creating cultural connections

Remember that movie What Women Want starring Mel Gibson?  Well, consider this like the book version of What Men Want with a Christian twist and biblical stories to back it up.  To all of the men out there – this book helped give me a deeper understanding and appreciation of the male soul God created and how it compliments the role of a woman.  I have met too many young men – boys – that are completely lost and use alter egos to make up for the identity they still have yet to find.  But I have also been blessed enough to meet a few good men who really showcase masculinity in the eyes of God. Women are always asking themselves, “where are the real men at?!”  and men complain that women don’t listen to them.  Well, here’s a fast read for both men and women to get a deeper understanding of the three main things a man needs: a battle to fight, a beauty to rescue and an adventure to live.

I’m not going to spoil the book for you, so you’ll have to read it for yourself to find out all of the answers.  But I do have some afterthoughts from reading Wild at Heart.  I thought it was really interesting to see the parallels between Adam and Eve’s fall from original sin and how it pervades throughout society today. If you look at Genesis, Adam is right next to Eve when she is tempted and reaches for the apple.  What does Adam do? Nothing.  That’s exactly the point.  Yes, Eve made the mistake of believing a lie, but Adam should’ve come to her defense instead of just standing there.  How many women are in harmful, threatening, or hurtful situations and where are the men to stand up for them?  Eve then took a bite of the apple and offered it to Adam.  This was a moment where Eve was already fallen from taking the apple and what does Adam choose to do?  He decides that he’d rather fall and be with Eve than be alone.  How many men out there rely on Eve for their happiness?  How many men continue chasing after Eve out of their fear of being lonely?  And then when God asks Adam what happened, what does Adam say?  He says Eve did it, removing accountability from himself.

But let’s remember that men aren’t the only ones with faults. Women need to be accountable as much as men do and we often don’t given enough credit to the great qualities (some) men have. I learned from this book that deep within a man’s soul he is thirsting to live an adventure. That’s why the book is called Wild at Heart, duh. Many men in our world are either too passive or living a prosaic version of this book called Bored at Heart. Think about it. This society has given men a “system” of how to live: go to school for 18 or more years, get a high-paying job, and raise a family. Where does the adventure part fit in? Where is the wilderness to explore? Jesus had been in the wilderness for 40 days and it was there that he gained strength, reinforced his identity, and more importantly, grew closer to God. If men don’t ever go into their own wilderness then they will never know how to navigate their own way nor will they ever be able to lead a lady through it.

Lose yourself in the wild and you will live. Or live in this world that makes you believe you’re wild and lose…