June 6, 2024
Redefining Your Story, Discovering Identity
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True identity is not found on a resume or LinkedIn profile … it’s found in your story. But what has shaped your story? Join me for a fascinating exploration of identity as we celebrate the launch of my new book, "Identity: Finding the Real You and Why It Matters." This episode is a deep dive into how the narratives we believe about ourselves influence our decisions and behaviors.
I share actionable steps like reading the Bible and engaging with a supportive community to help you live boldly and courageously in Christ. We hit some of the unique 40 days of affirmations designed to boost faith and self-discipline that are in the book Identity.
We hit a crucial issue many men face: the link between identity and self-worth. Too often, our self-worth becomes entangled with our professions, leaving many feeling trapped in roles they never consciously chose. By examining biblical stories like that of Samuel and David, we illustrate the importance of rooting our identity in being followers of Jesus Christ rather than in mere professional achievements. This episode sheds light on the heart's role in shaping our actions and sense of self-worth, urging you to align more deeply with God's spirit.
Brave Men is a production of the Christian Men’s Network. A global producer of tools and resources for discipling men and families. The host is Paul Louis Cole who you can follow on socials at @paullouiscole.(00:14) Identity and Brave Men Podcast Launch
(06:39) Identity and Self-Worth in Men
(21:28) Favor Always Attracts a Fight
(30:18) Identity and Spiritual Warfare
14:00 - Identity and Brave Men Podcast Launch
06:39:00 - Identity and Self-Worth in Men
21:28:00 - Favor Always Attracts a Fight
30:18:00 - Identity and Spiritual Warfare
00:14 - Speaker 1
Hi, this is Paul Louis Cole and you're listening to the Brave Men podcast, fired up today, because I have you and me together just to ourselves. That's awesome. So I don't know if it's you, timothy Meza, working out or Gerald Don, wherever you may be today. Bojo, you're on the road someplace. Bob, you're driving to Firestone Dealership in Flagstaff. Wherever you are, I'm thrilled you're here with me today. I'm fired up. I'm holding in my hands the book Identity and this thing. This is.
00:52
For some time we've spoken about identity. We have a lot of it in the book Bartender, the book Daring, the book Strong Men in Tough Times about Daniel. We have a lot of, but we've never produced a book that's called Identity and I think sometimes we just have to say it, we just have to put it out there. What's the book about? It's about identity and so Finding the Real you and why it Matters. It's available now. It's out. This is the author's edition. It's out now and then it comes out in hardback in a couple months. But cmnmen, cmn. Don't go to CNN, not going to get much help there. Christian Men's Network, cmnmen. And so, holding this thing fired up, it's got the great cover by Bryce, who did the cover on this thing. It's great Fingerprint, identity, finding a new rule, you and why it matters and what you allow to define you will determine your destiny.
01:54
Definition matters. Out of definition comes your decisions, how you define yourself, how you define others, how you define God and the issue. Let me just hit it right here. And you're going to have a lot of stuff to write down. So I know if you're driving, you're working out whatever. Go back, listen to some of it, look in the show notes, find the little sections and write some stuff down, or just get the book, or just get the book or just get the book. But there'll be some things that I share that are probably I don't know, they're just sidebar stuff, aren't in the book.
02:33
But chapter five is a fulcrum point. And then the beauty of this book and it's what we spent the most time on, frankly is 40 days of affirmations. Here's day 32. Day 32, 2 Timothy 1-7,. For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love and self-discipline. So it's read, think, speak every day. So read is that.
02:59
Then think is there's three paragraphs about that scripture because the Holy Spirit lives in you and gives you his power, love and wisdom. You do not live as a victim of fear. You are not timid, but bold in Jesus. So you're meditating on it. Read the scripture, meditate on it. He gives us power and love, and then our part is to live in self-discipline. It's not free. There's some work to be done, and that's a word for us today, isn't it? Everybody wants something. You want to live bold? Then you must discipline your life. Read the Bible, hang with brothers, pray often, help others, encourage people and be in community.
03:43
The more we walk in faith, the greater our courage, boldness and bravery. It's like having a muscular big brother that showed up on the field when someone was trying to bully you. We're stronger when we know we have backup. I mean, think about that. Think about how bold you are when you know the guy behind you can take anybody you're looking at. That's boldness and that's who we have in Christ.
04:10
Okay, so then there's the read think and speak. Now there's 40 of these. They're awesome. And then the speak is say it out loud and then say it during the day. So here's the speak, page 114 on day 32.
04:26
I will not walk in fear today. Jesus is with me. I am becoming a brave man. I will not walk in fear. Today Jesus is with me. I am becoming a brave man and rather than just saying I am a brave man because that is part of the definition, I am becoming a brave man because that is part of definition. I am becoming a brave man because we are in process. So we're going to go through that today cmnman tools and resources for discipling men, discipling your family, and for overcoming the enemy and the stuff that stops us and the stuff that stops us.
05:03
Man, you know it's so easily uh easy to get distracted. So back on definition. And what I meant was not me right now, I know I get. I get sidebar and then sidebar to my sidebar. I had coffee this morning with a friend and we were talking about something. I said, oh yeah, here's a little sidebar on that guy. And then this there was a sidebar on the sidebar because that guy was connected to somebody else. We did find our way back, but you know it's also part of conversation and having coffee with a friend and a brother where you can talk about some things and then actually spend a few minutes getting a little deeper into it. So definition produces decisions. Decisions produce your destiny. All behavior follows belief, what you believe about God, yourself and others.
05:56
So identity is the story you tell yourself about yourself. The story you tell yourself about yourself. And, by the way, we're doing this on Monday Night Men, which is about an eight-part, seven or eight-part, eight-week series that we're doing on YouTube and Facebook Christian Men's Network, facebook and it's called Identity. Good luck for CMN Monday Night Men, identity and I think we just finished the third week as I'm doing this now, but it's a great series because we really get into some things about it.
06:39
Identity the story you tell yourself about yourself. And most men are telling themselves a story that somebody else wrote the lyrics to man. Every time I share that, you know, and I speak at a lot of places. I think I've spoken I tried to add it up, it was about 92 sessions so far in five months this year and speaking, ministering, but every time I say that everybody goes. Oh yeah, I was with Skyler Louis and his Rise Up Kings. He had an intensive for pastors and I said that.
07:20
I said most men are living a life that somebody else wrote the lyrics to and they all went oh man. And then I said this how many of us are counseling men, or how many of us ourselves are actually in professions that we didn't choose. It wasn't like something that we thought, oh, this is what I'll be when I grow up. It was just we had a friend, you know, who was working with a particular, like maybe he's a welder and he goes hey, I can get you on with this group. Well then, we get on with that group, we start making an income, get married or whatever the case may be, get into our career, and all of a sudden we find ourselves we're 10 years into it and we can't change, like that's our job now.
08:08
And the problem with that is that most of us as men, identify ourselves, define ourselves, based on what we do with our hands. And that's the age-old issue. Because really, our definition we'll get into it a little bit here in a little bit on the second part Our definition is found in Jesus Christ. That's who we are. When we become a follower of Christ, our definition changes, because now Christ is the center of my life, I live in Him, he is in me, and now that's who I am, my definition is I'm a follower of Jesus Christ. So when it comes to politics, government, profession, job, business, hobbies, family, anything in life, everything is a subset to who I am. My identity is I'm a follower of Jesus Christ.
09:07
Now, that's a heart thing. Proverbs 4 says guard your heart, because out of your heart comes your life. Man, this is huge and we got into it in the book Just a Bartender talking about Nehemiah. But it's huge because out of our heart, you see, the heart has cell memory. Your deepest hurts and your highest highs are within the cell memory of your heart. It's fascinating how medical science continually comes around and proves the Bible. You know, as in like conception is the start of life. We know that's true.
09:50
Now You're not a person just at the moment you're birthed. You've been a person for nine months or eight and a half, or nine and a half or whatever the case may be. You know, when you're born in Japan, you're actually born as one year old. I know Doug Stringer, born in Japan, and I'm like Doug. I don't know if we just celebrated your 50th or your 51st. Maybe I don't need to give you a gift because you were already 50 last year. So because he was born when he was born, he was one year old. So at what we would call one year old in a lot of our Western culture it's two. So all that to say that your heart is the center of who you are. Your hands will do what you put in your heart.
10:43
Now we define a man based on what he does with his hands. Right, that's how we do it. So here we are. Let's say that I'm Manny and I'm in construction. Somebody says, hey, where are you from? Well, I'm from Arlington. Okay, and what do you do? I'm in construction. And now we begin to slot that guy oh, construction really. Yeah, I own a company, fantastic. So now we begin to kind of put this person in a place and begin to understand who he is based on those criteria.
11:20
The issue is that's not really who he is. That's what he does, which comes out of who he is. All right. So the issue with identity and the reason that you and I need to be continually in process is so that our heart becomes congruent with the Word of God, the Spirit of Christ and the breath of the Holy Spirit that's in us. Because if we're not careful, we identify ourselves by what we do with our hands. Not careful, we identify ourselves by what we do with our hands. And if you identify yourself by what you do with your hands and you've been in a job for 10 or 15 years and you really don't like it that much. It's just, I don't know, it's just the thing I got into. Then your identity actually, you lower your self-worth based on that identity that you do with your hands. But we'll see it in chapter 5 in the book Identity, a man's self-worth is not based on what he does with his hands, but who he is in his heart.
12:23
I go back to Eliab. Eliab was the older brother of David, so Samuel is tasked by God. And this is really cool. This is a little okay. This is a sidebar on the sidebar. You ready, david, david, when Samuel prays because Saul is jacked up, he's a mess, right. So he's into divination, he's not following God. And Samuel's like man Lord, we screwed up, like we messed up when we made this guy king. And God's like no, you guys chose him, you chose him. You thought he looked like a king. So Samuel is okay and he's praying and God says don't worry, samuel, I have found a man. Check this out, check this out. I have found a man. After check this out, check this out, I have found a man after my own heart. Now this is really cool.
13:16
Go back to 1 Samuel. Read this part. It says I found a man after my own heart. Now, when God tells Samuel this, he's not like on the road to Jesse's house, which is the father of David. He's not on his way there to Bethlehem, he's actually somewhere. Maybe he's in Jerusalem, maybe he's up in Capernaum, maybe he's walking by the Sea of Galilee and he's praying. He's going. Man, this is a mess. God says to him I found a man after my own heart. Let's just say that, david, at this point, let's say this is a few years before he gets anointed as king, which happened when he was 13. So let's say he's 10 years old.
14:01
Now think about a 10-year-old boy. He's the youngest of eight boys. What is he doing? Well, at 10, as the youngest of eight boys, he's bugging the heck out of his older brothers. He's out there with the sheep. He's out there with the livestock. Whatever the case may be, david, you're supposed to be taking care of those chickens. Ah no, I guess you know. He's all sidetracked with stuff. He's throwing rocks at things. You ever been to a baseball game and watched a 10-year-old, nine and 10-year-olds, and there's always one kid that's in the outfield, that's spinning like he's turning around, he's looking in the back and his parents are yelling pay attention. And he might be in one part of the field where very few hits come out. So he's just kind of thinking about different things and to try to keep them engaged is part of the job. I coached that age, coached Little League because my boys were in it and love that part of our lives. But coaching that and trying to keep those guys engaged, man, that's half your world as a coach. Now think about 10-year-old David. All right, he's out there. Now dial back to what I just said.
15:17
God said to Samuel I have found a man after my own heart. Who's he talking about? He's talking about 10-year-old David. Ephesians chapter 2, verse 10 says before you were born, god designed you for good works, man. This is good stuff because this is what brings our heart hope.
15:43
You may be in a job in which you feel like, yeah, this is going nowhere. But let me tell you what that job does. That job pays for you to be able to go on a Tuesday night and help the youth group. That job helps pay for you to be able to take your wife and go on a date night once a month. Whatever the case is, that job helps provide funding when you tithe. That helps the church minister to widows and orphans.
16:16
Think about what that job actually does. Don't think about it in terms of your definition. Think about it and what it produces. That's why you show up 15 minutes early. That's why you do excellent work. You might be cleaning swimming pools, but I want you to know that there is a holiness in that work, because that work is providing not only the people that own the company, not only the people you're working with, not only are they sustained and able to do things that help the community, but you are now in a position to be a blessing to your pastor, to be a blessing in your church.
16:57
Don't look at a job and say, well, just a dead-end thing. Don't dial your life back when you hit 45 and just say, well, I'm in this for 20, I'll do another 10, and then I'm out. No, look at it as the hand of God working on your behalf and we are able to do some things. So now let's go back. Samuel says I found—God says to Samuel I found a man after my own heart. Ephesians 2, verse 10,. Before you were ever born. God designed you for good works and that you would be blessed in them. So you were designed to do great stuff. It may not be the job you do with your hands, but it is my friend who you are in your heart.
17:50
Bro, I hope you're having a cup of coffee by now. I mean, maybe you're working out, that's good. Have some water. I got some coffee here with me and this is good stuff because this sets us free. This just puts us in a place where I can say, okay, my life is not about just this crap that's going on around me. I mean, I looked at the.
18:12
I read I've got news aggregation. So I've got aggregators. I've got three different news sources I look at probably four or five. You know, do my quiet time, read through my you version, whatever I'm doing at the time, read a couple other things in the books. I'm reading right now and reading a Joseph Prince thing actually right now and you know.
18:37
And then a Leonard Sweet book that is just so amazing, quantum Spirituality. So go that, and then I'll hit these news sources. Bam, bam, bam, bam, bam. And I mean everything's either crisis or this is blowing up. This thing's happening AI out of control.
19:00
Whatever the case may be and I can take all of that and subjugate that to this that God's will is going to be accomplished, that Jesus Christ and his kingdom will be established on the face of the earth, and that every knee and tongue, every knee, will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. That's the end game. So my process in the middle of it I may have stress, may have issues. I can remember some Thursday nights trying to make payroll on Friday at noon. Lord, father, I've got to—I mean there is stress in life, there's issues, there's problems, there's situations, but in the midst of it we are men of hope. We are men that know that God's got the end game, that the Holy Spirit comes, that Acts 2.17 is real. In the last days God says I will pour out my spirit on all flesh. That stuff's real.
20:03
Back on David. So David, 10 years old, and God tells Samuel I found a man after my own heart. He's speaking into the future of David's life. God, this is what a father does. This is what you do with your son or your daughter. You speak into their future, not just hey, you can be anything you can be. You can be anything you want to be. No, if the guy's not 6'8", he's not going to the NBA. Okay, there's some 6'2 guys. What's that guy? Steph Curry? So you know, I mean, I understand that, but if the guy's not, you know, if he's not a player by the time he's 13, 14, 15, he's not going to the NBA, all right. So you can't tell him hey, you can be anything you want to be. No, you can't be that. But you can be everything you were placed on earth to be. You can't.
21:07
Let me give you a definition of success. Success is to fully satisfy your personal design. Write it down, think about it. True success, authentic success, is to fully satisfy your personal design, which you were placed on earth to be.
21:28
So now here's David. He's out there, 10 years old. Maybe he's thinking, hey, someday I'll do this, someday I'll do that, whatever that thing is that a young man would think of in those days. But God's already marked a man, he's already got something that he's designed him for. So, at 13 years old, samuel shows up. Jesse says hey, one of you is going to be king. Certainly wouldn't be you, david, you can go back out to the field. And Jesse looks at excuse me.
22:01
Samuel looks at Eliab, the oldest of the eight boys, says, oh man, this guy looks like a king. And this guy looks like a king. And this guy, I think this guy's got it, and all right, good, because I'm sure there's going to be a feast, there's going to be food, there's going to be whatever. And it's like, all right, we can eat and barbecue. Come on. God says to Samuel no, that's not the guy. Samuel's like what? Yeah, that's not the guy. You see, samuel, you look on the outside, but I look on the inside. You look on the hands of a man, I look on the man's heart.
22:48
All right, now we're back into the whole stream of identity, which is it's not based on what you do with your hands, it's who you are in your heart. We pray for favor, we desire favor, we go give me favor. I love what we wrote in page 42. Favor always attracts a fight. Favor always attracts a fight. Favor always attracts a fight.
23:16
Think about and we go back to the very start of this book, identity, when we talked about the life of Christ and every attack on Jesus. Remember he was in fact, it says, after he was baptized by his cousin John. It says the Holy Spirit forced him out, drove him out. It's another translation. In other words, the Holy Spirit said hey, you're going here 40 days, 40 nights, you're going to man up. Now You're 30. But this is the final crucible going into your time of ministry.
23:52
The attacks on Christ the three you know we won't get into this the three different temptations they're called, but there are attacks on his character and they started with an attack on his identity. The whole thing's based on identity, his definition, if you are the Christ's, how satan started it, if you are the christ. And now this is where he has to lean into his definition. So what we wrote on that page page that's page six what we wrote on that page was that's page six. What we wrote on that page was definition determines decisions. But here's the key. Here's the key. And if you've got the book, circle this, your system of thinking is perfectly designed to achieve the results you're now getting.
24:46
My son, bryce, and I were talking about this yesterday. He's our producer for the Brave Men podcast. He also helps produce and shoot the Monday Night Men, in which we're doing the identity book, and he helps us with a number of things. So we also have oh, by the way, go to cmnmen and sign up for this. It's the Brave Men email Three times a week. Bam, something comes out, lifts your heart and spirit. You need it. You need a four-minute read that just stirs you up, something you can go back to, something you can share with somebody else. All right, oh, which is also the subscribe button on the podcast. Whatever you're listening to, whatever platform you're on, click subscribe. When you do that, not only do you get notifications when we have a new podcast out, which is basically every Thursday, not only do you get notified of that, but it also puts us in an algorithm with whoever the algorithm people are, and puts us at a place where we can be in front of more men. All right, okay, here we go.
25:59
Your system of thinking say it again, your system of thinking is perfectly designed to achieve the results you're now getting. Where you are today is the result of yesterday's mindset, your thinking. Your mindset is framed and energized by your definition. All right, now we pray for favor. Okay, we pray for favor. This would be a prayer that Samuel had. This is a prayer that David had. This is a prayer that the disciples had. God give us favor. Favor is the blessing of God in our lives. Favor is the power of God in our lives. God, we want favor. Now here's the deal.
26:40
Favor always attracts a fight. Jesus had favor and the enemy showed up and we went through. We go through a few people here in page 42, and I love it. Gideon had the favor of God and ended up in multiple wars. Joseph had favor and ended up in prison. Moses had favor and ended up running for his life, going up against the Red Sea and other obstacles. This guy had obstacles till the day he died. Abraham had favor and went through betrayals and went through betrayals. And man, abraham, dude, this guy talk about trials and stuff that happened. Jesus' disciples had favor and 10 of them were martyred. Mary had favor and found herself unmarried and pregnant. Favor always attracts a fight. Here's the key. Here's the key. Here's the key.
27:46
Every single one of these champions was in the middle of doing what God wanted them to do. They were not out of the will of God. I mean, you know, when Moses arrived at the Red Sea, he's surrounded, got an army behind him, red Sea in front of him and a million people going. You've screwed up, you messed up. This is you know. And Moses was fully and totally in the will of God. If any man has ever been in the will of God, it was Moses at that point in his life. So did he have a bad map? A bad cartographer? Had he missed God? No, he was exactly where he was supposed to be. Moses was faithful, ended up in a fight, and then God, in the middle of the fight, proved his power. And then God, in the middle of the fight, proved his power. I mean, nehemiah goes back and rebuilds the city of Jerusalem and ends up in a fight.
28:54
And in Nehemiah 4.14, I love this one because this is to you and me. And you got to circle it. Well, you got to get the book. Cmnmen, the book is identity. Don't just get one, get one for a friend. I had a guy put that on Facebook the other day. He says hey, I didn't just get one book, I want you to know that I got one for a friend.
29:12
Nehemiah said this, chapter 4, verse 14, don't be afraid of the enemy. Remember the Lord, who is great and glorious, and fight for your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives and your homes. Man, this is a good one. And then he instructed everybody when you hear of a fight, rush to the battle. In other words, go help your brother. When you hear the this is Nehemiah 420. When you hear the blast of the trumpet, rush to wherever it is sounding, then our God will fight for us. In other words, you go fight, god will fight for us. This is awesome.
29:51
Now let me get into chapter five. Hit some stuff. There's so much here, man, and it is so good. John 10.10, john 10.10. I continually come back to this because we have to be reminded of what's going on. When you look at these guys who had favor got in a fight. Why? Because the enemy's trying to take them out. You're in stress, you're in pressure, you've got something.
30:18
I remember one time when my youngest son Bryce, who here is our producer now. One time when, when, uh, my youngest son Bryce, who here is our producer now when, when our youngest son Bryce, we got a series of traffic tickets all in one day. Well, that was about a two day period, I guess. And by the time the third one hit, it's just like oh my gosh, are you kidding me? And there were, and they were really minor things. They were just he's in the wrong place at the wrong time. Okay, it wasn't like he was out racing somebody at all. So it's like a rolling stop, right, turn or something. You know, this is a normal everyday thing. Boom, and I hit me. It hit me.
31:02
The enemy's doing this. This is an attack on my son's psyche, on his personality, on his spirit. I got our family together, so he's 16, lindsay would have been 20. So 16, 17, 20, my wife and I got the five of us together and I said this is an attack on Bryce. And I laid hands on Bryce. I'll never forget that.
31:28
I was sitting on the couch in the family room where we lived on Shady Creek Lane and put my hands on him. I said this is an attack on Bryce. I said, bryce, this is an attack on you. It's not just you messing up so that you feel bad, messing up so that you feel bad. This is an attack on you. The enemy's trying to dissuade you from becoming everything God designed you to be. And we prayed together. We prayed over him, and I continually come back to that and to times like that where I've recognized that this moment, this is an attack on my family, not just me. Our family, our ministry, everything we do.
32:17
This is an attack right now, whether it's somebody said something, or it's a temptation, or whatever it may be, this is an attack, you see, like the temptation for pornography. When you're tempted with that, if you are, if you're tempted with that, that's not just the enemy trying to get you to do something where you feel, ah, you know, I shouldn't have done this. Whatever that is the enemy trying to take you out. John 10.10,. The thief comes to steal, kill and destroy. Jesus is saying this, but I have come to give you life, and life to the fullest, and one of the things the enemy wants to destroy is your identity. The thief comes to steal, kill and destroy. So if he can get you into a temptation place where you mess up, one of my favorite scriptures is Psalm 37, 23, and 24.
33:17
And Psalm 37, 23, and 24. Let me pull my Bible open. I was in the book of Acts. I'm going to go back here under the Ps, Psalm 37. Dad joke, sorry. Psalm 37, 23, and 24.
33:34
What's it say? Look at this. The Lord directs the steps of the godly. This is a New Living Translation. The Lord directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives and though they stumble. Another translation says when they stumble, they will never fall, for the Lord holds them by the hand. It doesn't say if you stumble, it says when you do so.
34:01
One of the things the enemy tries to do is basically put condemnation or shame on us, saying oh hey, you messed up. I guess you don't measure up, and we begin to judge ourselves by an external response to internal temptation and we messed up and we put ourselves down and then we're basically like, well, I don't know, man, maybe I can't do this thing. Yes, you can. You know why? Because the Spirit of Christ is in you If you're a follower of Jesus Christ. The Bible says the same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead lives in you, bro, lives in you. Man, if we were having a cup of coffee sitting here at a craft coffee place Bon Jovi someplace down the corner, I'd be as adamant right now. This is when my voice would get a little loud and when my wife would go. You want to chill? Because, man, this thing, the enemy, just kicks our butt and tries to tell us our definition is something we messed up. Tries to tell us our definition is something we messed up. That's not my definition. I am not defined by the things I struggle with. I'm defined by the fact I'm a passionate pursuer of the pleasure of his presence, the power of God, his presence. I'm a pursuer of that and that's what defines me.
35:23
Chapter 5. Man, I don't know if we got to that or we'll get to it the next time, but the bottom line is this there was a man in chapter five. You can read it in Mark, chapter five. I'll hit it in full the next time. But the bottom line is this man is across a lake, across a lake. It's in chapter five of the book, identity. In fact, I'll hit it the next time. I'll hit it in full. I'll tell you why because I like the five points that are in this. I like the points of it. Jesus revealed the true intent of enemy, of the evil. Jesus showed the value of one person's life. Go tell somebody. Jesus cared about messed up people. Man, this is just such good stuff. Jesus came as hope. Hope has arrived, hope's name is Jesus, and so, okay, here we go. So I'll finish that next time. So this is going to be part two. So this is part one, identity, and it has been great hanging out talking about it.
36:32
Cmnmen, for all the tools you need. Thank you for being a partner with us. Because you're a partner, we've been in Egypt. We've been in 13 countries this year, personally, I have and traveled 98,000 miles because you're generous. Now here's the thing Every single day, somewhere in the world, there are men going through maximized manhood identity. Strong men in tough times, courage, strong men in tough times, courage. Every single day, 980,000 men, plus the men in China every month, going through the materials of the Christian Men's Network, cmnmen. Thank you for being a monthly partner, thank you for being a friend, thank you for giving Now let me finish with this the purpose that God because we're negative by nature the purpose that God put in your life.
37:32
You've got to make it a passion of your life. It's easy to look at something and go well, I don't know. I don't know if we can do it. You know that's why negativity in advertising is so powerful, because we're negative by nature. But if God has a purpose for you and puts that in your life, it needs to become your passion. You know, god will give you the strength. Okay, he gives you the strength, god will perform. But you have to do some lifting. We've got to discipline ourselves. That's why we need a place to get away. Listen to podcasts like this. Focus deeply, go after it, be passionate. Don't let things that look impossible stop you Rebuilding Jerusalem. Nehemiah looked impossible. Rebuilding Jerusalem Nehemiah looked impossible, and then he went after it and then it became possible. I think there's issues that we all face and the enemy's trying to dissuade us.
38:38
Romans 5 says this we can rejoice when we run, and I'm going to land it with this one, romans 5. Okay, so you can turn to verse 3 if you're somewhere where you can flip your phone or Bible or whatever. We can rejoice when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance man. That's a whole other thing. We won't get into that. Endurance man this is something we need.
39:05
Hebrews talks about endurance. You've got to have endurance. Paul talks about it. Endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. This is so good and this hope will not lead to disappointment, for we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love when we were utterly helpless. Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners. That's it. Christ came at just the right time and we can rejoice Now. You know, this would be one of those scriptures I'd like to take out, james 1,. Same thing Going into trials and problems and issues, you know, develops endurance and character, but that's the key, that's where we live, that's who we are. Jesus wins the victory Bottom line. So we get discouraged, we get disappointed, we get hit, stuff happens. We have to remember our identity is in Jesus Christ.
40:23
Hey, thanks for being with me today on the Brave Men podcast. I always get fired up when we've got great guests, but I also like having time with you and me and just hanging, talking through the things of God. I had a birthday recently, sat for dinner one evening with some friends and we just got talking the things of God. You know, you just, I mean, we went for a long time Okay, we're old enough that we did boys and girls, you know, like guys on one end of the table, girls on the other end and so we did that. But I mean, as men, we talked some hockey, we talked some other things, but where we ended up? Man, we were just talking about the power of God, the Spirit of Christ, we were talking about grace. We were talking about life changes.
41:14
We got into one of our friends, eric. He had a friend who had passed away of a heart attack and ministered into that. Talked about what it means, then to have a vision for your life. Talked about what it is to walk through life and understand that this is such a gift from God. Man, you need to be in community, bro. You need to be in community. You can listen to podcasts, you can sit in your underwear and watch church online, whatever, but you need to be in community. You need friends, you need brothers, you need guys. I had a phone call this morning. Well, I got with one guy and then after that I had another friend call working on some things for the ministry and he just called to encourage me in it. Man, you need that. We need that kind of thing. We need that kind of brotherhood.
42:09
Cmnmen website hashtag CMN brotherhood something I use on all my social media Look me up, it's Paul Louis Cole, l-o-u-i-s. Paul Louis Cole and on socials different places. I don't know all the things. I think Instagram's the one that mostly is there. Thanks for being with me. Remember this hope is alive. Hope has a name. Hope's name is Jesus. Love you, man. I'll see you next time for part two of Identity.
42:44 - Speaker 2
Find books and resources for discipleship and parenting at cmn.men. That's cmn.men. Your host has been Paul Louis Cole, president of Christian Men's Network, and if you haven't yet, please make sure you subscribe to the Brave Men podcast wherever you find podcasts or download it. Thanks for hanging with us today. We'll see you next time on Brave Men. Brave men.
Hi, this is Paul Louis Cole and you're listening to the Brave Men podcast, fired up today, because I have you and me together just to ourselves. That's awesome. So I don't know if it's you, timothy Meza, working out or Gerald Don, wherever you may be today. Bojo, you're on the road someplace. Bob, you're driving to Firestone Dealership in Flagstaff. Wherever you are, I'm thrilled you're here with me today. I'm fired up. I'm holding in my hands the book Identity and this thing. This is.
00:52
For some time we've spoken about identity. We have a lot of it in the book Bartender, the book Daring, the book Strong Men in Tough Times about Daniel. We have a lot of, but we've never produced a book that's called Identity and I think sometimes we just have to say it, we just have to put it out there. What's the book about? It's about identity and so Finding the Real you and why it Matters. It's available now. It's out. This is the author's edition. It's out now and then it comes out in hardback in a couple months. But cmnmen, cmn. Don't go to CNN, not going to get much help there. Christian Men's Network, cmnmen. And so, holding this thing fired up, it's got the great cover by Bryce, who did the cover on this thing. It's great Fingerprint, identity, finding a new rule, you and why it matters and what you allow to define you will determine your destiny.
01:54
Definition matters. Out of definition comes your decisions, how you define yourself, how you define others, how you define God and the issue. Let me just hit it right here. And you're going to have a lot of stuff to write down. So I know if you're driving, you're working out whatever. Go back, listen to some of it, look in the show notes, find the little sections and write some stuff down, or just get the book, or just get the book or just get the book. But there'll be some things that I share that are probably I don't know, they're just sidebar stuff, aren't in the book.
02:33
But chapter five is a fulcrum point. And then the beauty of this book and it's what we spent the most time on, frankly is 40 days of affirmations. Here's day 32. Day 32, 2 Timothy 1-7,. For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love and self-discipline. So it's read, think, speak every day. So read is that.
02:59
Then think is there's three paragraphs about that scripture because the Holy Spirit lives in you and gives you his power, love and wisdom. You do not live as a victim of fear. You are not timid, but bold in Jesus. So you're meditating on it. Read the scripture, meditate on it. He gives us power and love, and then our part is to live in self-discipline. It's not free. There's some work to be done, and that's a word for us today, isn't it? Everybody wants something. You want to live bold? Then you must discipline your life. Read the Bible, hang with brothers, pray often, help others, encourage people and be in community.
03:43
The more we walk in faith, the greater our courage, boldness and bravery. It's like having a muscular big brother that showed up on the field when someone was trying to bully you. We're stronger when we know we have backup. I mean, think about that. Think about how bold you are when you know the guy behind you can take anybody you're looking at. That's boldness and that's who we have in Christ.
04:10
Okay, so then there's the read think and speak. Now there's 40 of these. They're awesome. And then the speak is say it out loud and then say it during the day. So here's the speak, page 114 on day 32.
04:26
I will not walk in fear today. Jesus is with me. I am becoming a brave man. I will not walk in fear. Today Jesus is with me. I am becoming a brave man and rather than just saying I am a brave man because that is part of the definition, I am becoming a brave man because that is part of definition. I am becoming a brave man because we are in process. So we're going to go through that today cmnman tools and resources for discipling men, discipling your family, and for overcoming the enemy and the stuff that stops us and the stuff that stops us.
05:03
Man, you know it's so easily uh easy to get distracted. So back on definition. And what I meant was not me right now, I know I get. I get sidebar and then sidebar to my sidebar. I had coffee this morning with a friend and we were talking about something. I said, oh yeah, here's a little sidebar on that guy. And then this there was a sidebar on the sidebar because that guy was connected to somebody else. We did find our way back, but you know it's also part of conversation and having coffee with a friend and a brother where you can talk about some things and then actually spend a few minutes getting a little deeper into it. So definition produces decisions. Decisions produce your destiny. All behavior follows belief, what you believe about God, yourself and others.
05:56
So identity is the story you tell yourself about yourself. The story you tell yourself about yourself. And, by the way, we're doing this on Monday Night Men, which is about an eight-part, seven or eight-part, eight-week series that we're doing on YouTube and Facebook Christian Men's Network, facebook and it's called Identity. Good luck for CMN Monday Night Men, identity and I think we just finished the third week as I'm doing this now, but it's a great series because we really get into some things about it.
06:39
Identity the story you tell yourself about yourself. And most men are telling themselves a story that somebody else wrote the lyrics to man. Every time I share that, you know, and I speak at a lot of places. I think I've spoken I tried to add it up, it was about 92 sessions so far in five months this year and speaking, ministering, but every time I say that everybody goes. Oh yeah, I was with Skyler Louis and his Rise Up Kings. He had an intensive for pastors and I said that.
07:20
I said most men are living a life that somebody else wrote the lyrics to and they all went oh man. And then I said this how many of us are counseling men, or how many of us ourselves are actually in professions that we didn't choose. It wasn't like something that we thought, oh, this is what I'll be when I grow up. It was just we had a friend, you know, who was working with a particular, like maybe he's a welder and he goes hey, I can get you on with this group. Well then, we get on with that group, we start making an income, get married or whatever the case may be, get into our career, and all of a sudden we find ourselves we're 10 years into it and we can't change, like that's our job now.
08:08
And the problem with that is that most of us as men, identify ourselves, define ourselves, based on what we do with our hands. And that's the age-old issue. Because really, our definition we'll get into it a little bit here in a little bit on the second part Our definition is found in Jesus Christ. That's who we are. When we become a follower of Christ, our definition changes, because now Christ is the center of my life, I live in Him, he is in me, and now that's who I am, my definition is I'm a follower of Jesus Christ. So when it comes to politics, government, profession, job, business, hobbies, family, anything in life, everything is a subset to who I am. My identity is I'm a follower of Jesus Christ.
09:07
Now, that's a heart thing. Proverbs 4 says guard your heart, because out of your heart comes your life. Man, this is huge and we got into it in the book Just a Bartender talking about Nehemiah. But it's huge because out of our heart, you see, the heart has cell memory. Your deepest hurts and your highest highs are within the cell memory of your heart. It's fascinating how medical science continually comes around and proves the Bible. You know, as in like conception is the start of life. We know that's true.
09:50
Now You're not a person just at the moment you're birthed. You've been a person for nine months or eight and a half, or nine and a half or whatever the case may be. You know, when you're born in Japan, you're actually born as one year old. I know Doug Stringer, born in Japan, and I'm like Doug. I don't know if we just celebrated your 50th or your 51st. Maybe I don't need to give you a gift because you were already 50 last year. So because he was born when he was born, he was one year old. So at what we would call one year old in a lot of our Western culture it's two. So all that to say that your heart is the center of who you are. Your hands will do what you put in your heart.
10:43
Now we define a man based on what he does with his hands. Right, that's how we do it. So here we are. Let's say that I'm Manny and I'm in construction. Somebody says, hey, where are you from? Well, I'm from Arlington. Okay, and what do you do? I'm in construction. And now we begin to slot that guy oh, construction really. Yeah, I own a company, fantastic. So now we begin to kind of put this person in a place and begin to understand who he is based on those criteria.
11:20
The issue is that's not really who he is. That's what he does, which comes out of who he is. All right. So the issue with identity and the reason that you and I need to be continually in process is so that our heart becomes congruent with the Word of God, the Spirit of Christ and the breath of the Holy Spirit that's in us. Because if we're not careful, we identify ourselves by what we do with our hands. Not careful, we identify ourselves by what we do with our hands. And if you identify yourself by what you do with your hands and you've been in a job for 10 or 15 years and you really don't like it that much. It's just, I don't know, it's just the thing I got into. Then your identity actually, you lower your self-worth based on that identity that you do with your hands. But we'll see it in chapter 5 in the book Identity, a man's self-worth is not based on what he does with his hands, but who he is in his heart.
12:23
I go back to Eliab. Eliab was the older brother of David, so Samuel is tasked by God. And this is really cool. This is a little okay. This is a sidebar on the sidebar. You ready, david, david, when Samuel prays because Saul is jacked up, he's a mess, right. So he's into divination, he's not following God. And Samuel's like man Lord, we screwed up, like we messed up when we made this guy king. And God's like no, you guys chose him, you chose him. You thought he looked like a king. So Samuel is okay and he's praying and God says don't worry, samuel, I have found a man. Check this out, check this out. I have found a man. After check this out, check this out, I have found a man after my own heart. Now this is really cool.
13:16
Go back to 1 Samuel. Read this part. It says I found a man after my own heart. Now, when God tells Samuel this, he's not like on the road to Jesse's house, which is the father of David. He's not on his way there to Bethlehem, he's actually somewhere. Maybe he's in Jerusalem, maybe he's up in Capernaum, maybe he's walking by the Sea of Galilee and he's praying. He's going. Man, this is a mess. God says to him I found a man after my own heart. Let's just say that, david, at this point, let's say this is a few years before he gets anointed as king, which happened when he was 13. So let's say he's 10 years old.
14:01
Now think about a 10-year-old boy. He's the youngest of eight boys. What is he doing? Well, at 10, as the youngest of eight boys, he's bugging the heck out of his older brothers. He's out there with the sheep. He's out there with the livestock. Whatever the case may be, david, you're supposed to be taking care of those chickens. Ah no, I guess you know. He's all sidetracked with stuff. He's throwing rocks at things. You ever been to a baseball game and watched a 10-year-old, nine and 10-year-olds, and there's always one kid that's in the outfield, that's spinning like he's turning around, he's looking in the back and his parents are yelling pay attention. And he might be in one part of the field where very few hits come out. So he's just kind of thinking about different things and to try to keep them engaged is part of the job. I coached that age, coached Little League because my boys were in it and love that part of our lives. But coaching that and trying to keep those guys engaged, man, that's half your world as a coach. Now think about 10-year-old David. All right, he's out there. Now dial back to what I just said.
15:17
God said to Samuel I have found a man after my own heart. Who's he talking about? He's talking about 10-year-old David. Ephesians chapter 2, verse 10 says before you were born, god designed you for good works, man. This is good stuff because this is what brings our heart hope.
15:43
You may be in a job in which you feel like, yeah, this is going nowhere. But let me tell you what that job does. That job pays for you to be able to go on a Tuesday night and help the youth group. That job helps pay for you to be able to take your wife and go on a date night once a month. Whatever the case is, that job helps provide funding when you tithe. That helps the church minister to widows and orphans.
16:16
Think about what that job actually does. Don't think about it in terms of your definition. Think about it and what it produces. That's why you show up 15 minutes early. That's why you do excellent work. You might be cleaning swimming pools, but I want you to know that there is a holiness in that work, because that work is providing not only the people that own the company, not only the people you're working with, not only are they sustained and able to do things that help the community, but you are now in a position to be a blessing to your pastor, to be a blessing in your church.
16:57
Don't look at a job and say, well, just a dead-end thing. Don't dial your life back when you hit 45 and just say, well, I'm in this for 20, I'll do another 10, and then I'm out. No, look at it as the hand of God working on your behalf and we are able to do some things. So now let's go back. Samuel says I found—God says to Samuel I found a man after my own heart. Ephesians 2, verse 10,. Before you were ever born. God designed you for good works and that you would be blessed in them. So you were designed to do great stuff. It may not be the job you do with your hands, but it is my friend who you are in your heart.
17:50
Bro, I hope you're having a cup of coffee by now. I mean, maybe you're working out, that's good. Have some water. I got some coffee here with me and this is good stuff because this sets us free. This just puts us in a place where I can say, okay, my life is not about just this crap that's going on around me. I mean, I looked at the.
18:12
I read I've got news aggregation. So I've got aggregators. I've got three different news sources I look at probably four or five. You know, do my quiet time, read through my you version, whatever I'm doing at the time, read a couple other things in the books. I'm reading right now and reading a Joseph Prince thing actually right now and you know.
18:37
And then a Leonard Sweet book that is just so amazing, quantum Spirituality. So go that, and then I'll hit these news sources. Bam, bam, bam, bam, bam. And I mean everything's either crisis or this is blowing up. This thing's happening AI out of control.
19:00
Whatever the case may be and I can take all of that and subjugate that to this that God's will is going to be accomplished, that Jesus Christ and his kingdom will be established on the face of the earth, and that every knee and tongue, every knee, will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. That's the end game. So my process in the middle of it I may have stress, may have issues. I can remember some Thursday nights trying to make payroll on Friday at noon. Lord, father, I've got to—I mean there is stress in life, there's issues, there's problems, there's situations, but in the midst of it we are men of hope. We are men that know that God's got the end game, that the Holy Spirit comes, that Acts 2.17 is real. In the last days God says I will pour out my spirit on all flesh. That stuff's real.
20:03
Back on David. So David, 10 years old, and God tells Samuel I found a man after my own heart. He's speaking into the future of David's life. God, this is what a father does. This is what you do with your son or your daughter. You speak into their future, not just hey, you can be anything you can be. You can be anything you want to be. No, if the guy's not 6'8", he's not going to the NBA. Okay, there's some 6'2 guys. What's that guy? Steph Curry? So you know, I mean, I understand that, but if the guy's not, you know, if he's not a player by the time he's 13, 14, 15, he's not going to the NBA, all right. So you can't tell him hey, you can be anything you want to be. No, you can't be that. But you can be everything you were placed on earth to be. You can't.
21:07
Let me give you a definition of success. Success is to fully satisfy your personal design. Write it down, think about it. True success, authentic success, is to fully satisfy your personal design, which you were placed on earth to be.
21:28
So now here's David. He's out there, 10 years old. Maybe he's thinking, hey, someday I'll do this, someday I'll do that, whatever that thing is that a young man would think of in those days. But God's already marked a man, he's already got something that he's designed him for. So, at 13 years old, samuel shows up. Jesse says hey, one of you is going to be king. Certainly wouldn't be you, david, you can go back out to the field. And Jesse looks at excuse me.
22:01
Samuel looks at Eliab, the oldest of the eight boys, says, oh man, this guy looks like a king. And this guy looks like a king. And this guy, I think this guy's got it, and all right, good, because I'm sure there's going to be a feast, there's going to be food, there's going to be whatever. And it's like, all right, we can eat and barbecue. Come on. God says to Samuel no, that's not the guy. Samuel's like what? Yeah, that's not the guy. You see, samuel, you look on the outside, but I look on the inside. You look on the hands of a man, I look on the man's heart.
22:48
All right, now we're back into the whole stream of identity, which is it's not based on what you do with your hands, it's who you are in your heart. We pray for favor, we desire favor, we go give me favor. I love what we wrote in page 42. Favor always attracts a fight. Favor always attracts a fight. Favor always attracts a fight.
23:16
Think about and we go back to the very start of this book, identity, when we talked about the life of Christ and every attack on Jesus. Remember he was in fact, it says, after he was baptized by his cousin John. It says the Holy Spirit forced him out, drove him out. It's another translation. In other words, the Holy Spirit said hey, you're going here 40 days, 40 nights, you're going to man up. Now You're 30. But this is the final crucible going into your time of ministry.
23:52
The attacks on Christ the three you know we won't get into this the three different temptations they're called, but there are attacks on his character and they started with an attack on his identity. The whole thing's based on identity, his definition, if you are the Christ's, how satan started it, if you are the christ. And now this is where he has to lean into his definition. So what we wrote on that page page that's page six what we wrote on that page was that's page six. What we wrote on that page was definition determines decisions. But here's the key. Here's the key. And if you've got the book, circle this, your system of thinking is perfectly designed to achieve the results you're now getting.
24:46
My son, bryce, and I were talking about this yesterday. He's our producer for the Brave Men podcast. He also helps produce and shoot the Monday Night Men, in which we're doing the identity book, and he helps us with a number of things. So we also have oh, by the way, go to cmnmen and sign up for this. It's the Brave Men email Three times a week. Bam, something comes out, lifts your heart and spirit. You need it. You need a four-minute read that just stirs you up, something you can go back to, something you can share with somebody else. All right, oh, which is also the subscribe button on the podcast. Whatever you're listening to, whatever platform you're on, click subscribe. When you do that, not only do you get notifications when we have a new podcast out, which is basically every Thursday, not only do you get notified of that, but it also puts us in an algorithm with whoever the algorithm people are, and puts us at a place where we can be in front of more men. All right, okay, here we go.
25:59
Your system of thinking say it again, your system of thinking is perfectly designed to achieve the results you're now getting. Where you are today is the result of yesterday's mindset, your thinking. Your mindset is framed and energized by your definition. All right, now we pray for favor. Okay, we pray for favor. This would be a prayer that Samuel had. This is a prayer that David had. This is a prayer that the disciples had. God give us favor. Favor is the blessing of God in our lives. Favor is the power of God in our lives. God, we want favor. Now here's the deal.
26:40
Favor always attracts a fight. Jesus had favor and the enemy showed up and we went through. We go through a few people here in page 42, and I love it. Gideon had the favor of God and ended up in multiple wars. Joseph had favor and ended up in prison. Moses had favor and ended up running for his life, going up against the Red Sea and other obstacles. This guy had obstacles till the day he died. Abraham had favor and went through betrayals and went through betrayals. And man, abraham, dude, this guy talk about trials and stuff that happened. Jesus' disciples had favor and 10 of them were martyred. Mary had favor and found herself unmarried and pregnant. Favor always attracts a fight. Here's the key. Here's the key. Here's the key.
27:46
Every single one of these champions was in the middle of doing what God wanted them to do. They were not out of the will of God. I mean, you know, when Moses arrived at the Red Sea, he's surrounded, got an army behind him, red Sea in front of him and a million people going. You've screwed up, you messed up. This is you know. And Moses was fully and totally in the will of God. If any man has ever been in the will of God, it was Moses at that point in his life. So did he have a bad map? A bad cartographer? Had he missed God? No, he was exactly where he was supposed to be. Moses was faithful, ended up in a fight, and then God, in the middle of the fight, proved his power. And then God, in the middle of the fight, proved his power. I mean, nehemiah goes back and rebuilds the city of Jerusalem and ends up in a fight.
28:54
And in Nehemiah 4.14, I love this one because this is to you and me. And you got to circle it. Well, you got to get the book. Cmnmen, the book is identity. Don't just get one, get one for a friend. I had a guy put that on Facebook the other day. He says hey, I didn't just get one book, I want you to know that I got one for a friend.
29:12
Nehemiah said this, chapter 4, verse 14, don't be afraid of the enemy. Remember the Lord, who is great and glorious, and fight for your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives and your homes. Man, this is a good one. And then he instructed everybody when you hear of a fight, rush to the battle. In other words, go help your brother. When you hear the this is Nehemiah 420. When you hear the blast of the trumpet, rush to wherever it is sounding, then our God will fight for us. In other words, you go fight, god will fight for us. This is awesome.
29:51
Now let me get into chapter five. Hit some stuff. There's so much here, man, and it is so good. John 10.10, john 10.10. I continually come back to this because we have to be reminded of what's going on. When you look at these guys who had favor got in a fight. Why? Because the enemy's trying to take them out. You're in stress, you're in pressure, you've got something.
30:18
I remember one time when my youngest son Bryce, who here is our producer now. One time when, when, uh, my youngest son Bryce, who here is our producer now when, when our youngest son Bryce, we got a series of traffic tickets all in one day. Well, that was about a two day period, I guess. And by the time the third one hit, it's just like oh my gosh, are you kidding me? And there were, and they were really minor things. They were just he's in the wrong place at the wrong time. Okay, it wasn't like he was out racing somebody at all. So it's like a rolling stop, right, turn or something. You know, this is a normal everyday thing. Boom, and I hit me. It hit me.
31:02
The enemy's doing this. This is an attack on my son's psyche, on his personality, on his spirit. I got our family together, so he's 16, lindsay would have been 20. So 16, 17, 20, my wife and I got the five of us together and I said this is an attack on Bryce. And I laid hands on Bryce. I'll never forget that.
31:28
I was sitting on the couch in the family room where we lived on Shady Creek Lane and put my hands on him. I said this is an attack on Bryce. I said, bryce, this is an attack on you. It's not just you messing up so that you feel bad, messing up so that you feel bad. This is an attack on you. The enemy's trying to dissuade you from becoming everything God designed you to be. And we prayed together. We prayed over him, and I continually come back to that and to times like that where I've recognized that this moment, this is an attack on my family, not just me. Our family, our ministry, everything we do.
32:17
This is an attack right now, whether it's somebody said something, or it's a temptation, or whatever it may be, this is an attack, you see, like the temptation for pornography. When you're tempted with that, if you are, if you're tempted with that, that's not just the enemy trying to get you to do something where you feel, ah, you know, I shouldn't have done this. Whatever that is the enemy trying to take you out. John 10.10,. The thief comes to steal, kill and destroy. Jesus is saying this, but I have come to give you life, and life to the fullest, and one of the things the enemy wants to destroy is your identity. The thief comes to steal, kill and destroy. So if he can get you into a temptation place where you mess up, one of my favorite scriptures is Psalm 37, 23, and 24.
33:17
And Psalm 37, 23, and 24. Let me pull my Bible open. I was in the book of Acts. I'm going to go back here under the Ps, Psalm 37. Dad joke, sorry. Psalm 37, 23, and 24.
33:34
What's it say? Look at this. The Lord directs the steps of the godly. This is a New Living Translation. The Lord directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives and though they stumble. Another translation says when they stumble, they will never fall, for the Lord holds them by the hand. It doesn't say if you stumble, it says when you do so.
34:01
One of the things the enemy tries to do is basically put condemnation or shame on us, saying oh hey, you messed up. I guess you don't measure up, and we begin to judge ourselves by an external response to internal temptation and we messed up and we put ourselves down and then we're basically like, well, I don't know, man, maybe I can't do this thing. Yes, you can. You know why? Because the Spirit of Christ is in you If you're a follower of Jesus Christ. The Bible says the same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead lives in you, bro, lives in you. Man, if we were having a cup of coffee sitting here at a craft coffee place Bon Jovi someplace down the corner, I'd be as adamant right now. This is when my voice would get a little loud and when my wife would go. You want to chill? Because, man, this thing, the enemy, just kicks our butt and tries to tell us our definition is something we messed up. Tries to tell us our definition is something we messed up. That's not my definition. I am not defined by the things I struggle with. I'm defined by the fact I'm a passionate pursuer of the pleasure of his presence, the power of God, his presence. I'm a pursuer of that and that's what defines me.
35:23
Chapter 5. Man, I don't know if we got to that or we'll get to it the next time, but the bottom line is this there was a man in chapter five. You can read it in Mark, chapter five. I'll hit it in full the next time. But the bottom line is this man is across a lake, across a lake. It's in chapter five of the book, identity. In fact, I'll hit it the next time. I'll hit it in full. I'll tell you why because I like the five points that are in this. I like the points of it. Jesus revealed the true intent of enemy, of the evil. Jesus showed the value of one person's life. Go tell somebody. Jesus cared about messed up people. Man, this is just such good stuff. Jesus came as hope. Hope has arrived, hope's name is Jesus, and so, okay, here we go. So I'll finish that next time. So this is going to be part two. So this is part one, identity, and it has been great hanging out talking about it.
36:32
Cmnmen, for all the tools you need. Thank you for being a partner with us. Because you're a partner, we've been in Egypt. We've been in 13 countries this year, personally, I have and traveled 98,000 miles because you're generous. Now here's the thing Every single day, somewhere in the world, there are men going through maximized manhood identity. Strong men in tough times, courage, strong men in tough times, courage. Every single day, 980,000 men, plus the men in China every month, going through the materials of the Christian Men's Network, cmnmen. Thank you for being a monthly partner, thank you for being a friend, thank you for giving Now let me finish with this the purpose that God because we're negative by nature the purpose that God put in your life.
37:32
You've got to make it a passion of your life. It's easy to look at something and go well, I don't know. I don't know if we can do it. You know that's why negativity in advertising is so powerful, because we're negative by nature. But if God has a purpose for you and puts that in your life, it needs to become your passion. You know, god will give you the strength. Okay, he gives you the strength, god will perform. But you have to do some lifting. We've got to discipline ourselves. That's why we need a place to get away. Listen to podcasts like this. Focus deeply, go after it, be passionate. Don't let things that look impossible stop you Rebuilding Jerusalem. Nehemiah looked impossible. Rebuilding Jerusalem Nehemiah looked impossible, and then he went after it and then it became possible. I think there's issues that we all face and the enemy's trying to dissuade us.
38:38
Romans 5 says this we can rejoice when we run, and I'm going to land it with this one, romans 5. Okay, so you can turn to verse 3 if you're somewhere where you can flip your phone or Bible or whatever. We can rejoice when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance man. That's a whole other thing. We won't get into that. Endurance man this is something we need.
39:05
Hebrews talks about endurance. You've got to have endurance. Paul talks about it. Endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. This is so good and this hope will not lead to disappointment, for we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love when we were utterly helpless. Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners. That's it. Christ came at just the right time and we can rejoice Now. You know, this would be one of those scriptures I'd like to take out, james 1,. Same thing Going into trials and problems and issues, you know, develops endurance and character, but that's the key, that's where we live, that's who we are. Jesus wins the victory Bottom line. So we get discouraged, we get disappointed, we get hit, stuff happens. We have to remember our identity is in Jesus Christ.
40:23
Hey, thanks for being with me today on the Brave Men podcast. I always get fired up when we've got great guests, but I also like having time with you and me and just hanging, talking through the things of God. I had a birthday recently, sat for dinner one evening with some friends and we just got talking the things of God. You know, you just, I mean, we went for a long time Okay, we're old enough that we did boys and girls, you know, like guys on one end of the table, girls on the other end and so we did that. But I mean, as men, we talked some hockey, we talked some other things, but where we ended up? Man, we were just talking about the power of God, the Spirit of Christ, we were talking about grace. We were talking about life changes.
41:14
We got into one of our friends, eric. He had a friend who had passed away of a heart attack and ministered into that. Talked about what it means, then to have a vision for your life. Talked about what it is to walk through life and understand that this is such a gift from God. Man, you need to be in community, bro. You need to be in community. You can listen to podcasts, you can sit in your underwear and watch church online, whatever, but you need to be in community. You need friends, you need brothers, you need guys. I had a phone call this morning. Well, I got with one guy and then after that I had another friend call working on some things for the ministry and he just called to encourage me in it. Man, you need that. We need that kind of thing. We need that kind of brotherhood.
42:09
Cmnmen website hashtag CMN brotherhood something I use on all my social media Look me up, it's Paul Louis Cole, l-o-u-i-s. Paul Louis Cole and on socials different places. I don't know all the things. I think Instagram's the one that mostly is there. Thanks for being with me. Remember this hope is alive. Hope has a name. Hope's name is Jesus. Love you, man. I'll see you next time for part two of Identity.
42:44 - Speaker 2
Find books and resources for discipleship and parenting at cmn.men. That's cmn.men. Your host has been Paul Louis Cole, president of Christian Men's Network, and if you haven't yet, please make sure you subscribe to the Brave Men podcast wherever you find podcasts or download it. Thanks for hanging with us today. We'll see you next time on Brave Men. Brave men.
