The Seven Men A Man Has To Be Pt. 4

4. The Cowboy

Have you ever played cowboys and indians? Most kids wanted to be the cowboy. They wanted to be the Lone Ranger, The Duke, or Clint Eastwood. Those guys made it look easy and exciting. Riding the range fighting outlaws and getting the girl.
I don't know what to call it, but there was always something in me a kin to cowboys and indians. I do have native american heritage, although you couldn't tell it by looking at me and it always felt good and natural whenever I had the chance to strap a gun to my hip.
The leader of a ministry I used to be with wanted to film a western type movie one time, I actually helped him write some of the script and novel it was going to be based on. I borrowed a gun and holster from my father in-law and me and this minister friend of mine practiced quick draw on each other just for fun. He had practiced for years and was pretty quick.
Being a cowboy is not all about sheriffs, outlaws, and quick draws. A husband and father has to take on the attributes of a true cowboy from time to time.
Rough and rugged, sometimes both physically and emotionally, the cowboy whethers the elements to take care of and tend to his land and his animals. He has to keep predators from his herds. The cowboy takes care of his business and sometimes helps his neighbors take care of theirs. The cowboy protects what belongs to him. The cowboy is the one to face the danger of outlaws and ride into the hills to find a lost calf or hunt down a predator that has been killing off his animals. It's not an easy life the cowboy lives but it is his life he lives for.
The cowboy tries not to let much bother him. He trusts what he knows and knows what he can trust. Underneath the tough exterior of the cowboy is the heart that drives him. His love and passion for his family and his way of life. A real man, the cowboy treats a woman like a lady. He's firm yet loving to his children and teaches them what he knows.
Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson had a song called "Mama's Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up To Be Cowboys". Well there is nothing wrong with being a cowboy as long as you are a real/right kind of cowboy. " Cowboy Up !!!"

The Seven Men A Man Has To Be Pt. 3

3. The Doctor

A real man has to be the healer of his family. Not just physically with bumps and bruises, but spiritually and emotionally. Now, I know that God is our absolute healer, what I mean is that the man as head of the household must allow God to work through him in this manner toward his family.
Being the doctor of your family is sometimes like being a real doctor. You have to recognize symptoms and be able to diagnose any illness and prescribe what is needed to cure it. During our marriage, there have been moments when I have had to use discernment for an issue and reveal the root of it and prescribe the medicine of the word. For just an example, an issue of sleeplessness caused by unresolved anger. The cure is simply to forgive by faith and do your best to make the situation right. Just like real doctors, this may sometimes call for consultations with other doctors who have faced the same things.
The husband and father must take care of the spiritual well being of his family, making sure they are spiritually well. The doctor of the family must do his best to take preventive measures. Keeping things from the family that could potentiall cause harm and sickness.
Like real doctors this often a job that requires overtime of prayer and study. Doctors never quit learning, likewise we as husbands, fathers, and disciples must never quit learning. If I had quit learning years ago, I would not have had the knowledge and insight to deal with some of the circumstances I have faced with my family today.
You may not have a D.M. or P.H.D. from an acredited medical school, but you can have one from the best spiritual medical school their is. God's medical school of the bible. I encourage you to dig into the word and find books by ministers that deal with situations you face personally and familywise.

In Christ, Kevin