In my last post to this blog, I shared an article about the call of motherhood for Christian moms. As for Christian men, we are called by our Lord to great responsibilities, too. Read, Ephesians 5:18-6:4. I did, and felt convicted. But as I finished the devotion which I will share below, I found hope.  The devotion goes on to stress two important points:

1. A godly home begins with a man who is righteous.
2. A godly home begins with a man of integrity.

Here is another excerpt from “Gospel Meditations for Men”, Day 23, entitled, “The Papa John’s Principle”.

The righteous who walks in his integrity-
blessed are his children after him!  Proverbs 20:7

“Books abound which claim to deliver the secret to a happy home, the twelve steps to a model marriage, or God’s path to perfect kids. Some amount to behaviorism. Many fail to urge utter dependence on God, who alone is sovereign. And few, it seems, focus on the character of the individual members of the family. Proverbs 20:7 deserves our attention. It teaches what I call “The Papa John’s Principle.” You remember the pizza-maker’s common-sense slogan: “Better ingredients, better pizza.” Well, Proverbs 20:7 teaches that a godly home begins with godly individuals-and specifically, a godly man.”

“Godly homes are comprised of godly people. You want your marriage to improve? You want your relationship with your children to improve? You want to be the start of a godly legacy? Begin by growing in grace yourself. There’s no shortcut. Your walk with God “trickles down” to your relationships at home. Live a gospel-empowered life and your family will be “blessed” (Proverbs 20:7). That gives you a huge responsibility. It also gives you a huge reason for hope.

Let the gospel shape your character and thereby bless your family. – Chris Anderson”

These past couple of weeks I have been reading a devotional book called “Gospel Meditations for Men” by Chris Anderson and Joe Tyrpak. They are pastors at Tri-County Bible Church in Madison, Ohio. This devotional book has “thirty-one daily readings to help men be gospel-saturated – all day, every day.”

I am enjoying this book very much. For day #11, I recently read about the need for Christian friends and fellowship. It gives great detail as to what true fellowship is. Here is an excerpt from the book, “True fellowship requires humble transparency. Fellowship demands that we get real. Too many men show up for church each Sunday with their “game faces” on. We tell each other that we’re doing “Great, praise God!” But we’re not. This reading goes on to explain the need for godly friends and the need for true fellowship.

Men, if you are looking for a good devotion book, I highly recommend this book. I received it as a gift from my wife and kids for Father’s Day. You can order the book at Church Works Media.

If you order a copy, please let me know about it by leaving a comment.