Men

Cultivating Hope in the Midst of Depression

As Christians we are told at Christmas that this should be the happiest time of the year — a time of joy with grateful family, colleagues and friends. Yet, for some of us this is sadly not the case. In my work with Christians in a private practice and then in my ministry I began to see that the Holidays can be a significant increase in depression. One North American survey reported that 45% of respondents dreaded the festive season. One very blue Christmas I reflect back on one Christmas that was filled with depression, sadness and feeling very isolated […]

-Read More


Holiday Blues

For some of us Christmas represents one of the most heart-wrenching times of year. As it approaches there is often impending feeling of dread. The lights and jolly songs that fill the streets only increase the ache that reverberates in our hearts. Whether it is the death of a loved one, the end of a marriage, difficult childhood memories, complicated family relationships, empty nest, loneliness or anything else, Christmas can bring on an overwhelming sense of sadness. The fact that the marketing world capitalizes on Christmas plays a big part in the anguish that some experience. Everything being perfectly presented, […]

-Read More


Six Pillars of Parenting for Fathers

The first Father’s Day in the United States was observed on June 19, 1910, in Spokane, Washington. The day was proposed by Mrs. John B. Dodd, who wanted to honor her father, William Smart, a Civil War veteran who raised six children alone after his wife died in childbirth. Clearly, Mrs. Dodd took seriously the Lord’s instruction, set forth in the fifth commandment, to honor your father.  I understand that not all of us have a father like William Smart, who seemed worthy of honor. But the commandment does not tell us to honor our father if he is honorable; […]

-Read More


Why Is It So Hard To Admit I Make Mistakes?

The following question came up on my radio program, Ask the Counselor. Q: “I have been telling myself for months now that “I had to” do something very radical in order to survive a very difficult time. Most of my trusted friends, family and counselors disagreed with my action. I felt very frustrated. Why could they not see that I had no choice and that this was the best possible solution to a bad situation? Why did they have to judge me? I was100 percent sure I did the only possible thing I could do. In the last few days […]

-Read More


“Get Better” Doesn’t Work

In a New York Times op-ed, Oliver Burkeman suggests something counter-intuitive, but obvious: the more you force someone to have fun, the less fun they’ll have. His piece is called “Who Goes to Work to Have Fun,” and the money quote is this one: “Psychologists have shown that positive-thinking affirmations make people with low self-esteem feel worse; that patients with panic disorders can become more anxious when they try to relax; and that an ability to experience negative emotions, rather than struggling to exclude them, is crucial for mental health. And these are just the hazards of trying to enforce happiness […]

-Read More


Father’s Day Gifts Your Dad Actually Wants

Father’s Day is just around the corner, and we all struggle with trying to find the right gift for dad. The tie is too cliché, so what should you get him instead? The real challenge is finding a gift that your father will enjoy and actually use, so here we have a list of items that the patriarch of your household probably already wants. Keep in mind that no two fathers are exactly the same, so not everything on this list will be right for everyone. Read through, use your judgment and find what your dad is really is really […]

-Read More


Your Brain On XXX

Pornography has been around for a long time. However, now with the coming of the Internet it is becoming epidemic in scope. It is no respecter of gender, age or any other socio-economic demographic. It is free, private and easily available in unlimited variety. Some people see no problem with pornography. Others think it is just a matter of moral or spiritual differences in people. This article will look at pornography from the physiological, neurological and relational perspective; what you could call the practical problems of pornography. Brain neurochemistry and pornography The human brain operates on chemicals and electricity to […]

-Read More


How to Be A Man

Somewhere in the soul of man is this unarticulated, self-realized notion. The unspoken, yet undeniable “Bro-Code.” We all know it. Some of us have been called out on it. But there is a greater standard to which we have been summoned. God’s Way, his Code, is the true way of life. He wrote the manual of manhood. Masculinity was his idea, and he formed it from his own image. This list is by no means exhaustive, but here are ten rules for the Christian man from the Man himself: Follow God The first rule for the Christian man is to […]

-Read More


Real Men Don’t Buy Girls

The voice of a young girl screams relentlessly as she is being sold into the sex trade industry, “Help…help…please help,” but no one is there to hear her cry. No one is there to speak up on her behalf and be a voice against her injustice. Betrayed by her own mother, she was given over to the owner of a brothel to be exploited, earning money for her family. To escape the hurt and pain, this young girl tries to commit suicide many times but fails. She grows up feeling worthless and devalued because of the trauma she had endured […]

-Read More


Charlie Sheen vs. Jesus

Last year, actor Charlie Sheen suffered an infamous, extremely public meltdown. Sheen took the media by storm; flaunting his sexual escapades, self-proclaimed superhuman ability to ingest massive quantities of drugs, and extreme hatred toward those who opposed him. One could barely turn on a television in early 2011 without seeing Sheen’s face on nearly every channel. True to form, Sheen’s antics only further solidified his long-standing image as a bad-boy icon. But during Sheen’s public tirade of self-destruction, a very intriguing thing happened. Rather than pitying, vilifying or rejecting Sheen, the American public fell in love with him. Hanging on […]

-Read More