June 19th, 2011 Men of Strength (Father's Day)

It takes incredible strength to be the kind of Dad our kids need. So how can we become MEN OF STRENGTH? There are lots of answers out there but not all are what we need to hear. And who answers this question for us is also hugely important. Today we look at the story of Jacob and how he became the man he was meant to be. (Please note that the message recording starts a few minutes late but picks up after the same basic intro as written above.)

If you want a study tool to go along with the podcast, see Lift Notes here:

Father’s Day 2011:  Men of Strength

June  19, 2011

To be a great dad takes an incredible about of ____________.

How can we become men of strength?

[Jacob] took [his family] and sent them across the stream, and everything else that he had. ²⁴ And Jacob was left alone. And a man wrestled with him until the breaking of the day. ²⁵ When the man saw that he did not prevail against Jacob, he touched his hip socket, and Jacob’s hip was put out of joint as he wrestled with him. ²⁶ Then he said, “Let me go, for the day has broken.” But Jacob said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” ²⁷ And he said to him, “What is your name?” And he said, “Jacob.” ²⁸ Then he said, “Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel, for you have striven with God and with men, and have prevailed.” ²⁹ Genesis 32:22-29

Every young man asks themselves the questions: “who am I as a man?” and “what does it ________ to be a man?”

______ answers that question for you is very important.

Jacob had been told his whole life a message about who he was.  His name was Jacob, which means “heel grasper”, inferring a ____________ character.

But God took him out into the wilderness, and said its time to dig out that wound.

After wrestling for a while God says to him, “what is your name?”. That is a question about identity. And the man responds, Jacob, or deceitful one.  And God (paraphrased) says no, no that is not who I made you to be. That is not the name I have for you.  My identity for you is “Israel”, which means “__________ _____ ________” , meaning one who goes deep with God, who strives to know God.

How did he find his true identity?

He made a priority to be __________ with God and ___________.

Have you had those times away from any other distraction where God has spoken to you and said: “this is who you are in my eyes?”

God comes down to call us out to join him on a journey in which he will destroy old _______, get our priorities __________, and give you your _______ identity.

Who gives you your identity

There are lots of cultural myths out there about what it means to be a man…..The hard guy, the tough guy, the party guy, the suave guy, the successful guy….etc.

In a variety of ways, all of these personas mask deep down _____________.

If our identity is not from God, then we will ___________ for our identity, for validation, from any number of sources…. all of it a smokescreen of pretending to have it together while the inside is insecure, fearful, and weak.

Our kids need more than anything else from us, Fathers who know who they are ____ _______; men who have found their true identity as a man of God and who let their lives be shaped by God’s character and lived out of his strength and therefore have the incredible strength that it takes to be a great dad.

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