The World Needs More Men to be Men

by Ken Turner | Faith

[fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”][fusion_text]When God created the earth, animals, heavens and stars, He also created mankind in His own image. He created a man and a woman. If you read the creation story in Genesis 3 you see that He immediately established purposes for man and woman to fulfill. It isn’t an accident that you were born exactly as you are. Psalm 139 speaks to the topic explaining that even while you were secretly forming in your mother’s womb, God was forming, shaping and planning specific details of your life.

Life can become so confusing sometimes. But know this truth… God created you with the life, the body, the temperament, personality and talents He specifically purposed for your life.

The world needs more manly men to rise up and be the man God intended them to be. The world also needs Godly women to to be the woman He purposed them to be. There is nothing wrong with a man being distinctively masculine and a woman being distinctively feminine… there is nothing wrong with it at all.

If I can speak to the topic of manhood here, I want to give a challenge to young men to commit yourself to owning your faith, embracing your manhood and committing yourself to be a man of courage, a man of bravery, a man who will be counted on some day to be a spiritual leader to your family and provide and protect them with every fiber of your being. And girls… look for a man like that and you will be forever grateful for his care and leadership in your life and family.

It’s not easy to go against the grain of culture, peer pressure and opinions of the masses, but with God’s help and power you can be the man and woman God calls you to be.

Wisdom from Psalm 1

1. Do Not Live Your Life Seeking Advice from People Who Don’t Follow God.

Verse 1, Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.

2. Commit Yourself 100% to Reading and Obeying the Bible.

Verse 2, But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.

3. Find Your Strength in God and Rely on Him, Not Yourself to Bring Success.

Verse 3, And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.

4. Understand That if Your Life is Not Anchored in God, Eventually You Will Experience Massive Instability.

Verse 4, The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away.

5. Believe that God is on the Throne and He is the Judge, So Obey Him Now and Fulfil His Plan for Someday We Will Wish to God We Had.

Verse 5-6, Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous. For the Lord knoweth the way of the righteous: but the way of the ungodly shall perish.

I’d love to hear from you about how God is at work in your life. You can email me, post a comment or even leave a voicemail at 423-381-0018.

Ken Turner

Learn more at https://kenturnerministries.org/walking-with-god/

Email me at kenturner@highimpactteens.org

HERE’S SOME EXTRA MOTIVATION ON NOT BEING AFRAID TO BE A MAN!

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Speaking of God… Why Don’t You?

by Ken Turner | Faith

Why it’s important to talk about God.

Studies show that the average person speaks from 13,000 to 18,000 words per day at an average pace of about 130 words per minute. How many of the words you speak each day include anything about God?

Several years ago I was asked to write the manuscript for a book about the Indianapolis Colts after they won Super Bowl XLI. It was the story of Hunter Smith, the Colts veteran punter and some of his teammates who were Christians and they wanted to tell the story of the lessons God taught them as Christian athletes who had achieved the “ultimate prize” of Super Bowl success. The book is called “The Jersey Effect” and the message focuses on using the “jersey” or “influence” God has given us to “effect” or “influence” the world for Christ.

One of my favorite interviews for the book was the opportunity to interview Reggie Hodges. Reggie was the only person included in the book who wasn’t actually on the Super Bowl Champion Colts team. It’s because he was brought in to the Colts training camp to fill in for Hunter Smith as a punter while Hunter was in rehab from an injury. After Hunter was back to 100% health, Reggie was cut and went through some serious struggles until being signed by the Cleveland Browns.

Hunter and Reggie shared that normally an NFL player would not “warm up” to a guy in training camp who was potentially competing to take your spot on the roster but Hunter chose to take Reggie under his wing. If you were to hear Reggie’s version of the story… it changed Reggie’s life forever. You see, Reggie had battled for years with substance abuse, his commitments to his family and financial problems. At the root of it all was a battle raging between his own will and God’s will. Hunter offered to pray with Reggie on a regular basis, share scripture with him and pour into Reggie as a genuine Christian friend. Reggie describes his own life like a train wreck and he saw in Hunter one of the most consistent, faithful Christian men he’d ever known. And it changed him.

After Reggie was released he was eventually signed as the punter for the Cleveland Browns and he knew he was not there just to play football. Reggie said, “I now knew that God had placed me on this team to be a spokesman for Him… to be a missionary to the Cleveland Browns.” His testimony was so powerful among his teammates that after a season ending injury, while lying on the field in pain, his teammates surrounded him and before they would allow medical personnel to touch him… they prayed for him.

Hunter talked about God to Reggie. Reggie talked about God to all of the Cleveland Browns. Sadly, some of the Christian players regretted after winning the Super Bowl that they didn’t use the opportunities God gave them to speak more boldly about how important God was in their life.

In Psalm 98 God talks about our responsibility to “sing a new song” about God. It means that before we meet God our focus of life is filled with a certain message, often captured in songs, a message which we repeat to others over and over because it is “what we are all about.” But after we encounter God and accept Christ, the song of our heart, the words we speak and the message of our life becomes a completely new message. And the message is about the “marvelous things” He has done and how He has changed us.

O sing unto the Lord a new song; for he hath done marvelous things: his right hand, and his holy arm, hath gotten him the victory. The Lord hath made known his salvation: his righteousness hath he openly shewed in the sight of the heathen. Psalm 98:1-2

Whatever you do… don’t be an “undercover Christian.” There are people all around you who are struggling with deep questions about God and they need to know that you really do believe in Him and they need to hear about His “marvelous works” in your life.

I’d love to hear from you about how God is at work in your life. You can email me, post a comment or even leave a voicemail at 423-381-0018.

Ken Turner

Learn more at https://kenturnerministries.org/walking-with-god/

Email me at kenturner@highimpactteens.org

Knowing When to Get Away from Bad Friendships

by Ken Turner | Faith

Friendship can be so confusing! Even Jesus made decisions about who to spend time with and who to avoid. Jesus also said we should love everyone. But then did He not also say that “bad company corrupts our life?” How do you know when to lean in to a friendship and when to pull away? The answer has a lot to do with evaluating the friendship from a perspective of purpose and influence.

What is my purpose for this friendship? Sometimes God just makes it clear to us that we have an opportunity to reach out and care for another person and “be like Jesus” in their life. We can make such a difference by being a good friend, showing care and concern and really learning and experiencing how to be a real Christian by not just making life “all about me.” It’s not about the other person being “our ministry project” either… I mean who wants that kind of friend? It’s about genuinely loving others for what we can give, not what we can get.

But if the purpose of the friendship is to make us more “accepted” or “popular” then there is a good chance there will be some serious peer pressure coming in the future to do things that God has made clear we are to avoid. This leads to another question.

Where is the influence in this friendship? Is there one person in this friendship that carries the bulk of the influence? Am I being a good influence on my friend or is it really a matter of my friend being a big influence on me? Influence is a powerful thing and when used for good, that’s awesome! But we have to be honest here and admit if a friend is strongly influencing me in the wrong direction something has to happen and it has to happen now!

Here’s how to know when to get away from a bad friendship according to Proverbs 1:10-19.

Bad Friendships Have This in Common

1. Entice: You find yourself being pressured to do wrong in order to fit in.
   Proverbs 1:10 My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not.
2. Involve: You find yourself moving from an observer to a participant.
   So often others will say that you don’t have to “do it” … we just want you to tag along and be with us. Just know that it never really goes that way. Eventually they will say “join us.” Notice the word “us” in the following verses.
   Proverbs 1:11 If they say, Come with us, let us lay wait for blood, let us lurk privily for the innocent without cause: 12 Let us swallow them up alive as the grave; and whole, as those that go down into the pit:
3. Entangle: You find yourself in a place you never intended to be, and you feel stuck. Bad friends lead you to places you promised yourself you’d never go. Not only are you there but you now realize you are guilty. You were enticed, you got involved and now you feel entangled as a bird in a net and are struggling to find your way out.
   Proverbs 1:13 We shall find all precious substance, we shall fill our houses with spoil: 14 Cast in thy lot among us; let us all have one purse:

Here’s How to Get Out of a Bad Friendship

1. Disconnect: Get away from them and make a clean break. Even Jesus made choices about who He would and would not spend time with.
   Proverbs 1: 15 My son, walk not thou in the way with them; refrain thy foot from their path: 16 For their feet run to evil, and make haste to shed blood.
2. Discern: Move ahead with a spirit of wisdom and discernment, knowing ahead of time where this type of friendship will end up.
   Proverbs 1:17 Surely in vain the net is spread in the sight of any bird. 18 And they lay wait for their own blood; they lurk privily for their own lives.
3. Destruction: Regularly remind yourself how bad your life could end up if you don’t follow God’s wisdom about friendship choices.
   Proverbs 1:19 So are the ways of every one that is greedy of gain; which taketh away the life of the owners thereof.

The great thing about having a personal relationship with God is that He is a “deliverer and restorer.” So please, if you are in a bad place right now with a friendship stop right now and ask God for forgiveness and ask Him to bring to your mind a caring, Godly adult that you can talk to as soon as possible to get advice and encouragement to follow God’s pathway out.

If you don’t mind, I’d love to hear from you about how God is at work in your life. You can email me, post a comment or even leave a voicemail at 423-381-0018.

Ken Turner

Learn more at https://kenturnerministries.org/walking-with-god/

Email me at kenturner@highimpactteens.org

Are You Trying to Take the Place of God?

by Ken Turner | Faith

Don’t underestimate how powerful these seven words are… AM I IN THE PLACE OF GOD?

“Am I in the place of God?” That seems like a weird response from Joseph in Genesis 50:19-21. He was responding to the question, “Will you please forgive us?” And he responded with a question… am I in the place of God. Don’t you hate it when people respond to a question with a question! =)

Earlier in the book of Genesis Joseph experienced a massive trial. His brothers became jealous of him, dug a pit and threw him in it to be abandoned but changed their mind and sold him as a slave. He ended up serving Pharaoh and was used in mighty ways. The people experienced years of famine in the land and years of plenty and God used Joseph as an instrument in saving the lives of the people from starvation.

So… fast forward to years and years later. Joseph’s dad died and his brothers made dad a death bed promise that they would go make things right with their brother Joseph. So they showed up and said, “Joseph, will you forgive us?” It’s important to try to grasp the gravity of the question. “Will you forgive us for betraying you as our brother, selling you as a slave and causing you to live out your life separated from us and dad?” And Joseph responded, “And Joseph said unto them, Fear not: for am I in the place of God? But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.”

I’m Not in The Place of God: Here is What That Really Means

• God has a plan for my life.
• God’s plan includes trials.
• Trials often include pain inflicted by other people.
• I can choose to become bitter or better.
• When I choose to live in forgiveness God uses trials to give me a better life than I could have ever experienced if life would have been easy.

Whatever is happening in your life, God wants to use it for good. He wants to use it to create a better life than you could ever imagine. He can do that if you live in forgiveness. Living in forgiveness doesn’t mean “it’s okay that someone hurt you.” Living in forgiveness means, “I’m not taking the place of God. He has a plan for my life and it often includes trials. I will forgive others and choose to let God handle the details while I move forward with no bitterness, choosing to be better because of my trials.”

Read: Genesis 50

Ken Turner

Learn more at https://kenturnerministries.org/walking-with-god/

Email me at kenturner@highimpactteens.org