivity with Work Gloves!