Oh Crap - He's Up!

Here's a great thought. I ran across it a couple of weeks ago and ended up tweaking the statement so I could use it for my presentation out in Texas this past weekend. It's aimed at men, but the idea works just as well for women, so feel free to substitute the word "she" for "he" if it helps.

• Let's make the commitment to be the kind of men who, when our feet hit the floor on our side of the bed in the morning, the Devil says, "Oh crap - he's up!"

I just love that! I love the statement because it moves forward from the assumption that who we are and what we do makes a significant difference in this world. Not just in our homes; not just in our workplace or school; not just in our community; not just in our region.... but who we are and what we do actually makes a difference in the great scheme of things. It makes a difference in and for eternity.

We were talking about this in my Men's Room small group yesterday evening. I brought in a list I'm working on for one of my writing jobs. It's a list that references a number of ways we can be remembered 100 years from now.

You can find literally dozens of such lists at theAllProDad website. Just click on one of the billboards at the top-left and you'll likely get something I have written in the past few weeks - click here for an example "3 Ways to Fight Conflict in your Marriage".

So I asked my friends for ideas and we enjoyed a deep, insightful conversation. It's certainly more likely that we will be remembered if we're the kind of men who, when we get out of bed in the morning, the Devil says, "Oh crap - he's up!"

#5 on my list is this: "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!" The words are obviously those spoken by Ronald Reagan and in reference to the Berlin Wall. But, they make me think about the way so many of us - men in particular - build walls around our hearts, our emotions, our vulnerability. We do it because we want to be strong, yes, but we also do it because we're afraid that we're not.

The truth is that we are stronger when we are honest, when we allow other family members in, and when we live in open, honest relationships where support, unconditional love, encouragement and accountability are as natural as breathing.

My friend Andy said this in group yesterday. "We won't be remembered 100 years from now if we're not willing to tell the stories. How can we be remembered if nobody knows who we are?"

Awesome, Andy.

- Amen