Manliness: As Taught by Teens

Yes, I will admit to you right now that a bunch of teen boys taught me to be a man. Now when I say taught, I am not meaning that they sat me down in a classroom and lectured me on what it means to be a man, but they showed me in a completely different way. Last night the teens of my youth group blessed me with an opportunity to witness manliness at its finest.

First, lets start with how these men came together to teach me how to be a man.  This past year I challenged my teens to do a special night for the opposite gender. The ladies were going to do a super bowl party for the guys and the guys were going to do a dinner and a movie for the ladies. They sounded like great ideas, but the guys just didn't seem motivated. The ladies on the other hand were incredibly organized and seem to work so hard to make sure the men had a great time. They decorated cupcakes and brought snacks, and each lady gave each guy a present. It was adorable and I loved it and I thought to myself how will the guys every make it up to the girls. The girls went all out for the guys and I could barely motivate the boys to get themselves to plan let alone actually put on the night. This dinner night seem like it was going to be a total bust. Or so I thought.

Yesterday. I witnessed a completely different side of the teens in my youth group, especially the men. The men didn't only spend the entire day decorating the hall, but I had stop them from trying to turn the parish hall into a five star restaurant.  These men didn't hold anything back. They covered the hall with led lights, they cooked a spaghetti dinner, and even made sure that every woman got a flower. Not only did all the women look like princesses, but the guys made sure each of them felt that way. Making sure the women knew they looked beautiful and completely serving them in any way possible.  To witness this was one of the most beautiful things I had ever seen.



As a man there are certain times that make you feel so manly that you need to go cut down a tree or wrestle a bear (might also be because I live in Alaska). Last night was one of those times. It wasn't because the guys were having a beard growing competition or trying to see who was the strongest. The men were just true servants to the women. They showed not only to the women, but to themselves the beauty in what it means to be a gentlemen. I not only witnessed, but learned what it meant to have a true servants heart. It wasn't from a book or a lesson taught from a teacher, but from the individuals that I am suppose to be teaching.  God's beauty comes from the most surprising places.  Tonight it happen to be a handful a teen guys.